Hartford Courant from Hartford, Connecticut • Page 111

S. f)t Maxtfoxb jEourant 5 th 5 THURSDAY DECEMBER 16, 1999 SECTION TOWN NEWS Stopping By Santa's Village i Mayor Wants Investigation Of Plant Fire Questions Raised Over Length Of Response TOWN NEWS Digest CANTON A Canton teen accused of raping a girl at his home last month turns himself in to police. Page B5 FARMINGTON LeRoy Bangham, Farmington's longtime police chief who ushered in an era of innovative policing and oversaw a rapidly growing department, plans to retire in May after 21 years at the helm. This page HARTFORD Cheese Stuff is being closed by its new corporate owners to make way for a deluxe version in the suburbs, outraging residents of the city's West End. Pagel SIMSBURY Movie theaters return to the Farmington Valley on Friday, when Hoyts opens an eight-theater multiplex.

This page LOCAL EDITORIAL Alfred A. Chambers, who died last week, left a rich legacy of community service to Greater Hartford. Editorial, Page A14 if Ml A i u.L4 i' I 'A I Hartford, East Hartford and-Rocky Hill the other MDC com munities did not send representatives. Wethersfield Town Manager Lee Erdmann said he has already written the MDC asking for an independent inquiry. State Rep.

Robert Farr, who also attended the 5 p.m. meeting, said he had done the same. WEST HARTFORD "Everything shows a complete breakdown in management," Farr said. "There was no plan to fight fires, no procedures when fire breaks out That points to a man-, agement problem, but you don't ask management to look into a management problem." Robert Randich said Bouvier is moving too fast. "I don't think we should rush to judgment on this," he said.

"The MDC should be allowed to investigate." He said he would prefer to work through each town's representatives on the MDC. Responding to Randich's reluctance to ask for an independent inquiry, West Hartford Town Manager Barry Feldman proposed a compromise: adding two outside investigators to the internal MDC inquiry. West Hartford and Wethersfield backed his suggestion, Bloomfield and Windsor seemed to be in agreement, but Randich was still not convinced. Bouvier told Feldman to draft a letter by Friday that will be circulated to elected officials in the eight towns. The letter will be delivered to the MDC next week.

By ANNE M. HAMILTON Courant Staff Writer WEST HARTFORD Mayor Rob Bouvier called Wednesday for an independent investigation of the late-November fire at the Metropolitan District Commission's sewage composting plant in Hartford. The plant was destroyed, with damage estimated at $30 million. Officials from West Hartford, Bloom-field, Newington, Windsor and Wethersfield met Wednesday, saying questions have been raised about the length of time it took for MDC employees to call the fire department and whether the department's response was hindered by the presence of concrete barriers in the access roads. The MDC and the Hartford Fire Department have each said they will investigate, but Bouvier asked the other towns that belong to the MDC to join in a request for a separate investigation.

He said the results of an inquiry would be more credible if they were reached by people not connected with the MDC. The MDC has formed a three-person team to investigate the causes of the fire. The members are Charles Nicol, a partner with MDC's law firm, Updike, Kelly Spellacy, MDC Director of Operations George Sparks, and Robert Moore of Malcolm Pirnie, an MDC consultant Bouvier said he wants an unbiased inquiry, adding he is concerned about the town's possible financial exposure. The deductible on the MDC insurance is $75,000, and he said there might be other expenses associated with the fire loss. i Index Burlington B4 Canton BS Farmington B1 Hartford A14, B4 Simsbury B1 West Hartford B1 Coming events B2 Legal notices B2, E9 Letters B2 Local obituaries B2, B3 Police news B2 i CHARLES ROGERS-SHAW, 5, OF TORRINGTON, plays the head reindeer on Santa's sleigh while his classmates in Carol Tucker's kindergarten class at Vogel-Wetmore School pile in.

The class toured Santa's Village. After 21 Years As Police Chief, Bangham To Retire NEWS BUREAU 56 E. Main Avon, CT 06001. Telephone 860-674-1 822 or toll-free 800-524-4242, Ext. 6721.

Fax: 860-677-4239 32 City Hall Torrington, CT 06790. Telephone 860-482-6604 or toll-free 800-524-4242, Ext. 6289. By MICHAEL GREENWOOD Courant Staff Writer FARMINGTON LeRoy Bangham, Farmington's longtime police chief who ushered in an era of innovative policing and oversaw a rapidly growing department, plans to retire in May after 21 years at the helm. Bangham only the fourth chief since the department was formed in the 1940s took over a department in 1978 that bears little resemblance to today's force.

Farmington police then employed about 30 people, and serious crimes were rare. Today, 60 people work for the department, including 45 sworn officers, and a daily roster of arrests sometimes includes robberies, rapes and assaults. A stout man with graying hair, glasses and a mustache, Bangham, 60, plans to pack up his 35-foot Pace Arrow motorhome and explore the country with his wife, Marianne Bangham. The past year has not been an easy one for the sometimes gruff, sometimes gregarious police chief whose office is adorned with stuffed animals and a radio tuned to Rush Limbaugh. He was out of work for months with a serious health problem in 1998.

It was then that he started seriously thinking about retirement. FARMINGTON "It was a pretty tough experience. I began to wonder how much time I have left," he said during an interview Wednesday. "It's been an honor to command this department I really feel that I've done it all." Indeed, his imprint is everywhere. He introduced community policing to Farmington, a program that returned patrol officers to specific beats in the community.

