For First Selectman—

Candidate Petitions Election Bid

By John Voket

“I thought this year was a good opportunity,” said Newtowner Patrick Heigel. “The first selectman is not running again, we have all new candidates, so I thought it was a good year to get involved.”

Mr Heigel, an aspiring first selectman candidate, introduced himself to The Newtown Bee this week with that statement. The unaffiliated petitioner said he is on the verge of filing what he believes are a qualifying number of signatures to put him on November’s local ballot.

He is still solidifying his political platform, but presents as an earnest individual whose concerns reflect many of the mainstream issues that have occupied local board and commission agendas, and many off-line conversations from the sidelines of local soccer games to the coffee shops and dinner tables of Newtown residents.

Following a brief introductory interview, during which he detailed some personal background, Mr Heigel submitted his initial positions in writing to The Bee (below).

The candidate said he studied to be aerospace engineer, but graduated at a time when that job market was in decline.

He retooled his expertise, switching to consulting and computer work. But like many affected by the post-9/11 slump in the economy, Mr Heigel said even that work dried up. So he again tapped his diverse skill set and opened a small construction company specializing in tile work, which he says is “what I really like to do.”

Mr Heigel said he has no political experience, no local volunteer background, and no local club or association affiliations — coming on the local political scene as a totally unfamiliar contender.

“I never got involved in government before,” he said. “This is something new. I’m thinking maybe being outside of government I can offer some new ideas than somebody who is already in it.

“I can give a totally new look at things,” Mr Heigel added.

The aspiring candidate said he is chatting up possible running mates, and plans to introduce a developing platform on the long stretch into November. But in the short run, he offered some ideas on reexamining how the town plans commercial development with a focus on revitalizing the village centers of Hawleyville, Botsford, Dodgingtown, Sandy Hook, and even Fairfield Hills.

Mr Heigel said he favors limiting further development clustered along Newtown’s main corridor of Routes 6 and 25, and concentrating economic development zones that would bring commerce and increased walking traffic to the century-old areas of town that once thrived as village centers.

“All these strip malls they put on the main roads — it doesn’t really lead to [developing] a cohesive town,” he said. “It’s more like the Post Road and I don’t think I want Newtown to turn into that. I’d like to see people get out of their cars, meet each other, have a real community. That would be nice.”

He sees the successful application of this idea already percolating in Sandy Hook center as a blueprint for what can happen in other areas of town. Concluding his initial interview, Mr Heigel said he believes reactivating Newtown’s long-term strategic planning committee could be the way to move this and other far-reaching initiatives forward to benefit all taxpayers.

 

A List Of Positions

Why I am running?: “I never got involved in government before because I wasn’t ready. I am ready now to make a contribution and prepare the town for the future. The economic boom we experienced in the last ten years was a once-in-a-lifetime event. Things will be different going forward and it will take a different kind of leadership to navigate. I can provide that.”

On Fairfield Hills: “There is no great demand for commercial development right now, in fact it is a buyers’ market and any leases we enter will not be to our advantage. We should use this time to revisit the master plan and come up with something that the people of Newtown will support.”

On living within our means: “I think the town leaders did a pretty good job this year; we actually had a spending decrease. Our tax collections are down this year, that says to me that the people have reached the limit of their ability to pay. We will have to be frugal and find other ways to control spending in the future.”

On transparency of government: “I like the question and answer sessions the Board of Selectmen are doing. I think the other town boards should do the same thing.”

On long-term planning: “During this recession we will see little or no commercial development. We should consider this a window of opportunity to come up with a real long-term plan for Newtown. It has to be detailed and it has to be thought out in such a way that when developers do come knocking on our door they will be able to work within our framework. And, we have to follow that plan. We should have architectural standards for commercial construction. This fits in with my idea for village centers.

Each village could have its own unique architectural style. Advantages of the village idea include reduced sprawl, reduced traffic, and more open space. It would create a more sustainable community. Mass transit is something that will happen in the future. We have a railroad running through Newtown; we should plan around it. The state government will eventually realize that it is more cost effective to put people on trains than it is to have them idle in traffic on bigger highways. We should also do everything we can to encourage farming in Newtown.”