At the planning board

I'm here at the Planning Commission and, presumably, you're not. I'll try to keep you informed of what happens.
The commission got a report prepared for it on the school plan and will likely use it to make its decision. I'm told that proponents may not get a chance to make a pitch directly.
Planning Chairman Bill Veits said he's going to ask his colleagues whether they want public participation or not. He said he wants commissioners to talk before they hear from City Planner Alan Weiner.
Here are scans of the pages from the report prepared for the Board of Education for tonight's meeting:

Cover sheet
Table of contents
Page 1
Page 2
Page 3
Page 4
Page 5
Page 6
Page 7
Page 8 (map of school locations in Bristol)
Page 9 (Scalia site map)
Page 10 (Scalia site map)
Page 11 (Greene-Hills site map)
Page 12 (Greene-Hills site map)

City Councilor Cliff Block told me that he checked today on the state reimbursement for the property. He said that the reimbursement looks at the amount of buildable acreage on the site so the entire purchase cost should qualify for state aid. That makes it a little cheaper and answers the question I raised earlier.
There are a number of school people here and a few residents. There are quite a few people I don't know, who I fear are here for other issues that might make the controversy of the night take place a bit later than I'd hoped. One never knows.
I'll update when there's something to say.

Update at 7:20 p.m. --
Just checked the agenda. There's only one pending application for the panel to finish, which is about to happen, and then there is one new one.
After that, we get to the school sites. Should happen pretty soon.
The new one is a subdivision application beside Allentown Road. They're handing out maps about it now and attorney Jim Ziogas is getting ready to talk. It will be scintillating, no doubt.

Update at 7:26 --
They're talking about a drainage pipe and a culvert.
And to think that people volunteer to serve on land use panels.

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Copyright 2008. All rights reserved.
Contact Steve Collins at scollins@bristolpress.com

School site study details pros and cons of possible locations

Here is a PDF of the March 2007 school site feasibility study's executive summary.
It makes for some interesting reading.
One fascinating aspect is that the Scalia site that the city is planning to buy is bigger than it needs to be -- which likely means that the state won't reimburse the city for more than a third of its cost and may not reimburse for some of the athletic fields that are eyed for the school.

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Copyright 2008. All rights reserved.
Contact Steve Collins at scollins@bristolpress.com

Planning may decide school site fate tonight

The planning commission may decide tonight whether to back the proposed sites for two new schools in Bristol.
Though some officials said this week that the decision would come next month, they may well be wrong.
It's up to planning commissioners whether to make a choice tonight or wait another month -- and they have typically decided on these types of questions in a single meeting.
Moreover, there may be a chance for public participation as well.
Again, planning commissioners have the right to listen to public comment on the issue. They apparently don't have to provide the forum, but they can, and they might.
Anyone who wishes to talk should keep in mind that they can only discuss the merits of the sites selected - the Scalia sand pit off Barlow Street and the former Crowley dealership off Pine Street - and not the merits of the kindergarten to eighth grade plan or other issues unrelated to the sites themselves.

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Copyright 2008. All rights reserved.
Contact Steve Collins at scollins@bristolpress.com

Schools already in the red

Less than three months into its fiscal years, the city’s school system is facing an $830,000 deficit.
But school leaders said they hope to end the year in the black through cost-saving steps that managed last year to turn a similar shortfall into a surplus of almost $800,000.
“We’re going to do our best,” Superintendent Philip Streifer said.
The school system spends more than $100 million to operate, mostly for teacher salaries, but two other elements are driving the deficit.
Streifer said that the schools anticipate a $658,000 additional charge for energy beyond what they planned for in the budget approved in May.
They are also eyeing a $604,000 deficit in the special education account, driven by 19 students they didn’t know about at the start of the year.
Streifer said that 15 of the students were placed by the state Department of Children and Families, all of them from Bristol. They’ll cost an additional $802,000, he said.
Four other students moved into the city. Educating them will sock taxpayers for $406,000, official estimate.
Since the state pays a hefty share of the extra tab, the city needs to come up with about $604,000 in extra spending to educate the 19 children, Streifer said.
Streifer said that the special education situation is “not nearly as bad” as the one the schools had to address last year.
Moreover, he said, school officials have new controls in place “to try to keep that number from growing.”
School officials have to provide the necessary education for special education students, some of whom are severely impaired. It can cost as much as $280,000 a year to educate a single special needs, Streifer said, though most require much less.
Prodded by Board of Finance members to explain how an integration lawsuit in Hartford contributes to the budget, Streifer said the city spends about $40,000 for magnet school tuition for students who want to leave the district.
Streifer said that state officials want them to push the program more, but his policy is not to dissuade students from going “but we’re not going to go out of our way either” to promote it.

