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05/04/2021 12:30 PMThe Town Council’s decision to table the Democratic Town Committee (DTC)-endorsed appointment of John Olsen to an open seat could set a precedent for future appointments, which has drawn both concern and support from residents.
At the start of each Town Council meeting, the council runs through a list of people nominated to be appointed to fill a vacancy on one of the town’s various boards are commissions. Many of the names put forth are done so with the endorsement of one of the town’s political parties, and the appointments are typically unanimously approved without question unless there is a personal connection to the applicant, in which case a council member will occasionally abstain from the vote.
In late March, Dolly Mezzetti, a fulltime Democratic member of the Board of Assessment of Appeals (BAA), resigned from her seat.
At the April 7 Town Council meeting, the council moves Democrat Alyson Roberts from an alternate seat to a fulltime seat, thus leaving a vacancy. Council member Tim Guerra, a Democrat, motioned to appoint John Olsen, a candidate endorsed for the position by the DTC, to the alternate spot.
Council member Carol Walter, a Republican, objected to Olsen’s possible appointment and publicly expressed serious reservations about Olsen being approved at the meeting.
“I know John has a history of being involved in various committees in Clinton and not one of them worked out in a positive manner,” Walter said during the meeting.
Walter also characterized Olsen as a “rogue” who in her opinion could not be relied upon to work respectfully with others as a “team player.” Walter argued that since the BAA is important in helping determine the Grand List and mil rate for the town, it’s important to have members that can function cordially and stay on task, which she said she doesn’t see Olsen being able to do.
The council unanimously decided that instead of ruling on Olsen’s appointment at that meeting, it would table the appointment to have him come in to speak at a future meeting to address the concerns over his appointment and give him the chance to persuade the members of his merits to serve.
The Letters
During the meeting Walter stated that her qualms over Olsen’s appointment were not part of a personal vendetta. In a March 31 letter to the editor “Need to reach Out” in the Harbor News, Olsen criticized Walter over a stance she had taken in a previous letter regarding the council’s policy on statements to the public, her vote against forwarding the proposed education budget, and her role as a town employee and member of the Town Council. The April 7 meeting at which Olsen’s name was put forward for the BAA seat was the first Town Council meeting since his letter was published.
“This has nothing to do with that, I swear to God I will abstain either way,” Walter said during the meeting in reference to the letter and possibly voting on Olsen’s appointment at a future meeting.
The council met again on April 21, but Olsen’s appointment was not discussed. Prior to that meeting Olsen emailed the Town Council a letter stating his qualifications and later shared a copy of that email with the Harbor News. Olsen said he was surprised the appointment wasn’t brought up at that meeting and wasn’t sure why it wasn’t.
Town Council Chair Chris Aniskovich told the Harbor News the council did receive Olsen’s letter, but that wasn’t what the members were looking for. Aniskovich said the council passed a motion at the April 7 meeting specifically asking for Olsen to appear in person to answer questions. Aniskovich pointed out that motion was unanimously passed by the council.
Aniskovich said that the door is still open for Olsen to appear at a council meeting and respond to concerns there, at which point the council can rule on Olsen’s appointment.
A Complicated History
Olsen has been a familiar face in Clinton civic life for close to 30 years. He has been involved in a myriad of boards and commissions in Clinton, and has served on various boards at the state level under multiple governors from different parties. Most recently he was named to Governor Lamont’s Reopen Connecticut Advisory Group.
In his time in town, Olsen has proved popular with some residents for his contributions to Clinton. During the April 7 Town Council meeting council member Dennis Donovan, a Republican, said that he had positive interactions with Olsen regarding suggestions for changes to the town’s charter during the last charter revision commission iteration and was surprised to hear Walter’s characterization of Olsen.
On the other hand, several residents besides Walter have publicly accused Olsen of bombastic and rude behavior during meetings over the years.
In particular, Walter during the April 7 meeting referenced the “ugly fashion” in which Olsen left the Board of Finance (BOF), of which he was the chair, in the summer of 2018.
At that time the town was searching for a new finance director and the Board of Selectmen had approved a new candidate for the job. However, then-first selectman Christine Goupil revealed that the candidate had rescinded his acceptance of the position before he even started in part due to unsanctioned actions unnamed member(s) of the BOF had taken that interfered with the hiring process and could have subjected the town to liability.
At a subsequent BOF meeting, Olsen briefly addressed the issue, which sparked a spirited discussion among the members. That discussion took a turn when Olsen suddenly became incensed at a comment from BOF member Ona Nejdl, who had been a frequent sparring partner during their time together on that board.
Olsen was visibly irate, began to loudly chastise the board with a series of harsh personal comments unrelated to the issue, ignored pleas to calm down, and stormed out in the middle of the meeting. He then resigned from the BOF without attending a meeting again.
Olsen told the Harbor News he believes his March 31 letter to the Harbor News was the only reason why he wasn’t appointed to the BAA, not his actions on the BOF. Olsen pointed out that the exact same Town Council has approved his appointment to the Economic Development Commission and the Fair Rent Commission in the last year without objection or requiring him to come before the board.
“How come I wasn’t an issue then? Are there different skills needed for those boards?” asked Olsen.
As to allegations that he is hard to work with, Olsen said “I’m not afraid to represent my point of view or speak up” and that he doesn’t view disagreement among board members as necessarily a bad thing.
A New Precedent?
The BAA is an elected board and typically vacancies on elected boards are filled by the recommendations of the political party who owns the seat. Those recommendations are usually approved by the top board without question.
Andrea Reu, the chair of the DTC, said that as soon as the vacancy on the BAA was open the committee has an emergency meeting to find candidates to fill them. Reu said she was “startled” when the council decided to table Olsen’s appointment and then when it wasn’t touched upon on April 21.
Reu and Olsen both told the Harbor News they could not recall a time when a town committee endorsed candidate for a vacancy on an elected board was not approved. Both also said they are now concerned that if the request is denied it could start a new precedent for those vacancies where the Town Council can override the wishes of the political parties.
Aniskovich did not shy away from agreeing the council could be setting a new precedent, which he argued would be a good thing.
“I think it’s a good precedent to set actually. It shows we’re taking these appointments more seriously and I’m all for setting a bar for standards,” Aniskovich said.
Aniskovich said that per the charter, the Board of Selectmen, which has now been replaced by the Town Council, has always had the authority to approve or deny appointment requests.
“On this particular appointment, there was an issue in the past and it wasn’t a small issue. It’s one a lot of people know about and it wasn’t handled professionally at all and people have questions about that,” Aniskovich said.
“I don’t think anyone is being purposely disparaged, I think we’re trying to make sure these things should be handled best and that people on these boards and commissions can work together respectfully and do what’s best for the town as a whole,” Aniskovich added.
Aniskovich reiterated that Olsen has the opportunity to attend a future meeting to address concerns about him if he wants to be appointed to the alternate BAA seat.
The Town Council is set to meet next on May 5 (after press time for this article). Olsen told the Harbor News it is his hope that the council members review the letter he sent them and then they either approve or deny his appointment at that meeting.