The Editor's Notepod, Sun., May 31, 2009

Southington: it seems fairly hard to see why the group home on Thunderbird should get too many feathers ruffled in its present format. Nothing, of course, is ever guaranteed, and even a group home for elderly pacifists who never drive more than 5 mph can still produce horrible disasters, but you have to play the odds.

Southington: There is or should be no excuse for designing any new building without its meeting all the rules of the Americans with Disabilities Act. Design, planned as a part of the whole construction process, is a relatively minimal change from the former thoughtless way of building. But dealing with any old structure causes some incredible issues, both in terms of cost and aesthetics, and it makes sense to figure out acceptable compromises.

State: Measures on pooling health care which have now emerged from the4 legislature. These seem helpful and are certainly needed; almost any improvement would be highly welcome. It's to be hoped that the governor does not feel impelled to veto them. Some Republicans are worried and say they don't know how we can afford such a plan. But how can we as a culture continue not to afford adequate health care for people?

State: Legislature heads for special session, which will begin as soon as the regular one terminates. Seems to me that makes sense, since the state never seems to be able to get the business done on time.

The Editor's Notepod, Sat., May 30, 2009

Southington: the Charter Revision Commission appears to have ditched the idea of ditching the Board of Finance, but will continue to look at budget referenda. The trick will to make it effective rather than obstructive, which isn't always easy.

Wallingford: Buick-Pontiac-GMC dealership seems destined to remain, post bankruptcy. We hope it all works well. Meriden: Arcade games may return to Westfield Mall. Unlike previous "arcade" issues, the possibility now seems to be generating no particular concern. Does that mean everyone is now used to the Internet?

State: the State ethics board is going after the diocese of Bridgeport for opposing legislation aimed directly at its head and then withdrawn, about how the ecclesiastical churches are organized. There is a concern over any church participation in political issues, whatever they are, but why shouldn't the churchbe able, without the fuss of registering, to oppose a proposal aimed at its leadership.

The Editor's Notepod, Fri., May 29, 2009

Meriden: Closure of the MidState VNA is too bad, given its long history. Why, one wonders, is it having a harder time than VNA Waterbury or anywhere else? And since it is a part of the HHCC network, which provides other services, or the same services, can't it be made to work? Evidently, hospice care is a part of the VNA in this location.

Cheshire: Proposal to place liens on real estate for non-payment of parking tickets. As a last resort, that might be acceptable -- but only just. Here, there needs to be more information. How many/what percentage of tickets aren't paid? How much does it cost the town, total? Are the non-payers local or out-of-town? Are there patterns? That is, are there some places which result in more tickets than others, reflecting some issue with parking? Liens, moreover, as was made clear when there was discussion about granting tax relief for seniors, make banks very nervous. Can't see causing a foreclosure to occur over a $15 parking ticket.

Meriden/State: The idea of UConn. Hospital and HHCC forming a joint operating plan is logical and makes sense in terms of the way health care is moving. It fills a vacuum of sorts between the teaching hospital at Yale/New Haven and the next one north or east. The only drawback is the need for a half billion dollar new hospital.

Meriden: Cost of primaries. Can any part of the cost be saved or the total reduced by shortening the time the polls are opened or the number of polling places?

Southington: It would be really interesting to hear the point of view of the East Street. resident who does NOT want to have the road changed to "improve" visibility." He might have something to say -- or he might not.

The Editor's Notepod, Thur., May 28, 2009

Wallingford: Discontinuation of the videos of some meetings of town bodies. That should cause some anger.

Cheshire: AJ Waste gets the contract, for, what else? waste, an end to quite a lot of controversy.

State: Probate court reforms go through, which bears favorable comment.

The Editor's Notepod, Tues., May 26, 2009

Southington: John Weichsel Road may be rebuilt as a road to profit for landlocked parcel. This is a propitious name, which we hope will eventually lead to prosperity.

The Editor's Notepod, Mon., May 25, 2009

Southington: Planning and Zoning experts should indeed take a good and thoughtful look at the situation on West Street, where so much development is occurring. There is a good bit of real estate as well as a good deal of the future at stake.

