Scrambling to fill the Ward 28 aldermanic seat left empty by Babz Rawls-Ivy, who resigned after admitting to stealing $49,000 in federal funds, local Democrats chose an Orthodox Jewish man with deep family roots in Beaver Hill. In a vote that the Democratic Party chairwoman is calling into question, Moti Sandman (pictured) beat out Jamaican-born entrepreneur Ilona Leffingwell for the ward committee endorsement Tuesday. Meanwhile, in Ward 14, Fair Haven activist Erin Pascale beat out City Hall opponent Evelyn DeJesus-Vargas for the endorsement to fill another vacancy.
The Board of Alderman, having lost three of the mayor’s allies mid-term, is in a state of flux right now: Rawls-Ivy resigned two weeks ago. Former Ward 14 Alderman Joe Jolly left town to attend law school at Cornell. East Rock’s Ward 9 Alderwoman Elizabeth Addonizio is resigning to tend to an ailing family member. Three new aldermen, who will serve truncated, one-year terms, will be elected by a special election, most likely on Nov. 7.
Ward committees, the smallest arms of the local Democratic Party, hold nominating votes to endorse a candidate. That candidate then faces any petitioning independent or Republican candidate. Fair Haven and Beaver Hill ward committees voted Tuesday; East Rock’s votes at 7 p.m. on Wednesday at the library at East Rock School. The meetings are public, but only committee members may vote.
The Ward 14 committee met for a reportedly heated discussion and vote at the Fair Haven branch library Tuesday. City Hall opponent Evelyn DeJesus-Vargas, who ran against Ward 14’s Joe Jolly one year ago, made another run against the City Hall-approved choice.
Erin Pascale, an environmentalist and neighborhood activist, beat DeJesus-Vargas by a 25 to 11 vote, according to Democratic Town Committee Chair Susie Voigt. DeJesus-Vargas is reportedly planning to run as an independent petitioning candidate a la Lieberman.
Meanwhile, Beaver Hill residents gathered at the Hillhouse High School cafeteria to choose between two candidates from very different walks of life.
Ilona Leffingwell, 59, is a Jamaican-born, English-bred entrepreneur who moved to New Haven 30 years ago and speaks with a twinge of a British accent. A graduate of the city’s Democracy School, she serves on the board of the city’s Housing Authority and Domestic Violence Abuse Task Force. She lives with her husband and elderly mother at 652 Winthrop Ave., away from the heart of the Beaver Hill neighborhood. A self-described “rambler” on the telephone, she said she prefers to communicate through email. She said she was running because, in the ethnically diverse neighborhood, “I feel that it’s important that we get together.”
Moti Sandman, 31, was born and raised in Beaver Hill. He’s part of the third generation in his family to work at the Deitsch Plastic Co. in West Haven. His extended family lives within a tight-knit area of Beaver Hill. They’re known as members of the Orthodox Jewish Yeshiva Bais Dovid Shlomo synagogue, as well as for organizing neighborhood block parties.
Sandman, his wife, Miriam (pictured below) and three kids live on Colony Road. He grew up going to New Haven Hebrew Day School in Orange, and now serves on the board at the recently renamed Southern Connecticut Hebrew Academy. An affable man with a batchelor’s degree in political science from Manhattan’s Touro College, Sandman is making his first run for public office.
The pair ran on the same core platform: creating neighborhood unity, fighting an upsurge in crime, and cleaning up the much-loved Beaver Park Pond. In a Q & A session, neighbors voiced frustration and fear over recent street robberies and house break-ins. They urged the candidates to create a concrete plan on crime, and to advocate for neighborhood activists’ concerns.
Addressing a crowd that included die-hard Beaver Hill management team members and lifelong residents, Leffingwell spoke sincerely about wanting to unite neighbors. But she struggled to answer several of the questions posed. She began her introduction by saying she did not know if her Winthrop Avenue home fell within the Beaver Hills area.
Asked how she’d respond to gun violence, she said: “I really wouldn’t know unless I sit down with the sub base and talk to them about what can be done. I really don’t know unless I sit down with the sub base. I know that there is a volunteer group that works with police.”
Leffingwell said she’d support a youth curfew, with reservations. Her main goals, besides neighborhood unity, were to find a new use for the New Haven armory and to stop Southern Connecticut State University from further expanding in the neighborhood. She said she’d like to “see Southern stop where they are and go somewhere else.”
Sandman said his top goal was curbing crime. He said of a proposed curfew: “In principle it’s sound,” but it should be coupled with police presence. “The curfew is nice, but there needs to be a follow-up from downtown,” including cooperation between police and social services. He suggested a boost in community policing as well as calling in state police.
Sandman contrasted himself to Rawls-Ivy, who hadn’t always agreed with the very vocal core of neighborhood activists. “What’s been missing is the leadership of a single, tireless advocate” with access to City Hall, he said.
The ward committee retired for a vote. It came out 16 to 10 in Sandman’s favor. After the vote, Sandman approached his opponent: “Ilona, I want to work with you.” He gave her his business card. His brother-in-law, Meir Holtzberg, invited Leffingwell to the next block party, which are open events for those who live on Colony Road, Ellsworth Avenue and Norton Parkway.
But for some, the vote wasn’t over. Leffingwell’s campaign manager, Pierette Silverman, took issue with the fact that some of the members who voted Tuesday had just signed up as committee members moments before the vote. Only ward committee members, who are selected by each ward co-chair, are permitted to vote.
Silverman questioned if the last-minute signups were allowed by party rules: “If that’s the case, I would have had Ilona bring 10 of her friends,” to the vote, she said. By Silverman’s count, Sandman had signed up “about 10” friends and family to vote that night. An official count was not available late Tuesday.
Asked of the legality of last-minute signups, Democratic Town Committee Chairwoman Susie Voigt said over the phone, “Local bylaws are not very explicit on this.” She hadn’t yet confirmed what had happened with the ward co-chairs, Connie Perkins and Don Walker, nor State Rep. Toni Walker, who oversaw the vote.
Voigt did get a phone call from Silverman, who’s a deputy chief of staff to the mayor. Judging by preliminary info, Voigt said, “I think that’s highly inappropriate. … I’m inclined to think that maybe they should have a do-over.”