After a mighty 28-year run as head of the Bridgeport Regional Business Council that covered five mayors, starts and stops in city developments, the New England economic crisis that saw bank closings, the roaring late 1990s, a ballpark and arena, followed by the worst economic downtown since the Great Depression, the age of the Internet, social media, a Barnum Festival ringmaster, and last year’s opening of Bass Pro Shops on Steel Point, Paul Timpanelli will retire soon leaving behind his share of critics and supporters. A farewell salute is scheduled next month at the Trumbull Marriott.
The business council encompasses Bridgeport, Stratford and Trumbull. Timpanelli’s salary and associated staff is covered by dues-paying members of the business organization charged with creating opportunities for the regional business climate. A rock and roll historian, Sacred Heart University alumnus, former school teacher and ex Trumbull first selectman, in recent years Timpanelli’s critics have referred to him as so “Yesteryear,” a reference to his long-time association with an oldies musical group, for not personally growing with modern technology so key to business growth.
Still, juggling the changing faces of a board of directors for 28 years is a testament to survival skills. The BRBC search committee has not formally announced a replacement and Timpanelli is not plugged into the loop about his successor. What will they look for in a new leader? Management skills? A marketer? Politician? Business rainmaker? Someone from within the ranks? Or an outsider?
What phone booth will this affair be at?
Oh I forgot, there are no more phone booths. Time has moved on and so should Tippy because he stayed 23 years too long.
Turtles, Timpanelli and Trump. Lennie, it’s time to up your meds! Who’s next, the Troll?
Hey Mackey, what do you think the odds are McCarthy is going to get this job? He can’t be a Senator and he’s probably still looking for a do-nothing job.
Oh God no, Timpanelli got so caught out listening to Steve Wynn and Donald Trump about a casino,he forgot about bringing in good-paying businesses. Then when he did something with Finch we got these minimum wage jobs at Steelpointe. Tommy Mac would be the perfect person because he is a do-nothing Council President and would replace another do-nothing person who is always with a pat on his own back. And this guy is a attorney, please. He was the leader on the City Council that gave us 20 million dollars in the red, thanks again Tommy.
They’re hiring at the new donut shop in my neighborhood.
Has Timpanelli et al. made ANY difference???
I am being fitted for thumbscrews that day. Damn it!
Über hilarious.
Paul never really forgot where he came from. TrumBULL!
Good luck, Paul T. You have had quite a run and a very impressive career. I have always admired the view of the Harbor from your office. Best of luck for the next chapter of your life. Looking back I believe you had a positive impact on the city. I never agreed Bridgeport should only aspire to being the back room operations for the huge corporations in Stamford, but you were always a class act and did a fine job representing the BRBC and Bridgeport. That is the Bridgeport Regional Business Council for those who do not understand the definition of Regional, look it up. Downtown North finally taking off!!! Hats off to you!
BTW, speaking about Rock&Roll, I wonder how many people on this blog have heard Paul Timpanelli and his ’50s rock group! Great!
Steven Auerbach, that’s you, loyal to the end. Musto, Finch, McCarthy and now Tippy, all losers who really during their time did nothing for Bridgeport. Think about this, here’s a former First Selectman of Trumbull making business decisions for Bridgeport; G1, Fabrizi, Finch all following Tippy down rat holes that brought Bridgeport what? Steve, I know you like those minimum wage jobs at Steelpointe.
Stevie A is the biggest suck-up on OIB!
Ron Mackey, you left out Mary-Jane Foster, John Marshall Lee, Tyisha Toms and Melanie Jackson. I do not equate losing an election to being a loser nor supporting a losing candidate. With Paul Timpanelli, he has had quite an illustrious career. That simple and a kind word didn’t cost anything.
Steve, would you please tell us all what Paul Timpanelli did for Bridgeport during his 28 years as the head of the BRBC?
Stevie,
Can you please provide us with a list of “the back room operations for the huge corporations in Stamford” that Paul successfully lured to our fine city?
Appears Auerbach got approved for medical marijuana, it may be a little too strong though. He’s hallucinating!
I for one am happy to see you finally leave. You did squat for Bpt.
