from a press release:

SEN. DUFF & REP. CAFERO DETAIL COMPROMISE AGREEMENT TO EXPAND

NORWALK INN, PRESERVE HISTORIC LANDMARK

Plan would provide economic opportunity while restoring piece of local history

Norwalk - After several years of lengthy hearings and court actions, an agreement has been reached that will provide for the expansion of the Norwalk Inn and Conference Center and the restoration of the historic Grumman-St. John House on East Avenue in Norwalk.

At a news conference at the inn this morning, state Senator Bob Duff (D-Norwalk) and Representative Lawrence Cafero (R-Norwalk)—the two legislators directly involved in the crafting of the compromise plan—were joined by Attorney General Richard Blumenthal, Norwalk Mayor Richard Moccia and representatives from both the Norwalk Inn and the Norwalk Preservation Trust to detail the noteworthy agreement.

“This was truly a situation where, by getting everyone to sit down together, we were able to work out a plan that is mutually beneficial to everyone involved,” Senator Duff said. “I’m so proud of how everyone stepped up to the plate to end the years of disagreement and come up with a viable, realistic and, ultimately, ideal solution for Norwalk, for the neighborhood, for a local business and community partner and for a city landmark. The links that we have to our past are priceless, and I think this agreement marks a great way to keep that past alive while building toward our future at the same time.”

“All parties involved—the state, city of Norwalk and the Norwalk Inn—worked together for this tremendously positive outcome, said Representative Cafero. “The agreement reached here today represents a road mark linking Norwalk’s rich history to its continuing economic vitality and future. All parties share an equal stake in this common-sense approach to solving a dispute over this historic property that had remained unsettled for far too long.’

Under the compromise plan, the Grumman-St. John House will be renovated and restored and very likely used as additional hotel rooms for long-term stays at the inn. The Norwalk Inn would expand upward, adding a third story above the existing building that would approximately hold 40 additional hotel rooms.

“I am pleased that my office assisted in preserving the Grumman St. John House and also enabling the Norwalk Inn to expand,” Attorney General Blumenthal said. “This historic home is regarded by preservation experts as a storehouse of state history — a vital reminder of our heritage that the law required to be protected. Norwalk Inn and others are to be praised and thanked for reaching an agreement that saves the structure and serves our common goals.”

“This agreement represents the best of our neighborhood spirit of collaboration, and I am particularly happy that all parties have worked things out,” said Mayor Moccia. “I especially wish to commend the work done by Representative Cafero and Senator Duff to bring the fellow citizens together to find a solution that serves all interests so well. The result will be a healthier and more beautiful vicinity.”

“Our plan for the Norwalk Inn expansion and rehabilitation of 93 East Avenue has been the product of a successful, year-long negotiation process—one initiated and coordinated by state Representative Larry Cafero and state Senator Bob Duff,” said Chris Handrinos and George Katsaros, managers of the Norwalk Inn. “Representative Cafero and Senator Duff helped find a solution to this problem. In dozens of meetings, they worked to clarify the issues, identify areas of common ground, point out possible compromises and set out step-by-step plans. In time, we formulated a plan that can deliver sorely needed economic growth and a landmark renovation project, not to mention a significant neighborhood improvement plan.”

“Senator Duff and Representative Cafero demonstrated that diligence and sincere commitment can yield a solution that works for everyone—the neighbors, the inn, NPT, the preservation community and Norwalk as a whole,” said Tod Bryant of the Norwalk Preservation Trust. “The Norwalk Preservation Trust is also grateful to the Connecticut Commission on Culture and Tourism, Attorney General Richard Blumenthal, the National Trust for Historic Preservation and the Connecticut Trust for Historic Preservation for their unwavering support. And, of course, we wouldn’t be here without the support of the people who believed that it was worth it to save this piece of Norwalk’s past. The Grumman-St. John House will not only be saved, it will be returned to useful economic life and contribute to economic growth in the city.”

“The National Trust for Historic Preservation is grateful to the many people who have worked diligently for so long to bring about a successful agreement to restore the Grumman-St. John House. The leadership of Senator Duff and Representative Cafero in facilitating this win-win agreement between the Norwalk Preservation Trust and the Norwalk Inn is remarkable,” said Alicia Leuba, director of programs for the National Trust for Historic Preservation. “This is a powerful example of an alliance between economic development and historic preservation, giving new life to an important historic building while providing economic development opportunities and increased buffering for the residential neighborhood.”

