Minutes of the Regular Meeting of the Legislative Council
Held in the Board Room in the Newtown Municipal Center,
3 Primrose Street, Newtown, Connecticut
Wednesday, August 18, 2010
Chairman Jeffrey Capeci called the meeting to order at 7:33 pm.
PRESENT: George Ferguson III, Chris LaRocque, Benjamin Spragg, James Belden, Daniel Amaral, Jan Andras, Gary Davis, Richard Woycik, Mary Ann Jacob, and Chairman Jeffrey Capeci
ABSENT: Kevin Fitzgerald
ALSO PRESENT: First Selectman Patricia Llodra, Finance Director Bob Tait, Superintendent of Schools Janet Robinson, Board of Education Chairman William Hart, Jr., 8 members of the public and 2 members of the press.
NEW BUSINESS:
Discussion and possible action on: Fill District I Council seat vacated by John Aurelia, Sr. –
Mr. Ferguson moved to appoint Robert Merola of 22 Ashford Lane to fill the council seat vacated by John Aurelia, Sr. Ms. Andras seconded and following a brief discussion Republicans unanimously approved the motion.
Mr. Ferguson noted that Mr. Aurelia had served the Council well and was happy that a candidate of his nature surfaced again. He noted that Mr. Merola was interested in serving and given his level of interest would be an ideal candidate.
According to Chairman Capeci, the Charter dictates that the parting member of the Council chooses a candidate and in this case - as Mr. Aurelia was Republican - only Republicans can vote.
Mr. Amaral strongly recommended Mr. Merola and emphasized that the candidate had a strong interest in Newtown.
Following the vote, Ann Benore, a member of the Town Clerks Office, officially swore Mr. Merola in much to the satisfaction of those present at the evenings meeting.
VOTER PARTICIPATION: none
APPROVAL of the MINUTES of the regular meetings July 21, 2010:
Mrs. Jacob moved to approve the minutes of the regular meeting July 21, 2010 as corrected. Mr. Belden seconded and the motion was approved. Mr. Davis and Chairman Capeci abstained as they were not present at the July 21 meeting.
Corrections:
Mrs. Jacob noted on Page 2, Committee Reports, under Education Committee, the Board of Education Chairman’s name is Lillian Bittman not Elaine Bittman.
Mr. Ferguson indicated on Page 2, Committee Reports, under Ordinance Committee, the ordinance name is Child Protection Ordinance not Sexual Offenders Ordinance.
COMMUNICATIONS:
Chairman Capeci announced that Bob Geckle had left his post as Chairman of the Fairfield Hills Authority.
COMMITTEE REPORTS:
Ordinance Committee – Chair Ferguson reported that the Ordinance Committee had a meeting but had taken no action. He told the Council that committee members took their first look at trying to form a fund for medical insurance.
- Child Protection Ordinance – Mr. Ferguson noted that the committee has to get further clarification from the Police Chief
- Conservation Easement – The Chair noted that they brought the ordinance before the Commission
- Fire Safety Ordinance – Mr. Ferguson indicated that the ordinance had been sent to the Town Attorney for legal review.
Mrs. Llodra asked the Chair if when the committee reviews how the insurance self funding is managed, will they be able to provide input and Mr. Ferguson said yes.
Finance Committee – Chairman Spragg reported that the Committee has met on August 10, 2010 and took up the CIP Administrative Guidelines. He indicated they had talked about section of CIP that established rules for Legislative Council procedures basically putting the CIP in a procedural language. The Chairman noted that the committee was still discussing a Bi-Annual CIP and stated that they wanted to invite Board of Finance Chairman John Kortze in to talk about it.
FIRST SELECTMAN’S REPORT:
Mrs. Llodra reported that she had a number of items for the Council.
- United Water – In regards to the situation with United Water, the First Selectman said there will be a hearing – probably the finale hearing on Tuesday, August 24, 2010 in New Britain. Mrs. Llodra informed the Council that the Town of Brookfield had put forth a proposal that the DPUC consider an alternative that would involve a local water source. She indicated Town officials were in favor of that and added that at the very least it would delay a finding in favor of United Water. Mrs. Llodra said they would really like them to reverse the order and approve the plan set forth by Brookfield. The First Selectman emphasized that the Town is dedicated to the protection of the Pootatuck River. Related to that, Mrs. Llodra said the Town was seeking legal counsel other than from the Town Attorney. She noted they have been
using Attorney Jim Rice and noted that costs up to this point have been in excess of $35,000. Mrs. Llodra concluded that the Town needs to invest in resources necessary to reach a favorable conclusion.
- Land Transfer – Mrs. Llodra said she wants the Council to move on the land transfer for the proposed future site of the new Canine Facility. She said she arranged to meet with Russell Bartley and wants to make sure the property is free of any contaminants. Finally, the First Selectman told the Council she hopes that when they go to bonding, the bonding for animal control is with that.
Chairman Capeci asked Mrs. Llodra how they could move it along and Mrs. Llodra said she will give Mr. Bartley a couple of dates and noted that the process will take some time.
