The Edit Is the Message
NBC CT covered Hamden’s skyrocketing taxes but left out the grassroots movement that forced the town to act. Here’s the version they didn’t show you.
Earlier today, a reporter from NBC Connecticut reached out to discuss Hamden’s looming tax hikes and the growing frustration among residents. As the founder of Hamden Residents Unite, I was glad for the opportunity to share our perspective, even though I’m currently sick and could only respond in writing. I submitted a detailed, fact-based statement reflecting not just my own views, but the concerns echoed by many residents over the past few weeks.
What followed left me with more questions than answers.
To be fully transparent and to let readers judge for themselves, I’m sharing the full email exchange below.
The Email Exchange
10:38 AM
Received via form submission on our website.
Message: Hello,
Kevin Gaiss here with NBC CT. I am reaching out regarding the tax increases being talked about down in Hamden that have residents concerned and frustrated following a state re-assessment. I came across this website, are you able to interview today about the concern as well as the action that has since occured? Thanks! My number is [redacted]
10:39 AM
Hi Kevin,
We can definitely chat, but I am currently very sick and have no voice! Can this wait a couple of days? If so, let’s set up some time Friday to chat.
Thanks!
10:41 AM
Hi, thanks for getting back to me so fast. Unfortunately, our producers are pushing to have this done today. Is there someone involved with you folks that could speak to this today?
Thanks!
Best,
Kevin Gaiss
Reporter NBC CT
10:42 AM
I can respond to you in a written format, if you’d like. I can give you a statement and answer any questions. Does that work? I’d prefer to be the one to communicate with you as it’s my group and I don’t want anything misrepresented. You can also check out my Substack in the meantime, which is linked as the blog on the site.
Grace
10:48 AM
Yup totally okay! I understand!
I will gladly take a statement to start regarding the projected property tax increase and the concerns from Hamden residents like yourself and what you folks need to see?
I could then follow up with any questions if I have any follow ups!
Thanks in advance!
Best,
Kevin Gaiss
Reporter NBC CT
10:50 AM
I can get this to you within the next couple of hours. Stay tuned.
Grace
10:52 AM
No worries at all!
Thank you so much!
Kevin Gaiss
Reporter NBC CT
The Statement:
1:49 PM
Hi Kevin,
Please let me know if you have any questions and please confirm what you plan to use before you publish. Thank you!
"I am a Hamden resident who became deeply concerned after seeing my proposed tax increase, and even more concerned when I realized how many of my neighbors, including seniors and working families, were facing the same reality. Following the state-mandated revaluation, the average residential assessment in Hamden rose by 55 percent. While the mill rate was slightly reduced, as in many towns, the end result is still substantial tax increases for most households, often adding hundreds of dollars more each month to our tax bills. These are not luxury properties; we’re talking about middle-class neighborhoods where people are already stretched thin. These increases also stand to impact renters, as landlords will likely pass these charges onto them. We are all affected.
That concern led me to start a petition about a month ago, which now has nearly 1,700 signatures. Shortly after, I launched Hamden Residents Unite, a nonpartisan Facebook group that has grown to over 1,300 members. It’s been encouraging to see residents from across the political spectrum come together to address an issue that affects all of us. I also created a website, wearehamden.com, where people can learn more about the situation and how to get involved.
Because of this momentum, we caught the attention of members of the Legislative Council early on. Some are now actively engaging with the community to explore solutions. Councilwoman Rhonda Caldwell, in particular, has been a consistent and vocal advocate. She has proposed pausing the budget process and reverting to last year’s spending levels until we have a clearer financial picture. She has also outlined a set of reasonable next steps, which we’ve published on our blog under the article “List of Demands.”
To be fair, Hamden isn’t alone. Other towns are also grappling with the impact of revaluations, as the mayor has noted. But our situation is far more severe. Hamden has been burdened by long-standing debt and unfunded pension liabilities, and we’re now feeling the impact of decades of poor financial planning. The can has been kicked down the road for too long and now it’s time that someone finally picked it up.
While our current crisis wasn’t solely brought on by this administration, one of the biggest sources of frustration is that no meaningful solutions were brought forward until residents began speaking out. A $15 million error in the budget was only discovered after the Legislative Council hired an outside consultant to evaluate alternative tax phase-in options. That’s not a small oversight. For me personally, it translated to a $90 per month difference in my projected tax bill. Yet the error was publicly downplayed as if it barely mattered. At the same time, Hamden has not had a permanent finance director in over a year, the most recent audit - due in January - has barely just begun, and the finance department is understaffed. It is hard to feel confident in a budget process when these basic issues remain unresolved.
Many of us feel the administration misrepresented the root cause of these tax hikes, presenting them as a byproduct of the revaluation alone. The truth is that these increases are being used to fill budget shortfalls. If the revaluation hadn’t happened, taxes would still need to go up to cover those gaps. That distinction matters, and the lack of clear communication around it has left many residents feeling misled, especially when the mayor initially framed the mill rate change as the lowest in town history. That message didn’t reflect the real impact on residents’ wallets, and many felt their intelligence was insulted.
