Stephan Grozinger, Board of Selectmen
Your home is worth tens or hundreds of thousands of dollars less than it should be. Businesses continue to flee Connecticut and taxes continue to rise. Meanwhile, home prices have largely recovered in neighboring states and the economy is booming elsewhere. The Connecticut legislature is profoundly distracted by ideology. Within ten days after the new legislature was sworn in, the leader of the house and the leader of the senate each proposed their own plans to regionalize schools. Weeks later, the governor proposed his school regionalization plan.
The response of some members of our own legislative delegation was mealy-mouthed at best. As was obvious to everyone else, this would have dealt a devastating blow to struggling home values and represented an existential threat to Weston. Only a massive grassroots effort dissuaded them for now. Hartford is focused on bread and circuses and appealing to ideologues at the direct expense of Weston residents.
In Weston, we need to swim against these powerful currents. We need to find innovative ways to compete with neighboring towns, to drive demand for existing housing stock, and thoughtfully develop amenities to attract and retain residents. Whether our home values will recover will be largely determined by entrenched interests in Hartford, so on the local level we must redouble our efforts and reject ideology in favor of pragmatic solutions.
Why are you running?
I strive to be a strong, independent voice on the Board of Selectmen. The interests of Weston and individual homeowners can be forgotten in the rush to pursue even the most well-meaning agenda. I will use my next term as I did my first: to promote practical ways to address Weston’s real challenges, oppose special interest- and social media-driven agendas, and ensure every resident has a dedicated advocate in town government.
What is on the table?
Weston is fully developed. This has fiscal consequences, but it also means pressure on our remaining open space will intensify. I am not a social media environmentalist. I have logged thousands of hours on the woodland trails and open spaces of Fairfield County and have had a lifelong passion for preserving and restoring them. I bring to the Board a commitment to thoughtful in-fill development, coexisting with the wildlife that is returning to our recovering forests, and mitigating the damage done by invasive species.
What do you bring to the table?
Legal Expertise. Much of what the BOS does has a legal component. I offer 24 years of broad and sophisticated legal practice. As a result, the Board doesn’t need to delegate judgment on important issues to others.
Planning. I served for nine years on P&Z, including three as its chairman. During that time, we generated the last Plan of Conservation and Development. As the new POCD is completed and brought to the BOS, I bring a unique familiarity with the longstanding issues that face Weston.