“The Commission on Culture & Tourism is pleased at the resolution of this matter and commends everyone involved for working together to come up with a solution which has resulted in the preservation of 93 East Avenue and also meets the need of the owners of the Norwalk Inn and the neighbors,” said Karen Senich, executive director and state historic preservation officer of the Connecticut Commission on Culture & Tourism. “The preservation of this important National Register property serves as a model for the future when our invaluable historic resources in Connecticut are threatened.”

The Grumman-St. John House dates back to the Revolutionary War and was built by Samuel Grumman.  It was severely damaged in the burning of Norwalk by the British in 1779 and was rebuilt in the 1780s. The house was expanded and its current roof was added in the 1870s. It has been listed in the National Register of Historic Places since 1986 as part of the Norwalk Green Historic District. The Norwalk Inn purchased the historic property in 2001.

Larry Cafero is one of the few legislators that get why it’s important to not just be a voice of opposition as a minority party leader, but that you have to present solutions not just opposition. As minority leader he consistently outmaneuvers the leaden Senate Majority Leader Don Williams in presenting the issue to the public. It’s nice to see him recognized for some of his work.

from a press release:

American Legion Names Rep. Cafero Legislator of the Year

Rocky Hill – The American Legion Department of Connecticut has named Norwalk State Rep. Lawrence F. Cafero Jr. Legislator of the Year for his commitment to members of the military and their families at its 92^nd annual convention at the Marriott Hotel.

Cafero was cited for his contribution to the interests of all service members and for going “above and beyond the call of duty,’’ for veterans and their families. He was introduced by American Legion official John Monahan.

Cafero told the audience, “This award means more to me than any other I have ever received in my life.’’ Cafero said society must never forgot the sacrifice and commitment that veterans have made for their country and that too often we lose track of the struggles that they have endured.

“From someone who did not serve, to those who did…thank you, thank you thank you,’’ Cafero told the crowd. Numerous past commanders were also honored for their service to the organization during the convention.

Cafero has consistently supported veterans’ issues over the years and has enlisted public recognition of veterans and their families. Cafero spearheaded the drive to exempt 50 percent of veterans’ pensions from state income taxes. He also helped dedicate a commemorative Support our Troops Connecticut license plate and exempt Gold Star families from paying additional fees for their license plates.

Larry Cafero has given up on negotiations with Democratic leaders on the subject of the State budget. According to a Ken Dixon CT Post report:
Larry Cafero has given up on negotiations with Democratic leaders on the subject of the State budget. According to a Ken Dixon CT Post report:

Minority Republicans, predicting that an imminent budget deal between Gov. M. Jodi Rell and legislative Democrats will not contain enough spending cuts, abandoned bipartisan negotiations on Saturday.

The Republicans said they are afraid that the deal will fail to address the state’s looming multi-billion-dollar deficit.

Speaker of the House Christopher G. Donovan, D-Meriden, called the GOP protest “unfortunate,” but he welcomed their input if they want to rejoin talks.

Rell’s office said Saturday that a negotiated restructuring of the $19-billion budget scheduled to begin July 1 has not been reached.

House Minority Leader Lawrence F. Cafero Jr., R-Norwalk, and Senate Minority Leader John McKinney, R-Fairfield, said during a mid-afternoon news conference that it became plain to them Friday night that their input was being ignored by the Republican governor and majority leaders.

“The macaroni’s cooked,” Cafero said in a news conference outside the House chamber, backed by dozens of House and Senate Republicans. He said he participated briefly in a bipartisan meeting Friday night, but walked out around 9:15, when it became clear that GOP concerns were not part of the talks.

“I’m disappointed in the product,” McKinney said.

“I’ve known all along that the governor is faced with dealing with a Democratic majority that has a veto-proof majority, a Democratic majority who in many budget negotiations have sat there with their hands folded, unwilling to move.”

The GOP leaders said they will not participate in further negotiations because their ideas for further union concessions; privatization of state services; and a reduction in the 52,000-member state government workforce, have been ignored.

“We put forth all of our ideas understanding that they would be discussed, picked and choosed from and unfortunately we found out that’s not going to be the case,” Cafero said. “The governor and the Democrats are on the precipice of a deal.”

He charged that the pending agreement does not include major attempts to address multi-billion-dollar deficits projected in the fiscal year that starts July 1, 2011.

McKinney said recent news of an increase in revenue may have hurt the cause of fiscal austerity.

“Unfortunately, I believe that news of having some extra revenue has given license for the people who are in charge not to engage in or try to seek and find real structural reform for our budget, for how we spend money and how we do business,” McKinney said.