The Editor's Notepod, Sun., May 24, 2009

Meriden/Hamden/Area: interesting that applications are up for Wilcox, Wintergreen and possibly Edison as well, which is a factor which could help each school with its No Child status but could also exclude some candidates. This is a topic which could use some public discussion.

Area towns: tenure was achieved by a number of local teachers, and a discussion shows that the standard is one of years served more than anything else. Local school administrators tend to think this state-granted tenure status is unnecessary. One somehow doubts that teachers themselves think so.

Meriden: City zones in on sites for official billboards. Is everyone really ready for this?

The Editor's Notepod, Sat., May 23, 2009

State: death penalty repealed by votes of both House and Senate; governor vows to veto. This is a continuing debate, of course, and unlike others, offers little possibility of middle ground.

Wallingford: the town has a budget without a veto.

Cheshire: the issue of the bidding process for the waste contract is not that the deal could have been sweeter, but that the apparent low bid was disqualified before any reliance was placed upon it. Henceforth, one can assume, insurance bonds will be routinely checked.

Southington: the town will miss the voice of Glenn Klocko on the Board of Finance. Klocko, who intends to play more trumpet and do more fly fishing, may not miss the action so much as he enjoys his serious hobbies.

The Editor's Notepod, Fri., May. 22, 2009

Meriden: tanning, natural or artificial. Sunlight is good for us – but only up to a point. Careful seems to be the word.

State: although it seems unlikely that it will happen this year, the state’s Transportation Strategy Board is still reviewing the possibility of reinstituting tolls on state major highways.

The Editor's Notepod, Thurs., May 21, 2009

Meriden: Surely it's true that the city needs development. No one has ever denied that. But at the same time, as one contemplates the development of the Hall Farm and Cathole Mountain, and as the city eyes the state-owned Undercliff property as a lush development site, one somehow does not look forward to the transformation of forests and meadows into parking lots for Dunkin' Donuts and McDonalds, WalMarts and Targets.

Cheshire: Ordinance committee turned down a plan that would have imposed a waiting period befor the demolition of any building more than 75 years old. Property owners "want the right to do what they want with their property at any time." That's the traditional way; preservation of anything seems to be generally regarded as either waste or imposition.

Meriden: Dogs on leashes. Of course, this is the rule. The problem is there are dogs and dogs, just as there are children and children. Even though no one objects to a quiet, well-behaved dog, the only way to control the other rambunctious dogs is to insist that all be on leashes.

Area: It's always hard to see why affordable housing seems to strike so much fear into planning and zoning hearts. Given the price of so much housing, giving some leeway for the less affluent strikes one as an essentially fair idea.

State: self-insurance for Connecticut seems to have become a rabidly partisan decision. Given the economics of the situation, it's a little hard to see why.

Wallingford: "Somebody told me that somebody's interested" in running against Bill Dickinson this November. Wonder if it's the same somebody?

The Editor's Notepod, Wed., May 20, 2009

State: Health care unions, at request of Speaker Chris Donovan, withdrew strike notices which were to have been effective today. The situation is another indicaton of the brokenness of the health care system, which we hope will be seriously and effectively addressed by both the General Assembly and the Congress.

Middletown: the killing of a student and her former acquaintance accused. One continues to be saddened at the persistence of such anti-Semitic tracts as the Protocols of the Elders etc. In spite of all the opportunities to learn otherwise.

Meriden: the city council will take a new look at the trash pick-up situation, after moving first to reinstate certain locations removed from eligibility earlier this year. More needs to be done, and it is hard to understand, in today's marginal economy, how it can be considered fair to provide residential garbage collection and not office/commercial pick-up through taxes everyone pays. Firms with unusual or difficult rubbish might need special consideration or face extra charges, but household trash is household trash.

