Politics & Government

City Council Candidates Split On Riverside, Abatements

Fifteen candidates answer question in second forum sponsored by two organizations

One week after on issues facing the , another group of 15 gathered at the to discuss issues germane to the City Council.

The forum for City Council candidates held on Tuesday was the put on by the League of Women Voters of Southeastern Connecticut and the Neighborhood Alliance. Candidates were given short blocks of time to make opening and closing statements and to answer questions and offer rebuttals.

Three questions were raised during the forum’s two-hour running time. Candidates were asked where they stood on the possible sale of a portion of to the and three reasons to support their stance; whether they were in favor of tax abatements for a ; and where they feel New London needs improvement and how economic development can be encouraged.

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The audience was sympathetic with those opposed to the Riverside sale, a question which will go before voters in a November referendum. Three Republicans and one Democrat spoke in favor of the sale, while the other 11 candidates were opposed. On the abatement for the River Bank Construction project, which was , candidates offered a mix of opinions. Some said they were opposed to the action, others said they were in favor, and others said they felt abatements can be used but only in certain cases. Several candidates spoke in favor of advocating an improved educational system as a way of attracting economic development.

The following is a summary of each candidate’s responses:

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John Maynard (Democrat)

Maynard recently replaced George Potts Jr., who withdrew his candidacy in compliance with the Hatch Act—a piece of legislation placing restrictions on federal employees’ activity in partisan elections. Maynard said he felt progress is being made under the current council, but wants to improve education through increased initiatives such as a program he suggested to reward reading with passes.

Maynard said he considers the Coast Guard Academy a community partner, but opposes a Riverside sale. “It’s not the city’s to sell,” he said. “It was given to the citizens for recreational use.” Maynard said he was in favor of tax abatements in some circumstances, but not in the Fort Trumbull development. He said he was concerned about the possibility of the company withdrawing at the end of the abatement period.

Brian Giesing (Republican)

Giesing said he has been involved in decision-making processes through time on the Ethics Board and other service, and that his goal is to connect with residents. He said he also wants to focus on attracting new residents to New London. “We need to fund the services that are going to make this a great city,” he said.

Giesing stressed that voters will make the decision on Riverside Park, but said that he is personally in favor of a sale. He said the park has been neglected, and that it will not be sold in its entirety. Giesing said he was against tax abatements due to the small size of the city. “The money’s going to have to be picked up by somebody,” he said.

Donald Macrino (Democrat)

Macrino described New London as the center of southeastern Connecticut, and said he was committed to working with the council to capitalize on the city’s potential. . “We have our issues, but we can hold our heads high and we can move forward,” he said. “And I believe New London is on the verge of a renaissance and I would love to be a part of it.”

Macrino said he had studied the Riverside proposal and determined that the area left over from a sale would allow for a viable park. He said he also considered the assets the Coast Guard Academy brings to the community. “It’s one of the few service academies in the country and it’s brought tremendous recognition to New London,” he said. Macrino said abatement issues must be studied carefully, and that he did not see the advantages of having one for the Fort Trumbull project. “We have to be extraordinarily careful in New London about giving away our assets by giving enormous tax breaks,” he said.

Adam Sprecace (Republican)

An incumbent, Sprecace said the current council’s progress is visible in new roads, equipment, and playgrounds around the city while keeping taxes steady. He said he wants to continue working to improve the city through efforts such as a retail reinvestment initiative and development of New London’s waterfront. “I feel that the council that I’ve been on these past two years and the one prior to that have done a tremendous amount of work for the city,” he said.

Sprecace said he favored putting the Riverside question to voters, and that he personally supports the sale. He said a substantial portion of the park will be left, and that money from the sale can improve it and aid in reconnecting northern New London with downtown. He said he supported the abatement for River Bank Construction as “an investment in the future,” saying the land at Fort Trumbull was not generating tax revenue and that the project will start to do so.

Marie Friess-McSparran (Democrat)

Friess-McSparran said she has shown her devotion to the city and fiscal responsibility through actions such as serving on the Beautification Committee, raising money for the , and acting as an economic development commissioner and president of the .  She said she wants to improve public safety in the city through economic development. “I’ve spent the past several years working to make New London a cleaner, safer, better city,” she said.

Friess-McSparran said Riverside Park was given to the city, and it will be up to voters if they want to keep it as it is. She said she is personally opposed to the sale. “I’m just not in favor of the city selling any of its property,” she said. Friess-McSparran also said she opposes tax abatements on rental properties, saying it sets a “bad precedent.”

Margaret Hansen (Republican)

Hansen said her work has included running a music mentoring nonprofit for children as well as leading an effort to donate blood to troops in Afghanistan. She said public safety is her top concern, and that she would support efforts there and in mentoring. “Right now you’ve got to let the council do what they’re doing, and I think they’re on the right track,” she said.

Hansen said a Riverside sale would keep the waterfront and ensure the Coast Guard Academy’s ability to remain in New London. “We do owe it to the Coast Guard. There is a large portion of land to share there,” she said. Hansen said she was unfamiliar with the River Bank Construction abatement, and that she was leaning in favor of abatements but that this position is subject to change. “I’d need to know the amount of time and the commitment levels,” she said.

Joan Sullivan-Cooper (Green)

Sullivan-Cooper said she wants to see New London better use its available resources. She said this could include more activities at Parade Plaza and as well as an improved transportation hub through development of the deep water port.

Sullivan-Cooper said she is generally against tax abatements, but would want any such abatements to go to buyers rather than the developer. She said she was also unhappy with the current townhouse plan for Fort Trumbull. “That leaves no room for any additional residential housing,” she said. Sullivan-Cooper opposed a Riverside sale, saying the land left would be unsuitable for a park. “It was a gift to the citizens of New London and I think it should stay in New London,” she said.

