Talk Of West Hartford

Another Election Season Ends In West Hartford - Some Reflections

2009-11-04T22:06:00.005-05:00

Congratulations to those elected to the West Hartford Town Council:
Scott Slifka - re-elected Mayor
Tim Brennan
Shari Cantor
Joe Verrengia
Rob Durbin
Judy L. Casperson

Denise Berard Berard Hall
Steven I. Adler
Leon Davidoff

Congratulations to those elected to the West Hartford Board of Education:
Elin Katz
Clare Kindall
Naogan Ma

Lib Brassil Spinella

Thanks to those who also ran and gave the public a choice at the voting booth:
Joe Visconti
Rob Sisk
Justin Clark

R. Andrew Bannon-Guasp
Ellen Burchill Brassil

You ALL ran great campaigns - which unfortunately were not covered well enough by ANY media.

Now.... for those newly elected officials ... please honor your campaign pledges. Let's keep West Hartford affordable for those who live and work here. Do something about the sustainability of our budgets as we go forward especially as we have to renegotiate contracts. The taxpayer's pockets are not bottomless wells of money. We also need to keep businesses in town and they are struggling in this economy just as homeowners and families are. Let's try to find some creative solutions to our problems and not be afraid to get the public involved to accomplish this.

Let's improve our schools without major expenditures and let's not spend lots of green to go green.

Can you please do something to get our state delegation to stop handing us unfunded mandates and making us subsidize every other municipality?

Can you continue to encourage real dialogue instead of inviting divisive politics in town? Can you hold more public input sessions and forums? Can you do more listening - really listening - to citizens and to each other? And can you as boards, and members of boards, do more to truly work together and abandon the prior partisan bickering that we have seen? Mend some fences and please don't allow majority status to translate into arrogance.

We've got a great town here... let's celebrate that, and work to make it better for all of its residents with an eye to running it in the most efficient and effective way we can.

We may not always agree on policy or politics, but remember that debate and incorporation of "other ideas" are what forge the best policies in the end.

Republican or Democrat - Thanks to all of you who serve (and to those who have already served) and who give of yourselves to running this terrific place we call West Hartford.

Municipal Elections! Go Vote!

2009-11-02T20:00:00.000-05:00

Municipal Elections Tuesday Nov 3rd in West Hartford.
Polls open 6am to 8pm.

Polling Places can be found here

For these voting districts:

Visit the Registrar of Voter Webpage for more information.

As for who to vote for???
That's entirely up to you.
Let's hope we get a good turnout and that people have done their homework.
May the best candidates win.

Here's hoping that the candidate named Oklahoma wins a seat on the Council.

WHTALK will be glad to see less junk in the mailbox and the candidates lawn signs carted off to the dust bin.

Much Ado About Bagging Leaves

2009-10-31T22:50:00.004-04:00

West Hartford, we are bagging our leaves this year.
Please get over it.

Yeah, yeah, yeah, we know it costs a homeowner a little more money now if they have to hire someone to suck up their leaves, or rake and bag the leaves for them, but can anyone honestly say that the previous leaf pickup program worked?

It didn't.

We still had leaves in the street when the snow and ice came.
They came to pick up leaves when the leaves were still on the trees or when we hadn't had time to go and rake them to the curb.
And as a program, it was a costly headache to the town and the taxpayers.
Over a million dollars and we only got one pass through.

WHTalk can safely say that the leaf sucking program sucked.

What I am happy to see is that organizations like the Cub Scouts have stepped up to the plate to help homeowners. Various landscapers are offering services as well. There is new business competition for leaf removal services which also tends to keep prices for that service in check.

It may have cost less per home when the Town (and your taxes) paid for it - but it was crappy service. Now you pay for leaf pick-up that is when you need it and done right.

From the latest Council Briefs:

Leaf Collection off to a good start: As of October 26, the Department of Public Works has collected 22,375 leaf bags. Four crews have been working Monday through Friday in each refuse collection area and are on schedule. The bagged leaf collection will continue through December 18. The Recycling Center will be open on Saturdays from 8 AM to 4 PM during leaf collection season for residents wishing to dispose of their leaves (free of charge). Residents who are using a landscaper may obtain a voucher to exempt them for the cost of disposal on the DPW web site, at the DPW facility, the Town Hall Customer Service Desk, and at the two senior centers. Vouchers are valid through December 18.

So West Hartford - please stop complaining.
Leaf collection from the town is not happening this year, and with any luck it won't be re-instated ever.

West Hartford BOE Sparring Over School Racial Imbalance

2009-10-12T07:27:00.002-04:00

The recent West Hartford BOE was more like Tuesday night at the fights.

Democrats chose to fight against Republicans instead of working together to craft solutions to the looming argument over state statute regarding "racial imbalance" in the district's schools.

West Hartford News said this -

An attempt by the Board of Education's two Republicans to take a forceful stance on racial imbalance at Tuesday's meeting was co-opted by the board's five Democrats, who substituted their own amendment for the Republicans' motion and then passed it without their votes.

Lib Brassil Spinella and Diane Mudge brought forward the motion, which called for the hiring of outside legal counsel experienced in arguing 14th Amendment cases before the Supreme Court by Oct. 30 in order to fight the state's racial imbalance statute.

Hiring outside legal counsel is a wise move with this high profile issue. It is stupid for internal squabbling like this - but then again, we have heard silly and unproductive comments like this: "Your motion feels like a temper tantrum," said Democrat Bruce Putterman. "It feels like how a child would react." Honestly Bruce, can you not do better than that?

Harry Captain offered an amendment, (which passed) that will have in-house lawyers research legal options for fighting the state statute. Democrats cited financial reasons for not seeking more experienced and savvy outside counsel. Of course all five Democrats voted for the amendment. Mudge voted against it, and Spinella abstained (huh?). Well, the bottom line is that at least SOME lawyers will be looking at this issue! That is at least a step in the right direction.

