GREENWICH — As he campaigned for reelection to the city’s high elected workplace, Republican First Selectman Fred Camillo mirrored on his hometown and mentioned what makes Greenwich nice is that at its core, it hasn’t modified over time.
“Greenwich was a vacation spot then, and it’s much more of a vacation spot now,” Camillo mentioned whereas he canvassed his childhood neighborhood of Cos Cob lately to speak with voters. “Each single city adjustments. Each metropolis adjustments. However Greenwich nonetheless retains quite a lot of that acquainted really feel to me — even with totally different faces and issues I keep in mind rising up with that now have new constructions on them. I take a look at them and keep in mind the Clam Field or Pickwick Plaza.”
And whereas he fondly remembers what he referred to as “a less complicated time,” Camillo mentioned he’s the chief of a city that’s totally different in lots of respects. If reelected, he mentioned he needs to construct on what he began in his first time period and produce ahead new initiatives whereas additionally “defending quite a lot of what we’ve at all times liked about Greenwich.”
“You by no means wish to see it constructed as much as the purpose the place Greenwich is slightly metropolis,” Camillo mentioned. “You wish to ensure you preserve as a lot inexperienced house as attainable.”
Greenwich has over 800 acres of protected open house, Camillo mentioned, 73 of which was acquired throughout his time period.
“Inexperienced house is extra necessary than ever in terms of points like flooding,” he added.
“That’s exacerbated by continued constructing. And as first selectman I wish to be an advocate, identical to I used to be final 12 months on the state stage after I was pushing to retain our native management of zoning choices,” he mentioned. “I’m going to proceed to do this.”
Camillo mentioned he has huge plans if he’s reelected within the Nov. 2 election over Democratic challenger Invoice Kelly.
In a second time period, Camillo mentioned he would push to broaden outside eating, which started at downtown eating places through the COVID-19 pandemic, into the Glenville space.
He mentioned there are plans to beautify elements of Glenville, with comparable enchancment plans underway in Outdated Greenwich. Camillo mentioned he would look to seek out “low-hanging fruit” throughout city to make issues higher for residents, mentioning the addition of motorbike lanes as one thought.
On the path
Camillo’s door-to-door campaigning efforts lately introduced him to the house of somebody he visits usually, 103-year-old Ruth Wilson, who was his kindergarten instructor at Cos Cob Faculty. She is informally referred to as the “mayorette of Cos Cob” — an unofficial title much like the moniker of the “mayor of Cos Cob,” which belonged to the late Lou Caravella, who owned a sweet retailer that was a vacation spot for each child within the neighborhood.
“You and Lou have been most likely the preferred individuals within the historical past of Cos Cob,” Camillo instructed his former instructor.
Wilson additionally taught Camillo’s brother, Gary, and their late sister, Donna. When he visited her lately, Camillo and Wilson reminisced about strolling to high school, watching black-and-white TVs and having fun with the goats, geese and chickens that the Camillo household stored of their small yard in Cos Cob. That’s what impressed his lifelong love of animals, Camillo mentioned.
“Rather a lot’s occurred in 50 years,” he mentioned.
On the problems
As first selectman, Camillo mentioned he’s targeted in town’s future. He mentioned he would proceed pushing to maintain Greenwich’s taxes low whereas trying to additional set up public-private partnerships for city tasks.
He pointed to a current success in that space, with an nameless donor lately making a $5 million donation to assist construct the brand new Jap Greenwich Civic Heart. Future tasks might additionally profit from public-private partnerships, he mentioned, together with the deliberate new municipal skating rink, enhancements to Roger Sherman Baldwin Park, enhancements to the Island Seaside and Horseneck parking heaps downtown and the attainable addition of one other canine park. These tasks might be priorities for the city, he mentioned.
“We wish to put factors on the board,” Camillo mentioned, referring to creating capital enhancements within the city. “That’s why the public-private partnerships are going to proceed to play an enormous half on this. If there’s something that may assist defray the prices to taxpayers of recent services and new applications and new buildings, that’s all to the nice. It will likely be executed tastefully, working with all of the city departments, particularly Planning and Zoning and Environmental Affairs and DPW.”
Ultimately, Camillo’s tenure as first selectman has been marked by the unprecedented COVID-19 disaster. However he mentioned he doesn’t consider the pandemic sidetracked his first time period.
“We didn’t let the pandemic cease us,” Camillo mentioned. “The actual fact is, we checked out it and mentioned, ‘How can we get by means of this safely and the way can we make the most of it and search for silver linings?’ I feel we’ve executed that, and we stored our priorities in place.”
