Camillo, Rabin Hope To Move Greenwich Forward

GREENWICH, CT—On Thursday afternoon in front of nearly 50 people on Greenwich Avenue in the downtown area, First Selectman Fred Camillo and his 2019 running mate, Selectperson Lauren Rabin, announced their plans to run for a second term.

Camillo, a native of Greenwich, was elected to the position a year-and-a-half ago after serving 11 years in Hartford as a State Representative.

"We ran two years ago on uniting Greenwich and respecting our historic past, with a bright new vision. That hasn't changed. Right now we're in the process of reimagining Greenwich. We've done that for a year-and-a-half, and now we're moving forward," Camillo told the crowd. "We're going to have an even better agenda ahead."

The location of the announcement served as a symbol for Camillo's administration, which has transformed the look and feel of Greenwich Avenue in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Camillo spoke about his first term accomplishments, like increased communication with the public through weekly e-blasts and social media especially throughout the pandemic, the creation of a textile recycling program and food scraps program, and new parking programs to free up spaces in the downtown area.

He also touched on the town's energy policy, and touted the work of his Energy Committee, which he said will continue to be beneficial to the environment and "pay dividends financially" for the town.

Camillo mentioned the restructuring of the police and fire departments as highlights, most notably the redeployment of officers on Greenwich Avenue to streamline public safety.
He also spoke about the transformation of Greenwich Avenue into a more pedestrian friendly destination with outdoor dining and improved intersections, and his plans to connect the Avenue to the waterfront in the future.

"We've focused on those initiatives and also reviving some long standing and sometimes dormant initiatives that just were stuck. Whether it was better utilization of our assets, looking at buildings like the Eastern Greenwich Civic Center, which after 35 years is now really close to getting done, and building a new ice rink," Camillo said, also mentioning the prospect of a new Greenwich Emergency Medical Services building on King Street.

Rabin praised Camillo for his leadership, and said she's looking forward to continuing her work on the Board of Selectman, most notably as the head of the Reimagine Greenwich Committee, which helps to enhance amenities and experiences for residents.

Rabin added that the town needs to focus not only on enhancing Greenwich Avenue, but also other business districts in town, like in Byram, Cos Cob and Old Greenwich.

"We need to make sure all of our business districts are thriving, and that all of our people are thriving," she said.

Greenwich Republiucan Town Committee Chair, Dan Quigley, spoke briefly before he introduced the ticket.

Quigley commended the duo for their leadership through the pandemic, and spoke about the revival of Greenwich Avenue after it looked desolate just over a year ago.

"There were no cars here, the businesses were closed. There was a lot of fear in town, there was a lot of trepidation about what the future would hold," he said. "But here we are a year later. Businesses are thriving, there's a brand new feeling on Greenwich Avenue that there's a better future ahead of us. A lot, if not all of the thanks we can give for that, is to our First Selectman and selectwoman Fred Camillo and Lauren Rabin."

Quigley said he believes that Camillo and Rabin can bring Greenwich "to a much better place than we've ever been before" in a post-COVID environment.

No Democrats have formally announced candidacy for Selectman or First Selectman.

Selectperson Jill Oberlander, a Democrat, and Camillo and Rabin's colleague on the Board of Selectmen, said recently that she was not going to seek re-election. She ran for the top seat in 2019.

Democratic Town Committee Chair Joe Angland could not be reached for comment as of the writing of this article.