Ridgefield voters reject budget

With a 22 percent voter turnout Tuesday , Ridgefield residents voted down the $121.8 million 2008-09 budget by 710 votes.

[veritable]

Newtown's budget passed rather easily but that was before the dramatic increase in gas prices. The late voting budgets will suffer because of that. Brookfield & Bethel beware!!!

[Can-t Afford Ridgefield]

Thank God the people of Ridgefield have come to their senses and voted down these ridiculous budgets. The Selectman needs to get in touch with what it's like to live in the REAL WORLD! What I want to know is where is the 30 -35% mill rate cut promised by the Assessor's office back in December when my reassessment went up 50%?? I was told not to worry because they definitely were going to lower the mill rate to compensate for the higher assessments.

[Old Timer]

Why don't people understand the mill rate and assessment are independent things?

Your $600k house could be assessed for $1 billion dollars as long as the mill rate is low enough your taxes would be $6000.

Or your $600k house could be assessed for $6000 as long as the mill rate was 1, your taxes would be $6000.

I think that was algebra but go back to school and learn math.

[New Milford Native]

The voters have spoken -

Time to cut, cut, cut

The voters can not afford a tax rate increase.

Vote NO!

[fopdan]

Hope New Milford follows Ridgefields lead and votes out the fat that feeds off our tax dollars. Industry keeps demanding MORE with fewer people and less time to do it.
CUT THE FAT
VOTE NO!!!

[area resident]

I agree with Fopdan. Vote NO in New Milford. Stop the increases.

[Ridgefielder]

Marty Heiser and Rudy Marconi don't get it - they're "surprised"? Marty and Rudy - it's time to get in touch with the normal everyday people you are supposed to be representing. We're not all financially comfortable - like you. We should be making across the board budget cuts - like we're doing with our family budget to makes end meet.

[Another Ridgefielder]

Keith Miller needs to wake up also - he states that the 5.54% budget increase is the "lowest" in a decade! There's the problem Keith - we've been over taxed all these years and you think 5.54% in this economic climate is reasonable?

[Kevbo]

What does thatr have to do with the leaders in Hartford and Washington???

Rudy, it's about time you took responsibility for your actions.

[SCUSEMAN]

Let's see here now- why can't Marty and Rudy get it?- Rudy just flipped his mansion on Prospect for a fixer-upper real estate bargain Victorian on Main St. so he's rolling in the dough & Marty's Service Unlimited Company is painting everything in town that stands still for 15 seconds or more, so he's busy pulling his burgundy SUV up to the bank drive thru every afternoon making deposits. OK now I see why they don't get it.

P.S. Think the library people are happy now their chicken necks wern't also on the chopping block yesterday?

[Other Peoples Money]

Wow. When Ridgefield votes no, that is news. Maybe the tax and spend donkeys will finally get tossed out of Hartford.

[Thankless]

Well it looks like the Ridgefield Police should get out their pens and start issuing some tickets.

[SCUSEMAN]

Thankless wrote:

Well it looks like the Ridgefield Police should get out their pens and start issuing some tickets.

"START ISSUING TICKETS?!?!" C'mon they already have raised Town revenue coffers 10%-15% with the dragnet they have been running over the past year on the newly widened Route 7. I really love it when they park their cruisers in the Ridgefield BMW parking lot and radar-time southbound motorists. The resemblance of a white Ford Crown Victoria to a 740i is like trying to blend in the white elephant in the 20'x20' room!

[SmallTown USA]

Hurray for the citizens of Ridgefield. Finally people are getting out there to vote down the never ending spending antics of our towns government! I voted NO across the board. In this day and age, we all need to tighten our belts. Our Schools need more money? are you kidding?? Our kids have too much to begin with. There are schools in other places of the US that get along fine with alot less than our kids have. Suck it up BOE - you guys are spoiled rotten.
Police Station needs nicer accomodations??/Give me a break! Big Victorian on the hill? It's a jail for crying out loud- next thing they'll want a spa. Bet the chief and his buddies will be out harassing the folks of Ridgefield. Handing out cell phone tickets, chasing the kids out of parking lots- ticketing cars for parking too long....Payback will be a B*TCH for us. Believe me- they're a vindictive bunch.
Sorry - am I being a little hostile about the cops??? Well you gotta live here to understand were I'm coming from.
RIDGEFIELD RESIDENTS----CONTINUE TO SAY NO EACH TIME THIS TOWN WANTS TO SPEND MONEY---- ELSE WE'LL ALL BE FORCED TO MOVE SOMEWHERE WE CAN AFFORD.

[No Kidding]

Can-t Afford Ridgefield wrote:

Thank God the people of Ridgefield have come to their senses and voted down these ridiculous budgets. The Selectman needs to get in touch with what it's like to live in the REAL WORLD! What I want to know is where is the 30 -35% mill rate cut promised by the Assessor's office back in December when my reassessment went up 50%?? I was told not to worry because they definitely were going to lower the mill rate to compensate for the higher assessments.

It is a shame that not all of the New Fairfield residents feel this way as well and put a stop to overspending.

I see people driving town/county vehicles on their own time on my dime.

I still do not like the paper ballots and I would not put it past our town that the votes were reversed.

[Nancy O]

I am so glad that this budget went down.... I hope the town officials get the message.

I won't for it until there is a 0%--ZERO -- tax increase.

We were lied about the revaluation, and have had tax increases far above the rate of inflation.

[fopdan]

All of us need to stand up to these town budgets with massive increases,,, vote no and get these tax and spend scumbags OUT of office.
VOTE NO !!
The world will not come to an end .
Your kids will not grow up to be stupid .
VOTE NO !

[Mandatory Homeschooling]

Ridgefield parents with children in the school system should have to homeschool their kids for a year, if they did not bother to vote. Are the voting records available to he public? Please expose the names of the parents who did not vote, or at least ask them to explain their negligence (sort of like exit polling: non-voter polling). Is the price of gasoline an issue? Do we need a wider distribution of polling places so that nobody has to drive too far to vote? Do we need on-line voting for local issues such as the school budget? The school system was not a party to the gold-plated golf-course bridge, which soured everyone on the current Ridgefield administration. Instead of a smirk, in regards to that fiasco, I like to hear an apology and see someone fired.

[dog]

The town can save money by turning off all the lights in the parking lots and schools late at night. I sometimes go by the high school and Scotts Ridge middle school at 12am and it is lite up like a christmas tree. But last night on tv they say they are going to have to cut jobs because all the rising cost with energy and fuel. Turn the lights off and save. Thats a tough one to figure out.

[Ridgefielder also]

What don't Rudy and Marty get about the NO vote? Not only was it a no vote but it was a resounding no vote. And yes, it is sad that there was such a low turnout. But, as I always say, Didn't vote? Don't complain!
As far as the police station is concerned, I have no trouble with $4 million in improvements. I hope monies are approved for improvements. I just don't like having everything bonded. When was the last time any work was done on the police station? It's an old building.