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Copyright 2008. All rights reserved.
Contact Steve Collins at scollins@bristolpress.com

Schools flee downtown, too

A Board of Education report prepared for Wednesday's Planning Commission session has an interesting map included within it.
The map, which I'll try to post here later, shows the location of each of the city's schools and the two sites eyed for new kindergarten to eighth grade buildings.
What's striking about the map is that when you exclude the schools that officials aim to close - O'Connell, Bingham and Memorial Boulevard in particular - what you have left is a circle of school locations that entirely bypasses the city center.
South Side and Jennings schools would be the closest ones left to downtown if the current plan goes through. And Jennings may not survive many more years.
What would be left in the city center are the old buildings - from the Board of Education's own headquarters on School Street to the former high schools on Summer Street and the boulevard, along with O'Connell, Bingham and the school beside Federal Hill Green that's now a pleasant apartment building. There may be others that aren't coming to mind.
It’s interesting at the very least that at the same time City Hall is spending millions to try to pump life into downtown, the school system is giving up on it completely.

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Copyright 2008. All rights reserved.
Contact Steve Collins at scollins@bristolpress.com

Educators plan for pitch to planners

Reporter Jackie Majerus wrote this story:

It's possible that school officials won't get a chance to make a pitch to planning commissioners when they consider the proposed placement of two new K-8 schools Wednesday, but they've covered their bases with a specially prepared booklet touting the sites.
A written presentation – in case no oral arguments will be heard – complete with six full-color fold-out maps was given to every planning commissioner in advance of the meeting, according to Steve Devaux, the district's business manager.
The maps and presentation handbook by the Cheshire engineering and landscaping firm Milone & MacBroom are general, according to Devaux.
"They're not seeing sanitary sewer lines," he said. "They're not seeing traffic counts."
And, Devaux said, speaking to school building committee members Monday night about the crucial upcoming planning board meeting, no one is going to discuss the merits of a K-8 system or any other educational theory on Wednesday.
What is included in Milone & MacBroom's spiral-bound booklet are eight pages of text outlining the school district's position as far as the selection of the sites for the two proposed schools and the planning commission's role.
The planning board must determine whether to recommend for or against the site locations – an expanded version of the current Greene-Hills School and the former Scalia sand pit off Barlow Street.
City councilors overwhelmingly approved the Greene-Hills site, but split in a narrow 4-3 vote on the Scalia property, making the planning board's vote crucial. If planning commissioners recommend against the locations, it will take a two-thirds council vote to override it.
The Milone & MacBroom document describes the Scalia parcel as having "fairly gentle" topography in the center of the property but having "steep slopes" on three sides that cannot be used for building.
The 14 acres of steep slopes make up more than a third of the property, leaving 61 percent available for the school building, parking lot, playing fields and playground at the bottom of the slopes.
Milone & MacBroom suggested that the slopes would be useful as a buffer between the school and the neighborhood, which would be elevated high above the school.
Devaux and Superintendent Phil Streifer will attend the planning meeting, said Devaux, to answer questions if the commissioners ask any. He said Streifer wants everyone on the school building committees to attend the 7 p.m. meeting at City Hall on Wednesday "to show the planning commission support that we have for the project."
Devaux said he tried to learn what to expect from the meeting.
"We don't anticipate that there will be any public participation," said Devaux. He also said he didn't expect that the board would take a vote on the matter until its October meeting.
School board member Tom O'Brien, who serves on the building committee, deflected a question about why the planning board was brought in so late in the game.
They didn't have the power to bring their proposal to the planning board, O'Brien said, only city councilors did. He said there wasn't any point to raising the issue with planners until they had decided on a site.
"They don't give advisory rulings," O'Brien said.
If it is to move forward, the project would eventually have to pass through all the land use boards, Devaux said.
Though the city has reached an agreement with car dealer Ken Crowley for his property on Pine Street, O'Brien said they may also need the convenience store next to the school.
"There is that possibility in the future," said O'Brien.
The city has not agreed on a purchase price for the former Scalia sand pit, which could be acquired through the use of eminent domain. The Scalia family apparently does not want to sell the property.
The planning board meets at 7 p.m. Wednesday in public session. Commissioners have not said whether they will make a decision that night or wait until their next meeting, and they have not made it clear whether public comments will be allowed.
Meanwhile, officials are moving forward with the selection of an architect for the school project, according to Roger Rousseau, the city's purchasing agent.
Next week, architectural firms will be interviewed, said Rousseau, and committee members will narrow it down to four firms.
Then, Rousseau said, committee members will determine the scope of the services desired from the architectural firms and solicit bids from the four finalists.

