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By Dr. Rebecca Hamman
It seems that Mayor Simmons not only thinks Stamford is for sale (using the 2035 Comprehensive Plan), but she has the right to use her mayoral powers to override community input from 136,735 residents.
Plain and simple, this 2035 master plan has been rushed and put together without solid data. Even more outrageous, one of the five Planning Board members who will be voting on this proposal is serving in an expired position yet still chair of this committee. This person was also overwhelmingly rejected by the Board of Reps. This political-land-grab-ploy has not been well-vetted either—16,000 K-Gr. 12 students, ages 5-18, and 9,000 taxpayers were asked for input—this means only 6.6% of Stamford’s adult population were surveyed (and in one instance sticky notes were used). Most concerning, this comprehensive plan, costing approximately $460K, was written by an out-of-state group called Sasaki Associates, and not one Stamfordite was involved in creating it.
There are 16 neighborhoods throughout Stamford (Stamford Neighborhood Statistical Area Profiles). All areas will be affected, except Shippan and North Stamford—Cove, Downtown, East Side, Glenbrook & Belltown, Ridgeway & Bullshead, South End, Springdale, Turn-of-River & Newfield, Waterside, Westover and Westside (Stamford CT Zoning Map). Incidentally, in the mix of this land grab game and not included in the 2035 Comprehensive Plan, 25-30 acres will be given to UCONN, tax-free, from Stamford’s Long Island Sound to Scalzi Park. Can Stamford really sustain this growing population?
Property Values Could Plummet
If the 2035 Comprehensive Plan passes, everyone’s house and property could slowly become a cluster housing unit, an apartment complex or a business. Our taxes could also continue to increase and sadly, property values will go down, down, down. This is no joke.
To make matters even worse, traffic, parking, water and sewer, as well as school busing, will not get better, but worse (yes, these details were all conveniently left out of the proposal). In addition, when density housing is used as a snake-oil solution for solving overpopulation, Stamford neighborhoods will quickly lose their autonomy and quaintness. We have already seen how the ‘City that Works’ is now becoming the ‘City of Instant Overcrowding’.
September 9th & 16th Planning Board Meetings
To sound the alarm, three and four weeks from now, September 9th & 16th, the Planning Board will be holding public hearings and voting on this 2035 proposal (subversively disguised as a new zoning plan). The timeframe is hurried for obvious reasons.
November 4th Mayoral Election
Then ten weeks from now, the mayoral election takes place on November 4th . Mayor Simmons, a Democrat—surprisingly threatened by other contenders—just added her name to the ‘Independent’ line on the ballot. So why is she afraid she will lose to another candidate (Nicola Tarzia, Republican, and Fritz Chery, Write-In Candidate)? Of course, she has stacked her agendas with forced change and failing initiatives (e.g., schools are struggling miserably). Mayor Simmons also has no intentions of staying in Stamford… she is soon off to Hartford (governorship) or Washington, D.C. (congress). Bless her heart!
Call to Action
No matter what side of the political fence you are on, it’s time to choose common sense when making decisions. For those who are or will be future home or apartment owners, your voice and vote matter more than ever. Our community voice needs to be heard, not ignored.
The 2035 Comprehensive Plan needs major revision work or must be re-done:
Stamford needs to progress at a pace that fits neighborhood needs. Our students, families, and teachers have paid a heavy price for Mayor Simmons' lack of intervention with the school district—she is the 10th member of the Board of Education. Lax governance, poor district leadership and inconsistent community engagement are her legacy. Education should be the first place to look for results and vibrancy—we have very little.
Mayor Simmons, Stamford is NOT for sale.
Dr. Rebecca Hamman is a member of the Stamford Neighborhoods Coalition and an elected member of the Stamford Board of Education. She and her husband have resided in Stamford for 39 years. Her comments are her own, and do not represent the official views of the Board of Education or its committees.
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I was born and raised in Stamford and left for Norwalk in 1997 after serving on Board of Representatives for a term, saw the writing on the wall. Stamford and now Norwalk are led by corrupt bureaucrats who have no care for the property tax payers that fund their incompetent mis-management. It is the pursuit of ideocracy by narcissists and those whose agendas have little to do with real people's interests for which they haven't a clue or care for. if they have a D next to name they are in!