February 14, 2013
Colchester Digs Out
It’s been almost a week since the blizzard struck, and Colchester fared very well. We were very fortunate that no power outages occurred. Many of our neighboring towns to the south suffered significant power outages which increased the severity of their situation.
Colchester has over 100 miles of roads spread over nearly 50 square miles. Approximately three feet of snow was dumped on us in a 24 hour period. You can imagine the challenge our public works crew had on their hands. When so much snow falls in short time span, the plows can no longer keep up. Except for some time to sleep occasionally, the team worked nonstop for three days to open, clear, and widen the roads.
After the roads were opened, the concentration was on improving sight lines at intersections, clearing catch basins, and digging out fire hydrants. The job took several days after the storm and is still ongoing. I want to thank everyone for their patience while we cleaned up from this historic snowfall.
I also want to thank the public works employees and contractors for all their hard work. They all worked for days with little sleep to open the roads as soon as possible. We ordinarily have 14 plow routes in town, each assigned to a single plow truck. For this storm, trucks had to work together and with payloaders to clear roads and move snow. It was a challenge and our team answered when called!
The CHFD also deserves a lot of thanks. We all know about the baby they helped deliver during the blizzard, but they also responded to many other calls in challenging conditions. They had to deal with heart problems, falls, motor vehicle accidents, and structure fires. As usual, the department was there when residents needed them.
A disaster declaration was approved for the response to the blizzard. That will likely mean that we will receive significant reimbursement for the most expensive 48 hours of our response. Unfortunately, we’ve be getting good at working with FEMA from past weather events and I look forward to working with them again to maximize our reimbursement.
Budget Process
Soon, I will present my proposed budget for the next fiscal year. As always, this is the start of a process of many meetings, public hearings, and votes that will shape the budget for next year. I have yet to finalize my proposal, but I am working with all departments to ensure the needs of the town are met.
As budget meetings are announced, I urge all residents to stay involved and rely on accurate information. Too often, false claims are made about budget proposals or inaccurate data is thrown around. Residents should always feel welcome to contact myself or other elected officials for answers to their questions. After all, our goal is put forward a budget that is reflective of the community.
Sincerely,
Gregg Schuster
First Selectman
Previous Selectman Notes can be viewed at
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