And while Democrats say that "none of them likes the statute", and that the motion to seek outside counsel "was politically motivated", they have also been known to say that the racial balancing of our schools is "the right thing to do" and a "moral obligation".

According to reports, Democrats said that "since the state is not forcing the district to comply with the statute, but merely asking that another plan be implemented in two years' time, there was no pressing need to hire lawyers immediately." Meanwhile, we could be looking at plans which require busing kids all across the town and incurring huge transportation costs, and upsetting families and disrupting the school district! Most likely that will cost much, much more than legal counsel experienced in 14th amendment issues! Talk about "wrongheaded" spending!

Spinella said that the Republican's motion was related to the constitutionality of the state statute and taking action on the issue. How nice that someone somewhere on the BOE is finally being proactive on a potentially costly and very important issue.

The statute states that the proportion of racial minorities in schools must mirror that of the district as a whole, and that if it does not, the district must create a plan to correct the imbalance.

Here is what it says exactly:

Sec. 10-226b. Existence of racial imbalance. (a) Whenever the State Board of Education finds that racial imbalance exists in a public school, it shall notify in writing the board of education having jurisdiction over said school that such finding has been made.

(b) As used in sections 10-226a to 10-226e, inclusive, "racial imbalance" means a condition wherein the proportion of pupils of racial minorities in all of the grades of a public school of the secondary level or below taken together substantially exceeds or falls substantially short of the proportion of such public school pupils in all of the same grades of the school district in which said school is situated taken together.

(1969, P.A. 773, S. 2.) Cited. 21 CA 67.

Sec. 10-226c. Plan to correct imbalance. (a) Any board of education receiving notification of the existence of racial imbalance as specified in section 10-226b shall forthwith prepare a plan to correct such imbalance and file a copy of said plan with the State Board of Education. Said plan may be limited to addressing the imbalance existing at any school and need not result in a district-wide plan or district-wide pupil reassignment. A school district may request an extension of time in cases in which the number of students causing said imbalance is fewer than five students at a school.

(b) Any plan submitted by the board of education of any town under sections 10-226a to 10-226e, inclusive, shall include any proposed changes in existing school attendance districts, the location of proposed school building sites as related to the problem, any proposed additions to existing school buildings and all other means proposed for the correction of said racial imbalance. The plan shall include projections of the expected racial composition of all public schools in the district. The plan may include provision for cooperation with other school districts to assist in the correction of racial imbalance.

(1969, P.A. 773, S. 3, 4; P.A. 98-252, S. 41, 80.)

Sec. 10-226d. Approval of plan by state board. Upon receipt of any plan required under the provisions of subsection (b) of section 10-226c, the State Board of Education shall review said plan. If it determines that the plan is satisfactory, it shall approve the plan and shall provide to the board of education such assistance and services as may be available. The board of education shall submit annual reports on the implementation of the approved plan, as the State Board of Education may require.

West Hartford News reported this -

West Hartford has struggled with racial imbalance since the 1990s and redistricted starting in the 1994-95 school year, among other measures, but failed to correct the imbalance. The district average of minority students is 36 percent, officials said in May, but at Smith School of Math, Science and Technology, 70 percent of students are minorities, and at Charter Oak Academy of Global Studies, 80 percent of students are minorities.

Schools that exceed 25 percentage points above or below the average for the district are considered out of compliance.

The question remains, is the State Statute Constitutional? Can any school district be forced to incur costs (another unfunded mandate), to shift students around like chess pieces, in order to satisfy some arbitrary number in the name of "racial imbalance"? Should race be a factor at all? Is a racial imbalance law in and of itself "racist"?

Yes, yes, yes, we all know what the intentions are...
We all know that we are trying to close achievement gaps etc.
But is this the right way to do this?

Do we want to have local control and neighborhood schools? or do we want to bow to some State Mandates that may or may not be legally valid?

After we disrupt and move everyone around, who is to say that imbalance won't occur again as people move in and out of homes across town? The do we move and disrupt kids and their families all over again?

Why don't we just strive to have each and every school in the district be the best it can be so that no matter what school any child attends in the district they are able to achieve and grow and succeed?

Let's take race out of the equation in this so-called "post racial era" and do what is best for ALL children and families across town - who are not pawns to be moved around a chess board, but rather, human beings who should ALL receive the best services our town can provide, no matter where they live.

And for the record, can the politicians please finally act like grown-ups and all work together instead of posturing and denigrating each other? We need mature solutions to this issue - not holier than thou attitudes or childish behavior. (Got that Bruce?)

West Hartford Announcements

2009-10-04T08:34:00.001-04:00

Leaf Bag Collection begins: The Town will begin its ten-week leaf bag service on Oct. 13 and continue to Dec. 18. Simply place leaf bags at the curb on your trash collection day and a truck will come by to pick them up. Residents needing help bagging leaves should visit the public works web site for a listing of organizations and landscapers who can assist. There will be no vacuum collection.

Absentee Ballots are now available in the Town Clerk’s office for the November 3rd election. You may fill out an on-line application or pick one up at the offices of the Registrars of Voters or Town Clerk.

West Hartford Taxpayers Association - "Meet the Candidates Forum" October 7th - 7:30 PM - Town Hall - HAS BEEN CANCELLED.

There's a a new website: West Hartford Citizens for Quality Education. Citizens for Quality Education ("CQE") was founded in 1994 in response to the then Board of Education's "K-2/3-5" plan. It has been revived to combat possible ill effects and higher town costs as a result of state mandates regarding racial imbalance laws.

Talk of West Hartford took a break for the month of September but now we're back.
Happy Autumn.

3 Feet Law

2009-08-28T22:41:00.004-04:00

Bicyclists and drivers in West Hartford, and anywhere else in CT, should be aware of the 3 feet law. Today was Bike to Work Day so the message got some extra airplay from the CT Department of Transportation after being passed as law and instituted in October 2008. So just in case you didn't know, here is their message:

“THREE-FEET” PASSING RULE – IT’S THE LAW!

