This is going to be item #9 on the Town Council Agenda for Tuesday May 28th; the meeting itself begins at 6:30PM
There is no way to be certain when the item will come up and it may be taken out of order; if you have any interest at all on this I would suggest you attend the meeting.
Saturday, May 25, 2013
Public Information meeting with State of Connecticut Department of Transportation regarding the Wallingford Railroad Station Relocation
Thursday, May 23, 2013
Outdoor dining: a palatable concept; Ordinance would extend hours, amend ‘archaic thinking’
As published in the Record Journal Thursday May 23, 2013
By Andrew Ragali
Record-Journal staff
aragali@record-journal.com
(203) 317-2224
Twitter:@AndyRagz
WALLINGFORD — Town councilors said Thursday that they believe proposed changes to an outdoor dining ordinance will help downtown businesses attract more patrons.
“Let’s loosen it up a little bit to promote downtown businesses,” said John Sullivan.
A public hearing will be held Tuesday on the repeal of an ordinance that prohibits restaurants with outdoor seating from using umbrellas bearing the names of producers of alcoholic beverages. The new ordinance would also allow patrons seated outdoors to order drinks without ordering food, and to drink out of bottles.
The new ordinance also would extend outdoor dining until midnight. Currently, outdoor dining is supposed to end at 11 p.m. “It was archaic thinking,” Town Councilor John LeTourneau said of the ordinance enacted in 2004. Restaurant owners have voiced their concerns previously, he said.
“I assume it’s a good move for businesses at this point,” Mayor William W. Dickinson Jr. said. “I don’t see that it’s harmful.”
The proposed changes were approved by the Town Council Ordinance Committee on April 4. The committee is co-chaired by Craig Fishbein and Vincent Cervoni. The entire Town Council must vote on the issue after the public hearing.
Cervoni said Thursday that the ordinance change doesn’t only cover outdoor dining areas that serve alcohol. The revision clarifies how far an outdoor dining area can protrude onto a sidewalk.
The revision states that there must be enough space on the sidewalk to comply with the Americans with Disabilities Act. Town Council Chairman Bob Parisi said proposed revisions “make the ordinance a little more business friendly.”
“We certainly don’t want to work against our businesses,” Parisi said.
In March, Cheryl Milot, owner of Gaetano’s Tavern on Main, offered her concerns to the committee. She argued that outdoor dining should be allowed past 11 p.m.
“There are times that we have to tell people, ‘You’ve got to come in now,’ “ Milot said at the time. “We do have people who come, have dinner and linger and have a couple more cocktails.”
Councilor Nick Economopoulos said Thursday that the changes will encourage business.
“I don’t see our town as being too rowdy,” he said.
Councilor Jason Zandri said the town should not be overly restrictive about drinking in outdoor dining areas.
“I definitely support it when I look at what other towns allow,” he said.
Photo by Dave Zajac courtesy of the Record-Journal
Patrons of Gaetano’s Tavern on Main enjoy a table outdoors Wednesday in downtown Wallingford. An ordinance being considered in town would, among other things, allow patrons seated outdoors to order drinks without ordering food, and to drink out of bottles.
Thursday, May 16, 2013
MY TAKE - Wallingford budget passes with additional cuts
So as two points of reference you have the blog post I put up on Monday May 13th titled Wallingford Budget to be decided upon at the 5/14 Town Council Meeting and the story that ran in the Record Journal on Thursday May 16th titled Wallingford budget passes with additional cuts.
For clarification purposes from the article I am going to first address the following:
Town Councilor Jason Zandri, who supported Sullivan’s amendment, said increasing the tax rate to balance the budget instead of cutting education money would only mean an additional $5 a month for the average household.
“The lesser of the two evils here is to charge a little more in taxes,” said Zandri, a Democrat.
I want to have full context and explanation around this because as printed it is not fully clear.
The comments I made of "an additional $5.00 a month per average household" would be the TOTAL additional taxes charged IF we saved the additional Board of Education cuts AND included the increase in taxes that Mayor Dickinson already approved.
Mayor Dickinson approved $46.00 a year of additional taxes for median assessed homeowners and we were discussing an additional $14.00.
