Meet the Candidates: Nick Perna for Ridgefield Police Commission

Editor's note: HamletHub believes in democracy and we recently invited all Town of Ridgefield candidates to answer five questions, giving residents an opportunity to learn more about their candidacy, Town involvement, and reasons for seeking office. If you will be on the ballot on November 5, we'd love to hear from you! Please see the information on the bottom of this post regarding this Q&A opportunity.

Meet Nick Perna, Candidate for Police Commission

What office are you running for and why?

I've been on the Police Commission since February 2019 when I was chosen to replace a member who had resigned.  I am now running for a 2-year term. This is a way to “give back” to the wonderful town where my wife and I have lived for almost 50 years.  We raised our children here. I want to help  “protect and serve” our community,  particularly those least able to fend for themselves such as children and the elderly.

Ridgefielders who know me are aware of my strong communication, leadership and analytic skills. And even though I’ve been in town for a long time, I have no conflicts of interests.  I own no property other than my home and am involved in no local business ventures. In short, I am willing and able to help the excellent Ridgefield Police Department in fulfilling its responsibilities and making sure we provide adequate resources and direction.

I also feel uniquely qualified for this position.  My brother was a patrolman in Stamford.   My son and daughter-in-law met at the police academy and have been in law enforcement for the past 20 years. My 14-year old granddaughter very recently graduated from the Explorer program on policing.   I was attending the Ridgefield Civilian Police Academy at the same time and the two of us would compare notes.  Over the past 20 years, I have gone on dozens of "ride-alongs" and observed calls for domestic violence, DUI, narcotics, prostitution.  This has given me a very close up feel for police work as well as the stresses and strains of the job.   

What do you hope to accomplish if you're elected on November 5th?

Based on my own observations, conversations with other residents as well as the recently completed survey of some 600 Ridgefielders,  I want to emphasize the following:

We need adequate resources in terms of more modern facilities and more personnel.  We need more police for the kinds of activities the people have told us they want such as more foot patrols and stronger enforcement of traffic laws. Furthermore, it is now taking more time for crime investigations and other police activities. But I also want to make sure that resources are being utilized as efficiently as possible. 

We should expand the emphasis on traffic education and enforcement.  Maybe we need to refresh memories on how far ahead of the turn you have to signal, the rules concerning passing school buses and pedestrian right of way in crosswalks. However, there also has to be stepped enforcement for distracted driving, speeding on our scenic but narrow "back roads" and the like.  

Our senior citizens are major targets for scams, especially telephone and internet. We need more education programs using police presentations at places like the Men's Club and Founders Hall etc. We should establish an “early warning system” about the latest scams making the rounds.  

Our youngsters are clearly in need of increased guidance and supervision with respect to narcotics (especially opioids) and vaping of illegal substances.  I will continue, along with the Ridgefield Police Department, to strongly support the establishment of a Juvenile Review Board which provides a viable alternative to a criminal record for many the non-felony crimes committed by minors.  

Tell me about your current involvement in Ridgefield

 I presently serve on the Ridgefield Police Commission.  I am also a member of the Ridgefield Men’s Club for which I write a monthly article about the economy.  I attend St Mary’s Church and until recently was a member of the Finance Council. I am frequently invited to speak about the economy to local groups such as the Rotary and the Men’s Club. In the past, I was a member of the Ridgefield Democratic Town Committee and was elected to the Board of Assessment Appeals.

Biggest crisis facing Ridgefield?

I really don’t believe that Ridgefield faces any crises.  We have one of the safest towns in the country. One of big challenges we face is traffic. Volume is increasing, leading to congestion on our main roads and side roads which were never intended to handle so many cars.  There also seems to be a growing disregard for traffic laws. Very recently, I’ve seen people run red lights and stop signs, ignore pedestrians in crosswalks and pass stopped school buses with their red lights flashing and disregard speed limits.  Despite numerous campaigns, people still insist on using their “mobile devices" This is a complex set of problems requiring more education, stepped-up enforcement and much more police involvement in managing traffic flows.

Favorite book?

I recently read Mark Twain’s Puddin’Head Wilson which turned out to be a delightful mystery novel. And thanks to Darwin Ellis of Books on the Common, I’ve read the entire Inspector Montalbano series, most recently Montalbano's First Case. Right now I am reading Howard’s Zinn’s, A People’s History of the United States. I hope to finish it (729 pages) by the Presidential election in 2020!

Name a person you look up to (either dead or alive)

This is difficult because I admire more than one.  However, it has to be my father, Salvatore Perna, who came to the United States as a teenager 100 hundred years ago this December. He arrived here with a third-grade education and spoke no English.  He almost immediately enrolled in night school and took music lessons. He instilled in me a desire for knowledge and appreciation for a wide variety of things.  By the time I was ten, I had attended an opera at the Met (Carmen), Ringling Brothers Circus and a Dodger game at Ebbets Field.  My most powerful memory was my graduation from Boston College.  Dad wrapped me a bear hug and said, “Now I can die.” Fortunately, he lived long enough to see some of his dreams come true.

---

Rules for candidates who wish to participate in our Q&A:

*Please answer 5 of the 6 questions.

*You MUST answer #1

*Please include a photo with your answers

*Please email to  Ridgefield@HamletHub.com 

We will publish your answers in Ridgefield HamletHub, on our social media pages, in our evening e-newsletter and Google News.

1. What office are you running for and why

2. What do you hope to accomplish should you be elected on November 5th?

3. Tell me about your current involvement in Ridgefield (include nonprofits)

4. Biggest crisis facing our Town?

5. Name a few of your favorite books

6. Name a person (dead or alive) who you look up to

 Learn more here.