Public Act 08-101, effective October 1, 2008, requires Connecticut motorists to allow at least three feet of separation when overtaking and passing cyclists. Failure to do so could cause motorists to receive a fine. Because of the large disparities in size, weight and speed between bicycles and motor vehicles, cyclists are at a tremendous disadvantage in the result of a collision with a car or truck. This new law strives to increase motorist awareness of bicycles, and to make conditions safer by preventing collisions.

Drive safely - bike safely.

West Hartford Business And Libraries Suffer From Economic Woes

2009-08-22T07:56:00.001-04:00

Tax collection is higher than expected: The Revenue Collection Office reported that, despite the struggling economy, tax collection exceeded the 99% collection rate by 0.1% for fiscal year 2008-2009. - WH Town Manager Council Briefs August 21, 2009

Even though tax collections are up and we seem to be muddling though this poor economy in our town, we are still seeing store closings in The Center. The last casualties were Zachers Photo Shop and Mimi's Maternity. We haven't heard a peep from Robert Rowlson, West Hartford's Business and Community Development Officer.

Meanwhile, people are beginning to fret about the impending "NO leaf collection" season and the Mayor and Town Manager are also having to deal with the harsh reality and associated problems of NO State money coming from Hartford while the State budget is still at an impasse. It looks like our libraries might be negatively impacted in the process.

Rep. David McCluskey (D), took an opportunity at a recent rally at Bishop's Corner to complain about the Governor's stance on the budget - but did not mention where else State government should make cuts in order to close the 8 billion dollar State budget deficit. It appears that he and other State lawmakers would just rather have Governor Rell approve of raising State taxes on everyone, in the middle of one of the worst economic downturns since the Great Depression.

Memo to Rep. McCluskey: Our State legislature has made business operation costly and difficult in CT. You and your legislative colleagues cannot continue to tax and spend, especially now. Cuts in Library services ARE in part the fault of the legislature YOU belong to. It is NOT just the Governor's fault. The unfunded mandates, spending programs and Union benefits that YOU supported are coming to haunt our Towns and taxpayers. The question remains: What are YOU proposing in order to bring business back to Connecticut and to make government less expensive? We cannot sustain the levels of spending that you prefer, especially in this economy (which by many accounts is bound to get worse).

Campaign Season Begins In West Hartford

2009-08-03T10:35:00.005-04:00

Crack out the lawn signs and start the meet and greets... here come November's municipal elections.

The slate of candidates for Town Council and Board of Education have been determined after conventions were held by the GOP and the Democrats in town.

There are some new faces as well as some old ones, and plenty of diversity in backgrounds to represent people across the board in town. But honestly, it's the issues that matter most and how they each plan to tackle them.

The biggest issues to be debated will most likely be keeping taxes and spending in check, bringing business back to all those empty storefronts in town, and the State's perceived school population imbalances vs. neighborhood schools.

The Democrat position with regard to racial imbalance in our schools seems to be that moving our kids around to satisfy state racial imbalance numbers is the "moral" thing to do - while the other side of the aisle wants to keep neighborhood schools intact and save time and money involved in busing kids all over town (among other reasons).

Then of course with tough economic times before us, the issue of how to keep taxes from rising and still keep services in town will be no doubt be fiercely debated. With financial people on the ballot, we are bound to see some fine economic analysis and problem solving ideas presented. Surely, the discussion will center on upcoming union contract negotiations and creating sustainable budgets as we go forward for our Town. We should look forward to some concrete facts and ideas rather than the usual nebulous statements of lowered taxes and preserving services.

It looks like this new crop of candidates is ready to roll up their sleeves to do some serious work, and they have some good experience behind them. Even soon to be 18 year old Andrew Bannon-Guasp brings a fresh perspective to the Board of Education slate. This fellow may be young, but he has lived the school experience to know enough about what the school system really needs, and he has been a school representative on the Board of Education already. He's got plenty of experience for a first time candidate.

Between now and November, we should have ample time and opportunity to hear from all candidates. Please make sure that you do.

In the meantime we also bid adieu to Chuck Coursey, Carolyn Thornberry, Harry Captain and Jack Darcy. Thanks for serving.

Let the campaigns and debates begin!

New FEMA Flood Maps May Soak Some West Hartford Residents

2009-07-24T07:30:00.002-04:00

Move over Noah Webster. It looks like West Hartford might be paying homage to a different kind of Noah. You know - The one with the ark.

In case you haven't heard, the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) has redrawn and revised federal maps of flood-prone places in Connecticut, as well as across the country. This has some property owners concerned and angry because they will now be required by their mortgage companies to obtain flood insurance, which can be quite expensive, especially in this economy. The cost can range from a few hundred dollars to a few thousand dollars each year. The maps took effect last fall.

FEMA believes its new maps accurately reflect boundaries of destructive 1-in-a-100-year floods and that the additional insurance is necessary for protection. Flood insurance is also required if a private mortgage includes any federal financing.

In the Hartford Courant's recent article they reported that "David Mendelsohn of FEMA's Boston regional office said, "There's no truth to opinions voiced by some speakers that map changes were done to help cash-strapped insurance companies." But some people may be very skeptical of that comment.

WFSB also had a report about the FEMA informational meeting. They reported that "about 100 West Hartford properties that the town said are affected by FEMA's new maps."

One thing is for certain, if you have property anywhere near Trout Brook then you might be looking at higher insurance rates.

Back in December 2007 residents were able to get a break on their insurance, now it looks like some will get soaked as their properties are now considered within the new layout of the flood plain.

Here is FEMA's list of CT communities participating in the National Flood Insurance program. You can look at West Hartford's Flood map information here at their CIS homepage.

If affected property owners don't agree with FEMA that their properties should be designated within a flood zone, then there is an appeal process which was explained to residents at the meeting. More information can be found here.

Happy 4th of July!