The "lesser of two evils" (further tax increase) comment came AFTER we had proposed other alternatives. I would rather pass on $14.00 of additional taxes than cut the Board of Education budget further.
We offered to raise the revenue side (income) calculations and proposed some other cuts to totally negate the tax increase and save the additional cuts to the Board of Education budget. This was voted down 6 to 3.
We offered to use an additional $280,000.00 from the rainy day fund to offset the additional cuts to the Board of Education budget. This current budget already included $4.3 million dollars from that fund allowing $6 million to remain behind - an additional $280,000.00 was easily handled. This was voted down 6 to 3.
We offered to up the taxes an additional $14.00 a year to avoid the additional cuts to the Board of Education budget. This was voted down 5 to 4.
At the end of the day, three ways to get the job done were proposed and all were rejected. It is pretty clear that the intent was to make sure this cut stayed since they went through so much trouble to keep saying "no" to every solution provided. If they wanted to correct the problem another way they could have offered it. They didn't. They had their solution already there - add further cuts to education.
If you favor this outcome then you've voted the correct people into office in 2011 and they have represented you well.
While I am disappointed with the cuts I am content with the process at how we arrived at this outcome; the people that did show up to vote, elected officials to perform this work on behalf of them and they carried out that duty.
If you think one of the other solutions provided was better or something else should have been suggested then you need to consider more like minded people when you go to vote in November.
As a follow up to that - only 37% of the registered voters showed up to vote in the last local election; the minority of about 6,000 voters is having their say for the majority of all Wallingford residents (approximately 45,000) many of whom cannot vote like the children in the school system.
More food for thought. At the end of the day, your local elections are at least as important as the Presidential ones (where Wallingford voters turn out at 85%). They impact your property taxes and the type of local services you receive, from Police and Fire to town operations. It also impacts the public school system where your children and grandchildren go to learn and become productive members of society.
It is important to vote always; to me there is more impact being one voice of 25,000 (the number of registered voters in Wallingford) over one voice of 150,000,000 (the approximate number of registered voters in the United States).
For clarification purposes from the article I am going to first address the following:
Town Councilor Jason Zandri, who supported Sullivan’s amendment, said increasing the tax rate to balance the budget instead of cutting education money would only mean an additional $5 a month for the average household.
“The lesser of the two evils here is to charge a little more in taxes,” said Zandri, a Democrat.
I want to have full context and explanation around this because as printed it is not fully clear.
The comments I made of "an additional $5.00 a month per average household" would be the TOTAL additional taxes charged IF we saved the additional Board of Education cuts AND included the increase in taxes that Mayor Dickinson already approved.
Mayor Dickinson approved $46.00 a year of additional taxes for median assessed homeowners and we were discussing an additional $14.00.
The "lesser of two evils" (further tax increase) comment came AFTER we had proposed other alternatives. I would rather pass on $14.00 of additional taxes than cut the Board of Education budget further.
We offered to raise the revenue side (income) calculations and proposed some other cuts to totally negate the tax increase and save the additional cuts to the Board of Education budget. This was voted down 6 to 3.
We offered to use an additional $280,000.00 from the rainy day fund to offset the additional cuts to the Board of Education budget. This current budget already included $4.3 million dollars from that fund allowing $6 million to remain behind - an additional $280,000.00 was easily handled. This was voted down 6 to 3.
We offered to up the taxes an additional $14.00 a year to avoid the additional cuts to the Board of Education budget. This was voted down 5 to 4.
If you favor this outcome then you've voted the correct people into office in 2011 and they have represented you well.
While I am disappointed with the cuts I am content with the process at how we arrived at this outcome; the people that did show up to vote, elected officials to perform this work on behalf of them and they carried out that duty.
If you think one of the other solutions provided was better or something else should have been suggested then you need to consider more like minded people when you go to vote in November.
As a follow up to that - only 37% of the registered voters showed up to vote in the last local election; the minority of about 6,000 voters is having their say for the majority of all Wallingford residents (approximately 45,000) many of whom cannot vote like the children in the school system.
