FAIRFIELD, October 24, 2011 – Rob Bellitto has had a lot to say about the Metro Center project in the press, during debates and in negative mailers.
“It’s time to set the record straight,” said Interim First Selectman Mike Tetreau.
The fact is that when Bellitto had the chance to attend public hearings regarding the Metro Center, he was absent. “I was there,” said Tetreau. “This was a major problem, and I wanted to make sure I supported these initiatives and heard every detail so we could minimize the cost to Fairfield taxpayers. I never once saw Rob Bellitto at any of these meetings. For him to all of a sudden say he’s the expert on this project as he did in a recent mailing is disingenuous and disrespectful to the many Fairfield public servants, both Democrat and Republican, who were at the meetings.”
Further, Bellitto in explaining his absence claimed during last week’s News 12 debate that he watched these important meetings on FairTV, which is impossible because the meetings were not broadcast on FairTV.
“Rob just hasn’t done his homework and is now making excuses,” said Tetreau. “Rob has chosen to mislead Fairfield voters about the Metro Center. He knows the truth but would rather try to take political advantage.”
New to the First Selectman’s office in June, Tetreau said that after he discovered the problems with the Metro Center he immediately reported them to the RTM and began working with several other town administrators and elected officials to find workable, cost-effective solutions for Fairfield taxpayers. Much of this work took place over the summer and was reviewed during a series of special meetings called by the Board of Finance and RTM – 16 public meetings to be exact.
The minutes of the BOF’s Metro Center Audit Subcommittee and the RTM’s Metro Center Special Committee note nonmembers of the committees in attendance. Rob Bellitto’s name does not appear.
Then, on August 26th, when it came time for Bellitto to be part of the solution others had worked on in his absence, Bellitto chose politics over what was best for Fairfield families and cast the lone vote on the Board of Finance against the plan. Following that vote, he did not show up for the two nights of discussion and the vote by the RTM. He never did explain his vote to the RTM or the public.
This continues a pattern of being missing in action during important town meetings and votes. Bellitto was also missing during the two nights the RTM discussed and voted on the annual budget this past May.
“Fairfield taxpayers are still waiting to hear Rob’s alternative plan for saving the Metro Center, along with their investment in the project. Much like his attendance record, though, it seems that Rob’s plan is absent,” Tetreau said.
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