Gordon Joseloff First Selectman

busy week gone by and a busy week coming. Last week included a brown bag on emergency preparedness and a review of events during January’s wind storms and power outages.

Chris Swan of CL&P was there to give us his perspective. We also had reports from Fire Chief Chris Ackley and Police Chief Al Fiore. Michelle Deluca of the Red Cross brought along a backpack full of supplies to keep on hand in case of emergency.

Also there was Eileen Woodley who told us of the nightmare she went through when a tree crashed through the roof of her Hockanum Road home. Luckily no one was hurt, but her house and contents suffered considerable damage.

It was a good opportunity to remind all Westporters of the steps they need to take to be prepared for an emergency. The question of opening a Westport shelter came up and I explained that we had little indication of a desire by residents to go to a shelter.

We opened a “warming station” at the Red Cross chapter on Church Lane and no one showed up. Weston opened its middle school as a shelter and also had no takers.

If a storm hits and you do want to go to a shelter, please let us know by calling the non-emergency number at the fire department – 341-5000. Westporters traditionally have been reluctant to go to a public shelter – preferring friends or a hotel first. But we are ready to open one if there is a need.

At the end of the week, I attended a breakfast meeting in Norwalk with other mayors, first selectmen and area legislators to discuss priorities for Connecticut’s legislative session opening this week.

The meeting, arranged by the South Western Regional Planning Agency, touched on a number of subjects – transportation, the economy, taxes, and speeding tickets, among other things.

SWRPA is asking legislators to once again consider adding a surcharge of $10-$25 to tickets issued by local municipalities that would come back to the towns and cities. Most people don’t’ know that all the revenue from speeding tickets and other moving violations all goes to the state.

The reaction from local legislators to the proposal was luke warm. One wanted to know how many tickets all the towns issued (that information is being compiled). Another expressed concern that the towns would start issuing more tickets when budget needs became acute.

Don’t hold your breath on this one.

P.S. I hope to get to Hartford for the opening of the legislative session Tuesday.