Weekend Round-up 3/31/12

My time has been spent criss-crossing the district and attending some wonderful events and meeting with new friends. This past week, I had the good fortune to attend the Colchester RTC meeting and was publicly endorsed by First Selectman Gregg Schuster. That was a great honor, as I respect the work he has done on behalf of the citizens of Colchester. I look forward to working with him while in the General Assembly!

The 6th grade students at Nathan Hale Ray Middle School put on their annual blood drive, this past week. They worked really hard in organizing their volunteers, creating books related to how important donating blood is, and putting together a great video. Kudos to them all! Also in East Haddam on Friday was the Project Graduation Surf and Turf dinner-prepared by Jim Ventres and crew. Special thanks to all those that volunteered and attended-what a great cause! A special shout-out to my daughter and her classmates for serving such a great meal!

East Hampton had a few different events going on over the weekend. Friday was the Welcome Home to Vietnam Veterans at the VFW. This event was organized by members and featured speaker Louis Carillo Jr. I was moved by his tales of climbing battle hills, the friendships formed with those who served and of his experience coming home to America. Thank you to all our veterans for your service and to those who have sacrificed so much on our behalf. For more information on Connecticut's veteran services, check their website.

(East Hampton Vietnam Veterans)

Also on Friday was the All Arts Night and Wine Tasting which was held at the Old Bank building in the East Hampton Village, hosted by 3M Artworks and The Black Door. It was an extremely well attended event and featured over 40 local artisans, including Chatham Wine Thieve who provided a wonderful wine tasting. We have so many talented people in our area and it was a pleasure to view their work. I hope to get back again soon and talk with those who I missed! The business owners in this area all support each other and it was so great to see this area of town bustling on a Friday night. If you have not stopped in to these merchants in the Village, please go out of your way by supporting them. They actually have an informal facebook page where you can view their events and specials in advance. Check it out! On Sunday (tomorrow), there will be a Village Historical Walk at 1:00 pm---this also sounds like a great event that I will unfortunately have to miss. More info is posted on the Chatham Historical Society website. Let me know if you get to attend.

(All Arts Night and Wine Tasting)

Officially a Republican Candidate for the 34th!

(Melissa H. Ziobron, photo credit: Mick Marsden)

Community, Economy and the Environment

I am thrilled to officially announce my candidacy for State Representative. It would be an honor to represent the 34^th District, encompassing East Hampton, East Haddam, and parts of Colchester. My focus will be on three things: the community, economy and environment. I will do my best to speak up on key issues, listen to my community and work very hard for you.

 As a fiscal conservative, I adhere to the principles of a small, efficient government---exactly the way our three towns are being run today. Bringing that passion to Hartford, we will reduce the unfunded mandates, unintended consequences, and undue burdens being placed on local governments and small businesses. As a frequent user and admirer of our State Park system, we have witnessed firsthand many of our fragile resources in decline. You need look no further than the nearby Sunrise State Park for evidence of this. Our district is home to some of the most beautiful land and resources in the State, and with a proven track record of effectively working across the aisle for the sake of the greater good, I will work to protect our critical assets. 

I am eternally grateful to my wonderful husband, Scott, and my children, Brittany and Bryan, for their strong and steadfast support.  I also thank all who have endorsed my campaign, including East Haddam First Selectman Mark Walter and Colchester First Selectman Gregg Schuster.

My campaign team is growing and I invite you take part.  Please contact Tracey Gionta to volunteer 860-543-5035 or mtgionta@comcast.net . For updates on district wide issues please visit my blog: melissaziobron.blogspot.com or my official facebook page: facebook.com/ziobron2012 . I will be holding various meetups around the district and look forward to meeting you in person!

Best Regards,

Melissa H. Ziobron

Weekly Update! Including Bill Updates...

 Last week was a whirlwind of meetings - and a lot of good news!  Lots of folks are expressing support and enthusiasm for my exploratory campaign for State Representative.  I am very grateful for my good friends and neighbors.

