“Christmas is the season when you buy this year’s gifts with next year’s money.” ~ Author Unknown
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Bee Intelligencer Informing the towns of Middlebury, Southbury, Woodbury, Naugatuck, Oxford and Watertown AN INDEPENDENTLY OWNED FREE COMMUNITY NEWSPAPER
Volume IX, No. 45
Friday, December 20, 2013
Dispatch dispute continues By MARJORIE NEEDHAM In what might be described as a battle of letters, attorney Craig L. Manemeit, in-house counsel for the United Public Service Employees Union, which represents Middlebury’s police officers, has written a Dec. 5, 2013, letter to Middlebury town attorney Robert Smith. In the letter, he disputes statements Smith made in his Nov. 13 letter to Manemeit about the town moving police dispatching to the Northwest Public Safety Communications Center (Northwest) in Prospect. Smith’s November letter was a response to an Oct. 24 letter from Manemeit expressing concern for the safety of Middlebury police officers and Middlebury residents. That letter said the union asserts the dispatch switch has “created a more hazardous work environment” for the officers and has “jeopardized the safety and well-being of Middlebury citizens.” The letter listed a dozen dates and times since the switch was made when Northwest gave officers incorrect information after they stopped suspects. Smith’s November response said many of the events Manemeit mentioned in his October letter letter were related to injury/ambulance calls. Smith said Northwest has handled those calls “admirably” and “without objection or complaint” since 2004. Smith said of the errors Manemeit listed, “callers make mistakes and dispatchers at local operations also make mistakes.” In his December letter, Manemeit states Smith’s November response “is incomplete, inaccurate, unresponsive and, quite frankly, authored in reliance on facts supplied and/or considered by individuals who appear to have a limited, if any, familiarity with police work.” Manemeit also took exception to Smith’s assertion the union’s complaints about safety with the new dispatch arrangement were meant to assist the former Middlebury dispatchers (who belong to a different union). He said the union’s concern is it believes the Northwest dispatchers are in-
competent when it comes to dispatching police calls. He said this issue jeopardizes officer and civilian safety. Manemeit said there have been additional failures of the new dispatch system since Smith’s November letter. In one case, it took dispatchers more than 10 minutes to a notify an officer on the scene that a vehicle the officer had stopped was stolen. The Northwest dispatcher also informed the officer there were no outstanding arrest warrants on the driver, but a Middlebury dispatcher still working here at the time discovered an outstanding arrest warrant on the driver. Manemeit said in another incident, the Northwest dispatcher didn’t respond to a request for outstanding arrest warrant information, but a Middlebury dispatcher found lengthy criminal records, including criminal possession of a gun. He said the Northwest dispatcher never informed officers they were dealing with suspects who were convicted felons. Manemeit said the union had hoped the town would work collaboratively with it to resolve “multiple deficiencies” in the Northwest police dispatch system, but Smith’s November letter makes it clear the town is “only interested in defending its decision to subcontract police dispatch services and not in ensuring … that its police officers are able to safely return to their families at the end of every shift.” He said problems with the new dispatch system continue to occur. First Selectman Edward B. St. John said Tuesday, “We know there are some issues and we are working around them. We will resolve the issues.” Manemeit does not share St. John’s optimism. He ends his letter by saying it is unfortunate town officials will not meet with union officials to discuss officer safety and changed working condition issues. As a result, he says, the union is forced to seek an outside remedy to ensure its members have the safest work environment possible. He doesn’t say what that outside remedy will be.
MVFD Holiday Wetdown Help the Middlebury Volunteer Fire Department (MVFD) christen its newest vehicle, a rescue pumper. Saturday, Dec. 21, 12 p.m. The public is invited. Light refreshments will be served.
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Upcoming Events
Library Happenings.......... 2 Nuggets for Life.............. 6 Region 15 School Calendar....3 Senior Center News......... 3 Sports Quiz..................... 7 Varsity Sports Calendar.... 6
BoE chooses Perry as chair The members of the Region 15 Board of Education (BoE) unanimously elected Patricia Perry as chairperson at their Dec. 9, 2013, meeting. Perry subsequently appointed Jennifer Connelly of Southbury as board secretary. Paul Babarik of Middlebury was named treasurer. Last month, Perry was re-elected to the BoE along with new members Marion Manzo (Southbury) and Richard Spierto (Middle-
bury). Incumbents Paul Babarik (Middlebury) and Janet Butkus (Southbury) were also re-elected. Their four-year terms end in November 2017. Perry appointed Babarik to chair the Board’s finance committee and Steven Suriani to head the policies and curriculum committee. She invited board members to contact her as to which committee they would like to serve on.
Perry is an experienced BoE member who has served under five Region 15 superintendents. She has chaired the policies and curriculum committee as well as the superintendent search held last year. She also has served on the negotiating committee and the building committees during renovations of six Region 15 schools. Perry, a Southbury resident, has two grandchildren in the Region 15 school district.
