Mayor Art Ward has named a new Park Revitalization Committee that contains a lot of familiar faces.
Ward said Monday that he is naming four newcomers and four members who served on the committee sometime in the past. He said intends to chair the panel.
Last month, a majority of the City Council initially refused to support the reappointment of three Park Board veterans because the mayor hadn’t yet reformed the Park Revitalization Committee that is overseeing the overhaul of the city’s park system.
Ward promised at the time to create the committee in January, which convinced one councilor, Ken Cockayne, to switch sides and support the reappointment of the three park panel members.
Now two of those newly reappointed park commissioners are on the new committee as well – Pat Nelligan, who will be its vice chairman, and Lori DeFillippi, who served on the committee under former Mayor Gerard Couture.
“I’m putting representatives from the Park Board to improve communication,” said Ward.
The mayor said he tried to combine the experience of former parks revitalization board members with the talents and perspective of some newcomers.
Ward said the committee will focus its energy on improving Rockwell Park, which he called “one of our bigger gems.”
“It’ll take the input of everybody to bring that to where we think it really, really should be,” said Ward.
The revitalization committee makes recommendations to the Park Board.
“They work in conjunction with consultants,” said Ward, who was co-chairman of the panel during Couture’s administration.
Among those Ward is selecting are Chris Cassin, who served on the panel during the administrations of both Couture and former Mayor William Stortz; Dave Mills, a retired teacher who served on it during Stortz’s tenure; and Mike Hines, who was also on the panel during the past administration.
In addition, Ward tapped Roseanne Vojtek, the principal of Ivy Drive School.
“I worked with her on the Ivy Drive building committee,” said Ward. He said she would be an attribute.
He also picked Michael Suchopar, executive director of the Bristol Boys and Girls Club and The Family Center. Ward said he is looking for people who either work with children or have children, so the needs of children are considered in planning Bristol’s parks.
The mayor also appointed Jody Trestman, whom he had hoped to put on the West Bristol School Building Committee.
“She’s just very avid about being involved,” said Ward.
The Park Revitalization Committee in Stortz’s administration includes Cassin, Hines, David Mills, Debbie Schur, Andrea Kopchensky and former city Councilor Ellen Zoppo, who chaired the panel.
The new committee will meet at 5:30 p.m., Monday, Jan. 14 at City Hall for the first time.
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Copyright 2008. All rights reserved.
Contact Steve Collins at scollins@bristolpress.com
19 comments:
By the way, in case anyone wonders, former Mayor Stortz reshuffled the committee as well and also named it in January of his first year in office.
Here's the press release he issued:
http://www.ci.bristol.ct.us/filestorage/5816/2006_press_release_1.pdf
"Ward said the committee will focus its energy on improving Rockwell Park, which he called “one of our bigger gems.”
“It’ll take the input of everybody to bring that to where we think it really, really should be,” said Ward."
That's great, considering the plans are done and construction is in progress as we speak. Not a lot left to do for this committee......
Of all the people on the Park Board to put on this Revitilization committee, he picks Nelligan and Deflippi? What a big surprise! It figures, Ward doesn't want real input, it's all more of the same.
I am glad to see the mayor kept some of the existing committee members - good move on his part. Hopefully that will balance on his need to reward defillippi with a seat.
And how do you know that...? There is a great deal to still be delt with in Rockwell, as with Page and Muzzy Field. Maybe instead of being bitter because you are not on the committee, you should contribute some input? But then again, that would be the mature thing to do. I think this park revitalization committee is a good one, new members, past members and a few current ones - should be good.
For both the "Anoymous" posters - obviously yu have a thing against Defillippi, why I don't know, at this point who cares. The point is I don't Ward is rewarding her anything, she sat on the first park revitalization committee, and is on the park board. I am sure she and Nelligan have more input into this then you - who chooses to throw jabs with nothing positive to contribute. I think the mix is a good one. Why wouldn't Park Commissioners be part of this committee? Aferall, the parks will oversee them once the renovations are completed.
9:45 - after the flooding we had there was a lot of damage done to certain areas of the park which automatically caused problems with the existing plans. Also, until the plans are complete and the park is done, there are a lot of things that can go wrong that this committee will need to address.
It's good to have some of the old people on there - they are familiar with what has happened. We won't have to train an entirely new committee of people.
Nelligan has kids that use the park. He belongs on this committee. I don't care for Deflippi, but she hasn't done anything wrong on the committee, she's just arrogant and annoying. No reason to take her off for that.
I don't think that is correct about defillippi being arrogant. Its quite obvious you don't know her because if you did you wouldn't be stating that. She too has kids that use the park all the time and knows the plans and conditions that have happened since the flooding in Rockwell. The fact that I think you don't like her is because she is a woman!
Just get over yourself please.
Oh please. We all have kids that use the parks, how is that a special qualification?
Nelligan and Defellipi are 2 of Ward's closest friends, that is their biggest qualification. Oh yes, they are veteran advocates, which is obviously important exprience for deciding about Parks and Playgrounds. if Ward intended to put some regular Park Board people on this committee and had to take care of his friends, he could have gone for variety and put 1 of his friends and 1 other person like Cindi Donovan, who is a bigger Park advocate and knows more then any of them.
2 months into the Ward administration the cronyism already stinks.
I wish people would stop saying "get over yourself" when they really mean "you're a jerk". If folks keep using it arbitrarily it will lose its true meaning, and our vocabulary will have lost a pretty cool and expressive phrase.
Oh, get over yourself!
Gripe and moan all you like...the mayor's choice for the committee seems like a well-balanced group with lots of positive energy. The fact that they're all interested enough to volunteer their time and effort seems like a "special" enough qualification to me. Two months into the Ward administration and he's doing a great job...it's some other people's attitudes that stink...
I thought that Ward wanted to open the process to new people???
Since there are some carryovers, new people could add some fresh ideas: that is what Stortz did.
And the combination that Ward wants reduces checks and balances.
Oh, who was it that was saying that Stortz had to chair everything???
Donovan? Oh please! Save us all.
Art's obviously using a phone book, the Democratic Town Committee list, and a dartboard to find these people.
And people wonder why its so hard finding citizens to fill boards and committees in this town...good people get involved, and nothing but losers and wanna be's bash them.
Steve require the use of real names on this thread and see how fast the crap by anonymous posters cease!
I love defilippi! She is not afraid to state her ground on any issue or anyone. We need more people like her to get involved.
New park revitalization committee seems like a good group! Nice mixture.
Another example of Ward Micro-managing!
Of course you won't read that in the Press.
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