Thomas Breen photos
Lifetime parks commission members Carl Babb, David Belowsky ...
... and Hector Torres.
David Belowsky, Carl Babb, and Hector Torres haven’t yet figured out the secret to living forever.
If they do find that key to immortality, they’d likely be able to stay on the parks commission for just as long — even if the city does wind up dropping the board’s longstanding, and mysterious, lifetime appointments.
Belowsky, Babb, and Torres all currently serve as permanent members on the Board of Park Commissioners.
You read that right. New Haven’s parks commission — unlike any other such board in the state — has lifetime appointments. At least for now.
Torres has been on the board for over 15 years. Babb for more than 10. Belowsky — who chairs the volunteer-led city body charged with overseeing rules and regulations for New Haven’s 142 parks — has served for three decades, since 1993. They occupy the three permanent seats on the otherwise term-limited eight-member board (which also includes two aldermanic representatives).
During this year’s once-a-decade process of updating the city’s foundational governing document, charter revisers are considering whether or not New Haven should discontinue the three lifetime spots on the parks commission and make those appointments term-limited instead.
Ultimately, the Charter Revision Commission will pass along a set of recommendations to the Board of Alders in May. The alders will then take a vote on what charter-revising question or questions should be on the ballot in November. Then city voters will get the final say on whether or not the changes should be made.
A wrinkle to that parks commission-focused plan came to light Tuesday during the latest meeting of the Charter Revision Commission on the second floor of City Hall.
That wrinkle: Even if the rule changes, what should be done about the real live human beings who currently fill those three lifetime parks commission spots?
Wait For Current Lifetime Terms To "Expire" ...?
Babb with city Chief Landscape Architect Katherine Jacobs, in front of a wall of photos of parks commissioners of yore.
Laura Glesby file photo
Attorney Mednick: "You really cannot end the term of people."
The commission’s hired attorney, Steve Mednick, told the group that New Haven is the only municipality in the state to have permanent, lifetime members on its parks commission.
Confusingly enough, the charter goes on to state that those three city parks commissioners shall be members of the East Rock Park Commission — which, Mednick said on Tuesday, no longer appears to exist. He speculated that the lifetime appointments probably have something to do with the state’s “special act,” with a history of private funds earmarked for park maintenance, with the merger of the formerly private East Rock Park with the city’s parks department. But, he said, no one he has spoken to so far has been able to clearly explain why this setup is the way it is.
Even if charter revisers recommend and voters endorse dropping the current lifetime parks commission appointments, Mednick continued, “you have to be careful” about what to do next.
That’s because the city can’t just push out mid-term the three people who currently occupy the commission’s lifetime appointments.
“You really cannot end the term of people,” Mednick said. “You can’t take a person’s four-year term and turn it into a two-year term. You can have them go through their four-year term while they’re seated and then the next election cycle change the term to a two-year term, but you can’t change it while they’re seated. So those three permanent members are permanent members.”
The only way to get rid of the current permanent members, he said, “is to eliminate the commission” entirely. But the city could end up some in some choppy legal water if it chose to scrap its parks commission now and then brought it back a year or two from now just to get rid of the current lifetime members.
“My thought is that, if you’re inclined to eliminate the permanent [appointments], the prudent course would be to let the terms run out” and then, as these commissioners step down or leave town or pass away, the Board of Alders and the mayor would have to be vigilant about updating the city ordinance and appointing new members to newly term-limited positions.
Board of Alders Majority Leader and Charter Revision Commissioner Richard Furlow welcomed that proposal.
“I don’t think there’s much resistance if we were to propose that the permanent members, the lifelong members, stay until their term expires,” he said. “I don’t think that would be difficult to write into the ordinance.”
Click here to watch a video recording of Tuesday’s Charter Revision Commission meeting in full.
"Everybody Backs Out"
DeCola and Belowsky after Wednesday's meeting.
The Independent caught up with the three lifers after Wednesday’s latest regular monthly meeting of the Board of Park Commissioners, held in-person in the commission’s conference room at 720 Edgewood Ave.
Belowksy, Babb and Torres all told the Independent that they love the volunteer work they do for the board — and they don’t have any plans to step down any time soon.
“I don’t think it’s a good idea to drop permanent members,” Belowsky said. “I think there’s a consistency we see” with having permanent lifetime appointments that’s ultimately good for the city’s greenspaces — especially when, for example, the city has had such turnover at the top of its (merged) parks department.
Belowsky said he had heard that one of the reasons charter revisers are considering dropping the permanent positions on the board is because the group isn’t diverse enough. He pointed out that Torres is Hispanic, Babb is African American, and “I happen to be Caucasian.”
“I don’t know how you could” say that’s not diverse, he said.
Parks commissioners at work.
Asked how long he plans to stay on the parks commission assuming that his current lifetime appointment remains in place, Belowsky replied, “I really enjoy the parks board. I don’t see leaving” any time soon.
But, he acknowledged, “everybody backs out” of life at some point.
By any chance, has he figured out how the secret to living forever?
If so, thanks to the parks commission appointment loophole, he in theory could serve on the board until the end of time.
“There’s no secret,” Belowsky said with a laugh. “These are the rules” of life. No one lives forever.
Torres agreed. He too doesn’t have the secret to immortality. He said that as long as “I’m able to help, I’ll always come” to the parks commission.
Asked if he thinks the lifetime appointments should end, he replied, “It’s not my decision.”
Babb: "It's become a labor of love."
Babb, meanwhile, said the path that charter revisers seem likely to pursue is the best way forward: that is, let the current lifetime appointees finish out their terms, and then replace those positions with term-limited spots so that lifetime picks “don’t happen again.”
Babb said he’s not looking to serve on the parks commission his entire life. Nor does he have the secret to immortality.
But looking after the city’s parks “is something I take interest in … It’s become a labor of love. I’m gonna do what’s right.”
Watch Tuesday’s meeting in full above. See below for previous articles about this year’s Charter Revision Commission process.
• To Split Or Not To Split Traffic & Police Boards
• Charter Revisers Eye Alder Pay Bump
• If It’s Good Enough For Hartford, Middletown
• Elicker Administration Pitches 4‑Year Terms
• Union Targets Mayor’s Ed Board Influence
• Ready. Set. Revise!
• 9 Approved For Charter Revision Commission
• Alders Establish Charter Revision Commission
• 4‑Year Terms Back Up For Debate