BoF gives Stowell chilly reception By MARJORIE NEEDHAM Newly-elected Middlebury Board of Finance (BoF) member William Stowell wasn’t exactly received with open arms when he showed up for the Dec. 11 meeting. When it came time to elect a chairman and vice chairman for the current term, Chairman Michael McCormack told Stowell, “We have a problem.” He then questioned Stowell’s eligibility to serve on the BoF while he is employed by the town as a part-time administrative manager in the finance department. McCormack said state statute does not allow this. Stowell responded that town attorney Robert Smith had reviewed case law and determined Stowell’s part-time position with the town does not classify him as a salaried officer, the term used in the state statute. McCormack told Stowell BoF members do not agree with Smith’s interpretation. BoF member David Cappelletti said the Connecticut undersecretary of state said one cannot hold a fiduciary position and work as a town employee. BoF member Michael Kenausis suggested obtaining a written opinion from the state, and McCormack asked Cappelletti to contact the state for that opinion. Kenausis then made a motion to table election of a chairman and vice chairman until the January meeting. His motion was unanimously approved. Despite the question of Stowell’s eligibility, he remained at the meeting and participated in it. He told BoF members that regional school districts where he worked for many years always returned unappropriated monies to their towns at the end of the fiscal year. Region 15 does not return money to Middlebury and Southbury, and Stowell suggested addressing this issue with the region. Stowell also was appointed the BoF liaison to several town departments. McCormack said Wednesday he allowed Stowell to participate in the meeting despite the question about his eligibility because the only vote that was to be taken (for chair-
man and vice-chairman) was tabled. He said he remains convinced it is a conflict of interest for Stowell to remain on the town payroll if he wishes to serve on the BoF. He said State Statute 9-210, “Incompatible with town offices,” applies. “It spells it right out,” McCormack said. One sentence in the statute says: “No member of the board of finance of any town shall hold any salaried town office unless otherwise provided by special act.” Middlebury has no special act. “He has got to resign his position, which was supposed to be an interim position,” McCormack said. He said it’s either that or resign from the BoF. McCormack said he was told Stowell planned to resign from the town before the swearing-in ceremony earlier this month, but that didn’t happen. Middlebury chief financial officer Lawrence Hutvagner confirmed Wednesday that Stowell works six hours a week for the town. He said, “He has not resigned and I don’t think he is going to because of Bob Smith’s opinion.” McCormack said of Stowell’s nomination by the Middlebury Republican Town Committee for the BoF position, “It didn’t make sense to me a town employee could be on the board and vote on his own salary and raises and so on.” McCormack said he looked at the town charter and saw no prohibition there, so he asked town clerk Edith Salisbury if state statutes applied. She referred him to State Statute 9-210, which is referenced in the town charter. Salisbury said she gave copies of that statute to McCormack, Stowell and town attorney Bob Smith. Stowell said Wednesday Smith told him when Smith first looked at the statute it appeared to prohibit working for the town while serving on the BoF. But when Smith looked at case law, Stowell said, Smith found it was not prohibited, and he advised Stowell he did not have to resign from town employment. Based on Smith’s advice, Stowell told the BoF he didn’t believe he had to quit his job.
McCormack said of Stowell’s part-time job, “I guess you could say (the job is) hourly and not a town office, but I think any normal person would say if you’re getting paid by the town for a job, you can’t be on the BoF.” McCormack said the BoF members unanimously agree Stowell needs to either resign his job with the town or resign from the BoF. “The taxpayers expect us to be objective in the way we treat the town budget. How can you be objective in voting on the budget when the first selectman is paying your paycheck? It doesn’t make sense,” he said. As for Smith’s legal opinion, McCormack said the BoF had been told by Stowell of Smith’s legal opinion but hadn’t received a written copy of it. Asked what the BoF will do if the issue remains unresolved by the next board meeting, McCormack said there are a couple of ways the BoF could go, but that would be up to the board. “I’m just hoping it doesn’t happen,” he said. Asked what he will do if he has to give up town employment or serving on the BoF, Stowell said, “I’m not quitting the board of finance. I would give up the town job. I think I am helping the town by working six hours a week … If I have to give up the job, I will go in and help on a volunteer basis. If they need my help, I’m willing to give back to the town.” He said he will make a decision on the matter by the first of the year. He said other possibilities for conflict of interest exist on the BoF. BoF member Cappelletti, whose mother is the town’s senior services and social services director, could have a conflict of interest if he votes on anything to do with his mother’s job, salary or benefits. Stowell said, “The only thing that has bothered me throughout this whole process is Mike hasn’t bothered to talk to me other than at the meeting to find out my views. He has never had the decency to come to me and talk to me and say he thinks it is a conflict. He has chosen to ignore me.”
Connecticut Choral Society “Candelight and Carols” Concerts
Inside this Issue Adoptable Pets................ 8 Book Review................... 2 Classifieds....................... 7 Community Calendar....... 2 Fire Log........................... 2 In Brief............................ 4
The members of the Region 15 Board of Education with their newly elected chairperson, Patricia Perry, are front, left to right, Sharon Guck, Jennifer Connelly, Perry, Janet Butkus and Marion Manzo and rear, left to right, Richard Spierto, Francis Brennan, Paul Babarik, John Cookson and Steven Suriani. (Karen Kirk photo)
saturday & SUNDAY
Dec. 21 & 22
SUNDAY
Dec. 22
What: When: Where: Cost:
Pomperaug boys’ basketball aims for winning season
Annual Christmas concerts Saturday at 3 p.m. and 7 p.m. in Woodbury; Sunday at 4 p.m. in Danbury Saturday at North Congregational Church; Sunday at First Congregational Church $25 for adults; $15 youth under 18 at www.ctchoralsociety.org or at the door
Main Street Ballet “The Nutcracker” Performance What: When: Where: Cost:
Annual performance of “The Nutcracker” Saturday at 7 p.m.; Sunday at 2 p.m. Pomperaug High School in Southbury. $25 for adults, $20 for seniors 65 and older and children ages 7 to 12, and $12 for children 6 and younger. For information, call 203-263-5107 or visit mainstreetballet.com
Blue Christmas Service
What: Service for those who find Christmas a difficult time; all are welcome When: 4 p.m. Where: Roxbury Congregational Church at 24 Church St. in Roxbury, www.roxburychurch.org
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