More food for thought. At the end of the day, your local elections are at least as important as the Presidential ones (where Wallingford voters turn out at 85%). They impact your property taxes and the type of local services you receive, from Police and Fire to town operations. It also impacts the public school system where your children and grandchildren go to learn and become productive members of society.
It is important to vote always; to me there is more impact being one voice of 25,000 (the number of registered voters in Wallingford) over one voice of 150,000,000 (the approximate number of registered voters in the United States).
Tuesday, May 14, 2013
Wallingford Budget to be decided upon at the 5/14 Town Council Meeting
This is your last chance to speak on any items that come up for change on the budget; I will post the full agenda but I can tell you right now it will be a long meeting.
Please see the below information regarding the changes being proposed due to an expected $531,411.00 shortfall from state funding.
The proposal is to make changes to nine general fund expenditures, the largest of which is expected of the Board of Education budget. This is being done to prevent a further increase in taxes.
Before this shortfall of funding from the state, taxes were proposed to go up approximately $46.00 per household on an median assessed home ($191,000.00). If your property is less than this, you could have expected a smaller increase and if it was larger then it would be more.
If these changes are not made or some other changes are not proposed and adopted then the only way to gap the $531,411.00 would be to raise taxes further. To do that the tax increase would need to go up by about an additional $26.00 so the total change for this year would be about $72.00 as listed above rather than the current $46.00
Saturday, May 11, 2013
Meriden (and other towns) are about to “eat our lunch”
The much discussed Wallingford Incentive Housing Zone needs to become a part of our own reality to an area of development such as the one below outlined by Meriden (and by other towns along the rail line) or else we run the risk of not being in a position to compete with them.
In the 1970s Wallingford very wisely established the Industrial Zones and the Wallingford Industrial Park area which led to a boom of development for years. That boom has to this day bolstered the base in our Grand List but it’s pretty much at a plateau.
The Incentive Housing Zone and other transit oriented zones in and around the rail line is the next boom.
The commuter rail line for all the pro and con arguments is coming - question Wallingford needs to ask itself is “do we want to be a destination stop or a place for people to board and go elsewhere?”
Wednesday, May 1, 2013
Town Council votes big boost to mayor’s pay
As published in the Record Journal, Wednesday May 1, 2013
By Eric Vo
Record-Journal staff evo@record-journal.com
(203) 317-2235Twitter:@ericvoRJ
WALLINGFORD - The Town Council voted unanimously to increase the mayor’s salary by $12,000 at a budget workshop Tuesday night.
In Mayor William W. Dickinson Jr.’s $147.94 million budget proposal for the next fiscal year, he kept his salary at a figure that has been the same since at least 2002 — $73,140. With the $12,000 increase, the mayor’s salary would increase to $85,140.
According to the Town Charter, compensation cannot be changed during the term of the incumbent mayor. Dickinson’s term is ending after this year, so the salary for the next term can now be set.
Town Council Vice Chairman Vincent Cervoni, a Republican, said he believed the position’s salary should be comparable to what area chief executives are making.
As of 2011, Southington Town Manager Garry Brumback was paid $149,000 per year; Meriden City Manager Lawrence J. Kendzior was paid $139,000 annually and Cheshire Town Manager Michael Milone earned $131,350 per year.
Dickinson, a Republican, has repeatedly refused raises because of the state of the economy. When a motion to increase the mayor’s salary was introduced by Cervoni Tuesday night, Dickinson advised the council to be cautious.
“It might be good to wait on this until we know what’s going on with the larger picture,” Dickinson said. “There’s so much going on with the state.”
But Town Council Chairman Robert F. Parisi said he would rather the councilors vote on the motion and remove it in the future if it came down to it.
Since the town’s budget doesn’t take effect on the first day of the year, but rather in the middle of a year, the 201314 budget would only be affected by $6,000, according to Councilor Jason Zandri, a Democrat who will run against Dickinson later this year. The budget for the following fiscal year would include the entire $12,000, he said.
Cervoni said he was trying to be conscious of the taxpayers when determining how much money to increase the mayor’s salary by. He tried to choose a number that “would minimize the impact on the taxpayer,” he said. But Zandri said $12,000 is “a rounding error.”
