Councilors Recommend Opening the Town Charter

One by one councilors discussing the regulations that govern bidding hinted that they would be interested in opening the charter and straightening out some of the archaic rules that govern the town of South Windsor.

The discussion, which took place at Monday night’s Town Council meeting, was loosely framed around a proposal to purchase new copiers. Since the cost would be more than $5,000, the contract must be put out to bid and awarded to the lowest responsible bidder, according to the town manager and town attorney.

New councilor Carolyn Mirek said back when the charter was last changed she was not yet born and “$5,000 was a lot of money. I know nobody likes to open the charter but maybe it’s something we should look at,” she said.

Charter revision, the process of opening the town charter to possible revisions, is an arduous process that creates the possibility of all kinds of changes being made to the town charter, depending on the political winds.

The need for charter revision has been hinted at in previous discussions in town, including recently when the athletic fields proposal was passed. A Charter Revision Commission – a body appointed to review potential changes – could recommend decreasing the amount of money that would trigger a referendum. It could also change the town’s budget process to require a referendum vote on the town’s annual budget.

Councilor Cary Prague was clear about his opinion on the matter.

“Open up the charter. That’s what I would have done if I was mayor again,” he said.

Mayor Saud Anwar agreed.

“Councilor Pendleton mentioned a subcommittee to look at the charter… I think there is value in this conversation…”

Would you favor opening the town charter? What changes would you like to see?