Charter Revision Commission
Public Hearing
March 1, 2010
Commission Members Present: Commissioners David Balthazar, Melissa Engel, John Tuttle, Vice Chairperson Julie Ciucias, and Chairperson Terry Concannon,
Also Present: Town Clerk Sandi Wieleba
There were ten residents from the town in attendance.
Meeting Called to Order
Town Clerk Sandi Wieleba read the Call to Order for the Public Hearing of the Charter Revision Commission at 7:00 p.m.
Opening Remarks by the Chairperson
· Chairperson Concannon introduced the members of the Charter Revision Commission and explained the purpose of tonight’s public hearing was to obtain feedback from the community with regard to proposed changes to the Charter. She further stated that the commission was open to hear suggestions from the public on other areas of the Charter not included in their charge. She emphasized that the Commission was open to ideas and was available to listen to any feedback given by the public.
· She explained the timeline and process of the Charter Revision Commission.
· She stated that a Charter was a document that defined the formal organization of the town and government worked.
· She further explained that the Town Council had decided to create a Charter Revision Commission in order to review certain sections of its Charter. Chairperson Concannon stated that the Charter was adopted in 1973 and revised again in 1987. She indicated that other towns review their Charter every ten (10) years.
· She reviewed the timeframe in order to complete their charge and get a final report to the Town Council.
Vice Chairperson Ciucias stated that it was the Charter Revision Commission’s desire to be efficient and thorough when reviewing the items identified by the Town Council as outlined in their charge.
Public Comment
Doug Mackeown, 47 Keighley Pond Road, was pleased with the task being undertaken. He requested that the Commission review the reason why an elector was not allowed to vote for the maximum number of members of any board or commission from the same political party. He referred to Connecticut General Statute §9-16(a) which defines minority representation.
Don Coolican, 18 West Lane spoke on the following items:
· He supported eliminating the residency requirement for key employees in order to increase the number of individuals applying for high level positions.
· He did not support limiting the number of referenda for voting on the budget.
· He pointed out that the Board of Education had to have its budget completed by February and then the electors voted on it in May. He suggested moving the date up in case it took several referenda to pass.
· He supported staggered terms and term limits for the Town Council.
Kyle Dostaler, 56 William Drive spoke on the following:
· He supported clarifying the language under Section 4.3 so that the process would be easier to obtain the number of names needed on a petition.
· He wanted a process to be put into place for the removal of an elected official if they were convicted as a felon.
Roy Gauthier, 6 Old Marlborough Road, supported staggered terms with term limits. He also suggested revisiting this issue in five (5) years. He did not support limiting the number of referenda in order to pass a budget. He wanted to have more clarification on item #4B with regard to a threshold amount for public easements. He was also unclear on item #4C with regard to combining zoning commission and town plan commission into Planning and Zoning Commission.
Laurie Wasilewski, 202 Hog Hill Road, spoke on the following:
· She did not support limiting the number of referenda in order to pass a budget.
· She did not support staggered terms for the Town Council, but did support term limits.
Fran Klein, Bellevue Street, spoke on the following:
· She supported term limits, but not staggered terms.
· Did not support limiting the number of referenda in order to pass a budget.
· She also felt that there should be policy concerning the number of additional commissions an elected official can serve on.
Mary Ann Dostaler, 56 William Drive,
· She did not support staggered terms for the Town Council, but did support term limits.
· She indicated that she was unclear as to which section of the Charter item #4 entailed.
· She also supported eliminating the town meeting which authorizes sending the budget to a vote.
· Did not support limiting the number of referenda in order to pass a budget.
· She felt that Section 4.3 lacked clarity as to the number of names needed on a petition for enactment of ordinances.
Don Coolican, 18 West Lane, mentioned serving on the Town Council for one term and the lack of time in order to accomplish a lot due to the short learning curve. He supported a four-year term, but only with term limits.