The Editor's Notepod, Tues., May 19, 2009

State: UConn will host a World Peace Summit, initiated buy the Institute for International Sport, a West Hartford-founded non-profit, expected to bring some 25,000 participants (potential tourists) to Connecticut. Governor Rell, and no doubt many others in this shattered economy m, are delighted that the state will get a "Peace of the Action."

Wallingford: Center Street, lower Center Street, where the other day there was discussion of a foot patrol officer, continues to be a prosperous location for merchants, according to those who work there.

Cheshire has every kids' dream: a new fire engine. The $455,000 truck replaces on which was 27 years old, which is pushing the limits of service even with aggressive maintenance.

Meriden: a new agreement with furloughs and guarantees has been reached with the police and dispatchers unions, and, since the budget has now been set, it is merely prudent for the council to take the proper steps in approving it.

Wallingford: School board opts out of the state's Healthy Food Act Program. As occurred in Southington not long ago, the program prohibits the use of foods deemed "unhealthy" in fundraisers, among other things, and that seeps to be a morsel which sticks in the craw of parents and educator.

The Editor's Notepod, Mon., May 18, 2009

Wallingford: request for officer on foot along lower Center Street is not per se unreasonable, it would seem. Realizing the economic difficulties, it would seem at least polite if the department agreed to keep the concern of the owners under consideration as a possibility.

Area: Memorial Day observances are scheduled. Plan to attend one somewhere!

The Editor's Notepod, Sun., May 17, 2009

State: Here’s a completely unnecessary measure to restrict the Freedom of Information law on a bogus fear, namely that convicts will request info on prison staff, then hire or contrive harm to them, blackmail them or otherwise. Yet no examples are offered. In the past three years, while the number of FOI requests from prisoners has gone up, only 3 of 450 have involved DOC personnel files. There is no reason to enact this measure, and there is a suspicion that it is being pushed so DOC files on the only completed capital case may be exempted.

State: Health care bill, or two bills, in the works. Something needs to happen, and not just obstruction.

The Editor's Notepod, Sat., May 16, 2009

Meriden: New MHA director will pursue updates at Mills Apartments, even though the ultimate plan would be to remove them and substitute some other form of housing, through Hope grant, section 8 housing or whatever. That’s years off at least, and Mills cannot be left to deteriorate.

Southington: no rules broken, but the judgment was poor. Okay, so now it’s time to put this situation back together again. Does anyone in Southington have any ideas?

Southington: reimbursement policies for town councilors. By all means, discuss it if there’s a felt need. But if tuxedos are required and someone doesn’t own one, renting it seems legitimate.

Wallingford: no smoking gun appears to emerge about the GOP vote which dumped Councilor LeTourneau, so maybe it’s a matter of who shows up.

Wallingford: the ATF raid seems to have been rather excessively alarming to all concerned.

State: lawmakers and unions have now agreed to concessions which will save some $700,000 over the next three budget years. This leaves the legislature and the governor only $0.2 billion apart — or $200 million — on the $38 billion budget: that’s some sort of progress.

The Editor's Notepod, Fri., May. 15, 2009

Wallingford: the decision by the Republican Town Committee not to endorse LeTourneau is a shocker. Bet it’s about his vote on the dogs and cats.

Meriden: Computer Sciences makes its case to keep the sales tax exemption for IT services. It would seem that if the company were to lose $65 –to $70 million by the ended exemption, it would be a serious burden for any single company. Chris Donovan was present and his response seemed cooperative.

Southington: School board makes its cuts, essentially eliminating 13 jobs. The friction over the “discovered” surplus seems perhaps more the product of the two different responsibilities than to any particular problem with records or accountability.

Meriden: Council sets the mill rate, which seems, on balance, reasonable. The negotiating is indeed tedious, as Greg Polanski notes, but that’s the nature of that particular animal.

Meriden: The council is going to look at restoring trash delivery to those mixed use buildings eliminated a couple of months ago. Fine. But look harder at providing trash pick-up on a cost-per-can basis, to the entire city.

