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Moccia to get boost from former governor at Rowayton fundraiser

By Mark Chapman

Norwalk Republican convention 072213 168
Norwalk Mayor Richard Moccia will be the beneficiary of two fundraisers this week.

NORWALK, Conn. – While the four Democratic Party mayoral candidates dominate the headlines as they scramble for support leading up to the Sept. 10 primary election, Mayor Richard Moccia is ramping up his fundraising efforts in his bid for a fifth straight two-year term.

Moccia’s campaign announced Tuesday that former Gov. M. Jodi Rell will be honorary host Thursday evening, Aug. 29, at a fundraiser at the home of Bonnie and Rick Dudley in Rowayton.

Billed as “Conversations and Refreshments with Mayor Dick Moccia,” the event is scheduled to run from 5:30 to 7 p.m., with a suggested contribution of $100. To attend, RSVP to [email protected] or call (203) 855-9670.

Rell was elected lieutenant governor in 1994 and was re-elected twice. She stepped into the governor’s office in 2004 after John Rowland resigned, forced by a corruption scandal that led to him serving 10 months in federal prison.

Rell was elected to her own full term in 2006 with about 710,000 votes, the highest total for any gubernatorial candidate in Connecticut history. She chose not to run for re-election in 2010.

There also is a fundraiser planned for 5:30 to 7:30 p.m. Wednesday, Aug. 28, at The Loft, 97 Washington St. in South Norwalk. Connecticut House Minority Leader Larry Cafero will join Moccia for “Pizza 7 Politics” with a $25 suggested donation. RSVP to [email protected] (walk-ins are OK).

 

Comments

8 responses to “Moccia to get boost from former governor at Rowayton fundraiser”

  1. Mike Mushak

    This will be a wonderful opportunity for Mayor Moccia and perhaps Rowayton resident and Coucilmember Dave McCarthy to explain why they support the $3 million taxpayer-funded widening and lowering of RowYton Avenue at the train station, to make Rowayton Avenue more truck accessible which the community does NOT want, and to fix a slight hump on the road that actually slows traffic currently at the station parking lot entry, a place where widening the road will actually increase traffic speeds and make it more dangerous.
    .
    This road widening and lowering project to state highway standards north of the station, designed by engineers on steroids, is highly inappropriate for the narrow and historic Rowayton Avenue, which currently functions just fine with no accident history at the site (so why spemd $3 million to fix what’s not broken?), and large trucks that have many other options ( even the Fire Department is fine with the current layout).
    .
    This unnecessary boondoggle north of the station was never requested by community leaders through the 6th Taxing District, which actually only requested a wider bridge opening to get wider and safer sidewalks installed under the bridge, which is already completed, and new much-needed footpaths south of the station to make a safer pedestrian connection to central Rowayton where commuters often walk or bike to the station. No improvements are proposed for the footpaths, but $3 million will be spent to widen and lower the road for trucks that few if any folks actually want. The priorities of the city are wrong, and Moccia and McCarthy have explaining to do.
    .
    Moccia and McCarthy can also explain to the good folks of Rowayton at this event about why they just repaved Highland Ave. without following the recommendations of the $90k 2011 Norwalk Bikeway and Pedestrian Plan, which calls for adding new safe bike lanes (where width allows between Flax Hill and Highland Court) amd sharrows where it’s narrower (from Highland Ct south to Wilson) in front of 3 schools to slow chronic speeding traffic and improve safety for children riding their bikes to school. Why would they do this on Strawberry Hill but not on Highland? I would have thought McCarthy as Chair of the Public Works Committee would have been more concerned than this for improving public safety in his own district.
    .
    Both the $3 million completely unnecessary road widening at the train station with no new footpaths south of the station where they are desperately needed, and the neglect to install the new bike lanes and sharrows on Highland Ave that would slow speeders and increase safety in front of 3 schools, indicates a theme of the GOP Moccia Administration (with McCarthy’s help) of repeatedly compromising on public safety on our streets.
    .
    At the Biking with the Candidates on Monday night, all of f the Democratic nominees for mayor who were present (3 out of 4) stated their commitment
    to improving public safety on our streets by following the millions of dollars of expert plans we already have in place.

  2. Don’t Panic

    Maybe it has something to do with the state money available for this (and the East Ave widening project in East Norwalk that is similarly unnecessary and unwanted, only similarly safer pedestrian walkways are necessary to improve safety).
    .
    Why are we so successful at getting state money for roadway “improvements” and so spectacularly unsuccessful at getting a fairer share of ECS money from the state?

  3. D(ysfunctional)TC

    The truck traffic isn’t cutting through precious Rowayton. It is delivering goods to the people who buy them that live there. Sorry, you can’t deliver high end furniture on a bicycle.

  4. Mike Mushak

    There are alternate routes for trucks that have served just fine for years, and most delivery trucks currently fit under ghe bridge, except the big semis. Are you, DysTC, suggesting we spend $3 million of taxpayer money so the biggest semi on the road can save a 5 minute detour to get someone’s furniture delivery done? And what happens when all the big trucks can now fit under the bridge? Alternate truck route? It’s a boondoggle project, I’ll conceived by city and state engineers who should be looking at so many other problems in Norwalk, not trying to fix a problem here that doesn’t even exist, and which requires eminent domain.

  5. NorwalkLifer

    I’m with Mushak on this. The last thing Norwalk needs is more semi trucks in our neighborhoods. Let’s preserve the nice areas we have that have low traffic and try to improve other areas that have too much traffic.
    ..
    Maybe we need a demonstration outside this event? Park a couple semi trucks in front of the house and see how the guests like walking around them!

  6. Joe Espo

    NorwalkLifer: The truck drivers will be charged, arrested and fined by Harry’s PD, the trucks will be towed and impounded by Malloy’s troopers, DOT and the feds will pull the truckers’ licenses and you and Mike Mushak might be subpoenaed.
    .
    Instead, you should recruit all 8 or 10 cyclists that use Mike’s bike paths each week. Will they get there safely without sharrows on Rowayton Avenue or Highland Avenue? Dunno?
    .

  7. Tim T

    Oh yes Grandma Rell the one that created the mess the state is in…Well at least she has one thing in common with Moccia (and Rilling) as he is the one that created the mess Norwalk is in.

  8. Oldtimer

    At least Rell was smart enough to know when it was time to step down.

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