Wednesday, May 16, 2012
City of New Britain's Budget Hearing at Slade Junior High School Thursday Evening @ 7 P. M.
The Mayor's Mysterious appearance $20,000,000 portion of the council budget hole is for the purchase into the State insurance program for all our city employees that House Speaker Donovan is pushing along with his fellow comrade John McNamara Chairman of the NBDTC. Sources at the board of Education have indicated no interest to joining this proposed plan. The General Public should bring this issue to light during the hearing.
Another major issue that the attendees should tackle is the proposed purchase of the Berkowtiz Building for a sum of $22,000 with our Mayor/Sherwood neglecting to report that this proposal will certainly cost the taxpayers not only for the removal of this ugly building but the remedial state and federal requirements of removal of all asbestos, which will have to be packaged and shipped out of state as required by state Statute . The Land after that is completion of removal of the building may also needs an engineering phase 1 in order to determine whether or not further remedial clean up may be required before this lot could be sold. Is the Taxpayers interest being ignored by city hall? Environmental concerns creates cost to the taxpayers.
The possibility of saving this building for a takeover for renovation by a developer the remedial clean up will still be required. Will the city have to clean it up before the sale can occur? This issue should be clarified by the administration during this hearing.
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At the CPOA’s annual meeting the majority of questions were fielded by Mayor Pro-Temp Michael Trueworthy, and an area of great concern to all of us - the proposed layoff of 130 municipal employees. Trueworthy said he hoped that union concessions would be able to reduce that number, but with the blanket rejection of Mayor O'Brien's concession package by local unions the prospects do not look too good.
The Common Council is now left holding the bag with one of the least transparent and detailed budgets we have ever seen. Even municipal employees and department heads do not know where they stand, while Mayor’ O'Brien's plan to consolidated 21 departments down to 6 gives absolutely no guidance as to how the moneys in each new departments budget are to be allocated between the various functions of the new departments.
In short, the answers provided by Trueworthy only deepened our concerns for this upcoming fiscal year. It appears to us as if this budget, while it looks good on paper with a flat mill rate, is little more than wishful thinking. Departments are consolidated without a strong plan or vision as to how these new departments will function. Money has been allocated without clear direction as to how it will be spent. And massive layoffs threaten vital city services.
And we the taxpayers are left to hold our breath, hope for some grand solution, before our worst nightmares are realized with Mayor O'Brien's generating more revenue with higher taxes?
This question is for our council, feel free to respond here on FS. I know Carlo has responded here in the past. Carlo, you are one of the members on the council that would have a grasp on the budgetary process. I for one, look to your experience to have confidence in the current administration's plan.
My question is, council members, are you confident that the mayor's office with council can reach a decision to balance the budget and are you each comfortable with proposals as they relate to following the city charter?
Respectfully,
Sally Eigenraam
Taxpayer
As a supporter of raising the minimum wage, Rep. Ezequiel Santiago, D-Bridgeport, said the cost of living in Connecticut continues to increase. You have single parents trying to raise families on the minimum wage who are far below poverty level.
Where do unskilled single people get the idea that minimum-wage jobs can support whole families?
Maybe it comes from the “Sanctuary City” of New Haven, whose legislative delegation the other day nearly induced the Malloy administration to award a grant of $343,000 to the New Haven People’s Center. A meeting place of labor, community, peace, and social justice groups - that serves as headquarters for Connecticut’s Communist Party and its newspaper, People’s World of Communism ?
But, the grant was removed from the State Bond Commission’s agenda at the last minute when the Malloy administration learn of what it was about to step in too- If it funded the “People’s Center,” a.k.a. New People’s Republic of Communism?
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