I will write more later but I wanted to get the video up online today. One thing that is interesting is the $1.5 million shortfall in revenue for the 1st half of the current fiscal year. Collection of property taxes seems to have been on target. However, there was a substantial fall off in the collection of other fees and payments. The Mayor has ordered a drastic curtailment of any discretionary spending. I would expect there is going to be large shortfall of property tax collections in January.
Here is the video of the Board of Finance meeting:
Thursday, January 22, 2009
Saturday, January 10, 2009
State of the Town Address
On Tuesday, January 6th, Mayor Capone Almon gave her State of the Town Address in the auditorium at the high school. She gave a PowerPoint presentation on her accomplishments during her first year in office. The main point was that her, and her team, were spending the taxpayers' money wisely. As such, she cited examples like shutting off the heat to the unused sections of the old High School and energy saving steps taken at the rink. Watch the full, 30 minute, presentation here:
After the Mayor's speech I got responses from Ken McKay and John Finkle, both of whom are running for the Republican nomination for Mayor and Paul Thompson, the Chairman of the Town Council. Their responses are here:
On a side note, the video quality is horrible, mostly due to the lighting in the auditorium at the high school. Every time I have to video a meeting up there I get this sinking feeling in the pit of my stomach. Can the town leaders please stop scheduling anything that needs to be videotaped in a venue so bad I would prefer to videotape in a cave rather than that auditorium.
After the Mayor's speech I got responses from Ken McKay and John Finkle, both of whom are running for the Republican nomination for Mayor and Paul Thompson, the Chairman of the Town Council. Their responses are here:
On a side note, the video quality is horrible, mostly due to the lighting in the auditorium at the high school. Every time I have to video a meeting up there I get this sinking feeling in the pit of my stomach. Can the town leaders please stop scheduling anything that needs to be videotaped in a venue so bad I would prefer to videotape in a cave rather than that auditorium.
Friday, January 9, 2009
Angry Old Men at the PZC
The Planning and Zoning Commission started off the year with a bang. The Commission was holding a public hearing on a proposed zoning change from residential to a commercial zone along a section of Route 80 in Foxon. The zoning change was proposed by Tony Panico, an architect that regularly appears before the PZC on behalf of developers. A huge number of residents from the area in and around the proposed change attended the hearing to voice their displeasure. The major arguments against the change is that it would lower property values of people that wish to continue living in the zone and would cause more traffic on that stretch of Route 80. Both of those are fair reasons to defeat the proposed change. However, in the long run, I do not see how you can hold back the tide of commercial development on Route 80. Sooner or later such development is going to have to be addressed. Currently it is being handled on a piecemeal basis. One project at a time. With so much opposition it was not surprising that the change went down to defeat.
If the meeting had only been about a zoning change on Route 80 it might have been mildly interesting from a political viewpoint. However, to the delight of this writer, there are so many political back stories to this meeting that I am, almost, at a loss to know where to begin. You knew it was going to be of interest to political junkies when you had Gene Ruocco, the Democratic Town Chair, Carl Ruggiero, the Republican Town Chair, Ben Mazzucco, the Republican Chair of the ZBA, Ken McKay and John Finkle, both running for the Republican Mayoral nomination all in one room. Add in the fact that both Maturo appointee Christine Dilungo's son and Mayor Capone Almon's father own property in, or near, the proposed zoning change and you had the perfect crucible for mixing a small explosion. The explosion was in the form of a shouting match that erupted among Gene Ruocco, Ben Mazzucco and Carl Ruggiero.
If the meeting had only been about a zoning change on Route 80 it might have been mildly interesting from a political viewpoint. However, to the delight of this writer, there are so many political back stories to this meeting that I am, almost, at a loss to know where to begin. You knew it was going to be of interest to political junkies when you had Gene Ruocco, the Democratic Town Chair, Carl Ruggiero, the Republican Town Chair, Ben Mazzucco, the Republican Chair of the ZBA, Ken McKay and John Finkle, both running for the Republican Mayoral nomination all in one room. Add in the fact that both Maturo appointee Christine Dilungo's son and Mayor Capone Almon's father own property in, or near, the proposed zoning change and you had the perfect crucible for mixing a small explosion. The explosion was in the form of a shouting match that erupted among Gene Ruocco, Ben Mazzucco and Carl Ruggiero.
Tuesday, January 6, 2009
Police Commission - 12/30/2008
For your viewing pleasure we have the last video of 2008. The Board of Police Commissioners held their regular meeting on December 30th. The public portion of it was relatively short, just 16 minutes, but they were in Executive Session for a long time interviewing candidates for the Sgt position that opened up when the previous appointee decided to go back to being a regular patrolman. Watch the entire public portion of the meeting and have a Happy New Year!
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