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.