Simsbury Board of Selectmen Meeting May 9, 2022

Board of Selectmen Meeting May 9, 2022

On November 8, 2022, we will be voting for our State Representatives.

Selectman Eric Wellman is a candidate for Simsbury’s State Representative since John Hampton is not running

Eric Wellman is a Woke candidate with positions that are left of Socialist Bernie Sanders.

As Simsbury’s representative, he will have the ability to vote for legislation that will defund the police, promote the Critical Race Theory (CRT) and add sex education in elementary education curriculum.

Eric Wellman will be a tax and spend legislature that will increase inflation, make Connecticut non-competitive and increase taxes.

John Hampton was a moderate Democrat, Eric Wellman is no John Hampton.

Eric Wellman does not represent the values of Simsbury residents and should not be elected as Simsbury’s State Representative.

Another elected official that requires scrutiny is Dave Ryan, Chairman of the Zoning Commission.

Dave Ryan Chairman of the Zoning Commission wrote a letter to give the Zoning Commission’s position on the Connecticut Senate Bill 1024.

In the letter to the Committee on Planning and Development of the State of Connecticut General Assembly, Dave Ryan wrote: “the market price of over 30% of Simsbury’s residences are affordable for buyers that earn 80% or less, of the median income. Housing cost and availability are not the reasons that there are not more Black residents of Simsbury.”

Chairman Dave Ryan has no clue as to what is represented in the changes in the Zoning regulations on affordable housing.

The Affordable Housing Act is not representing that there should be a quota for Blacks in a community.

The Affordable Housing Act promotes diversity of all people on income, not on the color of people’s skin.

As a result of Chairman Dave Ryan’s comments and lack of understanding of the Affordable Housing Act, he should be removed as Chairman of the Zoning Commission.

I was shocked that the elected members of the Board of Selectmen at the April 25, 2022 meeting shouted out at my public audience comments that they will not allow certain comments.

It is the not the Board of Selectmen to regulate public comments that are protected by the Constitution. The members of the Board of Selectmen are not the speech police. If they feel uncomfortable with my comments, they can order the Police Department Comfort Dog to sit next to them at the meetings to alleviate their stress.

There is another member of Town Manager Maria Capriola’s staff that is leaving. The Building Department will consist of a Building Official and a part-time person, leaving a short-fall in services.

Town Manager Maria Capriola does not believe in honoring union contracts with her willful disrespect for the rule of law, leading to more grievances.

The Planning Department has been decimated with employees leaving on a regular basis. Town Manager Maria Capriola has created a toxic work environment with a reputation of favoritism and vindictive behavior.

Recently the Deputy Building Official position was posted on the Town’s website as a full-time position.

Presently Dwight Carlson is a part-time highly respected Deputy Building Official, shared services with Bloomfield.

It would appear that Town Manager Maria Capriola would offer this full-time position to a respected part-time employee when it has been difficult to fill positions in town.

As Union President for the CSEA Union, there were many interactions between Dwight Carlson and Town Manager Maria Capriola relating to grievances.

It has been noted that Town Manager Maria Capriola has been vindictive towards employees filing grievances.

Dwight Carlson was told that the Town could not support a full -time position.

Was Dwight Carlson denied the full-time position of Deputy Building Official as a result of his Union activities?

Dwight Carlson accepted a full-time position in Bloomfield and Town Manager Maria Capriola is now posting the full-time position on the Town website.

The Library’s Strategic Planning Committee recently submitted their strategic plan to the Board of Selectmen for approval.

Included in the Strategic Plan is, “This new 2022 Strategic Plan considers the continued digital evolution while keeping the institution centered on building community.”

The Strategic Plan considers the digital evolution but does not mention including the Simsbury Community Media (SCTV) as an asset that should be included in the in the Strategic Plan within the Library for community use.

There have been plans developed for the inclusion of SCTV in the Library with all the resources available for transmissions with a valuable expansion of services for the community.

The residents, schools and businesses would use the equipment to expand community development and resources, expanding the digital network within the community.

Giving $45,000 to renovate the Eno Hall SCTV offices is a waste of taxpayer money where money can be well spent on integrating SCTV services in the library.