2009-07-04T10:52:00.004-04:00

Talk of West Hartford hopes that you have a relaxing and fun Independence Day with family and friends.

Congratulations 2009 Graduates!

2009-06-24T18:43:00.003-04:00

To West Hartford high school graduates -
(both public and non-public schooled)

Congratulations on a job well done!
Good luck in your future endeavors!

Poetic License

2009-06-22T09:07:00.001-04:00

West Hartford's great municipal nightmare is over! - we have a new "Poet Laureate".
You can be relieved that we will not have to lift another latte in town without some poetic words to utter.

According to definition - "A Poet Laureate is a poet officially appointed by a government and is often expected to compose poems for State occasions and other government events." In the case of West Hartford, our Town's Poet Laureate is expected to sponsor readings each year and to promote poetry in town. Don't worry though - it's not a paid position (at least not yet).

West Hartford News reported

Dennis Barone, English professor, director of the American Studies program at St. Joseph College and the author of 14 books, was named the second West Hartford Poet Laureate in the town's history last week.
Out of seven nominations, he was selected by committee and will serve a two-year term.

He replaces West Hartford's two term Poet Laureate (and also the Town's first), Maria Sassi, who accepted the position in 2005.

Councilwoman Shari Cantor was given credit for spending the last few years spearheading the effort and responding to the poets in town who initially asked to have a Town Poet Laureate post created. Councilwoman Cantor busied herself with the project of helping to establish this position and brought forth candidates and their work to the Council to fill the position.

Here is a sample of Barone's work:

DOCUDRAMA

A window repairman came to repair a window
where a bird had flown into it and broke it.
The next day another bird met its match on the window’s mate.

Poetry is the absence of insurance.

In another room another man spoke about a woman
in a language that could not be understood and he
kept close count of his pulse as he struck the ivory
keys on an out of tune piano and remembered.

Poetry is the absence of insurance.

Well, as they say, Chacun à son goût (to each his own taste), and for this critic it looks like in this case poetry might also be the absence of coherence.

Of course, Talk of West Hartford has another suggested poetic submission for your consideration: (not penned by TOWH, but by a reader who hopes you will take it with intended tongue in cheek)

There once was a councilor named Cantor
Who enjoyed hearing poetic banter
“The town should get classy
“So let’s go get Sassi
“The first poet laureate,” said Cantor

Sassi visited school after school
Did the students think her poems were cool?
When she read, some would weep
And the rest were asleep
Which was all just incredibly cruel.

After two terms the town called her hence,
“When you started we thought you made sense
“But ‘Rooted in Stars’
Sounds like it’s from Mars
We’re revoking your poetic license!”

A crisis befell the town hall
“For poems now who will we call?”
While the town’s budget waited
The council debated
The next poet they should install

At St. Joseph’s Dennis Barone,
Was an English Professor unknown
He adjusted his glasses
And said “Hold my classes!
“There’s a call on my cellular phone!”

“It’s Cantor here, the town has the blues,
“A new poet we have to choose”
He accepted the job
Of head poet snob
With a write-up in West Hartford News

“Let West Hartford worry no more!
“Have I got some poems in store
“And thanks to my labors
“We’ll show off to our neighbors
“Those Avon and Simsbury bores!”

We know that the job is part time
And what’s more it pays not a dime
But you get what you pay for
If the town would just pay more
Then maybe his poems would rhyme

Congratulations to Mr. Barone and appropriate thanks to Councilwoman Cantor. A West Hartford townwide haiku competition might now just become reality!

Parcxmart: A West Hartford Convenience

2009-06-18T09:00:00.005-04:00

It's a parking card.
It's a shoppers card.
It's an instant rewards card.
It's cooler than cash!
It's just like having a new local currency!

West Hartford's Parcxmart card is an idea that has finally arrived in town.

Parcxmart cards are being used in a few cities, and in Connecticut it's being used in West Haven, Bridgeport and now West Hartford. The list of cities will no doubt grow as people catch onto this, and more cities utilize the technology.

You can use your West Hartford Parcxmart card when you travel to other Parcxmart branded Card Towns and Cities. You can also reload your West Hartford Town Card in another Parcxmart town or city; or buy one there and use it here at home.

All the Frequently Asked Questions are here.

Purchase a card at any merchant who sells them (No doubt this list will grow), and you can load the card with up to $100. Be careful though, it's just like cash. The chip in the card does not store personal information, so if you lose your card it's just like losing cash.

How about that for a great Father's Day gift?

On With The Shows! Playhouse On Park

2009-06-15T10:52:00.008-04:00

Playhouse On Park is opening its doors in the same spot next to A.C. Petersen Farms, in place of the now defunct Parkroad Playhouse.

Darlene Zoller of Vernon, Tracy Flater of Simsbury and Sean Harris of West Hartford comprise the Playhouse Theatre Group,Inc., (a 501(c) nonprofit) and they are the new renters of the playhouse, having signed a lease recently with the folks from A.C. Petersen Farms who actually own the building.

Their website states this:

The Playhouse on Park theatre space has 165 seats surrounding a three-quarter thrust stage offering audiences of all ages an incredibly intimate theatre experience. A year-round performance schedule is produced and/or presented by Playhouse Theatre Group, Inc. and includes: professional and community theatre; theatre for young audiences; new works and play readings; comedy and improvisation; cabarets and concerts; dance; educational opportunities lead by resident and visiting artists; corporate events, special events and more!

Their mission:

Playhouse Theatre Group Inc., at Playhouse on Park is dedicated to the following purposes:

to provide quality entertainment at affordable costs to as broad an audience as possible
to embrace and provide opportunity for professional, emerging and community artists.
to offer educational and outreach opportunities through visiting and/or resident artists and educators
to create and/or explore opportunities to collaborate with other existing arts organizations
to be fiscally responsible and accountable at all times
to continue to be an integral member of the West Hartford community

Their opening event is "MY SHOW, A Choreographer's Story", which runs JUNE 25-28, 2009, for performances on Thursday at 7:30, Friday at 8:00, Saturday at 8:00, Sunday at 2:00

Talk of West Hartford wishes the new endeavor a boatload of good luck, and as they say in the business - Break a Leg!