Maybe someone should have shared this news with Paul before he is out the door.
www .calgaryherald.com/life/lululemons+sees+lots+room+grow/12126033/story.html
Could be a good fit with Bass Pro.
Or send a copy to Tom Gill and Bob Cristoph But then again, maybe Lululemon is too upscale for Steel Point consumers.
Maybe Tom Gill was involved with leasing equipment to Lulu and has some inside contacts there.
Bob, what is LULU?
High-end yoga and Pilates wear.
Zena Lu, thank you!
Or maybe if Lulu’s too upscale, they should read this:
How TJX’s Success Continues to Defy Traditional Brick-and-Mortar Retail
As shoppers shun department stores, the parent of T.J. Maxx, Marshalls and HomeGoods continues to thrive
By Steven Russolillo
Aug. 15, 2016 3:16 p.m. ET
In this difficult retail environment, TJX Cos. keeps passing competitors while marching to its own beat.
www .wsj.com/articles/how-tjxs-success-continues-to-defy-traditional-brick-and-mortar-retail-1471288579
Maybe Bridgeport’s rock group Steam could have a reunion for Timpanelli’s party and perform their hit “Na, Na, Hey, Hey, Goodbye.”
Sorry, no video but just the music. The group Steam is from Stratford, CT. Everybody has the song. Tippy, this song is for you and don’t let the door hit you ….
“Na, Na, Hey, Hey, Goodbye”
youtu.be/IoyvvEWHodk
RM, they were Bridgeport musicians.
Lennie, that’s right but for some reason media said they were from Stratford and that’s what I was reading and hearing when I was in the Air Force in North Carolina as the song took off.
That is a fun song, be it after a home run or a political loss!
Gentlemen, although I respect comment and appreciate free speech, I wonder why I am attacked for wishing Paul well? He was an elected official and served the BRBC for A LONG TIME. He always represented the city of Bridgeport with other business leaders trying to attract business to the Park City. He is well respected within the business community, he was honored as the ringmaster for the Barnum Festival and he always knew how to get a sound bite in the Connecticut Post. Perhaps those criticizing Paul were unaware of what his contributions were or the expectations of his job. He did have a great view of Steelpointe from his office and now he is leaving. Why such negativity? He was simply a nice guy, never did anything for me and I never did anything for him. No sucking up here, just being respectful.
Steve, why don’t you tell us about all the wonderful things Tippy did for Bridgeport besides those minimum wage jobs at Steelpointe.
This is not about free speech, this is a blog where people like you make comments, nobody is trying to stop your free speech. Steve, don’t you find it strange you are the only person talking positively about him?
Maybe Steam’s “Na, Na, Hey, Hey, Goodbye” goes back too far so maybe this one is right up his line and maybe he and group could sing this song and I think you might also like it. Enjoy.
Dream On by Aerosmith with lyrics for those who don’t know the words.
youtu.be/hHRNSeuvzlM
And for the true rockers who like seeing Steven Tyler perform:
Dream On Aerosmith Official Music Video
youtu.be/54BCLYNkFKg
Ron,
Thank you. LMAO!
onlyinbridgeport.com/wordpress/spain-takes-aim-at-mccarthy-political-tom-foolery/
From Steve:
Lisa Parziale, Evette Brantley and John Olson are very strong in the Brooklawn area. They are almost as popular as Tom McCarthy in the Brooklawn area. They did after all win their seats on the Town Committee and Common Council. Brooklawn will be supporting Tom McCarthy no doubt. At least that is my hope. The North End 134th, we are McCarthy people. So like Marcus Marshall, I will be supporting Tom McCarthy and look forward to an exciting summer.
The question is, what has Marilyn Moore done for you lately??? No Moore.
…
I will vote for McCarthy and you can support Moore on the Pro-Moore blog. Reality is a totally different game. If McCarthy has Finch and Ganim supporting him, then Moore would have to be superwoman incorporating the support Foster got and that will add up to nothing! Get it? Got it? Good! Now, enough of my commentary on Tom. He is a good man!
…
I think McCarthy will be amazing. As much as you try to malign him, the fact is the DTC endorsed him. Members of the council endorsed him. His district endorsed him and his constituents continue to vote for him, proof he is solid and Moore is in serious trouble. Moore supporters would be wise to tout her successes than going after Tom. She is the incumbent and she has to defend her record. He has the support of the people.
