A panel of five Representative Town Meeting (RTM) members spoke about what the RTM does, how it functions, its importance and the value of engaging with local politics at an RTM Community Conversation event hosted by The Westport Library on Sunday, March 27 from 2-3:30 p.m. RTM members Andrew Bloom, Jimmy Izzo, Lauren Karpf, Pam Kopack and Kristin Mott Purcell spoke on the panel and their discussion was moderated by Dan Woog, founder and executive editor of local blog 06880. At the event, guests also had the opportunity to speak with their district’s RTM representatives, Board of Education members, Board of Finance members and the League of Women Voters.
“I feel like the event went great,” Bloom, who represents District 1 on the RTM, said. “It’s heartening to see so many people interested in the RTM and engaged in town politics. This gives me confidence that Westport has an even brighter future ahead.”
Bloom and the other RTM members on the panel explained why they joined the RTM, what they feel is most rewarding in a position that is unpaid, as well as the nonpartisan experience of the RTM with all representatives being elected as nonpartisan members.
“I hope people can see that everybody [that was] sitting up there [on the panel] are of different political leanings, and yet you could see there was a camaraderie between all of them,” Board of Education member Abby Tolan said. “And I think especially in the same age where that’s not the case in our federal government, that I think it says something to the Town of Westport.”
RTM District 6 member David Rosenwaks and District 5 member Claudia Shaum organized the event alongside the RTM Information Technology (IT) Committee chaired by District 9’s Nancy Kail that both Rosenwaks and Shaum also serve on. This event coincides with the committee’s efforts to take on more of a communications role.
The idea for the event was first devised by Rosenwaks who had wanted to contribute to the committee’s goals by fostering greater communication, understanding and transparency between the local government and the public. He secured the date for the event with the library in August 2024 and named Shaum as the event’s co-chair in order to fully bring it to fruition.
“The best way to learn things is to talk and I think a lot of people don’t really get what an RTM is still,” Shaum said. “I meet people who have lived here longer than I have [who say] what the heck is the RTM? So that’s what we were really trying to do here [at the event], it wasn’t about any particular issue or it was really about town government and how we fit in and we’re just so proud of the panel.”
Rosenwaks and Shaum explained that the goal of the event was to not only educate the public on the RTM’s role and purpose, but also encourage increased participation in local politics.
“We really want to show the voting public that we’re here for them and we’re not a bunch of people who don’t want to hear from them,” RTM Rosenwaks said. “We’re there for them, and we want to work for the people. That’s why we’re here.”
The RTM is the town legislative body and is made up of 36 elected members, four from each of the nine RTM districts in Westport. RTM representatives carry out a variety of tasks including approving budgets and enacting town ordinances such as the 2019 Single-Use Plastics Ordinance that bans food service businesses from selling and distribution of single-use food service containers consisting mainly of plastics, which includes styrofoam.
“We’re a conduit for our constituents and our relative districts to be a conduit to the administration, a conduit to Board of Finance, a conduit to Board of Ed.,” Purcell, a representative for District 1, said. “We’re your neighbor, we are your partner and someone who should be helping you address questions like developments in your community.”
If any student has a local issue that they would like to see addressed or wants to be more involved in the local government, RTM members can help their constituents’ with their concerns and interests.
“Reach out to your RTM representative and he or she will be more than happy to help,” Bloom said. “If you don’t know who that is, check out the Town of Westport website for more information. If you are interested in a specific topic like education or parks and recreation, it might be worth attending a monthly board meeting for that governing body which is open to all, and typically allows for public comments.”
