Michael Rodgers, a New Canaan Town Council member, said in a letter to the editor published by NewCanaanite.com that the town's charter revision process did not produce the changes residents asked for in a public survey. He said he supports Questions 2 through 6 on the November ballot and criticized Question 1, which he said expands the First Selectman's authority over elected officials.
Town Council member says New Canaan charter revision left out survey's top reforms
Michael Rodgers, a New Canaan Town Council member, said in a letter to the editor published by NewCanaanite.com that the town's charter revision process did not produce the changes residents asked for in a public survey. He said he supports Questions 2 through 6 on the November ballot and criticized Question 1, which he said expands the First Selectman's authority over elected officials.
The letter states that the Charter Revision Commission conducted a public survey between December 2025 and April 2026 and that 156 residents responded, most of them long-term New Canaan residents with direct experience dealing with town commissions and boards. According to the letter, Planning and Zoning reform was the top request, cited by more than a third of respondents, and Board of Finance reform ranked second.
Rodgers writes that a recurring question in the written comments was whether people who make decisions about the town should be appointed or elected by residents. He says he brought a motion to include a hybrid model for both Planning and Zoning and the Board of Finance, and that the motion failed.
He also writes that the commission recommended term limits for appointed members by a vote of 8 to 4, under which a commissioner could serve twelve consecutive years on one board and then step off for one term before returning. According to the letter, the Town Council voted against it and the recommendation was removed from the ballot before it was finalized.
Rodgers writes that the two reforms that responded most directly to the survey responses never reached voters. He describes Questions 2 through 6 as reasonable housekeeping and modest improvements worth supporting, and says Question 1 expands the First Selectman's authority over elected officials and was not requested in the public survey.
The letter is signed as written by Rodgers as an individual and not on behalf of the Town Council, where he states his term runs through 2029.
- The source does not state the date the letter was published or the date of the November vote.
- The source does not state the vote count on Rodgers' motion for a hybrid model, or which commission members opposed it.
- The source does not state why the Town Council voted against the recommended term limits, or the tally of that vote.
- The source does not state what Question 1 would change beyond expanding the First Selectman's authority over elected officials.
- The source does not state the views of other Charter Revision Commission members or Town Council members on the ballot questions.
- The source does not state whether the Charter Revision Commission or town officials were asked to respond to the letter.
Read the original at New Canaanite