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Copyright 2008. All rights reserved.
Contact Steve Collins at scollins@bristolpress.com

Wright wants to open up state employee health care plan

Press release today from state House contender Chris Wright, a 77th District Democrat:

CHRIS WRIGHT BACKS CONNECTICUT HEALTH CARE PARTNERSHIP TO REDUCE HEALTH CARE COSTS AND INCREASES BENEFITS FOR EMPLOYEES

Chris Wright, the Democratic candidate for state representative in Bristol’s 77th Assembly District, says he will support legislation to open the state employee health care plan to municipal employees, small businesses and non-profit organizations.
Called, “The Connecticut Health Care Partnership,” the proposal was passed by Majority Democrats this year, but was vetoed by the Governor.
The fight for the legislation is expected to be renewed when the General Assembly convenes in January.
“The veto was unfortunate,” Wright said. “This is a plan that not only has the potential of reducing health care costs for municipalities and taxpayers, but it would enable small businesses and non-profits to participate in the program and provide affordable health care for their workers.”
Under this program participation will be voluntary, participants will be able to take advantage of the increased bargaining power and reduced administrative costs associated with the State plan and employees will receive the comprehensive benefit coverage that state employees currently receive.
“We hear a lot of talk about wanting to help small businesses cope with their health care costs and this plan will provide businesses with access to a comprehensive benefit package,” Wright said. “I have talked with small business people and they are certainly interested in looking at the plan to see if it fits their needs. The goal should be to pass it next year and get the Governor’s signature.”
Starting last November, House Majority Leader Chris Donovan traveled across the state talking to and receiving positive reactions to the plan from municipal leaders, small businesses, doctors, workers and elected officials.
Examples of projected savings for towns included $2.8 million for Danbury, $1.9 million for Meriden, $1.1 million for East Hartford and $157,118 for a small town like Sprague.
“These are real savings which translates to property tax relief,” Wright said. “Each town will have to examine the plan and see for themselves how much money they will save and then act accordingly.”
“By opening up the state plan and pooling resources, we will be able to provide Connecticut businesses and their workers with comprehensive health care and that means affordable health care for many Bristol workers who deserve affordable health care,” Wright said. “I look forward to fighting for and voting for this plan.”

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Copyright 2008. All rights reserved.
Contact Steve Collins at scollins@bristolpress.com

Visconti wants federal probe of New Haven and Hartford

Republican congressional contender Joe Visconti just sent this along:

Visconti Calls for RICO Investigation of Sanctuary Cities

Connecticut's 1st Congressional District Republican candidate Joseph Visconti Saturday called on the US Attorney's office to launch an investigation into Hartford and New Haven's Sanctuary City designations under the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act (RICO).

Speaking on the steps of the New Haven City Hall where Mayor John DeStefano fired 35 city employees Friday in a cost-cutting move, Visconti said, "Mayor DeStefano is refusing to protect the health, safety and welfare of this city's legal residents."

"I have spoken to the US Attorneys office for New Haven and Hartford … and will ask them to begin an investigation under the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act. We believe an inquiry under this statute will result in indictments against the mayor of New Haven as well as many other groups and individuals."

