Change One Way Or Another

Newtown consults on governance decision

Governance is a continual process – every year we hold elections to decide leaders at the local, state or national level, and in effect choose what direction we believe we should go in. On the local level, one of the biggest questions is how a government should take shape. The town of Newtown has been consulting with experts and other towns on deciding if a Town Manager would be appropriate for them.

Currently, less than a quarter of towns and cities are town manager towns in Connecticut, but they have increased in popularity over the last several years with towns looking into the change or going through with it.

According to information pulled form the Office of Legislative Research (OLR), a town manager is a municipality’s chief executive officer (CEO), hired by the legislative body, often with requirements that they have a Master of Public Administration degree. It is believed that the manager form of government “professionalize the CEO position” while still being able to “minimize the role of partisan politics in the administration of the local government.”

And while only so many towns in Connecticut have a town manager form of government, it is actually the preferred form of government for towns over 2,500 in the United States according to the International City/ County Management Association. In Connecticut, the town manager form of government covers towns with populations of about 10,000 to 40,000.

Notable exceptions include Manchester, Meriden, and West Hartford, which have populations of approximately 58,000, 60,000, and 63,000.

Towns are allowed to establish a town manager as CEO under two statutes according to OLR, by charter or by vote at a town meeting.

Recently, members of the Town Administrator Workgroup of Newtown met with Simsbury First Selectman Wendy Mackstutis. Simsbury is one of several towns in recent years to change to the town manager form.

On the flipside, towns that have town manager forms of government aren’t immune to change either. Most notably, Hartford had a city manager for many years before adopting their current form of government.

Ultimately, it is up to the people of Newtown to decide what is best for them. Through elections, they chose representatives that will make decisions on budget, processes, and in this case form of government. One thing that is sure is that in a democracy, these things are always up for debate and for study.