John Quattrocchi
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Question 3: Verona has many infrastructure issues that require immediate attention. Which ones would you focus on first and why, and what would be the benefits of doing so?
Our town’s infrastructure is the basis of our long-term quality of life. Towns without a strong and reliable infrastructure tend to have high on-going costs and frustrated residents.
First, sound and reliable infrastructure requires long-term planning for servicing, maintenance, and ultimately, replacement or renovation. Therefore, our Strategic Plan will be critical to pave a clear and appropriate runway to manage costs, high-quality service, and control the effects on our property taxes.
Second, there are two infrastructure needs that I believe are high priority at the moment. Our Treatment Plant requires maintenance, repair and replacement of equipment. We cannot put that off and it will cost to deal with properly.
Separately, the Rescue Squad needs a larger facility to operate from. As the town provides for our Police and Fire Department facilities, we need to do the same for the Rescue Squad. Of course, we hope we never need to call on any of these services but when we do it is critical.
Finally, we need to evaluate the size of our Police Department. The shifts have been made efficient for costs and we have a safe town. However, there are opportunities to add 2-3 officers and offset some of the costs as our VPD can participate in select county details. With that, they can also dedicate parts of their shifts to traffic control. Certain hours of each day bring congested streets and risks the safety of our residents and students. Think of Verona High School where 150 or so new drivers exit the campus each afternoon on Sampson Drive. An officer there for 45 minutes would greatly help. Our businesses along Bloomfield Avenue would also benefit with less congestion on that route.
Infrastructure spans many services. As the old saying goes, “I never miss my water, ‘til my well runs dry” is true.