“It wouldn’t affect taxpayers’ money at all ... it’s too low of a number to change the mill rate or affect the taxpayer,” he said.
Although the Town Council voted to increase the mayor’s salary, the $12,000 increase isn’t exactly carved in stone, according to James Bowes, the town’s comptroller.
“Just because it is in the budget, doesn’t mean it’ll happen,” he told the council.
Zandri said there are a number of ways the salary increase could change. The Town Council still has to vote to approve the budget and Zandri said Dickinson can veto it if he sees something he doesn’t like. While there is a possibility the salary increase may not come to pass, Zandri was pleased to see the other councilors supporting the raise.
“It’s a start,” Zandri said. “The time to do this is now.”
By Eric Vo
Record-Journal staff evo@record-journal.com
(203) 317-2235Twitter:@ericvoRJ
WALLINGFORD - The Town Council voted unanimously to increase the mayor’s salary by $12,000 at a budget workshop Tuesday night.
In Mayor William W. Dickinson Jr.’s $147.94 million budget proposal for the next fiscal year, he kept his salary at a figure that has been the same since at least 2002 — $73,140. With the $12,000 increase, the mayor’s salary would increase to $85,140.
According to the Town Charter, compensation cannot be changed during the term of the incumbent mayor. Dickinson’s term is ending after this year, so the salary for the next term can now be set.
Town Council Vice Chairman Vincent Cervoni, a Republican, said he believed the position’s salary should be comparable to what area chief executives are making.
As of 2011, Southington Town Manager Garry Brumback was paid $149,000 per year; Meriden City Manager Lawrence J. Kendzior was paid $139,000 annually and Cheshire Town Manager Michael Milone earned $131,350 per year.
Dickinson, a Republican, has repeatedly refused raises because of the state of the economy. When a motion to increase the mayor’s salary was introduced by Cervoni Tuesday night, Dickinson advised the council to be cautious.
“It might be good to wait on this until we know what’s going on with the larger picture,” Dickinson said. “There’s so much going on with the state.”
But Town Council Chairman Robert F. Parisi said he would rather the councilors vote on the motion and remove it in the future if it came down to it.
Since the town’s budget doesn’t take effect on the first day of the year, but rather in the middle of a year, the 201314 budget would only be affected by $6,000, according to Councilor Jason Zandri, a Democrat who will run against Dickinson later this year. The budget for the following fiscal year would include the entire $12,000, he said.
Cervoni said he was trying to be conscious of the taxpayers when determining how much money to increase the mayor’s salary by. He tried to choose a number that “would minimize the impact on the taxpayer,” he said. But Zandri said $12,000 is “a rounding error.”
“It wouldn’t affect taxpayers’ money at all ... it’s too low of a number to change the mill rate or affect the taxpayer,” he said.
Although the Town Council voted to increase the mayor’s salary, the $12,000 increase isn’t exactly carved in stone, according to James Bowes, the town’s comptroller.
“Just because it is in the budget, doesn’t mean it’ll happen,” he told the council.
Zandri said there are a number of ways the salary increase could change. The Town Council still has to vote to approve the budget and Zandri said Dickinson can veto it if he sees something he doesn’t like. While there is a possibility the salary increase may not come to pass, Zandri was pleased to see the other councilors supporting the raise.
“It’s a start,” Zandri said. “The time to do this is now.”
Monday, April 29, 2013
MY TAKE - Trail grant is a win for Wallingford
Over on the MY WALLINGFORD blog I have a post titled Trail grant is a win for Wallingford which was published in the Record Journal Sunday April 28, 2013 by Mary Mushinsky and Cathy Granucci.
Rep. Mary Mushinsky and Cathy Granucci are co-chairs of the Quinnipiac River Linear Trail Advisory Committee.
I was contacted directly as were other Councilors and I am more than willing to publicly weigh in on this ahead of the vote. Below is my response to that email:
Rep. Mary Mushinsky and Cathy Granucci are co-chairs of the Quinnipiac River Linear Trail Advisory Committee.
