Photo by Jean Falbo-Sosnovich
(Left to right) Ansonia Mayor David Cassetti and Derby Mayor Richard Dziekan.
DERBY — Richard Dziekan on Wednesday officially announced his intention to seek a third term as mayor.
Dziekan, 55, a Republican, shared his news before a crowd of about 75 supporters gathered at the Catholic War Veterans/St. Michael’s Post 1562 headquarters on Derby Avenue.
“The last three and a half years have been a team effort,” Dziekan said. “There has been a bipartisan spirit of togetherness and doing what is best for Derby.”
Dziekan touted some of the successes on his administration’s watch since first being elected in 2017, including growing the grant list and a recent tax board budget that dropped the mill rate from 44 mills to 38.5 mills.
“These numbers are impressive for sure, but they are even more impressive when you consider the fact that I walked into a financial nightmare,” Dziekan said, alluding to a budget blunder first revealed to the public in May 2019 and led to a subsequent tax increase to close a hole in the budget.
“We have spent the better part of three years putting measures in place to ensure Derby is on solid ground financially. It took a lot of attention and diligent effort by staff to get us to a point of stability. Now that we are at that point, I can focus solely on Derby’s future,” he said.
Derby City Hall still has a number of long-ignored financial measures to put into place as part of a corrective action plan being watched by the state. Currently the city meets regularly with the Municipal Finance Advisory Commission, an eight-person state commission working with Derby to improve the city’s fiscal condition.
The commission met with Derby officials Wednesday and credited the city for hiring a new, qualified finance director with an extensive background in municipal finance. The city is also hiring a deputy finance director, as a lack of staffing has been given as a reason for the city’s financial mistakes.
Regarding the city’s future, Dziekan said he’s excited about several projects in the works.
Those approved projects include mixed-use/ residential developments downtown, which he said is slated to boost the Grand List an additional seven percent, along with a fuel cell project.
Dziekan said he’s continuing to work with the state Department of Transportation on the long-awaited Route 34 widening project.
“DOT is doing the final review right now,” Dziekan said. “It is going out to bid this summer. My opponent has a campaign promise to get the project started. Well sorry Joe, it took three long years, but my administration is getting it done.”
Dziekan was referring to Aldermanic President Joe DiMartino, who announced his intentions in March to seek the Democratic nomination for mayor.
Attempts to reach DiMartino and Democratic Town Committee Chairman Aniello Malerba were not successful late Tuesday.
Correction: After this article was published, The Valley Indy reviewed its email and accidentally had not hit ‘send,’ keeping the emails as drafts. The answers below were added Thursday morning.
Linda Fusco, DiMartino’s campaign manager, called Dziekan an “absentee mayor.”
“Whether it’s the lack of timely audits or the low morale at city hall, his lack of attention to city business has hurt Derby,” she said. Malerba, the Democratic leader, said Dziekan never held anyone responsible for Derby’s most recent budget mistakes.
Dziekan also said he’s looking forward to ground being broken on the Regional Water Authority’s new, one-million gallon water tank on land next to Derby High School. He said the project is geared to improve water pressure in the area, especially for nearby Griffin Hospital.
As a former police officer, Dziekan said he knows firsthand the importance of keeping first responders updated with proper gear. He noted how the fire department’s portable radio system was upgraded with 99 new radios; 20 SCUBA apparatus were replaced and the police department will soon be outfitted with body cameras.
“The reason I mention all this is that three years ago, Derby did not have any of this,” Dziekan said. “We were a forgotten city, focused on minutia and small-town political infighting.”
If he secures a third term, Dziekan vowed to focus on transit-oriented development centered around the train and bus stations downtown.
“I have met with both of our U.S. Senators, as well as Congresswoman Rosa DeLauro to impress upon them the importance of capital investment in transportation infrastructure in Derby,” Dziekan said. “This will be a game changer for not just Derby, but also the entire Valley and beyond.”
Dziekan lauded his chief of staff, Andrew Baklik, for overseeing efforts over the past year in keeping city employees and citizens doing business at Derby City Hall safe during the COVID-19 pandemic. He also thanked Alderman Rob Hyder for stepping up to serve as his campaign manager.
Several Valley politicians, including Ansonia Mayor David Cassetti, along with state Rep. Nicole Klarides-Ditria, R‑105 and former state GOP Minority Leader Themis Klarides said Dziekan is the right man to continue leading Derby.
Klarides said that Dziekan, as a longtime police officer and U.S. Air Force veteran, deserves to be re-elected.
“He cares, he believes, he’s passionate and he’s a Valley guy,” Klarides said.
