Letters

Tens of thousands of dollars will be spent on the Democrats’ infighting in September and we, the taxpayers are paying for it.

WOW. So much energy, time and resources by both the Rossi and O’Brien teams. I guess it should be no surprise to the voters that there will be a Democratic primary again this year in September.

Both Democrat Nancy Rossi (now of “A Better Choice” third party) and Mayor Edward O’Brien (the endorsed candidate of his party) are surely part of the problems we have in West Haven and not the solution. Their teams are the same old politicians that time and time again, can’t seem to get their act together to support each other as one party, but continually fight to gain control of the city.

To what end? Witness the City’s financial ruin and ask yourself, what has a Democrat done for you lately?

I am proud to be the West Haven Republican town chairman and even prouder to let everyone know that the Republicans have a full slate, a team of twenty-one people led by David Riccio. Most of the slate is just concerned individuals who are tired of the Democrats annual antics and who just want to serve the 54,000 citizens of this town, not the chosen few.

Voters do have a real choice in November, and it’s not the Democrats. Your real choice is the revitalized and united West Haven Republican Party, the party of the people, not the party of retread politicians.

Michele Gregorio

 

WH public schools better under mayor

With the groundbreaking on the new and improved West Haven High School this week, I thought this would be a fitting time to discuss the state of our public education system in West Haven. When I took office our schools were in need of repair, test scores needed to be improved, our youngest students did not have access to full-day kindergarten, and our older students heard talk of building a new high school, but no talk was becoming reality. I am proud to say all of these issues have been addressed in just my two short terms.

First of all, our schools are being repaired faster and more consistently than ever before. At Carrigan School alone we have fixed the roof, updated the auditorium and locker rooms, had new paving done, and repaired the HVAC system. The Bailey HVAC system has also been updated. We are upgrading the boilers and intercom system at Savin Rock School, repaving at Forest School, and updating the Washington School intercom system. There have also been continuous updates to our lighting and energy systems. All of these projects help make our schools more efficient and lower costs in the long run.

With regards to test scores, between grades 3 and 8, the number of students obtaining above average English scores on standardized testing has risen 5.1 percent just from 2015 to 2016. For math, the number of students scoring above average has increased an incredible 10.3 percent! In the past two years Forest, Seth Haley, and Mackrille School have all been recognized as Schools of Distinction for high-needs students.

In addition to increased maintenance and rising test scores, my administration fought to secure all-day kindergarten for West Haven’s children. While this was originally done with state funding, we have now incorporated it into our budget in a way that is sustainable.

Last but certainly not least, we finally have an improved high school coming to West Haven. We have known for years that we need a new high school and talk of this has produced no results until now. Shortly after I took office, a project to update the high school was presented to me and it was not good enough. This project would have had the walls of the high school made out of a Styrofoam and stucco material, did not include the full shops program, and did not include full asbestos abatement.

I understand that some believe we should have gone with that version of the project, but it was not good enough for West Haven students. If anyone wants a Mayor who will green-light the first draft of a project no matter the quality, I am not the guy for them. Not only did I know this project could be better, but the State of CT who is covering 75% of the cost for the new high school also encouraged us to put the project on hold and work on a better design. The new high school will have no asbestos, include the full shops program, and will be constructed with brick walls which are safer and more energy efficient. This is the project that our students and taxpayers deserve.

Our education system has made great strides in the past few years and is a great example of the way my administration is moving West Haven forward!

Edward M. O’Brien

Mayor