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Brown out: Emergency agency head replaced
By Patrick Brodrick
Wed Jul 25, 2007, 02:51 PM EDT
Clinton -A visibly shaken Richard Brown stood in the hallway outside the selectmen’s chambers, hat in hand, pawing away the tears in his eyes, after the board voted to oust him from the helm of the Clinton Emergency Management Agency, a post he’s held for the last 18 years.
On July 18, selectmen voted 3-2 to replace Brown, who has been a member of the emergency management agency for 38 years, with former Selectman Constantino Zapantis.
“I think this is great for the town in the whole scheme of things,” Zapantis said. “This is not about Rich Brown losing his job, this is about getting the town where it needs to be in terms of emergency management.”
The board’s decision to remove him from his post didn’t come as a surprise to Brown, but he was confused as to why, after 18 years, this was the first time he was asked to submit a letter to be reappointed.
“They tried getting rid of me earlier this year,” Brown said. “I came up here six months ago and gave the board my letter of resignation and I was dumbfounded when they wouldn’t accept it. I’ve looked back at least four other directors and they were all appointed until the guy retired.”
Last November, Selectman Robert Pasquale Jr., who now serves as the chairman, alleged Brown was using the agency’s headquarters to repair televisions for his business. Brown, however, said he was harvesting parts from the old sets to repair the agency’s televisions because he was unable to purchase new ones on the department’s shoestring budget.
Pasquale also claimed the agency was in such disarray under Brown’s stewardship that the town would be unable to respond to an emergency in an adequate manner. Clinton’s health agent, James Gardiner, told the Times & Courier that the town’s response plan was well ahead of other communities in the state.
Under siege, Brown submitted his letter of resignation earlier this year, but the board refused to accept it and said it was unfortunate that a veteran of public service felt he was being forced to leave his post.
After the July meeting, Pasquale, who voted to replace Brown along with selectmen Joseph Notaro Jr. and Anthony Fiorentino, said his decision was based on “the handwriting on the wall.”
“Richie did a great job but he wasn’t very proactive,” Pasquale said. “I think it’s time that we let some of the younger guys step in here and get the agency moving in the right direction.”
As for the board’s decision to make Brown reapply for the post he’s held for 18 years, Pasquale would not comment on past boards’ actions, but said as long as he is chairman he will follow proper procedures.
“When I’m chairman, I’ve said that I’ll do everything by the book,” Pasquale said. “Last night was my way of doing things.”
After the vote, Zapantis presented the board with a statement of his intentions for the agency as the new director. The list of agenda items includes reorganizing the agency, focusing on member training, updating the equipment and returning control and maintenance of the agency headquarters back to the town. Along with his goals for the agency, Zapantis, a 17-year veteran of CEMA, listed his various accomplishments in the field of emergency management.
Brown, however, questioned Zapantis’ logic in giving control of the building back to the town.
“That’s an 1896 building and the only reason it’s still standing is because we’ve been taking care of it and not the town — we all know what happened to the old high school,” Brown said. “We’ve been operating the agency on $1,500 for years now. How can you maintain a building on that?”
Zapantis said one of his primary goals to help increase the agency’s budget is to seek grants from the state. That’s something he said Brown never attempted.
Before he left the meeting, Zapantis approached Brown to shake his hand and ask the former director to continue his service at the agency.
“Rich has a lot of knowledge for all his years serving the town and we need that,” Zapantis said. “I really just want to get this department rolling and I haven’t seen much happen in the last 17 years.”
Frank Gonzalez, who recently joined the agency, said it was time for a change.
“We have respect for Rich, but, organization-wise, we had to move forward,” Gonzalez said, adding, “We don’t want Rich to leave. He has a lot of knowledge and we need to learn from him.”
Doug Henry, a veteran member of the agency who submitted a letter of interest for the director’s spot during the meeting to try and block Zapantis’s nomination, disagreed with Gonzalez.
“I hope it all works out,” Henry said. “This is a team, it’s not an individual thing, and it’s always been that way, and we’re not going anywhere.”
(Add your opinion at the Times & Courier blog. Patrick Brodrick can be reached at 978-365-8044 or pbrodric-at-cnc.com.)
