ANSONIA — I am a bit perplexed as to the rationale behind Mayor Cassetti’s proposed budget for the 2021 – 2022 fiscal cycle.
Before I begin, I would like to make everyone aware that there is a budget hearing on April 27, and I implore all residents who have similar concerns to attend and speak about their concerns to the Board of Alders.
Having served in a uniformed capacity during my four-year enlistment as an active-duty Marine, I understand the struggles and impacts to effectiveness when budgets get cut. For the past year, Ansonia Republicans, including Mayor Cassetti himself, lambasted the Democratic Party for the “defund the police” movement. In the wake of the death of George Floyd, Republicans began to paint Democrats as obstructionists who want to destroy law and order.
Reading through this budget, I can’t help but notice that Mayor Cassetti is doing the exact thing that he accused the Democrats of doing. Mayor Cassetti even backed a candidate for the state legislature who, in his own words, would “stand up for local law enforcement.” He has also publicly acknowledged that Ansonia “has experienced serious SPIKES in VIOLENT CRIME,” and that we “need to support valley police officers.” It seems that his political propaganda is more important than his own actions to support our police.
In this budget, the Ansonia Police Department’s funding request for next year is getting defunded to the tune of $300,000. This has caused our wonderful Police Chief, Andrew Cota, to express concerns about staffing and the purchasing of new equipment. This kind of hypocrisy from Mayor Cassetti and his administration will make Ansonia less safe, and make our police department less effective.
With proposals for a new motel to be built right off of the highway on Wakelee Avenue and the developer’s already troublesome properties, I can’t help but ask myself why Mayor Cassetti thinks it is a good idea to defund our police department in the potential wake of something that could exacerbate crime in our city. Ansonia crime has already been an issue in the past, so why is Mayor Cassetti giving our police department less money than requested and less resources to keep it under control?
As residents of Ansonia, we deserve better. Our police deserve better. We must hold this administration accountable for their hypocrisy, and we must give our men and women in uniform the resources needed to conduct their occupations in a safe and effective way.
As I stated earlier, I implore all residents to attend the public hearing, speak their minds, and have your voice be heard. Although there have been many times in the past where our voices fell upon deaf ears, it is important that the Mayor and his administration truly understand the consequences of this budget’s actions.
Brian Perkins
Ansonia
