Politics & Government

MOU Would Have Clarified Issues, Wilson Says

WPCA ordinance is subject of Monday town meeting

In a letter to the editor published on Wednesday in the Montville Patch, Dick Wilson noted that while the controversy about the WPCA ordinance rages, a different response to the issue was constructed and then abandoned.

Wilson, who spoke about the ordinance and its history before the Montville Town Council at its meeting on Feb. 13, says he believes that a memorandum of understanding could solve the problems he and others perceive with the ordinance.

removes Town Council oversight from the WPCA, giving it authority to hire and fire, and maintain its own budget. Wilson and others believe that the ordinance violates portions of the Town Charter.

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After speaking with Town Council Chairwoman Candy Buebendorf and Montville Mayor Ron McDaniel, and hearing the memorandum of understanding they were contemplating, Wilson responded with an MOU of his own.

It would:

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  • Authorize the mayor to supervise the commission's employees on a day to day basis and act as the commission's agent in the negotiation and administration of all labor agreements with the commission's employees.
  • Require the commisison to review, update and approve biannually the job descriptions of all its employees, and provide them to the council.
  • Publish the annual budgets for the water and sewer departments, post them on the town's website, and make copies available to interested citizens.

For the entire MOU that Wilson proposed, look in the photo box.

Buebendorf and McDaniel did not bring the MOU forward at a council meeting, however.

Buebendorf said that since the MOU did the same thing as the ordinance, it seemed to be unnecessary to bring it up at this point. A special town meeting is scheduled for Monday, and that seems the way to go, she said.

McDaniel said that "The council decided that they wanted to go forward with the town meeting and so that’s where it stands."

He added that his hope is that everyone can come to an agreement on and clear understanding of what's in the town charter.

"We've spent 17 years arguing about the same thing. It’s time once and for all to put this bed."


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