Saying the city is “too great to give up on,” former two-term mayor Edward M. O’Brien is exploring the possibility of regaining the seat he lost in a Sept. 14, 2017 primary to current Mayor Nancy Rossi. The two were locked in one of the tightest primaries in the city’s history, when Rossi pulled out a 126-vote win, 2,383-2,247.
The primary win virtually assured Rossi the mayoralty in November in a city that hasn’t seen a Republican win the chief executive’s seat since the 1989-1991 term. That was Clemente Evangeliste, who eventually lost to H. Richard Borer, Jr. in the 1991 election. Borer was to go onto an administration that lasted seven terms.
Besides being one of the closest primaries in the city’s history, it was one of the most vicious. Both Rossi and O’Brien traded barbs and attacks in speeches and in op-eds in this newspaper and elsewhere. Judging from O’Brien’s letter, and the responses given by Mayor Rossi this week, that animus has not been tempered over the last year or so.
In a letter sent to the Voice this week, O’Brien announced his determination to explore the possibility of another run.
“When I close my eyes and picture where West Haven could be in 25 years, I see a city with a strong commercial base and reasonable taxes; a city with low crime, clean streets, where visitors from around the state flock for our festivals, concerts, beaches and our wonderful quality of life,” he wrote.
He denounced the Rossi administration for what he called a “different picture,” one with failing or reduced services.
He charged that Rossi’s administration has cost the city dearly, stopping just short of calling the mayor a liar.
“The spinning of mistruths for political gain by the Rossi Administration has taken its toll on West Haven and its residents and this form of leadership is unacceptable,” he wrote.
He said many people have come to him and asked him to put the city back on “a path that was leading our city out of the stagnations it has been in for a quarter of a century.”
He recounts the successes he sees in his four years as mayor and believes a another run would recommit the city back on the road he was taking toward prosperity.
“In the next few months, I will be talking to residents to explain why getting back on track is so important and answer questions about both our past and our future,” he wrote. “Let’s begin that conversation about how I see West Haven in 25 years and how I plan to get there.”
In her answer, Rossi states her belief everyone should be able to run for office, but she takes issue with O’Brien’s characterizations of her administration as dealing in the currency of untruths.
“The former mayor paints a picture that is not reality. In 2013 when the former mayor took office the unassigned general fund deficit was $7.8 million dollars, (audited), the audit for the year ended 2017 shows an unassigned general fund deficit of $18.1 million, an increase in the deficit of $10.3 million. Additionally he built into the FY18 budget $8 million dollars and left it in the budget, even after the state and others told him that funding would never materialize. Add $10.3 to $8, the deficit stood at $18.3 million dollars before I even took the oath of office. To make matters worse the former administration executed deficit bonding in late November of 2017, only days before I took office, triggering state oversight, the reckless spending of the former mayor is the reason the City of West Haven is under the review of the Municipal Accountability Review Board, (MARB),” she replied.
She said most of her decision-making has concerned getting the city’s fiscal house in order, and dealing with the MARB, and the recommendations they prescribed, even though “some of their recommendations weren’t good for our city.”
She recounted her own list of accomplishments over the last year the recent sale of Bayview Park to the developers of The Haven project, working with the University of New Haven and other developers to upgrade the Allingtown area, and the securing of grants to enhance beach areas. She pointed, as well, to the continued construction of the West Haven High School.
“While the previous mayor will spend the next year being critical of the difficult decisions that were made, my administration will continue to work on behalf of all of the residents for a better West Haven. There is no short cut that will ‘fix’ this city, but don’t be fooled by false promises and the excuses he’ll offer for his shortcomings. I too will look forward to meeting with as many people as possible to explain my vision for the future. That means, however, telling you the truth about where we are now and how we got here. Make no mistake, the future is a bright one, but we cannot go back to the old ways of doing business, or we will never achieve our goals,” she replied.