Klein’s era ends

Written by Susan Shultz
Friday, 06 November 2009 10:12

First Selectman Evonne Klein has been a polarizing figure in Darien politics for more than six years. Most politically-savvy Darienites have strong feelings about her on both sides of the spectrum. Her decision not to run again had an impact on this week’s election, no matter who you ask.

After six years as Darien’s chief elected official, she shared some of her reflections about the job with The Darien Times.

“First and foremost, it has been an honor and privilege to serve the Darien community as its first selectwoman. For the past six years I have been fortunate to get up in the morning and look forward to my day ‘at work’ with enthusiasm,” she said.

Klein said that there were several factors that contributed to her decision not to run again.

“The most important factor is always family. With the boys all moving on, it was time for me to move on as well,” she said, referring to her three sons who all left for college during her tenure as first selectman.

Klein said she knows that normally, a woman would take such a position on when the kids are gone but she felt being first selectman was easier with the kids home.

“On a personal and professional level, I have accomplished what I set out to accomplish,” she said.

Klein said she first ran for the town’s top job in 2003 because she saw untapped potential.

“I had the passion to work hard to make a positive difference in Darien. This job is what you make it,” she said.

Going over issues she chose to tackle over the past six years, Klein includes setting priorities, establishing performance measures, a flood mitigation committee, and a financial review and strategy committee.

“The Board of Selectmen now reviews the budget line by line and we added a public hearing to the decision-making process,” she said.

Also, Klein said that the addition of committees like the Domestic Violence Task Force, the Darien Energy Task Force, the Tree Commission, the Bike-Pedestrian Path Committee provides opportunities for interested volunteers. Klein also mentioned the addition of Darien TV Channel 79, which covers town meetings, and the addition of the public comment section of board meetings, as well as rail station improvements.

Klein also talked about a number of “firsts” during her three terms, such as the first Darien Affordable Housing Plan, the first Fairfield County community to be accepted in to the Main Street Program, the first town-wide flood mitigation strategy, annual meetings with the state Department of Transportation to be established, appointing the first woman to serve on the Darien Police Commission and the first Board of Selectmen to submit annual testimony to Hartford in support of amendments to state statute 8-30g, the affordable housing law, among others.

“The seniors have seen an increase in services; the overall maintenance and improvements to town facilities has increased and the number of opportunities for the community to gather has increased,” Klein said.

As far as what makes a great first selectman, Klein said there are four main qualities, including a passion to make the community better and stronger.

“This is an incredibly rewarding and demanding job and in order to achieve the goals you’ve set for Darien you really have to be driven, as quite often, you find yourself having to go at a challenge or opportunity from several different directions before you succeed. You really have to stick with it,” she said.

Also important are to have a vision to really see the possibilities, to be able to active listening and the ability to incorporate other ideas into your own, she said.

“Everything we do in government is a compromise,” she said.

And Klein said that the last thing is a sense of humor — “the ability to laugh at yourself and the circumstances you many find yourself in is a good thing.”

Political experience can be a plus as you can “hit the ground running.”

The most important effort for Klein as first selectman, she said, was “refocusing our town’s thinking from “can’t do’ to ‘can do.’”

“Whether it all got done is in some respects irrelevant, as for the first time in a long time our town saw what could be and together, we made we gave it a shot,” she said

Klein said that is “how Main Street happened, how new playgrounds were installed, how we added more parking downtown, improved our train stations and made progress on flood mitigation. We decided first that we could do it, and then we looked for ways to get the job done.”

Klein said that although many of the properties the board looked at during her tenure did not end up getting purchased, it still sent a message that acquiring open space was important. In that light, the town was “fortunate” to purchase 35 Leroy Ave., she said.

She also said that the board was in negotiations to buy two properties, one for flood mitigation and one for recreation, but the timing didn’t work out.

“I strongly encourage the next Board of Selectmen to pursue these acquisitions. They are important for the Town of Darien’s future,” Klein said.

In her last election, Klein led the Democrats to the party’s first majority on the Board of Selectman. How did she do it?

“Good ideas, good candidates like Callie Sullivan and David Bayne, and a lot of hard work,” she said.

Klein said that she also recognized that on a town level, issues are not Republican or Democrat, but only community issues.

“What divides political parties nationally is not really applicable to the decisions we make for our leaders in a community like Darien,” she said.

Klein said that the town votes for the candidate that it believes are best for the job.

“To succeed you have to be able to present yourself as a candidate with the experience, ideas and commitment to good government that voters are looking for and I think as a team, the three of us were able to do just that,” she said.

As far as the cause of some of the strong animosity Klein has faced, she said that some attribute it to the “state of politics in the 21st Century.” She also said it is not as widespread as some people may think.

“Actually, the animosity is from a few. A day has not gone by without calls, e-mails or personal notes from members of the community expressing support or gratitude,” she said.

Klein said that in dealing with some of the hostility she faced, she accepted it as part of the job.

“I never let it influence the decisions I made, the actions I took or the issues we tackled. And it certainly never caused me to consider walking away from my job as first selectman,” she said.

In fact, in some ways Klein said it made her stronger.

“My critics actually encouraged me to do the job better. I attribute my success to those who criticized me the most,” she said.

Klein said she also didn’t think that any hostility she dealt with was more inflammatory as a woman in her position.

“As a society I think we are making steady progress towards being gender blind,” she said.

However, Klein said she did choose to call herself a “first selectwoman” for a reason.

“Even in the 21st Century, so few women make up the number of elected officials,” she said.

There are no political aspirations in Klein’s immediate future plans, she wants to spend more time with husband Randy and visiting her three sons in college.

As Klein looked back on her three terms, she said she is most proud of the “little things.”

“They are what matters most, and what you work on a lot,” she said.

And Klein remains proud of the work her board has done and the town she hands over to Republican David Campbell, who won Tuesday’s election, and the new Board of Selectmen, comfortable walking away after six years.

“We have made so much progress on all fronts these past six years. The foundation has been built. I hope the progress continues. This is a great town with so many possibilities. It is up to the next administration to set the course. I wish them well,” Klein said.

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