09/01/11 Election Frustration Mounts As Many Greenwich Politicians Seek To Place The Blame For Homeowners Who Are Still Without Power

... In Irene's wake, first selectman candidate John Blankley has criticized incumbent Peter Tesei for a lack of pre-planning and proactive leadership.

"There are a bunch of things where you can say, `Why are we talking about these things now and not 18 months ago?' " Blankley, a Democrat, said Thursday.

The first selectman candidate was referring to the March 2010 nor'easter that ripped through Greenwich, shredding branches and knocking down trees.

"In between storms, there are a lot of things that should have been done," Blankley said.
Extensive tree pruning and more efficient management of emergency crews would have spared some of the town's suffering following Irene, Blankley said.

The town already has an at-risk-tree program in place, according to Tesei. That program has $293,000 allocated to it this year. The program is a precautionary measure on top of the parks gardeners and 10 full-time tree workers the town employs. Private trees, over which the town has no control, can also bring down power lines, Tesei said.

"The next several days, the focus is on restoration," he said. "It's unsatisfactory and unacceptable that the restoration should take this long. This has little to do with the town and more to do with CL&P.

"Most people have been more than patient. But it's beyond that now."

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