“It appears that the will of the majority is now to simply put a Band-Aid on the problem and not to try to seek and fix the problem.”

In an early start, Anna Duleep confirmed that she will be filing paperwork to run for the State Rep seat in the 142nd district, a seat currently held by Minority Leader Larry Cafero. The last significant challenge Cafero experienced was in 2006, when the Democrats ran Lex Paulson in the district. Paulson came within 688 votes of winning that race. In 2008, there was no Democratic candidate challenging.

Duleep served on the Norwalk Common Council when she was appointed to fill in for Councilman Doug Sutton who retired at the start of 2009. Duleep also holds a position on the South Western Regional Planing Agency (SWRPA) as co-chair of the Housing Committee� and is also on the Environmental Committee.

Things are all set for the Friends of Susan announced press conference in Middletown Wednesday at 11 am, where presumably Susan Bysiewicz will jump from the Gubernatorial race to the Attorney General race. As the chess moves get made over on the Democratic side, we look forward to the potential leading contenders for the State’s highest elected office to quickly become a Stamford on Stamford affair.

Dan Malloy with his 450k plus war chest dominates the money field in the Dem contest for Governor. His surrogates have done well to position him ahead of the rest of the field heading into the convention. If the Dems could escape without a primary they would have a whole summer in which to make the case to the public rather than the hyper partisan primary voting Democrats.

But why would Bysiewicz make the jump to the AG spot? Looking ahead to 2012, it is another presidential year, and assuming the Obama does enough to keep the hounds of tea partiers at bay, Obama sweeps in another round of Democratic congress critters. And who isn’t a Democratic congresscritter these days. Senator Joe Lieberman. Lieberman too will be looking to see where the wind is blowing come 2012, and should the turbid waters of Connecticut politics seem unfriendly, he’ll position himself to exit off the political stage with a cabinet spot, freeing up the Senate seat in a safely Democratic leaning state to the next round of challengers. Brownie points for the master politician. He’ll need it. So what aspiring Connecticut Democrat wouldn’t want a senate gig these days, Six year terms, and not a lot of hard work to do. Something that would befit an aspiring AG, rather than a sitting Governor, or former Secretary of State and candidate for Governor.

And so that brings us to Wednesday’s announcement. And the potential line up of Malloy and Bysciwicz teamed together instead of fighting it out in a primary. Solves quite a few problems doesn’t it?

It also makes thing interesting for the Republicans. Mike Fedele is busy raising cash. ALmost $70k in 30 days is pretty nifty for a just announced candidate. But now that Malloy is looking like the potential match up, do the Republicans really want to run a race of Stamford vs. Stamford. Malloy comes into the race as a popular 14 year Mayor who did a bunch of things. Fedele comes into the race with slim credentials and as M. Jodi Rell’s sidekick. A Stamford doer versus a Stamford What Could Have Been.

Tom Foley isn’t the answer either. It should make Republicans long for Larry Cafero to have waited just a month or two more before announcing he was out. Then you would have had the leader of the fighting 44 against the former Mayor of Stamford. Wouldn’t that have been more interesting.

The next Democratic scramble will be who becomes front runner for Secretary of State. Watch Jonathan Harris pick up steam there.

Each year I bemoan the voodoo budget the state legislature manages to formulate out of fantasy numbers. This year, sadly, the same. The legislature must adopt GAAP. Connecticut is still using a modified cash accounting system which allows the legislature to “balance” its budget while actually spending beyond its means. The chief trick? Recognizing revenue prematurely. Even with the huge deficits we see today, there are still expenses put off to future that shouldn’t be.

Since 2007, when State Comptroller Nancy Wyman made a play to get the Governor and the Legislature to adopt GAAP, Wyman has been quiet on the subject. Yet, buried within her monthly press releases about the state of the budget, are gems like this:

Wyman said she is also concerned that $473 million in expected state agency savings built into the 2010 budget might be overly ambitious because the budget does not specify how those savings are to be achieved.

“The policy changes required to produce that level of savings are, for the most part, not addressed,” in the budget, Wyman said.

Wyman was of course discussing the loss of payroll jobs in the state, 70,000 between August 2008 and August 2009, and how that would affect the revenue of sales and income tax collections looking ahead. Her latest comments:

Wyman said receipts of the income tax remain weak, despite an increase in the tax rate for upper-income residents. Collection of the quarterly estimated income tax payments typically made by investors is down by nearly 29.4 percent, Wyman said, and revenue from the payroll-withholding tax dropped by 4.3 percent.