At its core, this is a matter of trust. Many residents feel there’s no real urgency or empathy coming from our leadership, even if efforts are being made behind the scenes. I don’t believe this administration is trying to harm the public, but I do believe it is focused more on managing the narrative than being fully transparent. Residents aren’t asking for perfection; we’re asking for accountability. We want our leaders to be honest about where we are, even if the reality is difficult. That means making tough decisions around spending, renegotiating contracts, exploring state support, and putting a real long-term plan in place.
We recently launched a town-wide flyer campaign to inform other residents, many of whom still don’t realize just how much their taxes are set to rise in July. With the Legislative Council scheduled to vote on the budget in June, we’re working hard to keep public pressure on and ensure that every option is considered. We’re not asking for miracles. We’re asking for real effort, empathy, and leadership rooted in transparency and truth. Because without that, real people - our neighbors - are going to lose their homes."
Thank you,
Grace Valentine Teodosio
2:18 PM
Hello again,
Thank you for sending this over! Once we arrived in Hamden we were able to collect perspective from residents regarding the frustration so I don’t believe I will tap into the statement today in the on air portion!
But I will introduce you folks in the online article regarding the organization as a result of the frustration over the tax increases, and petition signing and will likely quote the portion about the root cause of the tax hikes!
More than anything, because I expect we will be following this issue as it plays out here in town, I will make sure to hold onto it and your contact as well for our future reporting on the topic, and will pass it along to our political reporter Mike Savino in case he picks it up!
Thank you again and I hope you feel better soon!
Kevin Gaiss
Reporter NBC CT
2:20 PM
Okay, sounds good. I think the biggest takeaway needs to be that nothing was going to be done and no mistakes were going to be found without the public organizing which is the core concern.
Thank you,
Grace
2:40 PM
Understood and that’s why I want to make sure your statement gets over to our political reporter as well, we are focused primarily on the increase and the impact of a spike like this, but that definitely is a valid concern!
He would better suited to dive a bit into that aspect of coverage!
Thank you again!
Kevin Gaiss
Reporter NBC CT
3:54 PM
Hello again,
The producers want to hold on to your perspective until we have a better opportunity to interview because you have a lot of concerns and information to dive into that we can’t squeeze in there without fear of it getting lost, even in the web article! When we re-visit this we will reach out to you again!
Thank you again, I look forward to connecting with you soon to take a deeper dive with an actual interview!
Kevin Gaiss
Reporter NBC CT
3:55 PM
Hi Kevin,
Thanks, that sounds great! Happy to chat when you’re ready to cover it.
Be well,
Grace
Reading Between the Lines
At first glance, the email thread looks polite, even collaborative. But read it again, and a pattern starts to emerge.
Before I sent my statement, the tone was warm and enthusiastic. I was told it would likely be quoted, that our group would be referenced, and that my concerns were valid. But after I submitted it? The enthusiasm vanished. Suddenly, they had already “gathered perspective” from residents in the field. My statement was too much to fit, even online. A longer interview was promised for another day, but just hours later, the segment aired without a single mention of our group, the petition, or the $15 million error we helped bring to light.
This wasn’t about timing. It was about control.
The story they chose to tell cast the administration as proactive and empathetic, and the public as shocked and reactive. That version is easier to package, and it conveniently leaves out the fact that nothing changed until residents forced it to.
Saying my statement was “too much” is a red flag. There’s no word limit online. What they meant was: it didn’t fit. Not the word count. The narrative.
And promising to revisit it later? That’s not engagement. That’s a soft brush-off designed to close the loop without addressing the substance.
And to be clear, I don’t believe all journalism is corrupt or calculated. I believe in the role of a free press. But this experience made me question how easily truth gets filtered when it doesn’t fit the story already in motion.
Erased From the Narrative
When the segment finally aired, it featured one homeowner expressing shock and leaned entirely on the administration’s framing. The revaluation was to blame, the pandemic housing market made it inevitable, and the mayor was already working with the state to soften the blow.
There was no mention of the $15 million budget error. No reference to the petition signed by over 1,600 residents. No acknowledgment of the organizing that forced this issue into public view. Instead, the story suggested the town had been managing the crisis all along, without pressure, without pushback, and without us.
But the truth is, nothing moved until the public did. We organized. We pushed. We set the wheels in motion that uncovered the budget error. We made this a story. And when the media showed up, we were cut out of it.
What stings most is the gap between what was promised and what was delivered. I was asked to submit a statement, told it would likely be quoted, and assured there would be a follow-up. Instead, the language I provided showed up in quotes from the mayor, stripped of context, urgency, and the public pressure that made this story matter in the first place.
The public did its part. If the media won’t do theirs, we’ll keep doing it ourselves.
You can read the full NBC article here.
The problem with dealing with the media is that reporters get to ask a lot of questions and then they get to pick and choose what they want to use, as you found out.
Years ago, when this issue was being discussed among professionals of my acquaintance, I learned that the trick is to have only a single message and to keep repeating it, no matter what the question.
There is also what is known as the elevator conversation - you get one chance to give your pitch in a very brief space of time. Again, you have to focus on the single most important message.
If the reporter had said, “Tell me in one sentence what you have achieved with respect to the mill rate,” you would easily have given him the few relevant facts in quotable form. And he would not have had the opportunity to pick and choose from much lengthier answers.
Good luck next time you get interviewed!
I think what might have bothered the reporter was your insistence that you had to be the contact person was because the group is “your” group rather than truly a democratic grassroots movement.