First Selectman Candidates Spar With Overlapping Positions On Fairfield Hills

By John Voket

The 2009 local campaign issues are these: economic development, long-term planning, the future of Fairfield Hills, and providing top quality public health, recreational, educational, and government services.

Democrat, Republican, and Independent Party of Newtown political hopefuls have been staking out positions on these issues in press releases, letters and position papers circulating throughout the community, as well as on candidate websites.

And now, one candidate is charging another of borrowing from his party’s agenda. The Independent Party of Newtown’s (IPN) Chairman and First Selectman Candidate Bruce Walczak claimed in a September 22 press release that Democratic First Selectman Candidate Gary Fetzer’s recent position paper on Fairfield Hills “essentially is a recap of the position IPN has been espousing for some time.”

In the Democrat’s position paper, Mr Fetzer and his running mate Joe Hemingway say they hope to gain greater clarity on where the community is going regarding development and public/private use of the campus, considering the original $21 million in bonding to complete the first phase of the master plan for the campus is nearly exhausted.

“Perhaps the time has come to revisit and adjust the long-term vision for the campus, build a public consensus and alter the master plan to fit new realities,” the Democrats propose.

Part of this sentiment is reflected in the latest IPN release.

“With the original bond issue for Fairfield Hills now fully committed ... Mr Walczak called for a temporary halt to new capital spending at Fairfield Hills beyond the original bond issue until the Fairfield Hills Master Plan can be reviewed and consensus of the voters established.”

Even local Republicans weighed in on the issue of Fairfield Hills this week with one of three town committee releases.

The RTC, however, chose to highlight the many positive developments party leaders have seen happening at Fairfield Hills, highlighting community events hosted there, accessibility to the growing network of passive trails, the development or improvement of sports playing fields, and the completion of the Newtown Youth Academy as a draw for residents and visitors alike.

Town Republicans, too, believe the master plan for Fairfield Hills needs to be reviewed and updated to guide and focus future development.

“We want to ensure the plan aligns with townwide priorities, is integrated into the long-range vision and plan of development and is implemented within the constraints of fiscal realities, as stated by [first selectman candidate] Pat Llodra and [running mate] Will Rodgers.”

These contentions were included as part of the Llodra/Rodgers initial position statement which was issued July 30.

A Place In Transition

The GOP refers to Fairfield Hills as “a place in transition.”

“We know where we have been and where we are now, however the future is less defined,” the GOP’s position paper continues. “As a result of the updating of the master plan, which we believe needs to happen, the next steps will be shaped by focused community input and will follow the normal public processes of capital requests and budgeting.”

Mr Walczak also references budgeting in his release, saying the town “is proposing spending up to an additional $30 million over the next five years at Fairfield Hills, starting in 2010 with a request for $6.6 million, only $2.4 million of which is for building demolition, arguably the most pressing need at the property.”

This is the first year additional bonding requests for Fairfield Hills have appeared in the town’s five-year Capital Improvement Plan, or CIP.

Mr Walczak asserts that besides the original $21.85 million bond issue, the use of revenue from the sale of homes and modifications to the lease agreement with the Newtown Youth Academy by the Board of Selectman amounted to an additional $7 million spent on Fairfield Hills over and above the original bond issue.

“The original $21 million bond issue for Fairfield Hills contained funds to demolish several buildings,” said Mr Walczak. “Our town leaders diverted some of that funding for a new town hall. Now they want more funding to do what they should have done with the original bond issue.”

Another point of concurrence between Mr Walczak and Mr Fetzer comes over the observation that unused buildings should come down.

The Democrats espouse removing “those buildings we know will never be used. We should no longer pay for upkeep or security when it would be less expensive to build an identical building rather than to renovate the existing building.”

Plans Reflecting Needs

Mr Walczak says before the town initiates bonding capital dollars for Fairfield Hills beyond the almost $28 million he says has already been invested, “We need to confirm to taxpayers that the town has a solid plan for this property that truly reflects the needs of our community. We can only do that by reviewing the current master plan.”

Mr Walczak’s release suggests that a majority of Newtown taxpayers want to revisit and adjust the long-term vision for the campus. And if the IPN is correct in assuming public consensus is strong, Mr Walczak said he stands ready to “alter the master plan to fit new realities.”

“With no updated current plan it makes little sense to go forward with spending additional millions of dollars at Fairfield Hills,” the IPN release states. “Once we have a revised plan and community consensus we can then decide if Newtown can afford addition capital expenditures and plan accordingly.”

In his release, Mr Walczak also challenges the Democratic challenger to freeze all future capital spending at the town-owned campus.

“It would be great if Mr Fetzer would also pledge that no further capital funding be provided for Fairfield Hills until we have reviewed the master plan for the property and determined the next steps for the property’s development,” Mr Walczak stated.

Speaking to The Newtown Bee on the issue, Ms Llodra said she find the “politicizing of Fairfield Hills” in some respects does a disservice to the entire town.

“Unfortunately, Fairfield Hills has become an anathema because so many people were sold a political bill of goods,” the GOP challenger said. “We own it. It is inappropriate to lay judgment on all the parties that have been involved” in the process of reviewing, acquiring, funding, and managing the campus and surrounding land.

Ms Llodra describes efforts to freeze spending for the campus a “knee-jerk reaction.”

“To say it’s for Fairfield Hills so we shouldn’t spend the money is also inappropriate,” Ms Llodra said, adding that the former state hospital facility is as much a town project as its schools, town hall, and senior center.

Ms Llodra said the town should be “poised for success” when it comes to readying the campus for other additional commercial tenants.

“Newtown needs to make strategic moves to be prepared when development offers come our way,” Ms Llodra said.