Date: Fri 20-Dec-1996

Publication: Bee

Author: STEVEB

Quick Words:

charter-first-selectman

Full Text:

with photo : Charter Panel Weighs First Selectman's Role

B Y S TEVE B IGHAM

First Selectman Bob Cascella and former First Selectman Jack Rosenthal met

with the Charter Revision Commission last week to discuss the day-to-day

duties of the town's top administrator and show how the Charter has

effectively tied the hands of government.

Among other things, the commission is considering whether or not the town

should empower or give back authority to the Board of Selectmen or install a

first selectmen/town council form of government.

Mr Cascella reiterated his suggestion to give more power to the first

selectman, while Mr Rosenthal called for the elimination of the Board of

Selectmen.

"We don't need the middle man. We don't need the Board of Selectman," he said.

Mr Cascella said he does not necessarily endorse the idea of eliminating the

Board of Selectmen, however, he believes no matter what the town decides, it

must give that board the power to lead the town.

"If you want the Board of Selectmen to be the executive body, then empower

them, or create a chief executive officer," he said.

Both men agreed that the town charter does not allow the first selectman to

behave as a chief executive officer.

"You can't really do anything without the approval of the Board of Selectmen

or the Legislative Council," Mr Rosenthal said. "We're held accountable, yet

we're not given license to make that change or move."

"This document as it is written has tied the hands of government," Mr Cascella

said.

As the men pointed out in the charter, the first selectman can appoint people

to various positions, but only with the approval of the selectmen and/or the

council. They said the transfer of money is another process that takes too

much time to complete and could simply be done by the first selectman.

"A chief executive officer shouldn't have to act that way and should have some

responsibility of his own," Mr Rosenthal said.

Mr Rosenthal said holding one selectmen's meeting a month, rather than the

usual two, is plenty. Mr Cascella concurred.

In discussing his day-to-day duties as a first selectman, Mr Rosenthal said he

couldn't dictate to a secretary so he wrote everything down on a legal pad

then came in on Saturday to do his typing.

Mr Rosenthal said he rode the streets a few times a week and often found the

hiding places of the town workers. Because the highway department had the

highest budget, Mr Rosenthal said he made an effort to get down there three to

four times per week.

Calling the job similar to that of a father confessor, Mr Rosenthal said he

received every kind of phone call, from the woman whose cat was caught in a

tree to people calling up with marital problems.

"It was a time-consuming job. You need to have good humor and good public

relations," he said.

Mr Cascella said as first selectman you never know what's going to walk

through that door.

The Charter Revision Commission will continue to debate the charter at its

next meeting January 9.