By Liz Leamy & Elizabeth Barhydt
The Representative Town Meeting turned a long June agenda into a broad civic argument over what Greenwich protects, what it replaces and how much process a town owes itself before putting permanent decisions on public land.
The meeting opened with a wink and a warning. Central Middle School (CMS), the RTM’s meeting place for roughly half a century, may have hosted its final session before members return in September to a new building. The moderator told members she hoped the night would be “more Wizard of Ozish and not like Dante’s Inferno,” then added that the town’s longest meeting had ended in 1990 at 3:10 a.m. She did not want to break the record.
Before the larger issue debates began, James Waters, chair of the Old Greenwich School Building Committee, reported that the school renovation is in its third month of construction. Work has focused on drainage and a new playground, with summer renovations planned for the cafeteria, kitchen, mechanical spaces, gym, music and art rooms. Waters said the new addition is expected to be ready by the end of summer 2027, with the full project targeted for completion by January 2029.
The meeting then moved through appointments, but not without a reminder that Greenwich’s volunteer government keeps a long memory. Board of Health nominees Sarah Madden and Marianne Ramos were pulled from the consent calendar because of concerns tied to the board’s 2023 handling of the town noise ordinance.
Aaron Leonard of District 12 said his objection was also about the consent calendar itself, which he said left little room for individual votes and nuance. Of the nominees, he said his concern stemmed from “their participation in the striking of the town noise ordinance and the invalidation of the Greenwich Home Rule back in 2023.”
Janet Stone McGuigan, who had objected to earlier related reappointments, supported Madden and Ramos. “I believe this matter has already been litigated,” she said. Both nominees were reappointed. Madden was approved 154-16, with 15 abstentions. Ramos was approved 160-14, with 12 abstentions.
The meeting’s sense of inheritance was clearest in the proposed historic designation for Cos Cob Mill Pond. The designation would bring a 1.2-acre town-owned parcel, including an old burial ground, into the Strickland Road Historic District.
Sandy Harris, chair of the Land Use Committee, said the parcel includes the town’s second-oldest burial ground and sits next to a historic district shaped by early settlement and maritime history. Myra Klockenbrink, chair of Parks and Recreation, said the land had been left out of the district and that the proposal would correct that omission.
Andrew Mullo, secretary to the Historic District Commission, said the land was laid out by the town in 1725 and has remained town-owned since then. “It hasn’t changed hands, which makes it the longest owned town owned property,” he said. The item will return in September under the RTM’s second-read rule.
Members also advanced an amended proposal governing school building committees. The change would clarify annual officer terms and elections, with supporters describing it as a tool for accountability. The RTM approved the amendment 173-11, with 14 abstentions, but declined to waive the second-read rule, sending the amended proposal to September.
The body then approved a $6 million interim appropriation for the Central Middle School construction project, 190-4, with four abstentions, and a related bonding authorization, 185-9, with four abstentions. Committee reports said the added costs were tied largely to fire suppression and alarm requirements after low water pressure was discovered at the school.
One of the longest arguments belonged to the Dorothy Hamill rink and Eugene Morlot Park. The RTM approved the municipal improvement referral, 159-32, with 13 abstentions, allowing the rink replacement and park redesign to move forward.
The next major vote concerned a proposed statue honoring George H.W. Bush, offered as a gift by L. Scott Frantz and proposed for the front circle of the Havemeyer building. Members praised Bush’s military and public service, but many objected to the location and the process.
District 8 moved to postpone the item indefinitely. The motion failed, 86-104, with five abstentions. The RTM then rejected the gift itself, 81-110, with five abstentions.
Camillo urged support, citing Bush’s youth in Greenwich and wartime service. “He spent the first 18 years of his life here,” Camillo said. Opponents said the question was not Bush’s character, but whether the Havemeyer site was right while the future of the property remains unresolved.
The meeting continued past 11:20 p.m. with its final and most contested item: the town’s plan to submit its automated speed-enforcement camera program to the state Department of Transportation.
The moderator warned members at the outset that the item was not a normal RTM question. The body could not rewrite the plan, change camera locations or amend the proposal from the floor. Its only authority was to decide whether to submit the town’s plan to the state. “What you have on the plan is what you get and that is all we can vote on,” she said.
The debate, however, moved well beyond parliamentary limits. Members and residents argued over child safety, trust in government, data privacy, signage, vendor compensation, public process and the proper use of law enforcement technology in a town that still likes to think of itself as governed by neighbors.
Supporters said the record was clear. Committee reports said Greenwich police selected 18 cameras at nine locations, based on traffic studies showing the highest levels of speeding in school zones. They said Blue Line Solutions, the contractor, did not select the sites. The Budget Overview Committee reported that police studies found nearly 37,000 violations in school zones in one week before enforcement began. It also reported that violations dropped by 92 percent after cameras were introduced.
Opponents said the numbers did not resolve the deeper problem. They said the public process had been inadequate, the locations were not tied closely enough to schools where children walk, and privacy safeguards were not sufficient to answer concerns about surveillance.
District 11 moved to postpone the item until September. Susan Fahey said the summer. Ed Dadakis supported postponement. “This doesn’t feel right,” he said. “You know it and I know it.”
Police Chief Jim Heavey urged the RTM not to delay the plan. He said any amendments would require a public hearing and another return to the RTM, and that the summer would not provide useful school-traffic data because most schools are not in session. He also said speeding returned quickly after the program was paused. “When the plan was suspended, just when we had to pause the program we had an operator of a car with three students in it doing 80 miles an hour in a 30 mile an hour zone on Stanwich Road right near school,” Heavey said.
The motion to postpone failed 39-132, with one abstention.
The RTM then turned to the merits. Stephen Meskers said the cameras work, enforcement reduces speeding, and relying on police officers alone would be expensive and impractical. “The program doesn’t enrich Greenwich,” he said. “It protects our kids and invests in traffic safety.”
Karen Rubin, who said she teaches data analysis at New York University, questioned the foundation of the program. She said the town was relying on data from the vendor and that the figures did not correlate with state crash data. “There is no independent verification of this at all,” Rubin said.
Dadakis returned to oppose the plan itself. “A no vote tonight does not mean safety is unimportant,” he said. “Of course it is. It means we need a better plan, one developed openly with real community engagement, clear legal and financial answers, thoughtful placement of cameras, and meaningful privacy protections.” He added, “In good conscience, I cannot support this flawed plan. I am voting no. I urge you to join me.”
Other speakers raised concerns about cybersecurity, civil enforcement, license-plate data and the extent to which the contract might permit future expansion. Several urged the RTM to reject the proposal and require the town to return with a plan that had broader public support.
Heavey, the final speaker of the night, framed the issue as a question of school-zone speeding rather than cameras alone. “I’ve heard a lot of people talk about the speed cameras, the speed cameras, the speed cameras, but I’m talking about speeding in school zones, speeding in school zones,” he said.
Heavey said the program had a difficult start but had produced measurable results. He said the town attorney reviewed the contract, the vendor was selected through an RFP process, and the police department chose the locations. He also said the department is short-staffed and continues to handle traffic enforcement through other means, citing more than 9,100 motor vehicle stops last year and more than 100 DWI cases.
The chief closed with a direct appeal. “Being a leader sometimes requires that you make even an unpopular decision in the interest of the greater good,” he said, “and you will do that by voting yes and making Greenwich safer by adopting this plan.”
At 1:30 a.m., the RTM approved submission of the plan, 100-60, with three abstentions.
The moderator adjourned the meeting with a wish for a good summer and a practical hope: no special meeting before the RTM returns in its new CMS building.