On Thursday my step dad, Vinny Jacobson, and I attended the St. Patrick’s Day luncheon at the Senior Center in East Hampton. Senior Center assistant Kecia Hemphill greeted and welcomed us to the Center, and very kindly answer a few questions that Vinny had as he registered as a user for the first time. Vinny was registered in just minutes; it was very simple.

(East Hampton Senior Center)

The range of services the Center offers to seniors is extensive.  For a complete list, check out the Town website or the Senior Center blog.  I am especially looking forward to Thursday Setback in East Hampton – and improving on our initial effort! A woman in her 90’s named June was quite the competitor! Some very caring and thoughtful folks run this facility - if you have not already benefited from this great resource, I encourage you to check it out.

On Saturday the Chowder Cook-Off in East Haddam, held on the patio of La Vita Gustosa, attracted a large crowd.  This fun event is run by the Town’s Economic Development Commission and has raised thousands of dollars, which is directly returned to the community via donations to many different non-profit organizations.  Defending chowder champion La Vita lost the honor this year - by just ONE vote to Foxhopyard's On the Rocks Restaurant. Kudos to the EHBA for their 2^nd annual Business Expo, held across the street inside The Gelston House.  My daughter enjoyed a complimentary massage by Stillwater’s owner, Kathy Monte. We saw many old friends, including American Landscaping owner Tom Walsh and Maryla Radziszewski, owner of MoreFIT, LLC. For a listing of the businesses that participated, check out the EHBA website. Both Iso Dedusaj from the Gelston House and Lorenzo and Jacqueline Cacace of La Vita Gustosa deserve a special shout out for hosting this event, which is FREE of charge every year.  Lastly, thanks to all who support the Chowder Cook-Off and to Deb Mathiasen for her 9^th year as one of the key coordinators!

Legislative Round-Up

•  The ‘Sunday Sales’ bill has made it out of committee and the provisions that were so upsetting to small package store owners were eliminated from the bill.  Latest info here.

•  The Collective Bargaining bill, which would have allowed daycare and personal care providers to unionize, became one of the Governor's executive orders-when failing to get approval by the House. Now, it is being challenged by Yankee Institute. Latest info here.

•  The Minimum Wage proposal was modified from its original proposal by the Governor.  The bill does NOT remove the tip exemption.  It increases the minimum wage 0.50 cents an hour the first year, another 0.50 cents the second year, and is then indexed for inflation.  The bill now goes to both houses of the legislature.  Latest info here.

•  The ‘Cap the Gas Tax’ bill finally has some bipartisan support (Democratic representatives are supporting a temporary, one-year measure that would reduce the current price of a gallon of gas by a whopping penny and a half).  It’s a start, I guess.  I sincerely hope this cap is permanent and not temporary – and does not escalate a year from now, as it does in the Democratic proposal. Latest info here.

•  The ‘Repeal of the Death Penalty’ is out of committee and is sure to trigger an emotional debate during the rest of the session.  Gov. Malloy has indicated he will sign the bill into law if and when it reaches his desk.  Latest info here.

•  The ‘Medical Marijuana’ is also out of committee.  This year’s proposal looks more promising than the past.  Advocates and opponents will debate the merits over the next month. Latest info here. 

The schedule for the upcoming week is jam packed as well.  Today, I attended a luncheon with the Conservative Women’s Forum.  If that group sounds familiar to you, it may be because they were recently in the news.  Co-founder Cynthia David of Essex received threatening phone messages from a senior CT-DEEP official, who was recently fired for his disgraceful actions. Today’s speaker was Fergus Cullen from the Yankee Institute and Rob Simmons, who was recently elected as their Chairman. It was a lively discussion and great to meet so many ladies throughout the Connecticut River Valley.

