Board of Selectmen

Selectmen Table Vote After Learning of Non-Public ‘Meeting’ of Parks & Rec

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[March 1 note: After this article was published, the chair of Parks & Rec said in an email that Carl Mason and Steve Haberstroh did not attend the Friday meeting of the “Tennis Committee,” and that the gathering didn’t constitute such a committee meeting.]

The Board of Selectmen on Tuesday voted unanimously to postpone a vote on a proposed set of fees for tennis passes at Mead Park this summer after learning that the government body behind the proposal came up with the figures during a meeting held out of the public eye. Each year, the Parks & Recreation Commission reviews what the town charges for different types of tennis passes at Mead and makes a recommendation to the selectmen ahead of the season. The fees proposed for this year originated with a Parks & Rec “tennis committee” that met Friday, according to Recreation Director Steve Benko, who presented the item to the selectmen. That revelation led First Selectman Kevin Moynihan to say he was “confused by the process here.” “You said there was a meeting last Friday,” Moynihan said during the Board’s regular meeting, held at Town Hall.