Reprinted from The Connecticut Post © Copyright 2009
December 8, 2009

By Susan Silvers

TRUMBULL -- Taking the reins of the town after eight years of Democratic leadership, Republican First Selectman Timothy M. Herbst Monday signaled his intention to run a "leaner and more productive" government.

In a 12-minute address after a formal swearing-in at Madison Middle School, the 29-year-old chief elected official invoked his budgetary fat-free campaign message to declare that "the people of Trumbull cannot afford a financial trend line that sees their property taxes increase at rates that their incomes cannot sustain."

Although the audience applauded in salute to Raymond G. Baldwin Jr., the four-term Democrat and Vietnam veteran Herbst ousted after a campaign tha focused heavily on Trumbull's tax increases, it also signaled its approval for Herbst's agenda when he said: "Taxpayers should not suffer at the mercy of bureaucracy. Bureaucracy should yield to the will of the people."

He called upon the Board of Education, which includes his mother, Deborah, as a continuing member and uses the vast majority of the town's financial resources "to be a willing partner and work with us in a collaborative manner" through such devices as combined bidding procedures.

Herbst said his highest legislative priority in his first 100 days would be the establishment of a Charter Revision Commission to give the public more financial power, and renewed his appeal for the Board of Finance to hire a new internal auditor. He also sketched out his vision for revitalizing Trumbull Center, the Westfield Trumbull mall and the Reservoir Avenue area.

A standing-room-only crowd of more than 600 watched as Herbst, Town Clerk Suzanne Burr Monaco and Town Treasurer John Ponzio took their oaths, as well as others assuming new terms on the Town Council, Board of Education, Planning and Zoning Commission, Zoning Board of Appeals, constables and Board of Assessment Appeals.

But the night belonged to Herbst, an 11-year member of the PZC despite his young age and it was a night of pride for his family.

His mother teared up even before her son had even completed taking the oath administered by Superior Court Judge Dale Radcliffe, who recalled the words the nation's youngest elected president, John F. Kennedy, at his 1961 inauguration. "Tonight we are witnessing the passing of the torch to a new generation of leadership in Trumbull," Radcliffe said.

But it was not youth that was on the audience's mind.

Before the ceremony, Paul Provenzano, Herbst's barber, said he was indeed looking for Herbst to do some budget-trimming and keep taxes low. "I think he'll do a good job," Provenzano said. "He's a go-getter."

Joe Pifko, whose daughters went to school with Herbst, said he wanted to see more economic development.

Alison Corda, a pediatric nurse who babysat for the elementary school-aged Herbst, recalled that even as a youngster, he was filled with all sorts of facts. "I always knew he'd do well," she said.

Drew Berg, who played football with Herbst at Trumbull High School, said the new first selectman's youth would be a boost to his efforts. "He's got a lot of energy," Berg said.

The evening ceremony was actually the second time that Herbst, Monaco and Ponzio had taken the oath. They had been sworn in shortly after midnight at Herbst's house, as the charter doesn't specify an actual changeover time.

But the first transition was a bit awkward, as Herbst didn't tell his predecessor, and outgoing Town Clerk Rose Lodice was stunned when Monaco showed up shortly before 9 a.m. and announced she was taking over.

Former Republican Bridgeport Mayor Mary Moran, who defeated Democrat Thomas Bucci in 1989 and is now a Trumbull resident, conceded the Herbst team could have managed things better.

"It could have been done more professionally," she said.