Editorial: A Ground Shift

peter-tesei-and-dannel-malloy-fi
An archive photo of Peter Tesei on the left and Dannel Malloy on the right working under the watchful eye of a Morton’s Steakhouse chef.

Did you hear it? The political landscape in Greenwich has shifted. Recently Peter Tesei announced that he would not be running for a seventh term as First Selectman. This marks the first time in 32 years that Peter will not have an elected position serving Greenwich.

Shortly thereafter, Selectman John Toner announced he also would not seek reelection. And sources are saying that Selectman Sandy Litvack will not run again. That means for the first time in many, many years there will be completely open elections for the Board of Selectmen, with no front runner readily apparent.

To refer to this as “political landscape” does not adequately describe what Peter, John and Sandy each give to our town. It is leadership. Each of them has demonstrated leadership, a commitment to our community and self-sacrifice by giving of their time and energies above and beyond what their elected position calls for. Greenwich has been well served by that leadership.

In making his announcement, Mr. Tesei said “It’s time to finish this journey and begin a new one…”

And what a journey it has been. Over the course of his tenure as First Selectman many milestones happened under Peter’s watchful eye, including significant building projects such as Glenville School, the high school’s Performing Arts Center and the new New Lebanon School, which opened this week.

Peter also was instrumental in the creation of Cos Cob Park, the harbor management plan, dredging of the Mianus River, the Byram Pool and the list goes on and on. After 12 years as First Selectman there is hardly a place in Greenwich that has not felt Peter’s support and improvement.

It is also worth noting that Peter’s public service did not begin with his election as our First Selectman. He was first elected to serve our town in 1987 at the age of 18, when he was elected the youngest member in the history of the RTM. He served 10 years. In 1997 he was elected to the Board of Estimate and Taxation, where he also served for 10 years – six as Chairman. Public service is in Peter’s DNA.

Thomas Jefferson once said “Do you want to know who you are? Don’t ask. Act! Action will delineate and define you.” Peter’s actions clearly have defined who he is from a very early age. In fact, we are hard-pressed to find another individual who has given so much to our community from such an early age. Regardless of our political persuasion we can do nothing but applaud Peter’s life spent, so far, in service to our community.

Turning our attention back to the Board of Selectmen for a moment, we wonder what will be its make-up after this November’s elections? Traditionally, it is early for a campaign to get underway, but like we stated earlier, this is not a typical election year for these positions. We hear rumblings from both democrats and republicans about potential candidates. We are eager for them to make their names known so that we as a community can discuss the best direction forward. After all, that is what a campaign is, deciding what the best direction forward for our community, our town.

There is no disputing that the democrats in Greenwich have made inroads into long held republican positions. Times are changing and both political parties in town will need to change with it if they want to remain relevant. We will be watching to see how they engage the populous and make their case for “leadership.”

Finally, this seems like a good opportunity to thank, once again, all those who serve. Elected office can, at times, seem like a punching bag. And at times, it is. You really don’t know until you are actually in it, but we do know that they all sacrifice; time away from home, from family and all in helping better our community – thank you!

Related Posts
Loading...