DERBY – Mayor Joseph DiMartino was officially nominated by city Democrats for a second term of office during a meeting July 16.
The Valley Indy asked DiMartino, a retired public works employee, a former softball coach, and a former Alderman, what guarantees he can make if re-elected to another two-year term.
“First, I guarantee that I am going to be here everyday working hard for the people of Derby,” DiMartino said. “Second, I guarantee we will stay fiscally strong. We’ve had two balanced budgets since I’ve been in office. Things will continue that way.”
DiMartino faces a challenge from Republican Scott Derby, who was nominated by the Derby Town Republican Committee on July 16 as well.
DiMartino said getting Derby’s financial house in order was his first priority. Derby, due to past budgeting mistakes that caused deficits going back two administrations ago, has been appearing in front of the state’s Municipal Finance Advisory Commission for about five years to go over its books.
When he first took office, DiMartino, with the approval of the Derby Board of Apportionment and Taxation, hired Brian Hall as finance director to bring stability to the leadership of the finance office.
“It’s probably the most important thing I did. He’s on top of his game. He’s keeping our finances in check and we were very lucky to find him,” DiMartino said.
Part of the plan to get the city back on its feet was an 11.9 percent increase in the mill rate in April 2024. It’s an area the Republicans are expected to hammer home on the Derby campaign trail.
DiMartino said the mill rate increase was unavoidable due to years of bad budget forecasts. Kicking the can down the road for political favor was not an option, the mayor said.
“The mill rate happened because we had a $2 million deficit left by the prior administration,” he said. “You can see in the past year and a half our budgets have been solid, with real numbers. We just completed an audit that shows us with a surplus. We are being responsible with our budget.”
DiMartino said he relaunched the city’s capital planning commission. The group receives and prioritizes capital requests from the board of education and the various city departments. The list is then sent to the city’s legislative body for approval.
Capital items include things that can’t be paid for out of the operating budget, such as HVAC systems, fire trucks and ambulances. Cities usually borrow money to pay for those big-ticket items.
“We have to stay on top of capital planning so we don’t get into the position we were in when I first took office, where we needed a ton of things and we were scrambling to get it done.”
DiMartino said he supports a capital needs referendum of some $3 million that is currently being worked on by that commission.
“We need new fire trucks in town, and things like that. I will continue to support investing in capital plans,” he said.
DiMartino said dreams of a new downtown Derby are finally coming true. The Route 34/Main Street widening, a state project, is nearly done. The Derby-Shelton bridge downtown was refurbished. Millions of federal and state dollars are being invested in the redevelopment of the train station off Main Street next to Home Depot. Trolley Point, an apartment building, is now open downtown.
The city recently closed on a $1.35 million deal to purchase land in the downtown redevelopment zone currently home to a scrap yard. The city is currently looking for a new location within city limits for the scrap yard. Property off Commerce Street is under consideration.
Removing the scrap yard and controlling the property will make redevelopment on Factory Street easier, the mayor said.
“It will no longer be a hindrance to development,” he said.
James Gildea is the chairman of the Derby Board of Education. He and Derby Town Clerk made speeches July 16 endorsing DiMartino for a second term.
Gildea said DiMartino’s administration has been tackling the tough issues previous mayors avoided.
Mayor Joe DiMartino has consistently demonstrated strong and steady leadership. He has taken on our financial problems head-on, crafting solutions that are both realistic and sustainable. Joe has established a comprehensive capital improvement program that not only addresses our current infrastructure needs but also lays the groundwork for a brighter future,” Gildea said. “Joe understands that the strength of Derby lies in its people.”
Garofalo, a former mayor, said DiMartino is showing true leadership.
“Under his stewardship, our downtown is finally seeing real progress, with the purchase of the Scrap Yard. The Route 34 project is nearing completion. We are beginning to attract new businesses. And we are starting to feel something we have not felt in a while – hope,” Garofalo said.
The Democrats on June 16 also nominated a full slate of candidates for office. The majority of the candidates ran with DiMartino in 2023 and are sticking with him.
“We are a team. We do everything as a team,” he said. “Without a good team, and without working together, you can’t get stuff done.”
Here is the list of candidates nominated by members of the Derby Democratic Town Committee on July 16. The ‘i’ in parenthesis denotes the candidate is an incumbent.
Mayor:
Joseph DiMartino (i)
Town Clerk:
Marc Garofalo (i)
Treasurer:
Barbara Montalvo (recently appointed to fill vacancy, running for first full term)
Constable:
“Owney” Malerba Jr.
First Ward Board of Aldermen/Alderwomen
Arthur Newberg (i)
Amy Pettinicchi (i)
Sarah Widomski (i)
Second Ward Board of Aldermen/Alderwomen
George Kurtyka (i)
Roberto Santos
Ronald Sill (i)
Third Ward Board of Aldermen/Alderwomen
David Chevarella (i)
Robert Hyder (i)
Robin Falcioni-Smith (i)
Board of Education
Daniel Foley (i)
James Gildea (i)
Kenneth Marcucio Sr. (i)
Melissa Mongillo (i)
Erica Nuzzo (i)
Kimberly Tovar (i)
Board of Apportionment & Taxation
Jennifer Desroches (i)
Colleen Germain-Ezzo (i)
Michael Gray (i)
Bhamini Patel (i)
Tina Parelli-Silkoff (i)
Kristen Mancini-Wright (i)