Major issues face Town Hall this fall, say key RTM members

As summer fades into the distance after Labor Day, a busy fall looms at 110 Myrtle Ave.

Key members of the town's Representative Town Meeting told the Westport News that a mix of perennially important issues and new topics of debate will dominate Town Hall proceedings in the coming months.

Controlling the local deer population, a highly controversial issue in other Fairfield County communities, looms as the most explosive item on the RTM's agenda this fall. More than 200 residents have signed and submitted a petition asking the RTM and First Selectman Gordon Joseloff to enact a new deer control plan. The Environment, Health and Human Services and Public Protection Committees will hold a joint meeting Sept. 22 to study the issue.

Many of these committees' members expect a protracted debate on the future of the town's deer herd. An existing ordinance prohibits hunting in Westport, and the RTM would have to approve a new ordinance to amend the existing one for deer hunting to be allowed.

"We all have a lot of reading, listening and talking to do," said Environment Committee Chairman Diane Cady.

Public Protection Committee Chairman Richard Lowenstein agreed.

"I think there's a general consensus that there are too many deer in town, but what you do about the problem is not clear right now," he said.

The RTM hopes to mitigate the acrimony that the issue has produced in other towns such as Fairfield and Wilton, but even Joseloff foresees a lively public discussion in Westport.

"It's a very emotional issue, and people are emotional about it on both sides," he said.

Another source of contention -- the future of National Hall -- also figures to influence RTM meetings this fall.

Last January, the RTM decided to overturn a Planning and Zoning Commission decision that would have permitted office space on the property's ground floor. That reversal caused friction between those two town bodies.

Now, said RTM Deputy Moderator Jonathan Steinberg, the Rules Committee hopes to draft new regulations that "everyone can live with" regarding how the RTM could act to overturn of P&Z decisions in the future.

Steinberg added that such changes probably would not be brought to the full RTM for a vote until October or November at the earliest.

P&Z Committee Chairman Matthew Mandell emphasized that any business trying to open offices at National Hall in the future would face a battle with the RTM.

"The message was very clear," Mandell said of the RTM overturning the P&Z decision. "It's not to be all office space. It's not to be that way."

And, of course, ever-pressing budgetary concerns will command Town Hall's attention this fall. The RTM will not vote on the budget for the 2011-12 fiscal year until next May, but Finance Committee Chairman Michael Rea said his committee has already met for preliminary discussions about the new budget.

With many of the town's revenue streams declining, Rea said that tough decisions will need to be made in the coming months as the RTM grapples with issues such as funding for the town's pension funds and the possible introduction of personnel caps for the town's departments.

"We need to reduce the footprint of government," Rea said. "The cost of continually hiring people is something that taxpayers cannot continue to be called on to do."

Joseloff pointed out, however, that Westport residents need to understand the repercussions of the town adopting stricter fiscal policies.

"You can't have it both ways," he said. "You can't demand that trees be cut down that you think are dangerous overhanging the roadways, and that roads be paved ... when at the same time you're cutting back on budgets."

And alongside this slate of likely fall RTM fixtures, Westporters can also expect a little suspense to how Town Hall proceedings will unfold.

"There are always things of interest and controversy," Steinberg said. "That's what makes the RTM so much fun. You never know what's going to come up."