Later this week, I’ll be attending the Colchester RTC meeting, the 6^th Grade NHRMS Blood Drive, and the Honor the Vets event held in East Hampton.  For more information on any of these activities, visit my official Facebook page. I am especially looking forward to see some old classmates who will be performing in the Sticks Goff House Showlapalooza at the Goff House Museum on Friday evening. It should be a great time and it's FREE, hope to see you there.

Think Spring ~ East Hampton edition!

(Taken on Wopowog Road, East Hampton)

(Engel's Falls, taken on Tartia Road, East Hampton)

(Taken on Main Street, East Hampton)

(Taken on Tartia Road, my Mom's English Primrose)

Around the 34th--St.Patty's Day edition!

The celebration of St. Patrick’s Day started a bit early this year.  My daughter and I began last night with a fabulous dinner prepared by the hard-working Knights of Columbus at St. Bridget’s in Moodus.  The meal was delicious, the decorations just right, the ambiance festive, and the attendance awesome. Special thanks to the Smith family for saving our seats and to Bill Talbot and Dan D’Ameilo for the warm welcome. Congratulations to all those who volunteered on a great event!

The official celebration of St. Patrick’s Day is this Saturday March 17^thand there are a number of ways to participate in our newly formed 34^thDistrict.

East Hampton 

The Dublin, home to the 1 lb Burger & 20 oz Guinness, is always a good bet.  The pub-style restaurant also features dart and card leagues.  Good food, good friends, good times … Happy Hour from 4pm to 6:30 … and Free WiFi. Event details can be found here.

Angelico’s Lakehouse offers a rocking good time -- with genuine Irish cuisine (Corned Beef & Cabbage, Fish & Chips and Sheppard’s Pie), beverages (Guinness, Jameson and more), music and dancers! Their special menu can be found here.

East Haddam

All You Can East Breakfast – What a great way to start the day!  For just $8 ($4 for children) the parishioners of St. Stephen’s Episcopal Church offer a boundless meal of corned beef hash, eggs, pancakes, Irish Soda Bread, coffee and more.  Hours are 8-10am, at 33 Main Street, across from the East Haddam Post Office.

The Annual Chowder Cook-off is not to be missed.  This year is the 9^th edition and it is hosted on the patio of La Vita Gustosa in the Village.  A fee of just $10 ($5 for children) gets you a commemorative mug and the chance to sample (and judge!) an array of hot chowders prepared by the chefs of nearby restaurants.  This is usually a sold out event and the proceeds benefit East Haddam charities and local non-profit organizations.  Participants last year selected La Vita as champion.

Also, don’t forget to check out the 2^nd Annual Business Expo, which will be happening across the street at The Gelston House. Sponsored by the East Haddam Business Association, the Expo features booths and wares of local merchants. Both of these events have a kick off time of around 11:00 am. I will be volunteering at the end of the chowder line, stop by and say hello.

Speaking of restaurants, in Colchester-- Gung Ho is one of my favorites.  They have an array of delicious food and especially good Sushi.  In fact, they offer All You Can Eat Sushi on Tuesdays and Wednesdays from 5-9pm.  How could you not support a family business that has been anchored in our community for 25 years? For details about their menu, visit their website. 

Ichaban is also on my list for this week. This is a fairly new addition in Colchester and the comments I’ve heard from friends are very positive.  If you’ve been there, do you have any recommendations?

Listening & Learning

Along with visiting local businesses in the region, I also attended a meeting of the East Hampton/Portland division of the Middlesex Chamber of Commerce.  It was very nice to visit and catch up with some familiar faces.

At the Chamber event, there was a local update provided by municipal officials from East Hampton and it was interesting to listen to their views on key issues.  After hearing that the renovations to the Senior Center in East Hampton were completed, I decided to take a trip over.  My tour of the facility was both comprehensive and informative.  In fact, I will be accompanying my step-dad -- and East Hampton resident -- Vinny Jacobson there this week for lunch and a little game of Setback. Finally, kudos to my friends -- who helped an informal monthly get together evolve into the One Year Anniversary of Gay Night at the Gelston House! It was a great turnout with a lot of great people.

