Helen Pritz Szamotula, 87, of Sandy Hook died peacefully October 8 at Connecticut Hospice of Branford, surrounded by her loving family. Her loved ones say God took her to heaven after a long and coura...
Melissa L. (Scheibel) Miller, 47, former Newtown resident, died October 6 at Regional Hospice of Danbury, while in the presence of her loving husband. She was born on May 19, 1970, in Bridgeport, daug...
Arthur "Art" Radun, 95, of Newtown, husband of 72 years to Irene (Soltes) Radun, died October 6 at Danbury Hospital. He was born in Little Falls, N.Y., April 13, 1922, a son of Wilhelmina (Semrow) and...
Deborah Ann "Debbie" Walls, 63, of Newtown died peacefully at home October 6, surrounded by family, after her battle with cancer. She was born April 30, 1954, in Bridgeport, daughter of Catherine F. a...
Carol Ann Del Vecchio, 78, of Newtown died October 7 at Danbury Hospital, surrounded by her loving family. She was born in Bridgeport, July 10, 1939, daughter of the late Edna and Richard Drew.
Mrs De...
Virginia "Ginny" Bounty Long, 63, of Newtown, died suddenly September 30.
Her loving husband of 41 years, Roland Long; her mother and stepfather, Nancy and Bob Melson of San Marcos, Calif.; her sister...
Gertrude "Gert" Buchanan Lewis, 89, of Newtown, died October 2, at her home on Bears Hill Road. She was the wife of the late George F. Lewis of Stepney, Conn.
Born in Poughkeepsie, N.Y., on April 18, ...
Michael E. "Mike" Kondrat, 66, of Sandy Hook died unexpectedly October 1, at his home. He was born in Danbury on June 10, 1951, a son of the late Margaret (Churchill) and Irving Kondrat.
Mr Kondrat gr...
Robert "Bobby Hollywood" Barresi, 69, of Jupiter, Fla., formerly of Sandy Hook, died October 3. Mr Barresi was born on September 14, 1948, in Bridgeport.
He was a retired director from Sikorsky Aircra...
Pete Barnes of Newtown died unexpectedly September 27, in his favorite chair at his home that he had built with his wife, Carol.
Mr Barnes was loved by all those who knew him. He was a devoted husband...
To add a bit more context: the adopted Borough budget was for just under $300,000 [https://boroughofnewtownct.gov/borough-of-newtown-budget-approved/]. $58,000 in legal fees (to date) means a significant cost must be shouldered by Borough residents and businesses, increasing taxes noticeably. Many of those pushing the lawsuits were not subject to the added costs because they do not reside nor do business in the Borough.
Well said. Unfortunately, we are back to more of the same and we know how this will end. However, it gives us an opportunity to question many ways in which the DTC failed residents, voters, candidates, everyone. Brandon Moore was the first candidate to voice interest in running. A strong and well prepared candidate that the town republicans did not want to run against. They made it clear they wanted Ku to be the candidate. We all know you endorse the candidate you have no concerns about. Once Ku decided to try to unseat Bolinsky again, the DTC should have done what it can do and that was choose a candidate or put a good process in place to set up forums and get the caucus over and done smoothly, fairly, and ethically. It did neither. and this is what resulted: The Young Dem Debate became a Ku strategy to claim Ku being victimized, and it backfired; Ku's previous campaign committee went with Brandon Moore in hopes of finally flipping the seat; the DTC delay in organizing any candidate forums led to an inability to get the information out to all (as we see in complaints from new residents regarding lack of information); the DTC was severely split by the caucus chaos and some did not fully participate as a result; and we are back to square one with the candidate Alex Villamil preferred, and the same old guard and the same chance of flipping the seat.
Welcome and thank you for your insightfulness. I agree wholeheartedly, however, you will soon learn that the intention is to contain participation. I believe the new residents and the new families are invaluable and hope that you will attend a DTC meeting. You will learn a great deal. Second Thursday of the Month and tonight, June 11th, 7 pm, it is at the Edmond Town Hall. : )
Mr. Ackert’s letter leaves out an important point: many of the legal expenses he references exist because of the legal challenges and complaints he and his facebook group has chosen to pursue.
It is not fair to blame the Borough Zoning Commission Chair for costs that were driven, in large part, by Mr. Ackert’s own actions. Taxpayers should understand that litigation and FOIA complaints do not appear out of nowhere. They are initiated by individuals who decide to take those matters forward.
Public officials should absolutely be held accountable, and the Borough should follow proper procedures at all times. But accountability should run both ways. If someone repeatedly challenges the Borough through legal channels, then points to the resulting legal bills as proof of poor leadership, the public deserves that context.
Reasonable people can disagree about zoning decisions, development, and procedure. However, turning every disagreement into a legal fight has consequences, and those consequences are paid for by Borough taxpayers.
Before assigning blame for legal expenses, Mr. Ackert should acknowledge his own role in creating them.