Patience Anderson, 17 Anderson Way, thanked the Charter Revision Commission for giving the public an opportunity to express its opinion on their charge. She wanted to hear other viewpoints and the issues being debated. She supported staggered terms, but wanted to see term limits after two four-year terms were served. She felt that the only drawback was losing qualified individuals due to term limits. She also mentioned friends living in Portland which allows electors to vote on its budget twice. She indicated that this practice has eroded the turnout and enthusiasm by the voters. She did not support limiting the number of referenda in order to pass a budget.
Mary Ann Dostaler, 56 William Drive mentioned that State Statute allows 18 months for the Charter Revision Commission to review their charter. She asked why the schedule was so compressed.
Commissioner Engel stated that the Town Council did not feel the issues being reviewed warranted 18 months.
Chairperson Concannon also stated that the Town Council wished to have this issue appear on the November ballot.
Roy Gauthier, 6 Old Marlborough Road, mentioned item 3 (Section 3.1) suggested adding language that critical staff members be required to live within town or within a certain radius. He supported a ten mile radius which he felt was reasonable.
Commissioner Engel stated that this issue was a result of a Town Council member suggesting proposing that all key personnel live in town during their employment.
Fran Klein, Bellevue Street asked if the residents present tonight would be able to see the results of their input during this process. She indicated that she hoped that the changes would be written in an easy to understand style rather than containing legal jargon.
Vice Chairperson Ciucias pointed out that there were no attorneys appointed to the commission, but that the final draft would be reviewed by the town attorney.
Roy Gauthier, 6 Old Marlborough Road, suggested having public comment at one of their morning meetings for individuals working second shift.
The commission indicated that it would take this suggestion under advisement.
Patience Anderson, 17 Anderson Way, mentioned that Section 6.4 of the Charter lacked a clear procedure for filling vacancies in elective offices.
Mary Ann Dostaler, 56 William Drive, indicated that State Statute addressed this issue. She did not wish to see the Charter Revision Commission write language that would supersede State Statute.
Kyle Dostaler, 56 William Drive, indicated that the Town Attorney had given her opinion in 2005 on the issue of filling vacancies in elective office. In her opinion letter, she stated that the individual filling the vacancy would be from the same party as the vacancy.
Doug Mackeown, 47 Keighley Pond Road, asked if the public would be able to follow the process and not have to wait for the final report.
Commissioner Engel stated that the minutes were posted on the webpage.
Mr. Mackeown asked if the 10% of the voters eligible to vote in a referendum represented only registered voters.
The following two emails were received:
Mark Barmasse, 6 Tiffany Court, supported term limits for the three boards, Town Council, Board of Finance and Board of Education, and felt it should be equal – either all three boards had terms limits or none of them.
Dean Markham, 8 Huckleberry Acres, asked the CRC to review the following:
· Town Council
o Extending the length of terms
o staggered terms
o Enlarging Town Council for added duties of Board of Finance
o Specific candidate for position of Town Council chair (de facto mayor)
· Eliminate Board of Finance
· Electing members to Planning & Zoning Commission rather than appointing
· Evaluate appointment process – who makes appoints
o Evaluate approval process
· Referenda –
o Do we continue the automatic annual budget referendum?
o If not, would there be a sufficiently easy method to call for a budget referendum?
o Process and qualification (number of people petitioning)
· Preservation of Town records
· Creation of new boards
· Filling vacancies – spell out procedures
The Charter Revision Commission thanked the audience for being present and providing feedback to the commission.
Adjournment
The meeting was adjourned until the regular meeting on March 4th at 9:00 a.m. at the Town Hall in the Eaton Smith Meeting Room.
The meeting adjournment: Motion by Commissioner Tuttle and seconded by Vice Chairperson Ciucias to adjourn at 7:50 p.m.
Respectfully Submitted
Sandra M. Wieleba, Town Clerk
Approved by vote of the Commission
3/4/2010
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