I was contacted directly as were other Councilors and I am more than willing to publicly weigh in on this ahead of the vote. Below is my response to that email:
Hi Catherine,
Thank you for taking the time to send this email today.
Since $1 million has already been raised through previous budget appropriations and the final million will be coming from a reimbursement grant recently awarded by the state (all we have to do is appropriate the money now and it will be reimbursed to us later) I see no real reason to not support this.
We cannot use the grant funding for anything else and if we would not accept it for the planned use, the second choice on the list would get it.
Additionally, what has already been raised through previous budget appropriations would not be redirected to any other capital / non-reoccurring work, so if it will not be used for anything else that is needed then this is as good a use as any.
While the economy slowly recovers and with the whole mindset of “getting up and moving around” as a way to combat the obesity issue I see the trail as fitting both efforts – a place to go that has limited added cost for those that use it and is fully suitable to promote wellness and exercise.
Wallingford made a commitment a long time ago to support this project. The longer it takes to complete it, the more it costs in the end. Engineering and materials go up and sometimes, as we saw with Community Lake, you reach a point when costs become unattainable and / or permission to do the work becomes denied due to legislation or some other rules and regulations.
Thank you for taking the time to send this email today.
Since $1 million has already been raised through previous budget appropriations and the final million will be coming from a reimbursement grant recently awarded by the state (all we have to do is appropriate the money now and it will be reimbursed to us later) I see no real reason to not support this.
We cannot use the grant funding for anything else and if we would not accept it for the planned use, the second choice on the list would get it.
Additionally, what has already been raised through previous budget appropriations would not be redirected to any other capital / non-reoccurring work, so if it will not be used for anything else that is needed then this is as good a use as any.
While the economy slowly recovers and with the whole mindset of “getting up and moving around” as a way to combat the obesity issue I see the trail as fitting both efforts – a place to go that has limited added cost for those that use it and is fully suitable to promote wellness and exercise.
Wallingford made a commitment a long time ago to support this project. The longer it takes to complete it, the more it costs in the end. Engineering and materials go up and sometimes, as we saw with Community Lake, you reach a point when costs become unattainable and / or permission to do the work becomes denied due to legislation or some other rules and regulations.
If we consider the economy to be still soft, now is a better time than after it picks up speed, to get us the materials and resources necessary to build out the project. Future demand and inflation will be more, not less.
Since Wallingford has made this commitment I say we see it through to its completion as we can and as we are able.
So to reiterate what I mentioned prior – the previous budget appropriations have been set aside and we have won the grant; let’s move forward.
Friday, April 26, 2013
Sullivan on the mend, grateful for support
As published in the Record Journal on Friday April 26, 2013
By Andrew Ragali
Record-Journal staff
aragali@record-journal.com
(203) 317-2224
Twitter:@AndyRagz
WALLINGFORD — On April 11, the day Town Councilor John Sullivan walked into the Weill Cornell Medical College at New York- Presbyterian Hospital in Manhattan to have an operation for the prostate cancer he was diagnosed with a year earlier, his nerves were a wreck.
But nerves did not get in the way of a successful surgery. To the excitement of Sullivan’s family and friends, he can say “they got it all.” Sullivan says he is cancer free.
“People have been so kind to me,” Sullivan said. “I don’t deserve it.” Sullivan, who announced his condition to the public in a Record-Journal article that ran the day of his surgery, was supported before and after surgery by his wife, Sue. On the day of his surgery, Sullivan said, he was surprised that he was not wheeled into the operating room on a stretcher, as is routine on television. He remembers feeling strange walking into the room and lying himself down on the operating bed.
“You had a look of a puppy dog that was about to be euthanized,” Sullivan recalls his wife saying about his demeanor just before the operation.
Sullivan remembers being cold. Once he was unconscious, five robotic arms operated by Dr. Ashutosh Tewari did the work of removing Sullivan’s cancer through dime-size incisions. All the while, taped to his chest — over his heart — was a picture of his wife and daughter, Riley.
“For me, it was seconds,” Sullivan said of the surgery. “But it was three-and-a-half hours.”