Celebrate! West Hartford! June 13 and 14

2009-06-12T21:12:00.003-04:00

Celebrate! West Hartford

June 13 and 14, 2009
West Hartford, Connecticut

West Hartford's 23rd annual celebration
Free Admission - Rain or Shine

Celebrate! West Hartford is a highly attended, annual tradition that promotes, embraces and celebrates community life.

Attracting well over 30,000 people each year, Celebrate! also provides festival attendees with a wide range of wholesome family activities – an award winning juried arts & crafts show, great food, entertainment, games, rides, a certified 5K road race – as the saying goes, "something for everyone".

The event offers civic, service, sports, schools and charitable organizations a way to increase community awareness and an opportunity to raise funds for their worthy causes.

Free parking is in the Town Center garage behind Fidelity as well as the Isham garage. REI and Central Connecticut Bicycle Alliance are also repeating the bicycle valet service that they offered last year.

We can taste the fried dough and kettle corn already!

West Hartford Halts Property ReValuation Phase-In

2009-06-12T11:23:00.007-04:00

On June 9 the West Hartford Town Council voted to halt the 2006 revaluation 5 year phase-in after the State Legislature passed legislation to allow towns to freeze the revaluation phase-ins that towns in CT had been engaged in. See complete legislative bill details here.

Representative Beth Bye was the only West Hartford legislator to co-sponsor the legislation, although she was absent from the House floor vote along with Rep. Andrew Fleischmann. Rep. McCluskey voted for the measure, and in the Senate, so did Jonathan Harris.

West Hartford Town Manager, Ron Van Winkle said in his explanation at the Town Council meeting, that 75 percent of all homeowners will get a tax break in July because of the cessation of the phase-in. Property owners will be taxed based on the 2007 grand list to figure next fiscal year's taxes. He also mentioned that the vote allows the Town to move forward to send out tax bills to residents and prevent a delay. A delay could have caused problems for the town. The mill rate was 36.97 last year and was supposed to be 34.81 with the phase-in. Nothing on the Town website indicates if there will be a change in the mill rate, although the Town tax calculator comes up with 37.54. (This has to be clarified)

Councilors voted 8-0 on the measure with Councilman Steve Adler abstaining because he felt he did not have enough information on the pros and cons of the issue, especially in light of a document presented by Town resident Robert Sisk regarding the impact of halting the phase-in. (Mr. Sisk was kind enough to forward Talk of West Hartford the document which is now available on Scribd).

Property taxes will now be a little bit less for many residential homeowners, but the freeze on phase-in affects commercial property since the shift of taxes was being placed away from them with revaluation phase-in and that has now been halted.

When houses were re-assessed in 2006, it was at the height of the real estate market, and since then some people had complained that they couldn't even sell their house in the current market for what their house was valued/assessed at. How our property taxes are calculated according to Town Charter and State Law is that the town
1. does a market valuation of your home - either physical, where they come out to actually look at the features and aspects of your home - or statistical, where they more or less apply an overall percent increase or best guess to the value based on the documented features of your home
2. Takes that market value and multiplies it by 70% yielding an assessment which is then applied to the mill rate.

So if your house is valued at $200,000, your assessed value is $140,000. The mill rate is then applied to that assessed value, divided by 1000 and that is how the tax bill is calculated. With the phase-in, the difference between the 2005 market value assessment and 2006 market value assessment of the property was split up into phased in amounts which were to be applied every year until the phase-in was completed. In West Hartford's case that would have been 2011.

Since the phase-in is to be halted, homeowners will be paying taxes on the same assessed value as they did last year (based on the 2007 grand list). This year the only difference will be as a result of applying the mill rate, and not the mill rate plus a phased-in increase in assessed value over last year. This gives property owners a little bit of relief (depending on what the mill rate is).

Critics of the way in which we currently tax property claim that taxing based on market value of property is inherently flawed because homeowners are paying taxes on unrealized capital gains. That is to say, you may be paying higher taxes on a price of your home that can be inflated due to the market conditions. In fact, many homeowners may not be able to sell their homes for the value that they are currently paying taxes on! That is a problem, and amounts to over taxation.

In any case, this move by the legislature and by the Town of West Hartford could be a bit of relief for tax payers until the next revaluation is done.

The real issue regarding higher taxes however, rests more with how much the Town is spending as well as how much they are collecting in non-tax revenues, as both determine how much the homeowners and commercial property owners must make up to cover the cost of running Town services and administration. Keeping Town spending under control and getting the best use of every tax dollar should certainly be the aim of Town elected leaders and administrators.

It's interesting after this past budget cycle that the Town ended up with a budget surplus. It looks like after much budget searching for savings, and now halting revaluation that our Town is doing well. What is still puzzling is how the Board of Education who originally cried that they could not find a slim dime to cut from their budget, and who had heated feelings for the Mayor who took a hard line with them, ended up finding millions of dollars to apply to their budget afterall so that cuts wouldnot have to be made. It looks like that GEICO pile of money just showed up! How fascinating.

That's good news for taxpayers.
But just remember - this is an election year.
Let's hope and pray we don't get slammed with higher spending and even higher taxes next year.

Allen Collins and E.L. Wilde Close - The Body Count Grows

2009-05-31T15:09:00.009-04:00

More stores are leaving the Center, and more for lease/for sale signs are appearing in shop windows.

We bid adieu to E.L.Wilde and Allen Collins, and Mediza too!

Further away from the Center, the Park Road Playhouse is also closing and in Bishop's Corner Kiddly Winks has moved to Canton.

The body count is growing. Many stores like Kingswood Market have long sat vacant.