…
Steven Auerbach // Jun 12, 2016 at 9:25 pm
Lisa my love. In my intimate circle I have never been wrong about the outcome of an election. To be clear. I knew Finch was going to lose two months before the election. I brought all my issues up to those in charge. They did not listen. They were making the big money. I was not making anything. They in a sense fucked themselves. Always listen to those who talk to constituents. I wanted to support Ganim when Finch lost the Primary and told him so. I was embarrassed that Finch decided to support Foster. I had for six months been saying Foster would finish a distant third and here I was wasting my time. I was a loyalist for Finch. I think being a loyalist has never really served my purpose. You Lisa had been a huge Ganim and Testa supporter. Now, you never waste an opportunity to demean them. You were very confident about defeated the DTC and came up short. You were cruel in your commentary about John Olson and Evette Brantley. Two individuals I happen to like. Now of course Lisa, I respect your desire to support Marilyn Moore. I do not appreciate it when the support comes at the expense of character malignment. I gain nothing from supporting Tom McCarthy. I think he has done a great job in leadership and truly believe he will bring serious money back to Bridgeport.
Pete Spain,
I’ve never met you and know little about you.
Monday night at the TDTC meeting a veteran member talked about your wonderful performance at the polls on primary day. An undecided voter who gave you 90 seconds would walk away convinced to vote as you asked. You were a non-stop dynamo and all positive in your appeals. Congratulations on a job well done.
Marcus,
Thanks for the feedback.
I was very motivated to volunteer for this campaign and to go wherever they sent me (okay, Middlebrook School in Trumbull), because (A) Marilyn Moore has done everything she said she would do and more (and I’ve heard this from people in Hartford who are Dems and Republicans); (B) Tom McCarthy has been atrociously poor as a leading policy-maker/legislator/government manager … top-level employee (in violation of the charter) for Bridgeport; (C) McCarthy showed up at Middlebrook School with the 20-year-old college student, Paoletto, and kept saying “Hi, I’m Tom McCarthy, the ENDORSED candidate.” Utterly bogus when you consider the ENDORSEMENT process was a charade. I grimace that one of my City Council reps was a big booster of McCarthy’s at the event! McCarthy was pivoting on “endorsed” as I’ve seen so many hollow machine candidates do; fortunately, the Trumbull voters didn’t fall for it.
Good for the Trumbull Democrats!
While I found many align with Anthony Musto, many of those had the good sense to recognize the facts and Moore!
One instance was a very bright woman who has deep ties to none other than David Axelrod, the longtime friend and political advisor in 2008 to President Obama. We need more people in Democrat circles in the state who align with the Obama principles, NOT the Malloy and Finch/Ganim status quo.
At this rate, the Ganims can take over Bridgeport. It’s a hulking, sinking ship that’s taking on debt at a rate no rescue operation can stop, not even the people who are being bled by a 29% mil rate increase. Bankruptcy is definitely for real, and Hartford will either figure it out or it won’t. And sadly, the hard-working taxpayers of Bridgeport will be collateral damage.
It’s wrong. It’s immoral. It’s damaging people’s lives irremediably.
And the “endorsed” and losing candidate has absolutely made no public acknowledgment of this. And has let his constituents twist in the wind.
We need a real, serious look at this NOW!
Thank goodness Senator Moore knows this and has told Mayor Ganim as much.
And yet?
Every resident of the State of Connecticut is owed an explanation as to why they’ll be on the hook when Bridgeport, Waterbury and other municipalities go bankrupt.
Pete Spain, you honor me with my posts. Meanwhile you were an advisor to Tyisha Toms and John Marshall Lee. How did that work out for you??? And them??? LMAO??? Really?
Steve, you’re way off base on this one. Tyisha Toms was new person for the district but someone who has a great future if she continues to be involved in elective politics.
You are telling me? I’ve known her for 30 years, you?
Pete Spain, regurgitating my posts show respectful support for my candidate. I didn’t post maligning comments about Moore. I didn’t support Tom because the “Machine” asked me to. I have no problem with the outcome of the election. It was no surprise Moore would win, the margin was surprising. Good for her and those who supported her. Tom will live to see another election and we all move forward.