Today, Farmington has community officers in Farmington High SchooL Unionville center, Farmington Village and Westfarms malL Bangham sees the approach as cruciaL "The idea is problem-solving," he said. "I expect officers to solve people's problems. You're changing the philosophy of a whole organization." Also under his watch, the department received national accreditation, a process thf requires the department to adhere to scores of professional standards. Only a handful of departments in the state have the designation. In recent years Farmington police have also introduced a citizens' police academy to teach civilians about local law enforcement, and offered personal safety courses for women.

"I think his contributions have been exceptional His leadership provided us with a first-class, professional police force," said Councilman Robert DiPietro. The council approved an early retirement package Tuesday. "He was one of the first police chiefs in this area to promote community policing. It's been a highly successful program in our town." Farmington has grown steadily during Bangham's tenure, and he has seen some major crimes. In the early 1980s, a bank robber who fired at police was shot dead and his accomplice was captured after a high-speed chase.

In the late 1980s, police acting on a tip that a robbery was imminent at the Hill-Stead Museum, which houses a fortune in Impressionist paintings, laid a trap and caught the would-be thieves. More used DNA evidence to solve a shooting and sexual assault at a Main Street business. His only real regret is that the killer of 26-year-old Agnieszka Ziemlewski, slain in 1998 near the West Hartford line, remains at large. "I still maintain that we will solve it," he said. Bangham said he delayed retirement after an officer filed a complaint against him.

and other officers with the state Commission on Human Rights and Opportunities in March. The complaint alleging false accusations and threats was not investigated by. the commission, which determined that the allegations were probably baseless. The same officer this week filed a federal suit against Bangham and a former officer. She is seeking more than $1 million in damages, alleging she Please see RETIRE, Page B4 Hoyts Opening 8-Screen Cinema Friday In Simsbury Commons Renbrook Students In A Giving Mood Parents Invited To.

Meetings WEST HARTFORD Three informational meetings have been scheduled for parents with questions about the plan to redistrict some students from Aiken School to three other elementary schools. WEST HARTFORD Administrators are recommending shifting 74 students from Aiken, with 33 students going to Whiting Lane School, 22 to Morley School and 19 to Bugbee SchooL Redistricting would take effect for the 200001 school year, fourth-graders at Aiken would have the option of staying at the north end elementary school for fifth-grade, board members said. The three meetings are targeted to parents of students who would be redistricted, but anyone from the community is invited. All of the meetings are scheduled to begin at 7 p.m. in Room 207 of the education center, 28 S.

Main St The meetings are scheduled for Jan. 3 for families reassigned to Whiting Lane SchooL Jan. 5 for families reassigned to Bugbee SchooL Jan. 6 for families reassigned to Morley SchooL Alex Nardone, assistant superintendent of administration, and Chip Ward, the district's senior planner, will be present to answer questions. The publicwill also have a chance to comment on the redistricting plan when the school board considers the matter for a public vote.

That is expected to take place Feb. 1. Salvation' Army food drive, including nearly 1,000 pounds of turkey bought by fifth-graders with money they earned themselves. WEST HARTFORD SIMSBURY Farmington Valley Mall "TuiiTT ie-going audience. "There's really nothing in the area here.

We'll draw from a radius of 15 to 20 miles," said Daniel Vieira, Hoyts senior vice president of operations and marketing. AREAWIDE The facility will allow patrons to purchase tickets by phone and have a coffee bar alongside the refreshments stand. There was opposition to the theater, though. Last year, when the theater was only a proposal, many neighbors on Bushy Hill Road complained to the planning and zoning commission about the expansion of Simsbury Commons and about the theater. Many residents feared the neighborhood would deteriorate with increased traffic and possible crime in the area resulting from Hoyts' presence.

Ultimately, the expansion was By PHIL LEMOS Courant Staff Writer SIMSBURY The Farmington Valley was once dotted with movie theaters that became an endangered species beginning two decades ago. By 1984, the cinemas disappeared when Avon Twin Cinemas closed. Since then, area residents who wanted to take in a first-run flick have had to drive to Bloomfield, Berlin, Barkhamsted, or any number of other out-of-the-way locations. That's about to change. Friday, Hoyts Cinemas Corp.

the Northeast's largest movie exhibitor and the seventh-largest in the world opens an eight-screen multiplex theater at Simsbury Commons, formerly the Farmington Valley Mall. The theater is within shouting distance of the Avon and Canton town lines. Hoyts could have an opportunity to grab a significant chunk of the mov By ROBIN STANSBURY Courant Staff Writer WEST HARTFORD Tis the season of giving, but students at Renbrook School are taking their efforts to the extreme. Students at the private West Hartford school have spent the past few months on a variety of fund-raising and collection efforts, including a toy drive which concluded Wednesday. The students in pre-school through ninth grade collected almost 2,500 new and used books, as well as 1,000 toys, which will benefit Catholic Charities Migration and Refugee Services and three Hartford Head Start sites.

In addition, students in grades 6-9 collected money to buy presents for five families, through the Salvation Army. Last month, the students collected more than 5,000 items for the During the past few weeks, students at Renbrook have also: Collected 500 winter items for the statewide Button Up Connecticut campaign. Raised $2,017 for UNICEF, including more than $350 from the third-grade bake sale. Distributed more than 250 pounds of Halloween candy to nonprofit agencies serving children. "We value the tradition of service to others," said Jane C.

Shipp, the school's headmistress. "We are always aware that we are training attitudes, and we've got a wonderful opportunity to build AVON The Hartford Courant approved by the planning and zoning commission. Vieira said residents shouldn't be worried..