"For the first time in the last decade, we've had a number of stores moving out of the downtown," Rob Rowlson, the interim director of community services, said Friday. "It's an unfortunate byproduct of the economy."

Years ago, West Hartford Center had about a dozen small clothing shops, said Rowlson, also a town native.

"Those days are not coming back because of competition from chain and big stores. The retail part of the story — soft goods such as clothing, gifts and decorating — is what worries me the most," he said. "Small retailers, like we have in West Hartford, have trouble in this economy."

Higher state and local taxes, higher rents, less spending by consumers in this bad economy in general, all seem to be the problem. Some folks say that West Hartford overbuilt with Blue Back Square and that the project also contributed to an inflation of business rents in the vicinity. While some may place the blame on "greedy landlords", it should be noted that when taxes and insurance and energy costs and other fees go up, they have little choice but to raise the rents.

One thing is for sure, we can't bring people into town to shop, free parking or not on Sunday, if we have empty storefronts.

West Hartford Abandons Free Parking On Sundays

2009-05-28T14:36:00.006-04:00

Parking for free in West Hartford in the town lots on Sundays will be ending on July 1. It's an attempt to raise revenue for the Town, and was part of the Town's budget plan passed in April. On-street parking will still be free on Sundays. The Town owns two parking garages at Blue Back Square and charges for parking seven days a week there.

The move to charge for parking on Sundays is predicted to raise revenue by as much as $120,000 a year, although it was not specified how much will be spent on additional parking attendant hours. This past week, Town Council members voted to change current parking policies in order to institute what was outlined in the budget that they adopted for the new fiscal year. In the adopted budget, other services such as ending free trash collection at churches and private schools, and instituting shortened library hours were also specified as budget cutting/saving measures.

It is predicted by Town management that charging for parking on Sunday at Town Center lots will have no impact on shopping or business there. Skeptics say that this remains to be seen, especially as people can just as easily shop elsewhere, like the malls, for free.

In the past, there have been issues with people parking on residential streets.

The article in the Hartford Courant reported that -

Councilman Joseph Visconti, who lives on Clifton Street near the center, said residents closest to the center have problems with spillover parking on the unmetered side streets Monday through Saturday.

The end of free Sunday parking in lots will encourage workers in downtown businesses to park on side streets to save money, he said, which will eliminate "the one day of peace we have a week" from cars turning in driveways and parked vehicles lining streets.

One thing that is particularly intriguing is that while the Town strives to become more "walkable" and wants to discourage traffic and the congestion that it brings, the Town also derives revenue from parked automobiles and people visiting the Center. It would seem that the two policies tend to work at cross purposes.

According to some statistics, our parking lots are already underutilized.

In this time of economic stress, let's hope that the prediction is accurate; that charging for parking on Sundays won't chase away business. If it does deter folks from visiting, that would be very unfortunate for us and our business owners indeed.

Memorial Day In West Hartford

2009-05-24T23:42:00.004-04:00

From West Hartford Town Website -

The parade is scheduled for Monday, May 25, 2009, and will commence promptly at 10 a.m. from the corner of Woodrow Street and Farmington Avenue and proceed to the Town Hall. After the conclusion of the parade, a brief memorial service will be held at the West Hartford Veterans Memorial, located at the corner of Farmington Avenue and North Main Street.

Assembly of parade units will take place at 9:30 a.m. in designated areas west of Woodrow Street on Farmington Avenue. A listing of the parade units and line-up locations is found here.

The West Hartford Memorial Day Parade Committee appointed Colonel Donald Fenton, US Army (Retired) as the Parade Marshal and the Honorable Nancy Wyman, State Comptroller as the Honorary Parade Marshal of the 2009 West Hartford Memorial Day Parade.

West Hartford takes great pride in hosting its annual Memorial Day Parade. It follows a tradition established by returning West Hartford veterans from World War I in the 1920s.

The 2009 West Hartford Memorial Day Parade Committee is a joint endeavor and cooperative effort of the West Hartford Veterans Affairs Commission, The American Legion of West Hartford Hayes-Velhage Post 96, and Hannon-Hatch VFW Post 9929, in partnership with the Town of West Hartford.

Enjoy the day!

Hartford Magazine Reports - How Good Is Your Public High School?

2009-05-22T12:22:00.007-04:00

click image for enlargement

West Hartford schools came in 4th (Hall tied with Farmington) and 15th (Conard) out of 32 schools when compared to other area schools on a variety of measures. Hall did fairly well, but we ought to be wondering why neither of our two high schools came in first place (or even 2nd or 3rd) in any category.

The 1st place winner for best area high school was Avon.

Hartford Magazine (June 2009 issue) rated public 4 year high schools in the Greater Hartford area using information from the State Department of Education strategic school profiles. Nearly all information pertained to 2007-08 school year along with CAPT results from 2006-07.

They chose to measure 10 criteria, took raw data from the profiles and ranked the schools based on those factors. Some factors were weighted based on importance.

Criteria used:
Average Class Size
Students Per Computer
Teachers with Masters degrees
Student Physical Fitness
Attendance
SAT Scores
Graduation Rate
Pursuit of Higher Education
CAPT Scores
AP+3 (Those students that scored higher than 3 on AP exams)

West Hartford Schools, The State, And Social Engineering

2009-05-20T10:00:00.004-04:00

It's baaaaack.... oh yes, the issue of racial imbalance. You didn't really think that the State would go away on that issue, did you? Just when the West Hartford community could come together and not be divided over a budget referendum, we get race thrown at us from the State and its social engineering mandates.

In a move to somehow make more white students attend Smith School and Charter Oak Academy of Global Studies, school officials are considering demolishing the 80-year-old Charter Oak school and constructing a new, bigger Charter Oak at the cost of $45 million dollars!

Are they nuts? Who will pay for this? Shouldn't we be more concerned with the content of our curriculum so ALL kids can benefit rather than moving kids around like chess pieces in order to make sure the crayon box is better color co-ordinated?

