Town of East Hampton
Town Council Regular Meeting
Tuesday, March 24, 2009
East Hampton High School Library
Minutes
Present: Chairperson Melissa Engel, Vice Chairman Thomas Cordeiro and members, William Devine, Christopher Goff, Scott Minnick and John Tuttle. Also present were Town Manager Jeffery O’Keefe, Recording Secretary Cathy Sirois, members of Boards and Commissions, citizens and members of the press.
Not Present: Council Member Susan Weintraub
Call to Order and Pledge of Allegiance: Chairperson Engel called the regular meeting to order at 6:40 p.m. All stood to recite the Pledge of Allegiance.
Approval of Minutes:
A motion was made by Mr. Goff, seconded by Mr. Cordeiro, to approve the minutes of the Town Council Public Hearing of March 10, 2009 and the Town Council Regular Meeting of March 10, 2009 as written. Voted (5-0-1) Mr. Devine abstained as he was not present at the Public Hearing.
Student Reports:
Brandon Goff, Middle School liaison, reported on the following:
- Tryouts for baseball and softball have concluded.
- Twenty 7th grade students attended a Diversity Program at Wesleyan University.
- There will be a 7th and 8th grade dance in April.
- The 8th grade semi formal will be held in late spring.
Erik Harper, High School liaison, reported the following:
- East Hampton High School hosted a Red Cross Blood Drive, put on by the Student Council. Many students helped the Red Cross nurses by escorting the blood donors to the area that supplied juice and snacks, as well as helping carry the blood bags. Many students and teachers donated blood to the cause.
- Spring sports started for Boys and Girls track and field, golf, tennis and baseball/softball.
- The Vice Principal, Paul Brenton, is moving on to a principle job at a different High School.
- The High School Model United Nations group participated in a conference at the University of Massachusetts at Amherst. The conference went well and everyone had a good time. Four members won awards for their excellence in committee. Three Honorable Delegates were Dylan Bonoff, Ryan Rubega and Audrey Saunders and one Best Delegate was Erik Harper.
- The Interact Club will be holding the spring fling for senior citizens on April 25th.
- There was a Junior Prom fashion show in March which allowed prom businesses to advertise their products as well as give seniors, juniors and their parents a look at this year’s fashions for the upcoming prom.
Special Presentations: Facilities Presentation by Friar Associates
Ms. Engel introduced Mike Sorano of Friar Associates who has been working with the Facilities Task Force to identify the top priority projects from the original Facilities Committee. The three top priorities are the High School science labs and technology infrastructure, moving Center School to the Memorial School property and renovating the existing Center School building to become the Town Hall. A referendum date for this project has not been set. Mike Sorano walked through a PowerPoint presentation on the project. The PowerPoint slides will be available on the town website.
Public Remarks:
Don Coolican, 13 West Lane and Board of Education member, commented that the vote on the project for Center School was 5-3. He feels that 1100 children in one location is too many. He also commented on the amount of lab space at the High School and the cost of the High School renovations
Alice Stelzer, 5 Waterview Circle, commented that she is surprised that the student enrollment is not going up with all of the construction that has occurred in town.
Sal Nucifora, Colchester Avenue, asked if the previous bond has been paid for prior renovations. Mr. Jyllka noted that it will be paid off before construction starts.
Laurie Wasilewski, Hog Hill Road, asked what the total length of time it will take to complete the entire project and if the economy and price of goods and labor has been computed in the numbers. Ms. Engel noted that it will be a 3 year project. Brian Solywoda of Friar Associates noted that escalations have been calculated into the cost.
Cynthia Abraham, 47 Clark Hill Road, commented that she would find it very shocking if design through construction would take only 3 years. Ms. Engel noted that two of the projects could be done at the same time.
New Business: None
Old (Continued) Business: None
Report of the Town Manager: None
Appointments: None
Liaison Reports:
Mr. Tuttle reported that there is another requirement for the Clean Energy 20% by 2010 campaign. The town is required to participate in the New England Community Energy Challenge. A motion was made by Mr. Devine, seconded by Mr. Goff, to authorize Jeffery O’Keefe to sign a letter to the EPA committing East Hampton as an EPA Energy Star partner. Voted (6-0).
The Water Development Task Force is working on land procurement.
Resolutions/Ordinances/Policies/Proclamations:
Approve Police Policy for Notification in Death Related Events: A motion was made by Mr. Devine, seconded by Mr. Tuttle, to approve the policy for notification in death related events. Voted (6-0).
Financial Transactions: None
Tax Refunds:
A motion was made by Mr. Goff, seconded by Mr. Cordeiro, to approve tax refunds in the amount of $1,300.20. Voted (6-0).
Bids and Contracts:
Hazardous Materials Removal/Building Demolition and Exterior Improvements/Asbestos Removal at the Fire Pump building at 3 Walnut Avenue. Due to the deadline for utilizing the remainder of the grant funds, it is requested that the contacts be pre-approved for the lowest qualified bidder. A motion was made by Mr. Cordeiro, seconded by Mr. Devine, to pre-approve the contracts for the lowest qualified bidder for the hazardous materials removal/building demolition and the exterior improvements/asbestos removal at the fire pump building at 3 Walnut Avenue. Voted (6-0).
Communications and Announcements:
Mr. Cordeiro announced that he has secured a high school student, Taylor Casey, to sing the National Anthem at the World War II Veteran’s Ceremony on May 9th. The Town Manager’s office will send her a letter with all of the details of the event.
Coming Up:
The Mother Board meeting is scheduled for Tuesday, March 31st.
The CDBG Public Hearing will be held on Tuesday, April 14th.
Public Remarks:
Scott Sanicki, 102 Quiet Woods Road, commented on section 2 of the Plan of Conservation and Development and noted that the items listed such as tax rate, Lake Pocotopaug, the library and road improvements should be a priority before other items in the budget.
Laurie Wasilewski, Hog Hill Road, asked if there were any plans to provide training for chairpersons relating to the characteristics of a chairperson listed in the report from Eckman Consulting. Mr. O’Keefe reported that there will be training and implementation of the recommendations from the report.
Reserved: None
Adjournment:
A motion was made by Mr. Devine, seconded by Mr. Goff, to adjourn the meeting at 7:40 p.m. Voted (6-0).
Respectfully submitted,
Cathy Sirois
Recording Secretary
| 
