Groton Town Hall, where all the property tax money goes, is just a two-mile drive from City Hall in the city of Groton, but officials in the two buildings are not getting along.
In fact, Monday night, the city council passed a resolution to seek "financial independence," with some councilmembers calling for outright secession.
Mayor Marian Galbraith, head of the city government, is exploring the city's options after the town council cut her request for funding by $830,000. She'll certainly take the matter to mediation, as she did two years ago, but said she wants a longer-term solution.
"There are so many things that the town and city should be working on jointly that it makes it very difficult to move ahead with those things, when there's this issue between us," Galbraith said.
Groton Town's population of more than 40,000 includes the city, as well as Noank, Groton Long Point and Mystic west of the river.
But the city has nearly 10,000 residents. They depend on the town government for funding for roads and police under the legislature's special act of 1904, which establishes the dependent city government.
"The city always seems to get cut back all the time. The city does have Pfizer's and EB, which are two of the biggest taxpayers, so you would think the city should have more," said Groton City resident Linda Landry.
"Where it's gonna go will depend on politics, and who's in charge," said Groton Town resident Nelson Harris said.
