Fairfield County Business Journal 032315

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FAIRFIELD COUNTY

BUSINESS JOURNAL March 23, 2015 | VOL. 51, No. 12

22 | GOOD THINGS HAPPENING

5 | BIT BY BIT

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MAYOR LAUDS CITY’S PROGRESS BRBC CHIEF: BRIDGEPORT IS AT ‘MILESTONE MOMENT’ BY BILL FALLON bfallon@westfairinc.com BRIDGEPORT MAYOR BILL FINCH OFFERED an upbeat assessment of the city recently — “We’re creating jobs; we’re growing businesses” — before a full-house crowd of 300 at the Bridgeport Regional Business Council and Bridgeport Regional Chamber of Commerce Mayor’s Annual Address to the Business Community at the Bridgeport Holiday Inn & Conference Center on Main Street. Paul Timpanelli, president and CEO of the regional business council, said this was his 26th mayor’s address. He said the city’s progress across the last three to

Bridgeport Mayor Bill Finch. Photo by Bill Fallon

four years “has placed us at a milestone moment in its history.” “For the business community, it’s an opportunity to hear from the mayor and to hear him define the city’s progress,” Timpanelli said. “As the business community goes, so goes the city.” Finch drew sustained applause at four points during the address, including when he said, “After decades of broken promises, construction is finally happening at Steel Point. Starbucks, Bass Pro Shops and Chipotle are all slated to open this fall.” Maureen Hanley-Bellitto, senior vice president and commercial team leader for United » BRIDGEPORT, page 8

Bo knows security Wilton business preaches preparedness

BY EVAN FALLOR evan@westfairinc.com BO MITCHELL, FOUNDER AND PRESIDENT of Wilton-based 911 Consulting, knew even before he completed his 16-year tenure as Wilton police commissioner in February 2001 that he wanted to continue protecting people — specifically where they work. On the force, he had seen much to mold his

concerns, including business break-ins, workplace violence, fights and other serious threats at area schools. Mitchell discovered businesses, schools and other workplaces did not have contingency plans for such emergencies and he devised a business model to remedy that perceived lack of preparedness. Immediately after he retired from the force, Mitchell, now 67, founded 911 Consulting, an

emergency preparedness company operating out of Mitchell Park on Indian Hill Road. A sole proprietor, Mitchell set out to prepare workplaces for the possibilities of fire, chemical spill, weather disaster, shooting or other unforeseen circumstances. In early 2001, Mitchell discovered that for a number of reasons — including practicality, cost and lack of awareness — corporations were not » SECURITY, page 4

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