Hamden Department ​“Merger” Questioned

When New Haven native Erik Johnson was named Hamden’s acting town planner in April, he was welcomed home with open arms.

When Mayor Curt Leng added the job of economic development director to Johnson’s responsibilities, some members of the public became concerned … and confused.

One of those citizens, Joseph McDonagh of Hamden’s Planning and Zoning Commission, filed a formal complaint Wednesday that asks the Board of Ethics to investigate whether or not Leng’s decision to assign Erik Johnson to two roles violates the 2011 revised version on Town Charter.

On May 7, Leng wrote to the Legislative Council to recommend that the town ​“combine and enhance” the two departments in a letter titled. ​“Recommendation to Merge Economic Development and Planning & Zoning Departments.”

“It is not often that you have an individual with the kind of credentials that our Acting Town Planner Erik Johnson possesses,” Leng wrote. He stated that the merger could minimize the cost of salaries associated with the two positions and maximize the ​“impact and effectiveness” of the respective departments.

In his complaint, McDonagh questioned whether this ​“merger” constituted a unilateral creation of a new department or reorganization of two departments. He argued that either action may have necessitated additional procedural steps, as laid out by the Town Charter, that were not followed.

McDonagh quoted the following rules from the charter: The creation of a new department would require an ordinance proposed by the mayor and approved by the Legislative Council. A movement to reorganize departments must include a ​“reorganization plan” detailing the specific department functions that would be carried out in response to alterations in department structures. That would also have to be approved by the Legislative Council and accompanied by an opinion of the town attorney.

McDonagh said he worked alongside other community members and legal advisors to review documents concerning Johnson’s appointments to the two positions. In his complaint, McDonagh questioned Johnson’s credentials as a town planner, asserting that he has not been accredited by any planning and zoning professional organization or previously served as a town planner.

Mayor Leng told the Independent Wednesday that there is a distinction between reorganization or unilateral creation of a department or departments and ​“shared management.”

In other words, Leng argued, the Planning and Zoning Department will remain separate from the Department of Economic Development. Johnson will simply serve as the head of both.

He said that this is a standard strategy used by diverse towns and cities to ​“save town money and streamline governmental functions.”

Furthermore, he said that both departments were voted on separately by the Legislative Council during the final budget vote.

He clarified that the only unilateral decision he made was appointing Johnson as Hamden’s acting town planner, meaning he temporarily placed Johnson into that role for 90 days. The charter and local law empower Leng to make that decision.

Since Johnson took on that position back in April, he will have to go through a formal process of (re)appointment in a few weeks. When that time comes, the Legislative Council will vote on his appointment and there will be a public hearing.

Johnson has said himself that he believes the two positions should be separately occupied. Mayor Leng agreed that ​“having qualified individuals in both positions would be optimal, but we do this sometimes to save money and sometimes because we have individuals who have the qualifications to do both positions at once.”

“Hamden is extremely fortunate to have Erik Johnson,” he said. ​“He’s not only qualified, he’s over-qualified.” He added that a certification from the American Institute of Certified Planners is not a requirement to hold the position of Town Planner within the Charter.

The position does require a master’s degree in urban planning and at least eight years of experience in urban/community development or municipal planning. Johnson’s resume does show these qualifications, as stated in an email from the Hamden Personnel Civil Service Department to Mayor Leng and other administrators.

“In hindsight, I should’ve used a different word” other than ​“merger” to describe the move towards shared management, Leng acknowledged. ​“If clarifying that word would help, I would gladly change it.”

It will be up to the Board of Ethics to decide next steps — and up to the Legislative Council and the public to work together to decide who should become the official town planner in a matter of weeks.