The state added 1,000 payroll jobs in October, Wyman said, but still has lost more than 70,000 jobs since October 2008.

“The extra revenue associated with the higher tax rate is being offset by a continued drop in overall receipts of the income tax,” Wyman said.

Wyman said the income tax was originally projected to produce about $6.6 billion by the end of the fiscal year on June 30, but is now expected to bring in about $6.4 billion.

The sales tax is now targeted to produce about $3.1 billion in revenue, or about $27 million less than budgeted.

Does Chris Donovan or Don Williams even read the Comptroller’s reports? Guessing by the reaction to Larry Cafero and Stweart McKinley’s bipartisan budget solving request letter, the answer would be no.

Larry Cafero officially announced that he has no plans to run for Governor but that he plans on keeping running for re-election as State Rep and as Minority Leader. They why isn’t all that hard to figure out, why would anyone want to run for Governor of Connecticut these days? The projected deficit for 2011-12 is $3 billion. The �legislature seems incapable of figuring out that somehow revenues needs to be raised, expenses need to be cut and the state has to steer itself into the 21st Century.

Can any Republican Governor be effective with a Democratic controlled legislature in Hartford? The short answer is no. Rell has figured that out, and so I think has Cafero. As the minority leader of the fighting 44, Cafero has been far more effective at forcing the legislative Democrats into reacting to alternative proposals than has the Governor. To get to be governor, on both sides of the aisle are the fleet of candidates, who will spar through a primary season, leaving little time to figure out how best to slide back to the center where general elections are won.

By way of a futile bid for the Governor’s office, assuming he goes through with it.

Also, Ken Dixon lampoons The Hour. Read all about it here .

Now then, who is up for Larry’s seat in the state house?
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The race for the Governor’s office in Connecticut is wide open now. M. Jodi Rell announced officially today that she would not be seeking re-election. This means that the scramble for the Republican nomination is wide open. Lieutenant Governor Mike Fedele has said privately that he intends to seek the nomination. But so has Minority Leader of the House Larry Cafero. Then there’s the senator wannabees that might take another look, such as Rob Simmons and even Linda McMahon.

For now though, it looks like Cafero and Fedele are the front runners. Both hail from Fairfield County, leaving them open to a challenge from upstate from someone like Rob Simmons, a former congresscritter.

In looking at presidential election maps, the heart of Republican leaning voters lies in Fairfield County and extends up the valley and through Waterbury. The rest of the state votes overwhelmingly Democratic except for a few spots here and there.

So far on the wires, statements from Chris Healy, Republican party chair, Nancy Dinardo, Democratic party chair, and Dan Malloy, Democratic potential gubernatorial candidate.

There are 37 Governorships open next year. And with Senator Chris Dodd facing a strong challenge from some Republican, the eyes on Connecticut will be national.

The Hour reported earlier today that a budget cut itemized in the state budget will result in bus and train fare increases. The man who inspired solitaire play in the Legislature had this to say:

State Rep. Larrence Cafero, R-142, called that passage “another reason why I voted against this budget, and said some last-minute money juggling from the Democrats produced a $15 million shortfall in bus and rail subsidies.

“My prediction is there will be a rate increase (Oct. 1),” Cafero said. “Where’s that other $15 million coming from? I asked the author of the budget that very same question, and he didn’t have an answer.”

State Senators Bob Duff D- Norwalk and Andrew McDonald D-Stamford and State Reps Chris Perone-D Norwalk and Gail Slosberg D-Milford were quick to refute that characterization and held a press conference at the SoNo Train station later in the day.

According to Bob Duff, it was Governor Rell who added the budget cut of $3.95 million to the rail/bus subsidy line item. Duff pointed out, “Connecticut has the lowest train subsidy in the nation.” Here we pause, to think about the 45% pie slice of all Connecticut tax revenue that comes from Fairfield County. Impassable by road Fairfield County.

The cut apparently was put in the last hours of�budget�gotiations because Governor Rell wanted �some money put back in for personnel in some loosely named slushy type line item at the DMV and DOT. In addition to the $3.5 million, $4.2 million of “consultant services” was taken out of something relation to the train operations, maybe something to do with the New Haven Rail yards, so that Rell could have her slushy personnel budget account. Consultant services? Where? Who?

It would seem that while Larry Cafero was arguing against the last minute add-ins to the state budget, Rell was off playing solitarily.

The legislature will reconvene on September 23rd and 24th for a special session.