Closson lawsuit will move forward

WINSTED — News reports of the demise of George Closson’s lawsuit against the town of Winchester have been greatly exaggerated.

So said the former Planning and Zoning Commission chairman himself in an interview Tuesday with The Winsted Journal. Earlier, a federal judge rejected a motion by the Winchester Board of Selectmen to dismiss his case.

Closson acknowledged that a preliminary injunction he sought to immediately restore his position on the commission was denied, but the lawsuit regarding his removal from the board will go forward, as mandated by a July 11 ruling by Judge Vanessa L. Bryant.

"It was disturbing to read the press release coming from the mayor’s office, basically emphasizing a win on their side," Closson said, referring to a one-paragraph press release issued Monday morning. "Nothing was brought up about the win on our side — which is, they tried to get the case dismissed and they were denied."

In fact, Bryant said the case should move forward quickly. "The court recognizes the parties’ urgency in prosecuting this action," she wrote, encouraging Closson and the board to move quickly in assembling the appropriate documents.

Mayor Kenneth Fracasso responded that "The Winchester Board of Selectmen is gratified to the Federal Court for dismissing the injunctive relief sought by Mr. Closson. It is our hope that this brings an end to this unwarranted legal challenge by Mr. Closson. Perhaps Mr. Closson should consider utilizing some of his legal defense funds to offset this unnecessary cost to the Town of Winchester. We now will move forward on other very important issues to our community."

The statement added insult to injury for Closson, who was ousted from the Planning and Zoning Commission in April. A public hearing the following month drew more than 100 supporters to hear Closson make his case, but on May 22, the board voted again along party lines to remove him, drawing outrage from community members. Board members claimed inaction in drafting a new Plan of Conservation and Development was the chief reason for Closson’s removal, but members also said they believe Closson is anti-development.

"I’m not anti-development," Closson said Tuesday. "But I feel that if we don’t scrutinize things and do our due diligence, we’re going to be spending a ton of money afterward to unscramble projects. I try to be very meticulous in my review of an application."

The elephant in the living room, many acknowledge, is a development plan on the ridge between Route 800 and Highland Lake, where investors from Aurora Properties intend to build an 18-hole golf course and two upscale housing projects. The developers have had to cross numerous hurdles during the past two years as they have strived to get the projects approved. Republican selectmen, elected to a majority in November, have accepted significant campaign contributions from Aurora and are now pushing to get the deals finalized.

Republican Mayor Kenneth Fracasso said, during discussion of Closson’s removal, that economic development issues have not received enough attention under Closson’s leadership. "As businessmen, we see a very disturbing pattern of ignoring critical issues," Fracasso said. "A plan to correct these has fallen on the current board as no action has been taken in the last four years."

Closson responded in his public hearing by saying selectmen had underfunded the Plan of Conservation of Development, cutting an initial requested line item of $90,000 down to less than $15,000. He also noted that the Planning and Zoning Commission has been focusing on numerous development applications in recent months, leaving little time to work on the planning document.

Closson said there are some 25 other towns in Connecticut which have not updated their plans of conservation and development for a variety of reasons.

"They’ve accused me of not working on it, but I don’t think there’s anyone who looks at the record who can say we haven’t made an attempt," he said. "We’ve had many special meetings and we are all volunteers."

One thing Closson said he hopes will come of his lawsuit, which seeks reinstatement as chairman of the Planning and Zoning Commission and damages in excess of $15,000, is that the process for removing volunteer commissioners will become more clear.

"The town charter is definitely lacking as far as procedures for things like this go," he said, noting that the group of selectmen who voted to oust him also presided over his public hearing. "It’s like being arrested for speeding and the guy who arrests you is judge and jury."

Closson also noted that the Board of Selectmen failed to keep an official record of the hearing, though residents were in attendance with video cameras. "There is no formal record of that meeting, which is kind of outrageous when you’re doing something that important," he said. "We had no ground rules."

The only recourse, Closson said, was to take the case to court.

After receiving the federal court ruling last week, Closson said he will not take the mayor’s advice and abandon his case.

"I’m positive about it. I think we’ve got a very strong case," Closson said. "This court case is not just about me. It’s about people in all 169 towns. Volunteers need to have a sense of stability. There are an awful lot of dedicated volunteers in this community and land use boards are very important boards. I really take it very seriously."