Andrew Lockwood Holds Opening Campaign Event

In an opening speech on Thursday evening, mayoral candidate Andrew Lockwood criticized current developments at the Fort Trumbull peninsula as well as the superintendent of as part of his discussion on potential improvements to the city.

Lockwood held the event at along with Board of Education candidates Eric Parnes and Loreen Lockwood, his wife. All three candidates petitioned to appear on the ballot in the upcoming election.

Lockwood said he was opposed to the tax abatement for a residential development planned for Fort Trumbull and . He said the development of new housing on the site after homes were razed as part of an eminent domain decision was the “worst insult in the world.” He said former homeowners from Fort Trumbull should have a part in deciding the future of the area, but proposed that the area could work as a commercial center.

Lockwood said developers would be interested in putting in a hotel and conference center, movie theater, cruise ship port, shopping areas, and time share condominiums. He said there is a need to focus on commercial improvement for areas outside of downtown, noting several businesses on the far western end of Bank Street that have closed. He also criticized the , which is backing the residential development.

“NLDC, if I get elected, is gone,” Lockwood said. “They’ve done a terrible job.”

Lockwood also had harsh words for Dr. Nicholas Fischer, superintendent of the New London Public Schools. Lockwood said he was “outraged” that a shortly before the showing New London lagging behind the state average. He said such results are negatively affecting the image of the city and preventing people from moving here

“I don’t care how long it takes, Fischer has got to go,” he said.

Lockwood proposed improvements to New London’s deep water port to improve shipping, including a “Whaler Bucks” program to give coupons to ferry passengers to use in the city and direct the money toward port improvements if the coupons are not used. He said should be more actively used during the summer, with musical or cultural events taking place every weekend. Lockwood said he was also against the sale of to the , believing it to be a good recreational space that was being undervalued by the academy in its asking price.

“Why don’t we just turn it over to the citizens who want to save that park, let them raise their own money, and have them maintain it?” he asked.

Lockwood also proposed that more illumination on streets is needed to help decrease criminal activity, and that more officers with the should live in the city as a further deterrent.

Lockwood, 51, grew up in Stowe, Vt. and earned a GED after dropping out of high school. He married his wife in 1978 and later earned an associate’s degree from Three Rivers Community College, bachelor’s degree from the University of Connecticut, and a Juris Doctorate from the Massachusetts School of Law at Andover.

A licensed realtor, Lockwood owned the before passing it on to his daughter. He unsuccessfully ran as a Republican for City Council in 2009 and the State House of Representatives in 2010. Lockwood has a son, daughter, and two granddaughters.

During the event, Lockwood also endorsed Parnes and his wife for the Board of Education. Parnes, a physical therapist for 36 years, said the board needs to be more accountable to the residents of New London and suggested that actions needed could include firing administrators. Parnes also expressed his disappointment with Fischer.

“He cares more about the administration than he believes in the teachers,” he said.

Lockwood accused the Republican Town Committee of rejecting Loreen as part of their slate after she said she did not know whether she would vote for in the upcoming election. Loreen said the students in the New London Public Schools are being denied basic school supplies and suffering under the current system.

“I’m not a happy camper with our current superintendent,” she said.