Mr. Belden offered his help and assistance.
Mr. Davis suggested that it would be helpful to have an update of the costs.
- Federal Stimulus Money – The First Selectman reported that reams of paperwork have been completed regarding the stimulus money for road work. She added that the Federal process is quite daunting, but said they got through it and are spending the money on improvements to Castle Hill and Castle Meadow Roads.
- Permits - Mrs. Llodra said they took in fees of $20,000 with a value of $1,768,903 for July 2009 and took in $35,299. 21 – 153 permits - with a value of $5,276,176 for July 2010. She added that they have budgeted $375,000 for fiscal year 2010/2011.
Mr. Ferguson questioned whether or not the number for July 2009 was very low and felt they should look at the numbers from 2008, 2009 and 2010 to see where they are at.
Looking at what the budget amount is, Mr. Woycik asked if they were taking into account some fluctuation from month to month. Mr. Tait said they were only looking at one month but could definitely extrapolate it.
- CIP Worksheets – The First Selectman said she had received some feedback initially from the CIP worksheets she handed out at the past Council meeting and figured that since she had not heard anything more they were ready to move forward.
Mr. Davis asked Mrs. Llodra for a copy since he was not at the last Council meeting.
UNFINISHED BUSINESS:
Discussion and possible action on: Superintendent of School’s report on the status of efforts to combine school and town functions –
According to Dr. Robinson, some questions have arisen regarding the status of collaborative planning. She told the commission that she has met with Mrs. Llodra, Mr. Tait and Schools Director of Business Ronald Bienkowski. The Superintendent noted they are doing a lot of work and there are a lot of complexities in the way they do the work and added that for each item they are doing a study. Dr. Robinson emphasized they have a good communication going on.
Mrs. Llodra told the Council she knows they are serious about combining this and emphasized they are a team of four people working with the best effort for the good of the Town.
Mrs. Jacob indicated that this is great and that she knows it’s a huge project. She asked where they were in regards to obtaining a consultant.
Dr. Robinson responded that they are at a very early stage with this and that there is not one time line. She indicated that different operations will have different time lines and noted that some could be months down the road and others years. The Superintendent concluded that his is not a commitment that there will be consolidation, but rather they are looking to see if it is a wise thing to do.
Mr. Davis suggested they look to include the online and social media in these discussions. He commended the efforts of the four-person team. Mr. Davis suggested that the idea of a shared communication system should move along the fastest, adding he hoped it would be done in time for the next budget cycle. Dr. Robinson said that she at Mrs. Llodra had had a similar conversation earlier.
Mr. Amaral emphasized that he would like to see the two different computer systems – Town and Schools – rolled into one. Dr. Robinson said that part will be the most complex of the research they conduct.
Mr. Woycik asked Dr. Robinson and Mrs. Llodra if they had prioritized any of these activities and ID any that could benefit the Town in short period of time. Mrs. Llodra said no, but that they would address that in follow-up conversations.
Mr. Merola said he realizes it’s difficult to put a timeline on it and asked if it would be possible to put a timeline together in 3 categories – short term, mid-term and long term. He added that he believed some could be done in less than two years. Mrs. Llodra responded that some would be easier to achieve than others. In regards to a timeline, she added they will have to create a framework.
Mr. Ferguson complimented both Mrs. Llodra and Dr. Robinson and thinks the list they presented to the Council was excellent. He noted that it was not just a cost savings, but a process of improvements.
Mr. Spragg suggested that the Town’s Director of Technology Scott Sharlow and Schools Director of Technology Carmella Amodeo be included as part of the research team.
Chairman Capeci said he would be happy to have more of them working on this. Finally, the Superintendent said that the last two falls she has come to the Council to do a state of the School District. She asked them if they would like her to do it again this year. She noted that they will be posting a summary of Dr. Chung’s study of enrollment online.
Mrs. Jacob suggested the Council have Dr. Chung come in to talk to them or even to the Education Committee.
Chairman Capeci thanked Dr. Robinson and Mr. Hart for coming to the meeting.
Discussion and possible action on: Charter Charge Committee –
As the charter charge was “hot off the press”, Chairman Capeci asked that the Council take a five minute recess to review the charge to be adopted.
Ms. Andras moved to adopt the Charter Revision Commission charge dated August 18, 2010 as presented by the Charter Charge Committee. Mr. Spragg seconded the motion.
According to Chair of the Charter Charge Committee Ms. Andras, they had several suggestions and unanimously agreed to have something in place before the next budget referendum.
Mrs. Jacob thanked the committee and noted that people have opinions about bifurcated budgets and charter revisions. She added that this choice is something “we’ have to make.
As part of the charge the commission is asked to consider the following issues and recommendations:
- Sec. 6-14 (a.) - Consider including the requirement for a bifurcated budget, to include separate ballot questions for the Board of Selectmen budget and the Board of Education budget.
- Sec. 6-14 or 6-15 – Consider including non-binding advisory questions as to whether a negative vote is due to the budget being too high or too low.