The Editor's Notepod, Thur., May 14, 2009

Meriden: It’s time to play high school roulette once again. Guess when your school will be done. In time for your grandchildren? Seriously, the two existing schools are now 51+ years old, though they have been refitted more than once. Deciding the options isn’t a slam dunk choice. It seems incredible that both existing buildings (and you have to deal with both, otherwise someone feels slighted) are worthless after what is really a fairly short time. If the city built entirely new, the two present schools would remain and be used for — what? Keeping the pools, gyms, cafeteria and rebuilding class wings sounds sensible but disruptive and lengthy. Minimal face-lifting seems, somehow, pointless. The city really needs to develop a vision on the matter.

Southington: The budget set and the mill rate goes up a very modest 0.25 mills. But there’s some concern over the discovery of surplus in the school portion to cover programs previously threatened.

Wallingford: It looks as if the town will get a budget without a veto when the council, after making a couple of important but minor changes turned back an effort to use $1.3 million of the CRRA windfall to offset the tax increase. Councilor Brodinsky termed it a poison pill that would summon a mayoral veto, and he was probably right to do so.

The Editor's Notepod, Wed., May 13, 2009

Wallingford: The budget passes, with the addition of the interest from the CRRA funds to restore the fireworks and the VNA appropriations. Seems well-done. To be noted, that while everyone involved is taking that CRRA cash and banking it against the future, which is the right thing to do, it shouldn’t offend too many to apply the rules to such funds that banks apply to trusts, since interest income is very low. Five percent, for example, won’t deplete the account, but could save many programs’ bacons, either in Wallingford or Meriden or Cheshire.

Wallingford: Planning and Zoning turned down both requests about the Old Car Warehouse on N. Colony Street, after the owner of the business has been operating there for four years? There’s no way to work out the use on the site — which actually once was a car dealership — and it’s taken four years to get there. That’s either an awful lot of rope payed out to let him hand himself, or a highly ineffective enforcement process.

Southington: the town doesn’t seem to be in much of a hurry to push that ball-field along at the site of the former drive-in theater. The folks on the Parks Commission, who have been hoping but are not really in charge of what needs to be done, are just kind of waiting. If there’s support, perhaps it should be demonstrated.

The Editor's Notepod, Tues., May 12, 2009

Meriden/State: NRG and CL&S competing over power plans. It’s the Cathole Mtn plant vs an idea involving the Mass. Grid. We should support the completion of the local plant.

Southington: there were some disappointed spectators when the Council did not restore funds to the school system. But it looks as if the system is prepared to adapt.

Meriden: The mayor’s veto does some rearranging of the line items and saves taxpayers a few bucks each, as the budget is adjusted to reflect the concessions. The veto seems, then, more of a tactical way around a deadline than any sort of complex statement or grand strategy on Mike Rohde’s part.

The Editor's Notepod, Mon., May 11, 2009

Wallingford: Now comes the fun part. The Charter folks have finished. Council must look, hold a hearing, then act in order to get something on the ballot.

State: farmers, featured on the local page and facing tax issues on page three, are certainly sharing the pain with everyone else. We wish them the best.

The Editor's Notepod, Sun., May 10, 2009

Area: volunteer firefighters and the rate and direction in which they may become full-time paid firefighters. It seems a natural progression, not unlike an apprenticeship in a way. Some go into the volunteer force because there’s no room on the regular force to begin with, and that’s their dream. Clearly, there are some “poach-ing” issues, but seems that police forces, with the super-numeraries and the police academy work in a fairly similar vein.

State: information that the various caucuses of the General Assembly purchase meals for members in their ranks is quite fascinating. Taxpayers don’t pay them all that much to begin with, so there’s some justice in the practice. But should we be feeding them sandwiches and pizza? Should we be insisting that our legislators eat healthy food? Should we have them on short rations because of the economy, or tell them to bring bag lunches and dinners? After all, that’s what many citizens must do.

Wallingford: three elementary schools will have new principals this year; two new appointments and one transfer. A new administration is always a challenge but equally an opportunity.

Meriden: Galileo Project at Maloney with Southern CSU makes a great deal of sense. One hopes that such a program will help narrow the gap between what students arrive with and what they need to have.

