Selectman Asks PD For Traffic, Speed Control Strategies

By John Voket

Saying he is becoming increasingly disturbed by people speeding, flouting traffic control measures, and citing a recent town survey indicating speeding vehicles as an urgent concern, Republican Selectman Paul Mangiafico on Tuesday called for a presentation by the chief of police on what his department is going to do about it.

During a Board of Selectmen’s meeting on January 22 prior to the first round of budget deliberations, Mr Mangiafico said as a Board of Education member, he also heard about increasing incidents of vehicles passing school buses displaying flashing red lights as they discharged or loaded children.

“We’ve got a real problem in this town with people speeding, blowing through stop signs without even touching their brakes,” Mr Mangiafico told fellow selectmen. He then referenced the recent Harrison Group survey that indicated 74 percent of those responding said speeding traffic in their neighborhoods was an urgent concern.

“I think we should require the police chief to make a presentation on what is being done,” he said.

The selectman said he would not mind one bit if Newtown garnered a reputation for being tough on speeders and those who break traffic laws. He said between extensive public input, numerous traffic surveys, and the Harrison Group poll, the town was poised to bring together various department heads to begin discussing implementing solutions.

First Selectman Joseph Borst said he recently asked Police Chief Michael Kehoe, school transportation director Anthony DiLonardo, and Public Works director Fred Hurley to go to work on the problem. Selectman Herb Rosenthal reminded the board that funds were included in last year’s budget to establish a traffic enforcement unit, but understood a dedicated application of that unit was currently impossible due to staff shortages among street level patrol officers.

The local department also had use of an outfitted motorcycle for one year, which was put to use in traffic enforcement situations when weather and staff availability permitted.

Mr Rosenthal said he understood the Police Commission was at work crafting more stringent traffic enforcement measures.

To that, Mr Mangiafico suggested including members of the police commission on the presentation.

During the subsequent budget session, Police Chief Michael Kehoe told The Bee that the only new patrol unit in his 2008 budget proposal was sanctioned for dedicated use by the traffic enforcement squad, and would likely be outfitted as an unmarked cruiser with specific equipment for that purpose.

In related news, the selectmen recommended using funds from a state capital grant to outfit a utility building on the Fairfield Hills campus as a central emergency operations center. The facility, proposed for what officials referred to as the “chiller building,” would serve as a command post to coordinate emergency response, and would possibly be equipped as a backup dispatch center if the one located at Town Hall South is disabled.

Mr Rosenthal said the building was among the last to be constructed on the campus, and was designated to house supplemental air conditioning and handling equipment for several buildings at the former state hospital. The renovation and outfitting of the proposed emergency operations facility was expected to exhaust the existing $195,000 Local Capital Improvement Program (LoCIP) allocation, and that another $200,000 was already approved to come to Newtown in the current state budget.

The selectman said that commercial air conditioning equipment in the building would be relocated to clear the facility for its new use. After some further discussion, selectmen approved two motions to allocate $177,800 to renovate the building, and $17,200 for added equipment to outfit a new emergency operations center.