To The Editor:
The ultimate test of a probate judge is how to balance the law with compassion for the people who come before the court. For more than 20 years, Patrick Walsh has represented fiduciarie...
To The Editor:
I write to you today about an issue I've noticed in town: bike safety. As a 14-year-old, biking is something I love to do. Without a driver's license it's the fastest way to get somewhe...
To the Editor:
I would like to highlight some of the many reasons I will be voting for Daniel O'Grady for Northern Fairfield County Judge of Probate in the Republican primary on August 9. Not only is ...
To The Editor:
I urge you to turn out to vote on August 9th for our regional GOP primary for Probate Judge.
Bethel Town Treasurer and Attorney Daniel O'Grady is my choice. He's the only candidate with...
To the Editor:
I recently learned that the Newtown Parks and Recreation Department charges nonresidents $150 a year to use the town's parks. Residents do not pay the fee.
Why shouldn't nonresidents he...
To the Editor:
Now that the 41st annual summer book sale to benefit our town library has come to a successful close, the Friends would like to thank publicly the more than one hundred volunteers, town...
To the Editor:
On behalf of the parish community of St Rose of Lima, we want to thank all of you who supported our annual carnival. First and foremost, great thanks to God who blessed us with five per...
To the Editor:The Newtown Bee recently reported on the Board of Selectman's response to the Ethics Board having found David Freeman and Kathy Hamilton guilty of ethics violations. What was concerning ...
To the Editor:
We just concluded a very successful shredding event on June 25 at the middle school. Thanks to the efforts of volunteers from the Commission On Aging, Friends of Newtown Seniors, member...
CT primaries are closed to voters not registered with the party's designation. Dems can't vote in Rep. primaries and, vice versa. Unaffiliated and Independent voters cannot vote in them. Keep primaries closed!
Bruce, welcome to the conversation.
Your recent statement after the storm — admitting that you should have communicated “faster, more completely, and more personally” — was fine as far as it went. But this is not just about one storm. It is about a pattern. You ran on openness, responsiveness, and transparency, even saying that “evasive answers or silence are unacceptable in government.”
The problem is that Newtown residents have been dealing with exactly that silence from you since you were elected.
Newtown’s Emergency Management page says the town, together with the Office of the First Selectman, provides “critical public information and warning” during emergencies. The town also rolled out CodeRED cellphone registration on March 24, 2022 so residents could receive emergency information directly.
So where were you when police were searching for missing 23-year-old Kateri Doty in January? Where were you during the brush fires near the Newtown town line in April? Where were you on April 22, when state police and Newtown police were searching for two people who fled an I-84 crash and a canine search moved into the Church Hill Road area?
Residents should not be hearing about a missing person, wildfire conditions, or police tracking dogs moving through backyards from Facebook, neighbors, or kids in town. They should be hearing from their town government.
This is not really about whether you personally press the CodeRED button. Or how many task forces you have created. It is about leadership. You are the First Selectman. You are responsible for making sure the town communicates clearly, quickly, and visibly when public safety is involved.
So yes, it is nice that you have finally acknowledged the problem. But the public did not need this storm to figure it out. We have been saying it for a long time.
Bruce, you were missing when the town needed to hear from you. The question now is whether this storm finally woke you up, or whether this is just another late apology followed by more silence.
The topic may be the same but the narratives every other week differ and I appreciate the installments. Rebuttals on factual content rather than focusing on form would improve the discourse.
Congrats to all the 275 graduates.
For context...class of 2005 had 360 students, the number of graduating seniors seemed to cap out in the late 2000's in the low 400's.
