Honorable Judge Matthew Frechette Finds For The Plaintiffs Against Clinton's Planning and Zoning Commission

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Court Rules Contractors Storage Yard Regulations Invalid Clinton - May 14, 2016 The Clinton Taxpayers Association (CTA) announced it has won a court battle to appeal a Clinton Planning and Zoning Commission (PZC) 2016 decision which had relaxed regulations governing contractor storage yards.      “The CTA sees this recent court ruling as a major victory to protect residential property owners from prohibitive encroachment by contractor’s storage yards”, said CTA President, Pamela Fritz.  “With excellent representation by our legal counsel, Attorney John R Lambert, a significant fight to reverse the PZC amendment has been won here”, she added.       The court’s decision centered upon the Contractor’s Storage Yard Regulation changes which the PZC put into effect after their Clinton public hearing held on August 29, 2016.  At issue was the participation by P&Z Commission member Carl Neri who was not seated for the hearing, but nonetheless participated, interrupting and badgering audience members who testified and spoke out against the regulation changes.       Following the passage of the amendment by the Commission, an appeal was filed by a coalition organized by the CTA representing these aggrieved parties: MMJ Self Storage of Clinton, LLC; Frank and Beverly Natle; Lisa Mauzy; Marion Buice-Hubert; Philip and Ellen Stankiewicz and Pamela B. Fritz, President of the CTA.       After the August 2016 Public Hearing was concluded, several participants filed complaints with Clinton’s Ethics Commission regarding the improper participation and bullying conduct of Mr. Neri.  The Ethics Commission refused to take any action.  Fritz commented, “Considering this decisive legal decision rendered by the court, the Clinton Taxpayers Association believes it would be a dereliction of duty for the Ethics Commission not to re-visit these ethics complaints”.        “Judge Matthew Frechette’s decision could possibly end up being an expose of how monetary and personal gains may be used to manipulate zoning amendments”, Fritz said.  She concluded, “There are many citizens who volunteer to selflessly serve the Town of Clinton as elected and appointed officials.  Their service should not be sullied by anyone who thinks and acts like public service is self-service.” Highlights of the Judge’s decision in favor of the CTA’s appeal include:   Our Appellate Court has ruled the appearance of impropriety create by a public official’s participation in a matter in which he has a pecuniary or personal interest is sufficient to require disqualification. Regarding the drafting of the proposed regulation, the court noted that, “(acting chairman) Michael Knudson admitted that he assisted proponent and business associate of the Neri Corp, Kimberly Simoncini, in drafting the amendments.  Neri’s personal interests surrounding his potential financial gain and bias in favor of his daughter (Kimberly Simoncini) do conflict with his duties as an alternate member of the commission, rendering him disqualified to even sit at the table during the commission’s hearing and deliberations concerning (regulation) AR 16-112. While Neri was not seated…he did participate by pointing at the acting chairman (Michael Knudson) just before and as he was casting the decisive vote in favor of the proposal (regulation change).   The action of the defendant (P&Z) commission was invalidbecause of Neri’s participation in the public hearing and deliberations although he was disqualified based on his personal and financial interest in the passage of resolution AR 16-112.

The Sign Heist Part of the Story as Displayed on Facebook 

and the Arrest That Followed Below 

Planning & Zoning Commission

Proposed Ban

Meets Resistance

Two PZC Commissioners, Gary Bousquet and Adam Moore, voted to block this PZC initiative. This is no time for complacency.