NEWINGTON - A few minutes after 8 p.m, when the polls closed for the Tuesday, Sept. 9, Town Hall renovation proposal referendum, the Newington Town Council was wrapping up its meeting with a much smaller crowd than it started with.

       John Bachand, one of a small handful of residents remaining in the Town Hall auditorium’s seats, took to the podium during the closing public comments segment to share what he had heard regarding what everyone else was waiting for word on: The results of the referendum, which would determine whether or not the town proceeds with a $30.3 million renovation of the existing municipal building while moving the Mortensen Community Center to a 1.6-acre parcel on the Willard Avenue side of Mill Pond Park.

       â€�"From what I heard, it’s six to one against,” Bachand said. â€�"It’s a total rumor, so take it with a grain of salt.”

       But over on Main Street at Vito’s of Newington, the celebration had already started. By 9 p.m., cars--a couple chalked with â€�"Save Mill Pond Park” and other slogans opposing the referendum--packed the pizzeria’s back parking lot.

       Inside, against the bar’s back wall, was a whiteboard displaying the number of ‘yes’ and ‘no’ votes for each of Newington’s eight districts--971 to 190 for District 1, 1,040 to 216 in District 2, and so on. In each one, the numbers were tilted overwhelmingly toward ‘no.’ The official count, as of Sept. 12, is 5,807 ‘no’ votes to 1,050 ‘yes’ ballots, according to the Newington town website.

       â€�"Power to the people!” one person at Vito’s shouted to a chorus of cheers in response.

       There was a lot more of that as residents who took part in the â€�"Save Mill Pond Park” campaign--as characterized by the title of the 1,500-plus member Facebook group--continued to pour into Vito’s.

       â€�"We’re proud of this grassroots endeavor,” said Newington resident Leigh Grande. â€�"It started with a group of people who just wanted to have their voices heard. We came together across political parties. The people have clearly decided that this vote was ‘no.’”

       The reasons have varied, and an exit poll being conducted by telephone in the days after the referendum will help zero in on the most prominent ones, but the main concerns expressed throughout the discussion have been regarding the preservation of Newington’s already scarce open space, as well as the project’s cost--if not now, then in later years as a more comprehensive plan for the Mill Pond Park area materializes.

       â€�"We have spoken,” said Newington resident Gary Bolles. â€�"I don’t know what they’re going to do, but we don’t want it in that park.”

       While opponents of the proposal were ecstatic, at least one proponent was relieved.

       â€�"Everybody accepts that it was a total landslide,” said Deputy Mayor and Project Building Committee Chair Clarke Castelle. â€�"And that’s a good thing. Now it’s easy to say we got it wrong and we have a much clearer idea of where to go from here. We’ll have to find a way to involve the public in a much more active role.”

       Castelle said that the nature of his own involvement is less clear to him.

       â€�"We’ll probably have to reconstitute the committee--I don’t know in which direction yet, but we’ll probably need new people with new ideas and perspectives,” he said. â€�"I’m not sure I should stay on as chair. I’d like to stay on the committee, because I think I can provide continuity and history.”