Ansonia Aldermen delayed sending nearly $6 million in bonding items to a June 7 referendum Tuesday after a parade of residents complained at a public hearing that the capital improvement plan published by the city lacked enough information for voters to make a decision.
Much of the criticism came from Democrats, many of whom held prominent positions in city government before Republican Mayor David Cassetti was elected in 2013. The most pointed critique of the capital improvement plan came from Jane Della Volpe, the wife of Cassetti’s seven-term Democratic predecessor.
After the meeting, Cassetti said the Democrats were trying to make political hay out of the issue, but conceded the capital improvement plan could be “fine-tuned” to address the concerns raised during the hearing.
Aldermen are scheduled to meet again April 7 at 7 p.m. to discuss the issue.
Background
Municipalities use capital improvement plans to plan out the funding of things like building construction and equipment or land purchases over many years.
Often, cities use bonding to fund capital improvement items so the costs associated with them can be spread out over several years.
City officials have been working on a five-year capital improvement plan since last summer.
They envision a June 7 referendum at which several questions would ask residents to approve a total of $5.9 million in bonding, broken down as:
- $900,000 for the Board of Education
- $160,000 for the Ansonia Nature Center
- $250,000 for infrastructure improvements at city-owned buildings
- $1,150,000 for public safety — police, fire, and ambulance
- $1,370,000 for public works
- $2,160,000 for roads
Article continues after documents in which the spending is broken down in a little more detail.
Ansonia Capital Improvement Plan
Resolution Capital Improvements 2016
The Aldermen have also been discussing a “long-range” capital plan with more capital spending planned in each of the next five years. The five-year plan, still in draft form, totals roughly $21 million in planned spending, about $13.5 million of which would be bonded.
Comments, Concerns
In 2013, Ansonia residents endorsed about $5 million worth of capital improvements put to referendum during the November elections, a fact that the first speaker at Tuesday’s hearing, David Knapp, brought up during his comments.
“I would like to just be assured that those projects are complete or near completion prior to us going out for some more bonding,” Knapp, a former Democratic Alderman, said.
He also wondered why so much of the planned spending for 2016 – 2017 was for police, ambulance, and public works vehicles.
Why seek a 20-year bond to pay for a vehicle that will only be used for a handful of years, he asked. The sentiment was echoed by several subsequent speakers.
Later, the city’s bond counsel, Joseph Fasi, said the city could seek bonds for up to 20 years, but could seek shorter-term bonds, too.
Kevin Blake, the city’s former corporation counsel under the Della Volpe administration, also brought up the 2013 referendum.
“I think that before we bond for more projects that this administration (should) provide an accounting and status of those projects that were approved by the residents, and what is the intention of the administration in completing those projects,” Blake said.
Bartholomew Flaherty, a former chairman of the Planning and Zoning Commission, said he was “gravely concerned” with the plan, especially in light of the fact that the man who did most of the work putting it together was William Nimons.
Nimons, who had served as the city’s comptroller since shortly after Cassetti took office, was dismissed this month.
Though Flaherty said he disagreed with Nimons’ dismissal, he pointed out that part of the reason for it was Cassetti’s contention that Nimons missed a roughly $800,000 “hole” in the city’s 2016 – 2017 budget.
Shouldn’t the city figure that out before rushing to bond millions of dollars in spending?
Flaherty said voters would need more information — grand list projections, a list of streets to be paved, for example — before making an informed decision.
Eileen Krugel, who worked in the Della Volpe administration as a grant writer, pointed out that Cassetti announced last October that the city’s fund balance had increased $4 million since he took office.
“So why do we need to borrow money if we have all that?” she asked.
Former Democratic officials weren’t the only ones to speak about the proposal.
Three current department heads within the city — Police Chief Kevin Hale, Ansonia Rescue Medical Services Chief Jared Heon, and Public Works Director Michael D’Alessio — all endorsed the capital plan during Tuesday’s hearing.
Bill Phipps, a Johnson Street resident, wondered what money from the 2013 projects hasn’t yet been spent, and what the status of the projects are.
He said that the plan put out by the city was too vague for voters to be able to make an informed decision. The $2.1 million in road improvements, for example, didn’t list which roads specifically would be paved.
“You’ve got to come up with more specific items, in my estimation,” Phipps said, asking the Aldermen to delay making a decision on the plan Tuesday.
Former Mayor’s Wife Speaks
The hearing’s last speaker was Jane Della Volpe, the wife of Cassetti’s seven-term Democratic predecessor.
She also questioned why vehicles were put in the plan and wondered what the status of the city’s rainy day fund is.
“Would you have to raise taxes next year or this year if you don’t get this referendum? Anybody have an answer?” she asked.
“That will be covered in the discussion that we’ll be having on this referendum,” Phil Tripp, the president of the Board of Aldermen, replied.
“But how am I going to know to make a decision?” Della Volpe asked.
John Marini, the city’s corporation counsel, then interjected.
“We want to make those investments — ” he began to say.
“So we’re going to have to raise taxes plus this referendum,” Della Volpe said.
“No, listen to what I’m saying,” Marini responded.
“I didn’t ask you, I asked the Aldermen,” Della Volpe said. “I’m not speaking to you … I’m asking a question and no one can answer it.”
Charles Stowe, a First Ward Aldermen, assured Della Volpe that taxes will not be raised.
“But how long is it going to take to pay off the referendum? We still haven’t paid off the high school,” Della Volpe said.
Tripp said the concerns raised during the hearing would be discussed by the Aldermen.
Click the play button below to listen to the full back-and-forth.
Della Volpe declined to comment after Tuesday’s meeting.
Tabled
After the hearing, the Aldermen recessed for 15 minutes, during which several of them huddled with Cassetti and other city officials.
They then reconvened, and Lorie Vaccaro, the chairman of the Aldermen’s finance committee, proposed delaying a vote on the proposal to next week in light of “what we heard tonight from the public.”
Stowe asked Cassetti to prepare a list of roads to be paved as part of the plan.
“There was a lot of questions raised, and I want to be sure every one of them is answered,” Stowe said.
The delay didn’t sit well with all the Aldermen.
The Sixth Ward’s Patrick Henri asked if there would be a public session at next week’s meeting.
“So any questions from that public session, we can push the meeting off another week and have another public session, and another public session?” Henri asked.
David Blackwell, who represents the Seventh Ward, said the capital plan didn’t just appear overnight.
“This has been in the works for a year. There’s been finance committee meetings regarding this,” Blackwell said. “And now we’re looking at we’re going to resolve all these questions in one week? They should have been resolved at these previous meetings … it should have been resolved before it was brought before the full Board of Aldermen and wasted my time tonight.”
The Aldermen voted — with Henri and Blackwell dissenting — to table the matter to a meeting April 7 at 7 p.m.
Afterward, Cassetti said the Democrats who raised questions about the capital plan were “disgruntled.”
He declined to comment specifically on Della Volpe’s criticism.
But he said that the plan will be “fine-tuned” to address the concerns raised Tuesday.
For example, the city may decide to stagger some of the vehicle purchases involved, he said.
“I think once that’s resolved I think it’ll go through,” Cassetti said, pointing out that it will ultimately be up to city voters to say yes or no to the projects.
Flaherty said he isn’t disgruntled — he just wants to be assured that the city is keeping track of its money.
“I’m really worried,” he said.
