Winter Has Its Last Laugh

By KAAREN VALENTA

Published: Aug 11, 1999 12:00 am

Date: Fri 29-Mar-1996

Publication: Bee

Author: KAAREN

Quick Words:

weather-winter

Full Text:

Winter Has Its Last Laugh

BY KAAREN VALENTA

The message on the radio was ominous.

"Attention all Fairfield County stations," said Jim Crouch, chief dispatcher

at the 911 center in Edmond Town Hall. "A winter storm watch has been issued

for Fairfield County by the National Weather Service. Precipitation as snow

and/or sleet is expected to develop across the area by mid to late afternoon

on Thursday. It will continue, mainly in the form of snow, through Friday

morning."

The warning, relayed late Wednesday afternoon by the Office of Emergency

Management's Region 1 office in Bridgeport, startled many employees in Edmond

Town Hall but it came as no surprise to area weathermen. Spring may have

officially begun on March 20 but local meteorologists have predicted there was

bound to be at least one more snow before winter truly ends.

"No way," Carole Ross said in the first selectman's office. "My deck furniture

is out already. There is no way that this is going to happen."

"This is an early April fool's joke - right?" people asked Jim Crouch, who

clutched a copy of the fax. "I'm holding on to this," he said, "because no one

wants to believe me."

By Thursday morning, meteorologist Bill Jacquemin at the Techni-Weather Center

in Danbury was predicting sleet and rain, with an accumulation of two to four

inches by mid-day on Friday.

This storm will be the 13th of the 1995-96 winter season. The last storm

dumped eight inches of snow in the Danbury area three weeks ago, boosting the

total snowfall to 106 inches, an all-time high. The previous record of just

over 80 inches was set in the winter of 1945-48.

"I keep saying that I don't think we will ever see another winter like this in

our lifetime," Mr Jacquemin said.

Mr Jacquemin said this snowfall won't stay on the ground long.

"The sun is getting stronger and warming up the ground so whatever falls is

likely to melt quickly," he said. "Temperatures are supposed to rise into the

40s on Saturday."

Town officials budgeted $230,000 this year for such winter maintenance costs

as salt, sand and overtime. So far they've spent $366,245 and the season isn't

over yet. The budget shortage will be covered by $100,000 from contingency

funds and $85,000 in state aid.

Next HRRA Household Hazardous Waste Drop-Off Event Scheduled In Newtown

Genealogy Club's Next Program To Dig Into 'Dissecting A Civil War Pension Record'

Choral Society Planning ‘Voices Of America’ Performance

Newtown Earth Day Festival Was A Success

Local Fourth Grader To Host ‘Gaming For Change’ On May 16

The editorial took no position on the budget going up or down so you're reading things into the editorial that simply aren't there. The turnout is tied to the lack of passage, in that people who came out to vote last time did not this time, indicating a lack of support on their part. Perhaps it wasn't spelled out clearly enough, but that's what the editorial was driving at, people showing lack of support by not casting a vote. The editorial did address likely concerns among voters that may have led to lack of support and lack of turnout. This lower turnout also follows increasing turnout over the past four referendums in three years (meaning it is an aberration from that), and increased turnout is something that I do push for regularly in editorials. Any disappointment you might be seeing is at the break in that trend, not at whether the budget passed or not. I'd rather see more people come out and vote "no" then not vote at all.

Lower Turnout Results In Two Budget Defeats

Clearly, property owners no longer want to bear the burden of expenses while the state does not meet it’s responsibilities. Rising costs must be addressed by actions that do not include yearly increases of property owners’ taxes. The state of CT must meet its share of the educational costs, and other costs.

Town And School Budgets Fail At Referendum

This feels like an oddly misleading headline and narrative, particularly coming from the Editorial Board. The headline "Lower Turnout Results in Two Budget Defeats" pushes a misleading narrative regarding voter turnout, and then seeks to tie the outcome of the referendum to that misleading narrative. Sure, voter turn out for this year's referendum, 18%, was lower than last year's. However, last year's turnout, 25.4%, represented the highest turnout in the most recent 10 budget referendums. If you take the time to examine turnout percentages between 2017 and 2026 (2017: 19.9, 2018: 15.7, 2019: 17, 2020: 0, 2021: 8.98, 2022: 7.7, 2023: 8.8, 2024: 15.1/17.49, 2025: 25.4, 2026: 18), this year's turnout was actually the third highest in the past 10 cycles. Perhaps the headline of this article should say "Lower Voter Turnout Than Last Year", which is more accurate, rather than creating an impression that this year's turnout is some type of aberration - a narrative that the turnout numbers, in all their binary glory, simply do not support. Further, the headline of this article appears to tie the "lower turnout" to the defeated budgets. Sure, that could be true. But, perhaps, its more likely that Newtown residents are feeling the squeeze of multiple economic influences. In Newtown, we've experienced property revaluations and increased municipal spending. Eversource continues to raise rates. The state legislature gives PURA the authority to impose Public Benefit charges that benefit a tiny percentage of the public (and subsequently burdening the rest of us). At the national level, inflation has run rampant for years and many of those costs remain high to this day. In short, the data tells a far less dramatic—and far more honest—story than the headline suggests. This wasn’t an electorate vanishing in apathy; it was a fairly typical turnout delivering an verdict that, perhaps, some at the Editorial Board didn't like. At some point, it’s worth considering that residents aren’t confused, disengaged, or misled by turnout; they’re simply doing math at their kitchen tables and concluding that “no” is the only responsible answer left.

Enjoyed the forum which only confirmed my support for Brandon Moore as the Democratic candidate to run for the state representative position. Brandon Moore did not waiver about his duty to all the people, if elected, when an issue presents itself that requires that he voice a difference of opinion for the wellbeing of Newtown residents. If Michelle Ku’s 16 years have led to her loyalty being to other elected officials, as she implied, then Newtown is going to continue to witness actions that do not protect its residents. She could not unseat republican, Mitch Bolinsky, during a Blue Wave, and once again, will not do it now. Winning that seat is critical for all. That explains why her previous campaign committee now campaigns for Brandon Moore. It explains all the endorsements he has received from local elected democratic officials. It’s why we need Brandon Moore to be the democratic candidate to run for state representative.

Second Newtown DTC, League Of Women Voters Candidates Event Planned

Appreciated the opportunity to hear from both candidates as we were present for the College Dems forum but only heard from Brandon Moore. It was an opportunity to see who can unseat the Republican incumbent and there is no doubt that Brandon Moore should be the Democratic candidate. One concerned parent posed a question about discrimination unaddressed by the school district and interestingly enough, Michelle Ku, who proudly speaks of her Board membership years, said little, while Brandon Moore passionately addressed the issue along with his experience as an Apache Helicopter Commander. This family is supporting Brandon Moore. We need change and someone who is not afraid to disagree, especially about the rising costs of living in Newtown.

Log In

Winter Has Its Last Laugh

Leave a Reply Cancel reply