Seymour First Selectwoman Annmarie Drugonis, at the town's new dog park (photo courtesy of Jamison Bazinet).
SEYMOUR — Republican First Selectwoman Annmarie Drugonis first got into politics in 2006 because she wanted to help improve the quality of life for residents.
Now, 17 years later, Drugonis believes she has helped make Seymour a better place to live and do business.
“To me, the quality of life for our residents is what I focus on, that’s my biggest thing,” Drugonis said during an interview with The Valley Indy.
Drugonis, 54, received the unanimous nod of the Seymour Republican Town Committee to seek re-election to a second term during the RTC’s nominating caucus held July 24.
She has been the Seymour First Selectwoman since 2020.
Her introduction to politics came in 2006 when she filled a vacancy on the Board of Selectmen. A year later and, at the encouragement of the late Selectwoman Roberta King, Drugonis officially ran for a seat on the board. Over the years, Drugonis has chaired the Seymour Board of Public Works and served on the town’s water pollution control authority (WPCA).
In October 2020, when former Republican First Selectman Kurt Miller left to take a finance job in Ansonia Mayor David Cassetti’s administration, Drugonis was elected by her fellow Selectmen to fill Miller’s seat. She then ran for the seat, unopposed, in the November 2021 municipal election.
Good Things
Drugonis said her team hired an economic development consultant, and welcomed several new businesses such as The Giggling Pig and new restaurants, to town. Her administration organized the construction of Seymour’s first dog park, which was built with no taxpayer money. Her administration has secured several million dollars in state and federal grant money for infrastructure improvements.
Ensuring the town’s seniors and low to moderate income families have quality housing, Drugonis’ team and the Seymour Housing Authority secured $3.5 million in federal funds to make long-overdue ADA improvements to the Castle Heights complex.
More recently, Drugonis said Seymour landed $3 million from Congresswoman Rosa DeLauro to build a connector road behind Stop & Shop on Franklin Street (the Haynes’ 220 acres that borders Beacon Falls). Drugonis said the land is destined for a mixed-used development of retail, residential and commercial space “that will rival Quarry Walk-” Haynes’ showpiece on Route 67 that features a mix of restaurants, market-rate apartments, and commercial businesses.
Partnering with Naugatuck Valley Council of Governments, Drugonis said $10 million secured to deconstruct the Kinneytown Dam will preserve a portion of the Naugatuck River and allow more accessibility to residents and improvements to wild and aquatic life that depend on the river to survive.
A major presence on social media, Drugonis keeps residents informed with her “What’s Happening in the 888” editions on Facebook.
“I know people can’t always attend meetings, and I want them to know what’s going on,” she said. “The communication to our residents coming out of town hall has never happened in Seymour before. I feel like that’s one of our biggest accomplishments.”
Drugonis, a 1987 graduate of Shelton High School with a college degree in environmental engineering, knows unexpected challenges will arise.
Her team helped navigate an $800,000 shortfall in the school budget last year and tightened fiscal protocols as a result of Seymour getting bilked out of $375,000 in a cyber scam. Drugonis said she has the experience to lead the town for another two years.
“The residents are my number one priority,” Drugonis said.
Looking Ahead
Mom to college sophomore, Alana, 19, Drugonis wants to get more things done if re-elected. She wants to see the completion of several road improvement projects including the Bungay, Botsford and West street projects.
Drugonis said she wants the state to make changes to accident-prone Clinton Road, and wants to make sure the town receives an additional $16 million in federal funds for the Haynes’ project.
“My team and I are also going after vacant properties where a significant amount of back taxes are owed, tackling blight, working to increase foot traffic downtown and ensuring our board of education is fairly funded,” she said.
High Praise From The GOP
State Rep. Nicole Klarides-Ditria (R‑105), a former Deputy First Selectwoman who served alongside Drugonis, nominated her longtime friend to seek another term.
“Annmarie’s unwavering passion for public service has been evident in every issue she has undertaken,” Klarides-Ditria said. “Her ability to bring people together, foster dialogue and find common ground is truly commendable. She listens to the concerns of our residents, and she has consistently shown her ability to transform those concerns into action.”
Seymour Republican Town Committee Chairman Rich Demko echoed similar sentiments.
“Annmarie has done an amazing job for the town,” Demko said. “She has been extremely transparent, works very long days and puts our town above all else. She has very high standards for the people she has on her team, as she expects 110 percent from everyone involved.”
In addition to Drugonis, the Seymour RTC unanimously endorsed the following under-ticket:
Board of Selectpersons:
Al Bruno
Trish Danka
Bob Findley
Pat Lombardi
Board of Finance:
Jim Cretella
Bettyann Peck
Board of Finance Alternates:
Tom Schutte
Scott Lazurek
Board of Education:
Lori Nespoli
Jay Hatfield
Library Board of Trustees:
Lauren Demko
Joyce Koslowski
Board of Police Commissioners:
Kyle Kelley
Dave Bitso
Board of Assessment Appeals:
Paul Wetowitz
Scott Blakeman