Visconti said the devastating impacts of illegal immigration on American society are self-evident in New Haven. "Today, the equivalent of a platoon of New Haven city workers is enduring its first day of unemployment. These people lost their jobs, and now face an uncertain future because the mayor of this city decided it was more important to provide sanctuary for people who are here illegally, than to live up to his oath of office."

"The city of New Haven is tens of millions of dollars in debt due to the strain that illegal immigrants have placed on city services. Legal workers are losing their jobs, and the social services budget can not possibly keep up with the influx of new claims resulting from the Sanctuary City designation.

"And Hartford is next! This is criminal."

Visconti revealed that he has had preliminary discussions with representatives of the US Attorney's office and believes a RICO investigation is the preferred avenue to address the nation's illegal immigration problems.

"The mayor of New Haven has clearly been breaking federal immigration laws and celebrates his accomplishments today. He has conspired with like-minded individuals, groups and not for-profit agencies. He is deliberately and intentionally inviting foreign criminals into our country and into his city."

Visconti was one of several speakers who attended a Community Watchdog Project rally on the steps of New Haven City Hall. The group has been fighting the Sanctuary City designation for New Haven. The group estimates that New Haven has spent more than $71-million in taxpayer money on education and social services for the estimated 15,000 illegal aliens living there since DeStefano signed the Sanctuary City designation in December 2006.

Addressing the claim that the bulk of the illegals are workers doing jobs that Americans won't do themselves, Visconti said, "As a General Contractor I see it every day – skilled construction workers seeking jobs while illegal construction crews are brought in to perform carpentry, framing, roofing, drywall, painting and many other jobs."

"These are not jobs Americans don’t want. These are jobs my crews want; the kind of jobs I want."

Visconti said illegal immigration has become a critical issue in America because the Congress refuses to address it honestly. This situation is a direct result of "the inaction and failures of elected officials like Congressman John Larson and Rosa De Lauro, as well as Senator Chris Dodd."

"This City Slicker Mayor took it upon himself to break federal law for political purposes, because he knew full well his Congressmen and Senator would allow it and, we must assume, have condoned it. Our Senators and Congressmen talk endlessly, but accomplish nothing. It is up to us as citizens of the United States to use our own laws to our advantage."

"These federal office holders represent the Democratic leadership of the United States House of Representatives and Senate, and the example they set is one of lawlessness and anarchy. We will demand federal indictments under the RICO Statutes against those who are waging war against the United States from within the United States. We will do what our elected representatives have refused to do – act responsibly and defend our way of life."

Visconti http://www.viscontiforcongress.org/ is challenging incumbent Democrat John Larson for the 1st Congressional District seat. Larson is the number-five ranking Democrat in the US House of Representatives. His websites do not list Immigration Reform as one of his priorities.

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Copyright 2008. All rights reserved.
Contact Steve Collins at scollins@bristolpress.com

Security cameras for Memorial Boulevard soon

Security cameras may be in place along Memorial Boulevard this fall.
Bids for a half dozen cameras are slated to be opened in early October
Officials hope the wireless camera system will help them cut down on vandalism along the historic parkway, a problem that struck home over the summer when a statue of a Spanish-American War soldier was ripped from its base and mauled badly.
The Sony wireless cameras, already in place at downtown’s Brackett Park, may help deter vandals and could assist police in catching culprits who ignore the cameras, officials said.
“Maybe it will cut down vandalism,” city Councilor Mike Rimcoski said.
Tom Ragaini, a parks commissioner, said that they can’t hurt.
Cameras will be mounted in a half dozen spots along the boulevard, with their pictures sent electronically to a video recorder that will keep the photos on file for many hours in case authorities need to review something.
Park Director Ed Swicklas said that at the very least, the cameras should help police pinpoint the time when vandals strike.
But officials said that the pictures are often surprisingly clear, even in the dark, so they may prove effective in identifying those who create problems.
They could also be used for live webcasting, if the city ever opted to use that option, which might allow residents to keep an eye on the boulevard from their homes.
The cameras are touted as being “ideal for webcasting and remote monitoring applications used almost anywhere – from airports to train stations, factories to supermarkets, and from street corners in small towns to big cities.”
They each cost between $750 and $1,400 online, depending on the vendor. But the city also needs the appropriate networking and connections to use them.
The city’s Park Board is planning more cameras to combat vandalism at Rockwell Park as its renovation nears completion next year, with other parks likely to follow in years to come if the cameras prove helpful.
Swicklas said recently that during the past month, there hasn’t been any vandalism worth noting in any of the parks, a sharp change from the spate of trouble last spring.
Mayor Art Ward said he recently spoke with a prosecutor to detail 57 incidents of vandalism in city parks this year in a bid to convince the law enforcer to come down hard on those arrested for spray painting the pool at Rockwell Park in the spring.
Ward and other city leaders said they are convinced that one way to clamp down on vandalism that costs taxpayers thousands of dollars annually is to “make an example” of anyone caught – and to make them reimburse the city for the expense of repairing the damage.