Southington: phone book recycling raises the issue of how we might someday get directories for cell phones. Probably will be impossible, given the trend toward secrecy, but still should happen.

Wallingford: Community service requirement coming into force at high schools, and there are kids who are under some pressure to finish their 30 hours in order to graduate. There are some mixed feelings about this rule.

Meriden: The extra cash from the Community Development folks for several local non-profits will be much appreciated.

The Editor's Notepod, Sat., May. 9, 2009

Meriden: Zerio is running for mayor. Should make things interesting.

Wallingford: attendance records of councilors vary considerably. To be a town councilor, in Wallingford or anywhere else, means making an effort to be on hand for meetings, but it is also about more than simply occupying a chair and raising a hand to be counted “present.” Some people – and no personal comment is intended what-ever – can do more in one meeting than others can in 20. And, it should be noted, that 50 meetings between January 7, 2008, and now is nearly one night a week.

Cheshire: The liner issue has surfaced once again, in connection with timing, RFPs and other things. The remark by Councilor Slocum has a lot of appeal: the pool is a matter of reputation for some residents.

State: Dodd, Donovan, others, favor progress on the New Haven/Springfield commuter line on the railroad. Amen to that. Amtrak, which has owned the darn thing since 1971, has no money and no interest. About all it has done is remove the second set of rails in a “money-saving” measure. How anyone could have let that happen is a continuing mystery, as it guarantees that no increase in service is possible.

Meriden: Casa Boricua’s building is in some difficulty. As in needing $100,000 worth of work to bring it up to fire code. There’s some slack being cut by the city, but it will have to be done somehow. Can we manage to at-tract any funds? This was built as the home for Rev. Lord of First Congregational Church and was later the home of the W.H. Squire Co.

The Editor's Notepod, Fri., May. 8, 2009

Meriden: The clock is ticking on setting the school budget and discussion of possible ways to save money. Lots of people will be holding their collective breath.

Meriden, Wallingford, Southington: the integral part of each library with the community and the growing technical interconnectedness of each with other repositories and with people is a burgeoning phenomenon. One begins to wonder if we should change the name from Libraries to Information Centers, given the additional resources now available.

Southington: well, making the Gura building “safe” is probably cheaper than taking it down. There certainly are a lot of items within it which could be issues.

The Editor's Notepod, Thur., May 7, 2009

Meriden: Rohde to veto, essentially to give city and unions more time to negotiate and for symbolic gesture.

Wallingford: Electric rates to rise but very minimally, thanks to the unexpectedly low price of power.

Southington: the parking issue at a local sports bar seems to be easing somewhat. This is progress.

Meriden: Tom Gaffey has settled the issues before the Elections Enforcement Commission. The situation is unfortunate, but it has been well-aired before. It’s to be hoped it won’t repeat: the rules are complicated, true, but so are those of the IRS; that’s why people hire accountants.

Meriden: Surely, no one is bewildered to learn that the Inland Wetlands and Watercourses Commission ruling has been challenged with a suit. No one reading the story should forget that a legal complaint is a collection of allegations which the party hopes to prove in court, not a set of facts already found by a court.

Southington: the course of the Charter Commission proves to be very interesting.

Meriden: Move the parks department out of the Washington Park Field house? Saving the cash is a legitimate concern. However, since there are regular contacts with the public involved, it is difficult to think that simply moving the operation — which is not necessarily cost free — to City Hall or to Miller Street, or even to the caretaker’s house at Hubbard Park, will do the public much good. Fix the building and leave it alone. The department, moreover, may re-grow in the future, which would necessitate a move back.

The Editor's Notepod, Wed., May 5, 2009

Southington: The Mt. Southington ski facility has plans to replace its 30-year-old T-bar lift with a three-seater chair lift. Anyone who has ridden a T-bar anywhere will be glad to hear this news; it was approved by the Planning and Zoning Commission.

