Norm Needleman’s secret to holding positions in local and state government at the same time is being a workaholic.
Needleman spoke of his roles as a state senator and the first selectman of the Town of Essex on the “Municipal Voice,” a co-production between the Connecticut Conference of Municipalities and WNHH FM.
Needleman first ran for office as a business owner, with the goal of bringing that perspective into governance.
Needleman sees planning and maintaining those plans as key to Essex’s success. It keeps the town’s roads and sidewalks up to date and makes the town adaptable in crises like the Covid-19 pandemic, he said.
The town’s economy has still seen a hit. Needleman lamented closures in the arts and entertainment industry, like the recent decision to cancel the Essex Steam Train North Pole Express this year. He has seen how these closures affect the industry through his wife, Jacqueline Hubbard, who runs the Ivoryton Playhouse. The uncertainty about when the crisis will end has many in the industry rethinking their careers, he said.
The senate is not in session now, so finding a way to save these industries is in the federal government and governor’s hands, Needleman said.
Needleman also has his eye on the future of Connecticut’s economy. He chairs the Energy and Technology Committee and was on the frontlines of the response to Tropical Storm Isaias.
Eversource Energy has faced criticism that they did not prepare enough for blackouts during Isaias. Needleman said that he understands residents’ frustration, especially given a rate increase over the summer. He has co-sponsored bills to help with food and medicine when outages reach a certain duration.
And the rates might not be so bad on balance, he said.
“It’s not only that Connecticut has some of the highest rates in the country, we also have some of the advanced energy efficiency programs,” he said.
Needleman identified wind projects near New London and Bridgeport and grid solar projects on otherwise contaminated brownfields as programs that can provide good-paying jobs and make Connecticut as eco-friendly as possible.
