Giorgetti Revote Petition Filed!

A door-to-door petition drive may have put the Giorgetti Arena bond back before the voters.

A group of a half-dozen people presented City Clerk Henry Heck with a petition on Wednesday to revote the $3.9 million bond for expansion of the Giorgetti Park facilities into a full-scale recreation center.

Such a petition requires signatures from 5 percent of the registered voters in the city — just shy of 600 — and the petitioners said they had around 750, with more they could turn in before the deadline today.

Heck said he could not recall the last petitioned revote in the city, and Mayor Christopher Louras said his research did not find one since a vote on fluoridation in 1982.

Heck said if enough signatures prove valid a special election would be scheduled for 60 days from today — the deadline for the petition.

Proponents of the bond argued that the recreation department's facility in the Dana Center would never be adequate to the city's needs and that a modern recreation center would serve as a developmental tool for the city. Voters approved the bond at town meeting, 1,710 to 1,603.

James Mattison, who spoke for the petitioners Wednesday, said they felt the bond went through too quickly and the city should focus its attention elsewhere.

“For four years, we've listened to this administration complain about potholes, antique sewer systems, water pipes that were ready to explode,” he said.

Mattison said they collected signatures by going door to door over a period of 10 to 12 days.

“We picked certain streets, different times of day,” he said. “We didn't go together — we spread ourselves out. This was a very good operation.”

Heck said it could take a few days to verify all the names on the petition.

“You have to look up every single name,” he said. “It takes more time than you think and we have other things we do.”

The Recreation Committee voted earlier this week to recommend putting out a request for proposals on engineering for the project. Chairman Thomas DePoy said the city would not proceed with the request for proposals if the petition was certified.

“We're not going to waste any money or waste any time if there's a revote,” he said.

Louras, on the other hand, said he saw no reason to wait on that step and would recommend to the full board that it move ahead.

“The RFP process can continue,” Louras said. “As long as we don't expend any funds, we can have a contract signed with the proper stipulations.”

Louras said he did not believe an impending revote would discourage engineering firms from bidding on the project.

Even if the request for proposals is delayed, DePoy said he did not think that would hurt the chances of breaking ground on the project this year if it passes on a revote.

“I'm still hopeful we can get started in August,” he said. “I don't see it's going to put a huge damper on that. It may. If it does, it does.”

DePoy, who advocated strongly for the project while running for re-election, said he would continue his advocacy and he was not fazed by the petition.

“If they've got the signatures, they've got them,” he said. “My only hope is, when we have the revote, people will be energized to get out and vote for it again. I think it's something that's a true investment in the community. This is the democratic process and I'm fine with it. I'll be disappointed if it fails. ... If it's passed a second time, that's a reassurance this community wants to invest in itself.”

Either way, DePoy said, he will sleep well at night.

Others had more animated reactions.

“I think it's a slap in the face to the city voters and the process,” said Paul Gallo, who campaigned for the bond and was credited by some city officials with its success. “Voters came out and pledged their votes. I think it was clear they saw Rutland moving forward and with all the good things happening in Rutland, this is part of it.”

Louras said he was confident the bond would pass a second time.

“It's just my sense, my feeling, the community wants to move forward, not step backward,” he said. “My sense is more individuals were pleased it passed than were upset.”

Friends of Giorgetti Arena raised almost $8,000 in cash and in-kind contributions. Gallo said he expects the group will make some kind of effort if the second vote happens.

“When City Hall tells us that we'll have another vote, we'll take it up then,” he said. “We'll do what we've got to do.”

Mattison said his group plans an active campaign to get out the vote.

“By Monday we should be on the road and running again,” he said. “This is going to be a long battle.”