Easy Promises

To Keep

To the Editor:

First selectman candidate Bruce Walczak has promised to make local government more transparent and given examples of how he would accomplish this.

He promises to broadcast Board of Selectmen meetings to allow the residents to observe and listen. This has been in the works ever since the purchase of Fairfield Hills and the plan to renovate a building for a town hall that would include a permanent meeting room that could be set up for video. Right now, there is no permanent place for any town boards to meet. Chairs and tables have to be set up in various places right before the start of any meeting. In the past, Mr Walczak has not been very interested in observing Board of Selectmen meetings. I attended every Board of Selectmen meeting from 1994 to 2007 and don’t recall seeing him more than once.

He promises that executive sessions will be held only when absolutely necessary. According to the Freedom of Information Act, a meeting can only go into executive session to discuss personnel issues, legal matters, or negotiations for purchase or sale of real property. For discussion of any of these subjects, executive session is absolutely necessary.

He promises to establish a method for residents to sign up to receive email notifications of meetings, minutes, and emergency notices. The Police Department has an emergency notification system that calls every household with emergency notifications. Mr. Walczak is a member of the Police Commission and apparently does not know this. Also, residents would have to go online to read an email with agendas and minutes of meetings. If you are going online, you might as well just go to the town website where meeting notices and minutes have been available for several years now.

Fortunately, these campaign promises will be easy to keep.

Jan Andras

16 Poverty Hollow Road, Newtown                           August 18, 2009