Mayor Edward O’Brien has touted on his recent campaign literature that, through his efforts, West Haven has added $150 million to the taxable Grand List. In response to my Press Release questioning his numbers, Mayor O’Brien said, “Anyone can add the private investments projects initiated under the O’Brien Administration.” What Mayor O’Brien is doing is including some projects that have not even been requested for approval, and therefore are not yet added to the tax rolls. The Havens was initiated under Mayor John Picard’s term, so by Mayor O’Brien’s own words, which mayor would get credit for the Havens?
My understanding is that the Mayor is allowed to include up to 10 percent of current pending projects to his Grand List projections. The fact that under his administration, the Grand List has decreased by $172,588,106.00, and he is boasting a $150 million increase, and his explanation above, means he is adding the total projected value of those projects that have not even been requested for approval to his Grand List numbers to incorrectly inflate the Grand List…
Look at it this way – you are presently in a job where your salary is $50,000 per year. You recently accepted a new position, with a salary of $150,000, but the new job does not start for six months. You are now applying for a mortgage; do you put down a salary of $50,000. or $150,000? I would put down the lower salary, as that is my current income. That is not what the mayor is doing here.
What’s worse is that the mayor is neglecting to mention that with the Atwood, in order to secure the project, the city had to agree on a 70 percent tax deferral, which will incrementally go down over the course of several years. So, even if the mayor’s $150 million increase is to be believed (which it is not), the city is not receiving the benefit of taxing the entire amount! No matter how you look at it, the mayor is misleading the taxpayers with these statements.
Now, what will I do different? First and foremost, I will not tell the taxpayers something that can be easily disproven by my own budget documents. Transparency and honesty will be a cornerstone of my administration, because I need you to trust me in order to work with me. Tough decisions need to be made, and you need to know that I have your best interests in mind at all times. West Haven needs smart development. The Atwood is a good start, but will not be enough to turn the tide on its own. We must forge forward together to revitalize Allingtown, the Center, and the Shore by adding to our commercial base and not to our residential.
Nancy Rossi
Democratic Candidate for Mayor
In my last letter to the editor I talked about the irresponsible decision to bond $133 million before understanding what the impact that the State’s failure to pass a budget would have. Now the chickens are, as predicted, coming home to roost.
Gov. Dannel Malloy has announced that he will not release the $78 million in sales tax receipts due to communities as part of the state revenue-sharing program. The cuts are already beginning and may continue!
So voters want to know and rightly so, what would I have done as mayor?
We need to be realistic about revenue projections and act accordingly when budgeting. I would take whatever income we expect and cut that estimate by 10-15 percent. I would then budget based upon that lower revenue number. We have to learn how to do more with less to make West Haven Municipal government operate much more efficiently. The budget must be gone over line item by line item to reach a more realistic level, one that we can afford. Scaling back may at first be painful, but it must be done. Then maybe we can start to attract new businesses with their jobs and tax revenues to our city. More housing projects certainly aren’t the answer but that’s for a future letter.
We can no longer rely on the state to bail us out because the state is broke. And we can no longer bond (borrow) to pay off a deficit. Anyone you ask who has a background in municipal finances will question the sanity of that move. Our credit is just above junk status now.
One last thought. If I were your mayor you would not need a balanced budget ordinance. I understand that our municipal budget must be balanced. I understand that taxpayers are already paying too much. By the way, the ordinance that they seem to be so proud of, that forces O’Brien to balance the budget doesn’t stop him from raising taxes. The ordinance allows the mayor to raise revenue (taxes) to bring the budget into balance.
So when it comes to crunch time what do you think O’Brien will do? Will it be time to open your wallets even wider?
David Riccio
Republican City Councilman
Candidate for Mayor
My name is Richard Williams. On July 10, I was at the church luncheon at West Haven Green. I was choking on some chicken and could not breathe. A man named Jim Dixon came to my rescue and gave me the Heimlich maneuver and saved my life.
I would like to give him my sincere thanks and appreciation by way of this letter. I have incredible gratitude for his swift action in saving me that day. I’m crying now thinking of how incredible it was he was there at that time to save me. I would love for the mayor to give him some sort of medal or key to the city. He was very smart and fast in his knowledge of the situation. I was dying and he saved my. My sincerest thanks to Jim Dixon. God Bless you.
Richard Williams
At the end of November 2013, then-Mayor John Picard wrote an open letter to the West Haven Voice asking the public to give the new mayor a chance and he also gave Mayor Edward O’Brien a little advice: 1) resist the urge to borrow money; 2) surround yourself with the best people; and 3) have fun.
Well, from my point of view, O’Brien has failed miserably on the first two. 1) They just borrowed $170 million, which will lead to a $5-6 million increase for taxpayers because they will pay back $300 million over 20 years. That is a $15 million per years increase for residents. 2) A lot of political cronies have been hired in the last few years by the city or one of its agencies as directed by the mayor, including close family members of the mayor, town chairman, city clerk, and a lot of their friends. The problem with hiring family and friends is most of the time, they are not the most qualified, which measn the best and brightest are not being hired. West Haven has gone back to the worst times of its past with excessive political patronage, corruption, excessive debt, and an abundance of apartments. This is a direct result of not surrounding yourself with the most qualified people. 3) I do believe O’Brien is having fun. Having fun collecting a check, having fun borrowing and spending your dollars, and having fun giving family and friends jobs.
Lastly, I have not always been a supporter of Nancy Rossi. She has been a pain in my backside for years. However, I do know she will do a much better job as mayor than O’Brien for these reasons: 10 she has integrity; 2) she has intelligence; and 3) she has a backbone. Three things O’Brien is severely lacking.
Thomas McCarthy