The state notified West Hartford last month that Charter Oak and the Smith School of Science, Math and Technology — two neighborhood schools in the southeastern part of town with intra-district magnet programs — have again been identified as racially unbalanced. Under state law, that occurs when the proportion of minority children in the school is more than 25 percentage points above or below the district's average. In West Hartford, 36 percent of elementary students are minority.

This state mandate is well meaning, but stupid. What they ought to be focused on is whether ALL children in the same school district are receiving a quality education, not what color or ethnicity or socio-economic status the children sitting next to one another is in any given classroom.

Though facing pressure from the state, school officials say they consider it "a moral obligation" to address the issue and have outlined preliminary options, including reviewing the schools' magnet themes, changing the magnet lottery process and developing a short-term plan to increase magnet seats.

But the loftiest, long-term idea is erecting a $45 million "premier facility," in the words of incoming superintendent Karen List, that would seat up to 550 students and feature an academically rigorous International Baccalaureate program that the school has already begun to implement. The hope is that students from Duffy, Bugbee and other elementary schools would be drawn to the school voluntarily.

Moral obligation? The moral obligation here is to be color blind and offer the best education to EVERY child in town no matter where they live and go to school! Should we now consider busing kids all over town, and taking the time and expense to do that just to satisfy some arbitrary State mandated numbers? This law, no doubt, is designed to invoke cries of racism that really does not exist in our already incredibly diverse school system. Families from the any given side of town may not be interested in attending Smith or Charter Oak, and vice versa, not because of a higher or lower minority ratio, but because of many other factors. Proximity to home is a big one.

Instead of wasting tens of millions of dollars on building a new school, how about West Hartford creates its own voucher program such that any child can go to any public school in town (or does that ability exist already)? It seems that families will still opt for neighborhood schools, because we understand that race is not the issue; school pride is. Charter Oak and Smith families love their neighborhood school, and they full well know that any child of any background is welcome there, as they are in any West Hartford School. Can the State honestly ignore that factor over race? Please, let's not buy into the notion that West Hartford is somehow a community of racists, and let's not allow the State to somehow infer that we are, especially since several factors dictate where people buy homes and send their kids to school in our town.

Harry Captain's comments at last night's board of education meeting was spot on as he pointedly asked, (perhaps not verbatim) "What is the minority ratio of the Hartford Magnet School? do we know?" Where is the State on that one?

And why isn't the State doing more to help us financially, or with other resources, to close the achievement gap that our system is experiencing? No, instead they continue to shove more mandates and more problems at us to fix at our own expense.

In drawing up a new action plan, West Hartford school officials acknowledge that a decade long effort to desegregate Charter Oak and Smith has failed.

This school year, children identified as black, Hispanic or Asian make up 81 percent of Charter Oak's student body and 70 percent of the Smith population.

While the vast majority of magnet students were white 10 years ago, now three out of four magnet students at Charter Oak — and two out of three at Smith — are minority.

Even as some neighborhood families from the southeast move to wealthier sections of town, parents sign up their children as magnet students so they can return to Charter Oak and Smith, places viewed as more welcoming of diversity.

School officials say the lack of magnet seats is another reason behind the persistent imbalance. Currently, Charter Oak has space for 361 students, largely neighborhood children.

A bigger Charter Oak, they envision, would house Charter Oak neighborhood students, some from Smith and 150 to 250 magnet students. The freed-up space at Smith would then allow that school to accommodate more magnet students.

At least the Mayor has a sense of reality, when the notion of who will pay for new construction arises.

Mayor Scott Slifka said balancing the racial and socioeconomic makeup at the schools could be "one of the more defining issues of our time" in West Hartford. Building a school, however, won't happen "in the foreseeable future," he said.

"One of the areas we cannot afford to pursue at this time is construction of anything, especially something of that size and scope," Slifka said.

But of course proponents are already crying and looking to get federal money for this foray into social engineering.

The latest racial balancing efforts have involved town officials and state legislators, some of whom have met with U.S. Rep. John Larson, D-1st District, in recent weeks to talk generally about their options. A spokeswoman for Larson declined to comment Monday on whether the congressman would be open to exploring federal funding for a school.

It would seem that so much more could be done with $45 million dollars, especially in education. Building a new school and shuffling kids around seems to be the least effective way to spend that kind of money. Putting that kind of money into reading programs, and making technology available to ALL kids, or perhaps finding more effective programs to close achievement gaps would go a much longer way than spending it on bricks or buses. Expanding outreach and parent involvement is also something to consider. We need to forget geography and stop thinking about re-arranging the deck chairs on a ship that just needs to concentrate on the needs of ALL of the passengers.

New Firetruck For West Hartford

2009-05-16T09:22:00.004-04:00

West Hartford took delivery of a new $818,000 "quint", also known as a combination aerial, ladder and pumper truck. It is now housed at Fire Station number 3 in Elmwood and will be in service in about a month's time giving the department some time to train firemen to use it. The truck was built to town specifications.

According to the Courant

"It has five functions. It's a ladder, water, pumper, aerial and hose," Gary S. Allyn, the town's assistant fire chief, said of the apparatus made by Crimson Aerial. "It's our third quint. It replaces a 19-year-old quint that we sold to a buyer in Montana."

That older apparatus was bought for $175,000 by a resort. The money was used toward the purchase of the new piece. Christopher Johnson, the town finance director, said that the town sold bonds to finance the balance of the purchase. The bonds will be paid over 10 years. The new vehicle might last 20 years.

Quints, invented 80 years ago, became popular in the 1990s with budget-challenged towns and cities attracted by the single vehicle that could function as both a ladder truck and a pumper.

While $818,000 is a hefty amount to plunk down on a piece of Town equipment, especially in these economic times, it is most likely a very good investment and should serve us well for many many years to come.

Delivery was just in time for the Memorial Day parade. Maybe we'll catch a glimpse of it then.