- Sec. 6-14 – Consider a budget ballot requiring each voter to (a) approve the budget, or (b) reject the budget because it is too high, or (c) reject the budget because it is too low. One choice only. Advisory questions not necessary.
Mr. Spragg questioned if you consider third question you don’t need advisory questions. He added that the Council won’t need all three approved but will be considering them.
Mr. Davis stressed that he knows the speed required to approve them. He said he had a question regarding #3. Is the intent of the charge if voted against because the budget is too low it would be a binding question to the Council? Ms. Andras said yes.
Mr. Ferguson thought question 2 would be broader and said this type of question narrows it down to a very specific type of question. He added that he thinks questions #2 and #3 are mutually exclusive.
According to Mr. Woycik, the decision is ultimately up to the charter revision commission.
Chairman Capeci had a few points. First he was wondering if they need to specify if acting on bifurcated budget or single budget. Second, he asked that if an advisory question is not allowed should they say “Binding Council to do as voters ask”?
Mr. Davis agreed with Mr. Capeci that they should put that the intent of this is “binding”.
Chairman Capeci suggested they ask specifically, “Should this be binding?”
Mr. Spragg noted that the third question considers the budget. He added that the ballot could be considered binding or not and said why not let the commission consider both.
Mr. Belden said he agreed with Mr. Spragg. He noted that as they looked at going through the selection process they wanted to consider how everyone else does it - binding or not binding. Mr. Belden said he sees the interest to make it clear, but feels it will make it more difficult. Chairman Capeci said that’s fine.
Ultimately, Council members agreed that the three choices were up to the new commission and not for Council to deliberate or decide on at this time.
The motion adopt the charge was unanimously approved in a roll call vote.
Discussion and possible action on: Charter Selection Committee –
Mr. Belden moved that a Charter Revision Commission of the Town of Newtown consist of seven voting members and that the following seven citizens of Newtown be appointed as members of said commission: Robert Duero, John Godin, Joe Golden, William Lavery, Eric Paradis, Peter Spanedda and Carey Schierloh. Mrs. Jacob seconded.
According to Mr. Belden, the Charter Selection Committee conducted an efficient interview process working initially with a list of 15 candidates and narrowing it down to just 7. He added that the committee determined that 7 was the best number and came up with a good mix of parties. Mr. Belden noted that the 7 candidates provided a good mix of skills and personalities.
Mrs. Jacob stated that they worked really well as a team and they had to make their determination based on State Statutes. She added that no one has the majority at all. Mrs. Jacob said she was proud of everyone who came forward.
The motion was unanimously approved in roll call vote.
Discussion and possible action on: Creation of a Charter Revision Commission -
Mrs. Jacob moved to create a Charter Revision Commission in accordance with CT General Statutes and the Charter of The Town of Newtown Consisting of seven members Robert Duero, John Godin, Joe Golden, William Lavery, Eric Paradis, Peter Spanedda and Carey Schierloh and charged dated August 18, 2010 as presented by the Charter Charge Committee as adopted by the Legislative Council. Ms. Andras seconded and the motion was unanimously carried in a roll call vote.
Discussion and possible action on: Approval of Draft Investment Policy –
Mr. Spragg moved that the Legislative Council adopt the Refund Investment Policy as approved by the Board of Finance and amended by the Finance Chairman. Mr. Ferguson seconded and after a very brief discussion the motion was unanimously carried.
Mr. Spragg said the Finance Committee received the investment policy that was put together by Mr. Tait. According to Mr. Spragg, the committee needed some clarification regarding the funds in the policy and cleared up some of the wording.
Mr. Ferguson said the policy was very well thought out and was a very conservative investment policy.
Chairman Capeci asked why the Pension Fund was excluded from the investment policy. Mr. Spragg responded that the Pension Fund gets into stocks and mutual funds. Mr. Tait added that these are operational funds – dormant funds.
Discussion and possible action on: The question whether it is appropriate for the Fairfield Hills Authority and Selectmen to enter into negative leases without following the special appropriation procedure in the Town Charter –
Mr. Spragg moved to refer the Amendment to Chapter 523 of the code of the Town of Newtown, the Ordinance Establishing the Fairfield Hills Authority, to the Ordinance Committee. Mr. Woycik seconded and the motion was unanimously approved following a brief discussion.
According to Mr. Spragg, a reference was made as to whether or not it was appropriate for the Board of Selectmen and Fairfield Hills Authority to enter into Negative Leases, the committee in short said its not. He noted that the solution was to amend FHH Authorities powers and duties.
VOTER PARTICIPATION: none
ANNOUNCEMENTS:
Chairman Capeci reported that over the summer the teachers and administrators contract would be negotiated. He said he had asked Mr. Woycik to participate and said the negotiations will be ongoing until October.
According to Mr. Woycik, he will be more informed and able to better provide them with information following their next meeting on the August 23, 2010.
ADJOURNMENT:
Mr. Davis moved to adjourn the meeting at 9:16 pm. Mr. LaRocque seconded and the motion was unanimously approved.
Ted Swigart, Clerk
* Minutes are not finalized until approved at the next regularly scheduled meeting.
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