 I’ll have a post later this week on how all those potential new laws in Hartford are shaping up. If a specific bill or issue is of concern or interest -- please let me know!  In the meantime, please visit my social media pages for the latest news and updates concerning our area. 

Area Natural Resources...

Here is additional information about this multi-town recreation trail. There is also a trail map available. This trail system is heavily used by walkers, runners, bicyclists and equestrians alike! You will be able to get into the business district soon-as an extension into the East Hampton Village is expected to begin construction in May. 

 Here is additional information about Salmon River State Forest and the historic Comstock Bridge. It is not uncommon to see Bald Eagles further down the River and this area is always bustling on opening day of fishing season! The Blue Blaze Trail system maintained by the Connecticut Forest and Park Association, maintains a small loop trail, accessible right next to the bridge-as well. The CFPA is a group of dedicated volunteers who maintain hundreds of miles of trails all over the State.

First Week of March...

The process of visiting with community groups and discussing key issues continued last week. It is these interactions I enjoy the most.  Our communities are fortunate to have many thoughtful, caring and hard working people involved and I learn a great deal from my every visit.

The Colchester RTC was particularly gracious in allowing me time at its last meeting to share some of my thoughts and priorities -- and they had plenty of questions for me, too. We discussed a number of bills pending in Hartford, including Governor’s Bill #5024, which would allow non-registered voters to both register and vote on Election Day.  While nearly any effort to boost voter turnout in an election is worthwhile, I believe this bill as it is currently drafted is flawed.  And I would not support it.  Lastly, I want to extend my deep thanks to Chairman Brenden Healy and to CRTC members Steven Schuster and Linda Grzeika for their warm and gracious support. 

Later in the week I attended an informative meeting of the Village Center business owners in East Hampton.  This is an informal group of business owners who are absolutely passionate about maintaining and improving the vitality of their Village.  Among the updates given – and there were several -- was one on the Airline Trail.  I’m told construction will begin on this in May and would bring the Airline Trail into Main Street. This would be great for the local businesses there and for those using  the Trail. Unfortunately, my attempt to extend the Airline Trail into Portland was not successful last month. You can read about that here.

I also took a few minutes to check out the regional dog facility serving the communities of East Hampton and East Haddam.  It is located in Moodus, at the Transfer Station.  While there were no dogs at the site when I visited, I am happy to report it is clean, ship-shape and ready for dogs in their time of need.  

                                         Regional dog facility-Moodus

                                         
As stated in my last post, changes are occurring rapidly in some of the bills I’m following, including the comprehensive “Sunday Sales” bill #5021.  The package store owners have already dropped their opposition to the small portion of the bill that actually involves the sale of alcohol on Sunday -- as a way of heading off other potential changes they dislike elsewhere in the bill. How do you feel about being able to purchase beer at your local convenience store? Sound off here. Hearings were conducted on The Education bill, SB 24 last week.  Not surprisingly, representatives of the teachers’ unions voiced opposition to the proposed changes to tenure.  In my view, the concept of tenure needs updating and I wonder how the Governor's proposal which includes parent evaluations might come into play? It is an important bill and will keep following this proposal.

Another bill gaining much needed public attention is a proposal to increase the minimum wage – including the minimum wage for wait staff who receive tips from customers as part of their compensation. Known as bill# 5291, this costly mandate will dramatically impact small businesses, and negatively affect wait staff that can earn on average more than $20 per hour when tips are included. Ending the tip exemption is a mistake that will harm both restaurants, their customers and wait staff.  A few Legislators in Hartford say the mistake was a simple “drafting error” – that there was no intent to eliminate the tip exemption.  However, the words “tip exemption” are included in the actual title of the bill, so that excuse sounds a bit far fetched to me.  

Coming very soon are formal announcements from my exploratory committee! For now, please continue to follow my blog and I invite you to connect on my new ‘politician’ page on Facebook!  (www.facebook.com/ziobron2012) 

# # #