After the operation, Sullivan was in pain. He said that during the surgery, his body was tipped so his head was far below his feet, forcing the blood from his organs. He was also pumped full of gas that made for a “very painful post-op,” Sullivan said.
Life is now beginning to return to normal, he said. After staying in New York City the Friday night after his surgery, the Sullivan family returned home to Wallingford. His wife is back to work as a full-time substitute teacher at Moses Y. Beach School. Sullivan said he’ll be resting at home for at least another week before he returns to his job at AT&T on a part-time basis. He’s also excited to soon return to his seat on the Town Council, although he’s not exactly sure when. “People didn’t elect me to hang around the house,” Sullivan said.
Sullivan said he’s heard from all his colleagues on the council, calling them a “caring bunch.”
He doesn’t see party lines on the Town Council. “I look at this as one body,” he said. Sullivan, a Democrat, is especially thankful for the support of Town Council Chairman Bob Parisi and Vice Chairman Vincent Cervoni, both Republicans. Sullivan said they have known about his illness from the beginning and have been there for him without hesitation.
“I’m very excited for him and very pleased,” Parisi said. “John and I have been friends for a long time. He’s doing well, and he’s got a good attitude and taking care of himself.”
Cervoni said his conversations with Sullivan about the recovery process have been encouraging.
“I’m thrilled that the prognosis is good,” Cervoni said. “I’m happy for him.”
Town Councilor Jason Zandri, a fellow Democrat, has stayed in touch with Sullivan via email.
“I’m happy to hear he’s doing better,” Zandri said. “It’ll be nice when he’s back up to speed to have him back on the council.”
From the experience over the last year of being diagnosed, preparing for and receiving surgery, Sullivan said he’s learned and wants to pass on that “men need to take their health into their own hands.”
A powerful experience for Sullivan came on Tuesday, when a man who was recently diagnosed with prostate cancer gave him a call to talk about what comes next.
“He was so happy to talk to someone,” said Sullivan, who referred the man to several doctors. “I know what it’s like to feel alone in this. I hope I helped this fellow.”
Sullivan is extremely thankful to his wife and daughter, and also appreciates the support of his in-laws, Bob and Ann DeMarchi, as well as the understanding of his employer.Friends such as Joe Gaetano and Shane and Chris Lachance have also been important to Sullivan, among dozens of other people.
From here on out, Sullivan will be checked every six months to make sure the cancer does not return.
“I’m just appreciative of all the support,” he said. “I do not have cancer anymore.”
Monday, April 8, 2013
PUBLIC HEARING on the 2013-2014 BUDGET
TOWN OF WALLINGFORD, CONNECTICUT
Special Town Council Meeting
WEDNESDAY
APRIL 10, 2013 - 6:30 P.M.
Town Council Chambers
PUBLIC HEARING
on the
FY 2013 – 2014 BUDGET
AGENDA
1. Pledge of Allegiance
2. Roll Call
3. PUBLIC HEARING
Ambulance/EMS Transport Fund
Animal Control
Board of Assessment Appeals
Board of Education
Board of Ethics
Board of Selectmen
Building Department
Cafeteria
Capital Appropriations Reserve
Capital and Non-Recurring
Capital and Non-Recurring Fund
Civil Preparedness
Conservation Commission
Contingency Account
Debt Services
Economic Development Commission
Employee Insurance and Other Benefits
Engineering Department
Finance Department
Fire Department
Fire Marshal
Government TV
Health Department
Inland Wetlands
Insurance-Property & Casualty
Law Department
Library
Mayor
Parks and Recreation
Pension Fund
Personnel, Pensions, & Risk Management
Planning & Zoning
Police Department
Probate Court
Program Planning
Public Utilities Commission
Public Works Department
Registrars of Voters
Six-Year Capital
Social Services Contributions
Town Council
Town Clerk
Utilities –Electric, Water & Sewer Divisions
Veterans Service Center
Youth & Social Services Bureau
Zoning Board of Appeals
Wednesday, April 3, 2013
Wallingford Budget Notice (summary information) 2013 - 2014
As published in the Record Journal Wednesday April 3, 2013
http://www.erecordjournal.com/ee/recordjournal/publink.php?shareid=206d6501c
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