PROFILE: Phyllis Kansky emphasizes experience and direction

Phyllis Kansky said her 36 years working in the public sector — including 30 of them in Monroe town government— have prepared her to be first selectman. “I have the qualifications and experience,” Kansky said. “I’m dedicated to this town and want to see it prosper.”

At Monroe Town Hall, Kansky has served as administrator of a job-training program, assistant to the town manager and first selectman, and human resources director.

She helped the town develop its first purchasing and personnel policies, worked on municipal budgets, secured grants to build and improve Great Hollow Lake and Webb Mountain Park, and created the Dial a Dump program. She later was elected to the Town Council.

Kansky, a Democrat, is challenging incumbent Stephen J. Vavrek in the Nov. 8 election. She ran unsuccessfully for first selectman in the 1990s as a Republican, then went to work for the Democrat who defeated her in the general election. She later switched parties.

She now is human resources assistant/grants administrator for the town of Bethel.

Kansky is running for Monroe’s top post because she is worried about the direction in which the town is going.

One concern is the elimination of the economic development coordinator’s position “at a time when we need to bring money into the town. Revenues are drying up, and we need to find ways to bring them in.”

She also doesn’t believe the current administration has done enough to get outside grants. In Bethel, she said, she has helped the town get grants for public water main work, housing, sidewalks, and road paving.

Successful grant writers must have the time to get to know state and federal officials and the many grant programs, Kansky said. “The money is out there, but you have to be knowledgeable,” she said.

Other concerns

Kansky has questioned how Vavrek handled the AMEC proposal. AMEC wanted to build a trash recycling plant at the former Stevenson Lumber site, but pulled out after public opposition surfaced. “A project like that shouldn’t be encouraged because it doesn’t blend in with the community,” she said, adding it would have brought increased truck traffic on Route 111.

She said the AMEC situation shows why Vavrek can’t be first selectman and unpaid economic development director. “The coordinator by nature is an advocate for businesses, but the first selectman’s duty is to sort through development proposals and decide which ones blend in with the community,” she said.

Kansky wants to create one full-time job for a combined economic development coordinator and grants writer.

She is critical of Vavrek for not supporting more funding for the schools. She said concerns about the education system, including class sizes, are hurting property values in Monroe. “We’ve always had a reputation for having quality education,” she said. “Now people are leaving for private schools and for Trumbull. It’s not a good trend.”

She thinks the town is bonding for too many expenses — including road paving — that should be partly covered by the operating budget.

Kansky said her background as a former Republican means she understands the need to be thrifty with taxpayer dollars.

Her approach to what projects she would support is straightforward. “Is it good for the community? Can the community afford it? And does the community want it?” she said.

Background

Kansky was born in Bridgeport but spent her teen years in Cleveland. She also lived in Norwalk when she was younger. She moved to Monroe in 1965. She has two adult children and two grandchildren.

She earned a bachelor’s degree in business administration from Western Connecticut State University by going to school part-time for 10 years as an adult. “I graduated from college one week before my son did,” she said.

Kansky is optimistic she will win, while saying she understands the town leans Republican. “I think I’ve got a good shot,” she said.