11.23.2005

How did the First Selectman Elect, Martin Klein, spend the few days before taking office? Swimming in the hot springs of Wyoming? Guess again. On November 9, after celebrating with guests on the previous night, I met with First Selectman David Denvir at 7 a.m. We met at Town Hall to review some town files and procedures. I didn't even get up that early to feed the chickens.

We then went to a meeting of CRERPA, the Connecticut River Estuary Regional Planning Agency. Here I digested the alphabetical soup with its spaghetti of affiliated agencies.

Next on our agenda was a presentation of the Regional Transportation Plan by the Connecticut River Estuary Metropolitan Planning Organization. Their emphasis was on how to increase and improve mass transportation service in the Nine Town District. The main objective was to find ways to better coordinate service between the different transit groups.

The following Monday, accompanied by Selectman Elect, Ed Sipples, I had an informative breakfast with Highway Department Foreman, Jim Ward. That began a very busy day that included a meeting with Schools Superintendent Gary Mala and Haddam's First Selectman, Tony Bondi. A major topic of our conversation was the feasibility of sharing a self-funding grant writer among the school district and our two towns.

A mid afternoon meeting with Attorney William Howard proved productive and concentrated on pending lawsuits.

The Selectmen's Meeting that evening included an excellent presentation by Gwenne Lally and the Reverend Ed Cornell of the Field Study Committee. The topic of their report was identifying and evaluating available land (particularly parcels the town currently owns) for ball fields. This was followed by a discussion of the possibility of acquiring larger parcels of open space.

My short initiation has proved very informative and has broadened my perspective considerably. I feel it is important that we reach beyond our Republican and Democratic skins and work together in a pragmatic fashion for the future of Killingworth.

During my campaign, I promised to provide an open and transparent government. I hope to have timely, informative chats with you and welcome your questions and ideas.

Sincerely,
Marty