Michael Passero (Democrat)

Passero, an incumbent, said he feels the City Council has accomplished much, including work toward development of the waterfront and athletic fields at the , and that he wants to stay on to help finish the work. He said he supports the improvement of downtown businesses to bring in renters there as well as establishing a community recreation center. “I’m pleasantly surprised by how much can actually be accomplished, but two years is too short,” he said.

Passero, who voted in favor of the tax abatement for River Bank Construction, said the council has a universal goal to help generate revenue, that the townhouses are only rentals in their first phase, and that the land at Fort Trumbull has been vacant for a long time. “Since I got elected I’m just looking forward,” he said. “This is a good deal for the city.” Passero said New London has ceded too much open space, and felt that a Riverside sale would be doing so for an insufficient price. “If we give up on that park we’re giving up on all East New London,” he said.

Lorraine Allen (Republican)

Allen said she will work to be visible in the community, and that the council must determine what changes are needed for the city. “We have a new type of government coming in and that’s going to be a learning curve for all of us,” she said.

Allen said she favored a Riverside sale until looking over a topographical map at New London Landmarks to see what would be left after the sale. “It is nothing usable, and that is appalling,” she said. Allen suggested there are other ways the Coast Guard Academy can bring in the structures it is seeking to build, including constructing a parking garage and establishing the buildings on the former lots. She said the tax abatement issue for River Bank Construction had already been decided for by the current council, and so offered no comment on it.

Jessica Cartagena (Green)

Cartagena said she has worked with the youth in New London, and that she is also able to bring a unique perspective due to her own young age. She said she would like to focus on affordability and providing for the city’s students. “I want to be the voice for people who are not being heard right now,” she said.

Cartagena said she was opposed to both a Riverside sale and the abatement for River Bank Construction. “I don’t feel that it’s a good investment for the city, and I don’t think it should be going to developers,” she said of the latter decision. She said there should be reinvestment in Riverside Park to capitalize on the open space there.

Anthony Nolan (Democrat)

Nolan said he would focus on educational improvements and ways of helping the city reach out to its youth population. He said he wants to boost economic development in the downtown area, and said he can make rational decisions for the city. Nolan also read an e-mail from attorney Corinne R. Seibert of the Hatch Act Unit of the Office of Special Counsel saying his candidacy does not violate the act.

Nolan said Riverside Park has always been used, but felt that it has been neglected more than other city parks. He said he opposed a sale. “I believe it’s the gateway to happiness for the east side of New London,” he said. Nolan also said the city needs to take a different approach from tax abatements in economic development. “If I’m not getting an abated tax, they should not be getting an abated tax,” he said.

Michael Doyle (Republican)

Doyle said his top priority will be improving public safety in New London. “We have to protect all of you and they have to have the resources available to you to do the job,” he said. Doyle said he was also opposed to state intervention in a “political issue” on the Board of Education, but that there are improvements needed to the school district. He also supported the establishment of a community center and developing an agenda for the city’s future.

Doyle said he was opposed to a Riverside sale. “We have to maintain our facilities, period,” he said. “That’s a city park.” He said he was not in favor of abatements, but that he felt the land at Fort Trumbull has been vacant for too long not to consider granting one for River Bank Construction. “We have to look at reality. We have to get businesses in here to fill the streets, to fill the houses,” he said.

Kenric Hanson (Green)

Hanson said he has done extensive work with nonprofits and is interested in sustainability and economic development initiatives including the investment in green, high performance infrastructure. He said the city should also focus on mixed-use neighborhoods, supporting local businesses, and encouraging more volunteerism in the schools.

Hanson said the park increases the value of the nearby neighborhood and is included in the curriculum of the new ’s magnet focus on science and technology. “The sale creates a shell, and it’s effectively useless as a park,” he said. Hanson also said he thinks tax abatements are bad policy. “It seems we could be more creative and come up with a way to come up with abatements to reward those who have had a business in town for a long time,” he said.

Wade Hyslop, Jr. (Democrat)

Hyslop, an incumbent, said he is running because work remains to be done in areas such as public safety, education, and economic development. “I believe there are many people who have been disenfranchised and certainly I would love to be a voice for them,” he said. Hyslop said progress in the past four years has included the start of harbor improvements, but that there needs to be more engagement with the city’s youth and a strong economic development plan with public input.

Hyslop opposes a Riverside sale, saying he thinks there is a mischaracterization that the park is underused and that the remainder left after a sale would not be viable land for a park. “It belongs to that neighborhood,” he said. “It’s in open space for those individuals.” Hyslop voted in favor of the abatement for River Bank Construction, saying part of his reasoning was based on resident complaints four years ago that Fort Trumbull was not being developed. “I’m in favor of tax abatements only if we do it on a case by case basis,” he said.

Daniel Docker (Republican)

Docker said his main goal was to make New London a sustainable community with a strong private tax base and a good school system and police force. He said he thinks the educational system needs visible improvement as a way of encouraging new residents to move to the city, and said he wants the council to make clear that the superintendent of schools works for the city.

Docker said he was opposed to a Riverside sale, saying it will not generate new tax revenue and leave an unusable portion for residents. He said residents in the neighborhood of the park have spoken about forming a coalition similar to Save Ocean Beach to repair and maintain the park. Docker said he is also opposed to tax abatements. “We need to stop giving away our tax base. Everyone should pay their fair share,” he said. “Remember Pfizer? Those of you who don’t remember Pfizer are destined to repeat history.”

Lilly Rivera, a Democratic candidate who recently withdrew from the race in compliance with the Hatch Act, has not yet been replaced on the Democratic slate. Independent candidate John Russell was not present.


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