Government

Election 2017: Republican Kevin Moynihan Announces Candidacy for New Canaan First Selectman

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Town Councilman Kevin Moynihan on Tuesday afternoon announced his candidacy for first selectman. The Republican told members of the local press corps that he will seek endorsement from the Republican Town Committee for New Canaan’s highest elected office during this summer’s GOP caucus. A 36-year resident of New Canaan and married father of two kids who attended New Canaan Public Schools, Moynihan is poised square off at the July 18 caucus against incumbent Republican First Selectman Rob Mallozzi, who announced in March that he will seek a fourth term. Moynihan during the meeting with reporters from the New Canaanite, New Canaan Advertiser and New Canaan News said his priorities on the major issue of parking differ sharply with Mallozzi’s. “Rob’s priorities for parking are Town Hall employee parking and my priorities—because I really think it’s related to the real estate market and the attractiveness of the town to young families from Manhattan—is commuter parking,” Moynihan said during the meeting, held near the New Canaan train station and overlooking the Lumberyard lot.

Government

‘I Am Righteously Indignant’: Nowacki Pursues Referendum Vote on Adopted Budget

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New Canaan resident Michael Nowacki said on Monday that he has obtained the signatures necessary to file a formal Notice of intention to petition with the Town Clerk, as he pursues a referendum on the fiscal year 2018 budget, unanimously approved two weeks ago. The signatures themselves—Nowacki said he has 60 total, 10 more than are required for the first step in forcing a referendum vote, as per Section 4 of the Town Charter (see page 11 here)—have yet to be confirmed by the Town Clerk, he said. “I am righteously indignant on being ignored,” Nowacki said when asked for his reasons for pursuing a referendum vote on next year’s spending plan. Nowacki addressed the town funding bodies multiple times during public hearings on the budget through February and March. Ultimately, the town adopted an operating budget of $148,136,106 for fiscal year 2018, an overall 2.6 percent year-over-year increase (including a 1.6 percent rise for the budget’s major driver, the Board of Education).

Government

Defending Nowacki Lawsuits Has Cost Town Tens of Thousands of Dollars, Officials Say

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A lawsuit filed against the town by a local man and dismissed last week by a federal judge cost more than $64,000 in legal fees to defend—a figure that amounted to about $10,000 in actual costs for taxpayers before coverage kicked in, according to the municipality’s highest elected official. That $10,000, however, does not factor in higher premiums that New Canaan must pay—due in part to the frequent suits from this single resident—nor does it count past legal actions or the significant amount of time that town officials must spend tracking down information in order to answer them, First Selectman Rob Mallozzi said. “We end up paying higher premiums because of the activity,” Mallozzi told NewCanaanite.com when asked about New Canaan’s legal fees vis-a-vis Nowacki. “The biggest thing to me is—yes, there are taxpayer dollars expended on these—but that my staff has to run around chasing down these accusations. In my six years [in office], all of these federal claims have been thrown out.

Around Town

Federal Judge Dismisses Nowacki’s Lawsuit Against the Town

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A federal judge on Tuesday dismissed a New Canaan man’s lawsuit against the town, 10 police officers, former chairman of the Police Commission and state. Citing the United States Constitution, statute of limitations and qualified immunity, among other principles, U.S. District Judge Jeffrey Alker Meyer upheld the defendants’ motion to dismiss Michael Nowacki’s claims.

They center, largely, on his three arrests by warrant in 2010. Following incidents involving his ex-wife and their childcare provider (more on them below), New Canaan Police charged Nowacki on separate occasions with disorderly conduct and illegal use of a motor vehicle with intent to harass, then second-degree harassment and, finally, criminal violation of a protective order, according to Meyer’s ruling. Ultimately, a jury acquitted Nowacki of the first two charges and the second two were dropped on appeal. Before the Appellate Court’s decision, however, Nowacki served about three weeks in prison for the jury’s guilty verdicts on the harassment and protective order charges, the ruling said.

News

Election 2017: Mallozzi, Williams To Seek Fourth Term on Board of Selectmen

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Touting their work in forging stronger bonds between the town and Board of Education, addressing long-ignored infrastructure needs and nurturing a responsive and courteous attitude among municipal employees, First Selectman Rob Mallozzi and Selectman Nick Williams announced that they’ll seek fourth terms on the Board of Selectmen. During a meeting this week with the local press corps, the Republican duo pointed to complementary backgrounds as volunteers in public safety and education to underscore their work on behalf of the community, and said they’ve enjoyed serving alongside Democratic counterpart Beth Jones. “We have had a very good relationship together, we are really proud of where the town has been and where it’s going, and we feel that we best represent the leadership component that is important to this community,” Mallozzi said during an interview at Town Hall. Calling Mallozzi one of his best friends, Williams described the Board of Selectmen as “cohesive” as he can remember. “We work together, we get along great and it’s really been a joy to be a part of it,” Williams said.