Whiting Laners Looking To Bring Back Greenhouses

2009-05-05T20:43:00.006-04:00

Looks like a case of what's old is new again.

If you are a long time resident of West Hartford, you probably recall the greenhouses that were situated in the present south parking lot area over at Whiting Lane school. It used to be the home of the Whiting Greenhouses, Inc, first owned by the Peterson family who bought a tree nursery from the Whiting family in 1915. The greenhouse had a florist there up until the late 1980's or so. The land was sold to the town in the mid-1990s. The Knox Park Foundation had used the greenhouses for a gardener training program which they started in the fall of 1995 on a temporary basis. West Hartford town officials then planned to demolish the greenhouses when work was planned for the expansion of the elementary school. Before the greenhouses could be demolished, the Knox Park Foundation decided to save them from demolition.

Jack Hale, the then Knox Park Foundation's executive director and other Knox officials and volunteers came and dismantled the greenhouses. They kept it in storage until 1996. Then the Foundation obtained a $30,000 grant and were able to rebuild the greenhouses on Laurel Street to be used by the Knox Park Foundation and their horticultural programs.

Now according to the report in the Hartford Courant

Whiting Lane Elementary School misses the greenhouses and is doing something about it.

Since the 1800s, greenhouses had been located on the property where Whiting Lane — which takes its name after the family that owned Whiting's Nursery in the area — now stands. But in the mid-1990s, community greenhouses that remained next to the school were removed because of a campus expansion.

Last week, though, the school held a nature festival that kicked off its "Bring Back the Greenhouse!" campaign. Educators at Whiting Lane envision the greenhouse as taking an active role in the curriculum, with students participating in growing food and plants as a way to understanding the earth's resources.

Lee Gluck, the school's library media specialist, is leading the effort to reinstitute a greenhouse by next summer. Those interested in donating to the Greenhouse Fund can contact Gluck at lee_gluck@whps.org or 860-233-8541, Ext. 2032.

Kids get so much out of growing things. A greenhouse would be a wonderful addition to Whiting Lane School and would add tremendously to the science program as well as to the study of nutrition and conservation.

This is definitely a project for the community and Town at large to get behind.

New Local Online News Source

2009-05-01T14:18:00.004-04:00

Besides West Hartford Cable TV, we are fortunate to have another video news source in town:
West Hartford's new independent online news service, LocalOnlineNews.TV

They provide extended online video coverage of news and events specific to the West Hartford area. What a terrific enterprise! So far the videos have been pretty good.

Here is an example:

Visit their YouTube location

Budget Drama In West Hartford

2009-05-01T08:48:00.007-04:00

Members of the West Hartford Taxpayers Association voted not to pursue a budget referendum reports the Hartford Courant. Checking their website, they put out a memo to the Mayor and offered further explanations.

"In a close vote at the 04/24/09 WHTA meeting, members voted not to pursue a budget referendum. The Town came in with less spending than last year; $600,000 less than the current $213.1 million budget. The new tax rate will be 34.81 Mills. The current Mill rate for West Hartford is 36.97. Members who voted against a referendum said that the Town came in with less spending and lowered the Mill rate, they also provided unprecedented transparency in the budget process this year and spent time listening and sitting down with WHTA leadership. Since the Town is bound by contracts, and unions were giving up wage increases this year in order to save jobs, it seemed that having a referendum would not produce any significant decreases, especially since the budget drivers are primarily salary and benefits. The only thing left for the Town to cut would be services, like closing libraries and pools. The WHTA leadership felt that the town has much work to do going forward, and should begin thinking about some long range planning especially as it pertains to negotiated contracts. They are also advocating for a management audit by a citizens audit committee. It would appear that the real referendum this year will be in November at election time."

Reality Check: Until the Town of West Hartford actually addresses how to reduce the cost of wages and benefits, and deals with upcoming contracts with some sort of realistic future planning in mind we'll keep doing referendums and having major arguments about our budgets. There still are some very real, long-term budget issues facing West Hartford. WHTA and individuals, like Robert Sisk, have consistently beaten the drum saying over and over again that it's wages, benefits and pension costs that are eating away at our ability to provide services to our citizens. The path we've been on has been unsustainable. Coming in with a reduction in Town Spending has been a welcome start, especially in this difficult economy. There are certain parts of the budget that are not under our control. Perhaps we should hold our representatives in Hartford much more accountable for some of that (for heaven's sake they ARE in the majority party!). Unfunded mandates and the money they can't seem to get back for us from the State is a budget headache for us.

There have also been others in the community, including voracious education budget supporters, who are beginning to seriously question the Board of Education and Superintendent's budget. After the many laments that they don't have a dime to shave off their budget, they always seem to find anywhere from a half million to a million and a half dollars laying around when truly pressed for it. That is a red flag and even more cause for pursuing a citizen's audit.

It might be a good opportunity for West Hartford residents to hear more about audits given this announcement:

The Farmington Taxpayers Association cordially invites you to attend a presentation by Dr. Armand Fusco, on Monday, May 4th, from 7pm-9pm at the Farmington Library. The presentation will entail details on how to establish a Citizen Audit Committee in our/your town. Dr. Fusco has worked with the BOE in Enfield (they have completed their initial audit) and is currently work with the towns of Wolcott, Trumbull, Monroe, Woodstock and Durham NH in the implementation and training of their citizen audit committees.

As for Ms. DiNapoli and her quest to obtain signatures to pursue a referendum despite WHTA's support of the budget this time, the Town Charter correctly allows for citizens to do what she is doing. Right or wrong, she says she is giving the opposition a voice, and that is what the Charter provision intended. She may or may not succeed. Time will tell.

In the meantime, we really ought to be paying attention to the much bigger issue at hand: Getting a firm grip on how this town will deal with salaries and benefits going forward, and how to balance that out in order to provide the services everyone wants to retain in town, and to do that within the constraints of the economic realities locally and nationally. Even the "tax and spenders" have a limit as to what they can continue to pay to live here.