Malloy Visits Middletown - Again

Just two days after holding his last town meeting here on the budget Gov. Dannel P. Malloy returned to Middletown on Thursday morning, his 100th day in office, to tour a stone fabrication and design center and meet with the business’s owners.

Malloy spent about an hour at the Galleria Design Center on Middle Street, touring the facility with owners Roseann Martorelli Alwang and her brother, Gennaro Martorelli.

The visit and tour were arranged by Malloy's office and are part of his ongoing effort to meet with small business owners across the state to gauge how they are faring in the tough economy and assess how the state can help them.

After touring the Martorelli’s huge design center, the owners led Malloy into the equally large fabrication center at the back of the facility where workers cut and prepare slabs of granite, marble and other exotic stones for use in homes and businesses.

Gennaro Martorelli told the governor his company is gearing up to start producing concrete countertops through a special process that would make the material look like more-expensive stone but would be sold at a less-expensive price. Currently, most concrete counters are poured on site and generally require extra under-counter support because they are heavy. His company’s product, Martorelli said, would be lighter.

That innovation piqued Malloy’s interest. He told the brother and sister that such a product could help them corner the concrete countertop market.

He also met privately with the company’s owners for about 15 minutes to discuss some of the concerns that brought him here.

Roseann Martorelli Alwang said one of the things she and her brother wanted to talk with the governor about is the issue of some competitors who sell and install stone countertops without charging taxes.  She and her brother have sought to resolve the issue with state officials, to no avail.

Malloy, she said, assured her he would speak with the commissioner of the state’s Department of Revenue Services to get the issue resolved.

At the end of the tour Malloy met and spoke briefly with about two dozen workers. He told them his visit to businesses like the Galleria has encouraged him that the state’s economy is strong and rebounding from the recession.

“I’m more confident of the future now than when I first became governor.”

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