Bardo Parking Garage set to open at 4:00 PM today.

After talking about it for thirty years, the Bardo Parking Garage will officially be open at 4:00 PM today. The Garage was completed approximately 3 weeks early and on budget. Customers will be able to park tonight and tomorrow. We have already sold a significant amount of monthly passes to the garage.

There is a unique ticketing system that you must use to leave the garage. We will have a Parking Authority employee posted at the garage for the first couple of months to help people get acclimated.

The garage accommodates approximately 387 vehicles and it will cost you .75 cents an hour to park. Monthly passes are $35. So come on down and check out our new parking garage. I am sure that you will be impressed.

All The Best,
Mayor Mark

Common Council approves Open Space and Recreation Bond.

Last night at a Public Hearing and Committee of the Whole, the Common Council unanimously approved my proposed Open Space bond. The bond includes 6.6 million dollars to be used as a pool of money to spend on open space acquisitions. As property becomes available, the city will negotiate with the landowners. Once the purchase negotiations have become complete, I will bring the proposed acquisition to the Common Council for final approval.

The bond also will allow us to build two new artificial fields, one at Rogers Park and one a Kenosia, and a sprayscape park at Kenosia to service the westside of the city.

The voters will also be asked to approve 2.9 million dollars for a sprinkler system for Danbury High School. The system will allow us to use the space at DHS in a more flexible manner and will enhance fire safety in the building.

I want to thank the Common Council Democrats and Republicans alike, for recognizing the importance of this proposal.

These ballot questions will be voted on on Feb. 5th during the presidential primary. Stay tuned for more information.

All the Best,
Mayor Mark

Mitt Romney.

I have been thinking about who I would endorse for the 2008 Presidential election. Earlier in the spring I met with Mitt Romney and was very impressed with him.

After careful consideration, I have decided to support Gov. Romney. Recently I was asked to serve as the Co-Chair of the Romney Connecticut Campaign. After more thought, I have agreed to accept this volunteer position. My counter part is Jim Lash, the former First Selectman of Greenwich.

Why am I supporting Gov Romney (particularly when most of the state is supporting Mayor Giuliani)?

A few reasons:

1. Iraq is a mess. We need a professional problem solver to sort through issues and develop a plan that will protect our soldiers and support the fledgling Democracy of Iraq, I do not see any other candidate in the field who has Romney's skill set to tackle this mess.
2. Illegal immigration is also a mess. Romney will address this issue in a fair and realistic manner.
3. I am tired of the polished politicians, what I like about Romney is that he is not a politician.
4. Romney is a strong family man. I respect and admire that.

I have listed two sites that you can find more information. Romney's website, and a blog from his sons that I find interesting. In the coming election year, I will blog about my experiences in the Romney campaign.

All the Best,
Mayor Mark

HAPPY THANKSGIVING!!

Just wanted to take a moment and wish each of you a Happy Thanksgiving. I know that Phyllis and I have a lot to be thankful for. Enjoy the day, eat some turkey and watch some football. Thank you for your support and thank you for caring about our great city!

All The Best,
Mayor Mark

FYI- Just a reminder that City Hall is closed tomorrow. See you on Monday.

Parking Garage set to open.

The Bardo Parking Garage grand opening has been set for November 29th 2007 at 4:00 PM. This project was built at the cost of approximately 10 million dollars. It is a 400 space garage that should allow more economic development on the westside of Main Street. We are excited to complete this project which was first mentioned some 30 years ago...

Remembering our Veterans.

As always this time of year, I have been attending a flurry of Veterans events and spending some time discussing veterans issues with some of our local heroes.

These events are a solemn reminder of the service to our country that the Veterans have given. It is not easy serving in the military, it is even more difficult serving during wartime. Danbury is blessed to have many Veterans who served our great nation in a variety of capacities.

One problem that we are working on locally is to develop housing for our vets. One of the sad aspects of the war in Iraq is the high rate of homelessness that exists for our returning heroes. I have been meeting with the Director of the Housing Authority, and state and federal officials, to develop housing that is dedicated to our Veterans as well as financing options for Veterans looking to buy a home.

It has been a interesting project, and we are making head way. Our Veterans deserve nothing less.

All the Best,
Mayor Mark

Thank You!!!

Thank you for your vote of confidence. Thank you for believing in our future. Thank you for taking the time to go out and vote on Tuesday. Our team is tired, but we are thrilled with the results.

We have challenges and we will go out and address them head on. I plan on keeping MayorMark.Com up and running. You can come here to the blog, or to our home page to get the latest information on City Government and local politics.

We will redesign some key parts, but in general, it will have the same look and feel. But for now, I am doing two things: tomorrow Phyllis and I are celebrating our eleventh wedding anniversary, and I am going on vacation.

Once again, thanks.

All The Best,
MayorMark

Election Eve...

The signs up are up, the mail is out, the calls are being made. Tomorrow is election day. Each election day I tend to get a little philosophical about life. As your mayor I have worked hard. You may not always agree with every decision, but you can rest assured that I have looked at all of the angles and recommended what I believed is best for our community.

Danbury is in terrific financial shape, and it is a city on the move. I am asking that you do one more thing, make sure that you go out and vote. Danbury needs and deserves your support. We have a wonderful community and I thank each and every one of you for your support. Now let's go out and support the whole team!!! I will be posting a wrap up on Wednesday, if time I will try and post tomorrow.

All the Best,
Mayor Mark