Southington’s Charter Revision Commission is now down to brass tacks and considering the basic form of government the town should have. There’s no harm in discussing such questions, but was the petition to convene a charter panel really an expression of intent to open the entire charter to discussion as if new?

Meriden: discussions between unions and town management are underway — a good thing, from which we expect good results. The incidental comments from both sides, though interesting, should probably not be taken as expressions of hard positions. And, for goodness’ sake, if it’s a matter of councilors accepting a 5% reduction in their stipend to win some concessions, don’t hesitate long!

Cheshire: the discussions over the bid prices for trash-hauling contracts for the town raise questions about bid-waivers, about the effect on local contractors with all their eggs in one contract, about experience of a new company and others. Knotty.

Meriden: School system looking at budget arrangements now that the budget has been set. Best news seems to be that the city could actually send 40 kids to Wintergreen in Hamden, which would save $95,000 in state reimbursements. Presumably, Hamden will be sending kids to Edison?

The Editor's Notepod, Tues., May 5, 2009

Meriden: The budget is set. Probably not a great surprise that the tax rate will go up nearly a mill. While the proposed budget would have avoided this, the outcry could certainly have been anticipated and several im-portant city activities preserved. It is worth noting, in passing, that it is the outer tax district which will see an increase and, for those who don’t remember, the outer district is not a doughnut with the inner district being the hole in the doughnut. The outer district is the whole city, the inner district that part which was within the original city line of 1867; hence a .97 mill tax hike in the outer district is a hike for the whole city.

Wallingford: Visiting Nurses under the budgetary gun, apparently due to an offer by MidState to perform some of the same services for less. It might have been good to let the VNA know about the offer and perhaps given the organization, which has a history of service to the community, the chance to make a bid also.

The Editor's Notepod, Mon., May 4, 2009

Cheshire: The prison facilities in town reflect effects of changes in state policy. For example, when paroles were denied to violent offenders after the murders in town, census went up; so did costs, leading to a notable budget overrun. Situation is now reversed, with empty beds in minimum security facilities. It’s a tough situa-tion to sort out, since most of the criticism comes from the guards and there is rather persistent un-ion/management disagreement.

Southington: interesting fact that there seems to be only one school in New England to offer court reporting training. This seems to be a very odd situation, considering that reporters are required in so many legal situations. The goal is around 225 words per minute, which is considerably faster than any stenographer can type in English, with the phonetic language.

State: Silver alert program being proposed in Connecticut for persons suffering from dementia and Alzheimer’s. Seems a good idea, but why not put one of those electronic bracelets on a person’s leg or wrist?

The Editor's Notepod, Sun., May 3, 2009

Meriden: The Fairview Pavilion has been rededicated and refurbished, with recent depredations by assorted vandals removed. It’s always a shame that vandals continue to live in the city with the rest of the people, but, we guess, the vandals are always with us.

The Editor's Notepod, Sat., May. 2, 2009

Wallingford: Covidien identified as a possible tenant of the former Mortgage Lenders office building, although, of course, no one is saying anything at all. Why must everyone involved in these transactions be so secretive about it all?

State: State representative from Cromwell, O’Rourke, has been relieved of deputy speaker’s post by rep. Donovan to deal with the situation regarding a hypothermia case. That happened in January and the prosecutorial system or the police or the forensics have only just gotten around to charging him – that’s a long time to wait.

Meriden and Southington: both towns may receive stimulus money help for projects which will remove pollutants from the waste water, especially those which cause water to become too nutritious for plants: nitrogen, phosphorus.

The Editor's Notepod, Fri., May. 1, 2009

State: the movement to raise the age of required schooling to 18 from 16 is a good idea. This year’s economic crunch will make it difficult, but that doesn’t make it wrong.

State: Bad news: more cases of swine flu in Connecticut; good news: most don’t seem too serious; more good news: Protein Sciences of Meriden is primed and ready to work on vaccines.

Meriden: no one likes to see businesses closed by the courts, but Club 2041 on the Berlin Turnpike, now shut by injunction, is a place which does seem to have earned the dubious distinction.