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Copyright 2008. All rights reserved.
Contact Steve Collins at scollins@bristolpress.com

New Courant coming Sept. 28th

I'm told that the new Courant -- a slimmed-down, spruced-up version of the old Courant -- will be unveiled on Sunday, Sept. 28.
What can Bristol expect?
"Two or three stories a week" about the Mum City.
It's going to get ever harder to know what's going on in Bristol as newspaper cutbacks keep coming and coming.

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Copyright 2008. All rights reserved.
Contact Steve Collins at scollins@bristolpress.com

Fournier calls Wall Street bailout a "looting of the treasury"

Green Party congressional candidate Steve Fournier just issued this comment on the crash of the global financial system:

“The ‘bailout’ now under consideration by Congress amounts to a vast transfer of wealth to the ‘haves’ from the ‘have-nots.’ A trillion dollars will flow directly into the pockets of people who risked money to make money, many of them Asians, Arabs, and Europeans, and out of the pockets of people who work for it, along with their kids and grandkids, who will have to sweat for at least another two generations to pay it back. If my opponent Congressman John Larson votes for this looting of the treasury or even allows it to advance, he will be answering for it a hundred years from now.”

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Copyright 2008. All rights reserved.
Contact Steve Collins at scollins@bristolpress.com

No fees for city job seekers

A proposal to begin charging job seekers at City Hall a fee fell flat this week.
“There’s other ways we can save money,” said city Councilor Frank Nicastro, who heads the Salary Committee.
The salary panel killed the request because its members feared that imposing a fee for those seeking to take the police and fire tests – the first step toward getting a public safety position in Bristol – could potentially keep good people from coming forward.
Personnel Director Diane Ferguson said that charging about $12 an applicant would bring the city about $2,000 annually, an idea she said was spurred by Mayor Art Ward’s request that department chiefs look for ways to bring in new revenue to cover costs.
Many municipalities in the state charge fees for entry level police and fire tests, Ferguson said, including West Hartford, which imposes a $20 charge; New Britain, which asks for $35; and Waterbury, which socks residents for $75 and out-of-towners for $100.
City Councilor Mike Rimcoski suggested that if Bristol opted to begin imposing fees, it should ask for $10 from residents and $15 from those hailing from other towns. He said it would probably average out to about $12 per applicant that way.
Ferguson said there are about 100 applicants annually for firefighter jobs and usually a bit less for police positions.
Hitting them up for the expenses involved would be “a way to cover some of the costs for the testing,” Ferguson said.
City Councilor Cliff Block said that he worries that if the city begins requiring a fee, some qualified people won’t bother to apply.
“I don’t want to deter anyone,” Block said. “I’d like as many people tested as possible so we get the best and the brightest.”
Block said that the $2,000 or so the city might get from test-takers is “not going to make much of a difference in the budget.”
“Not the way you vote,” Rimcoski responded.
But Rimcoski agreed that the $2,000 the city might gain is “peanuts” in the big picture.
Nicastro said he had “mixed feelings” about the issue, but that Block had made a good argument for leaving the system the way it is.

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Copyright 2008. All rights reserved.
Contact Steve Collins at scollins@bristolpress.com