REGULAR MEETING MINUTES
Thursday, May 28, 2015 at 3:30 P.m.
1st Floor Conference Room, Town Hall
302 Main Street, Old Saybrook
I. CALL TO ORDER
Chairman Larry Ritzhaupt called the meeting to order at 3:35 p.m.
II. ROLL CALL
Members Present
Larry Ritzhaupt
John Donnelly
Tom Gezo
Janice Holland
Michael Momparler
Robert Yust
Douglas McCracken
William Webster
Absent Members
Steve Tagliatela
Jerry Brophy
Town Hall Staff Present
Sandy Prisloe, Environmental Planner
Christine Nelson, Town Planner
Kathleen Noyes, Recording Clerk
III. REGULAR BUSINESS
Committee members agreed to table the approval of the meeting minutes.
- Correspondence & Announcements
In place of the regular CC SLRCAC meeting on Thursday, June 11, 2015, Committee members will make a presentation of their findings and recommendations to Town Hall Department Heads.
Committee members have planned to make a presentation of their findings and recommendations to the public at the Pasbeshauke Pavilion on June 24, 2015 at 7:00 p.m. L. Ritzhaupt asked if the meeting could be changed to June 23, 2015 instead. Committee members agreed to this change.
D. McCracken offered to make a flyer for the CC SLRCAC event at the Pasbeshauke Pavilion. C. Nelson asked him for a final copy of the flyer by next week, so she can include it as an attachment with the invitation.
C. Nelson said she got a quote from the Old Saybrook High School’s catering service for refreshments for the event. The quote was $6.00 per person for coffee/tea and desserts. Committee members agreed to move forward with this and pay for it out of their budget.
C. Nelson asked Committee members about putting together a fact sheet for the event. T. Gezo offered to help put this together.
Because the CC SLRCAC is a part of the Conservation Commission, it was suggested that Walter Smith, Chairman of the Conservation Commission, give an introduction at the event on June 23, 2015. Committee members would also like First Selectman Carl Fortuna to attend the event and make some introductory comments. L. Ritzhaupt will contact both W. Smith and C. Fortuna.
M. Momparler received an e-mail from Emily Grochowski of the Conservation Commission inviting the CC SLRCAC to participate in their conservation workshop, Sunday, September 13, 2015 from 2:00 p.m.– 5:00 p.m. at the Parks and Recreation Building. There will be multiple participants. Committee members agreed to share their presentation at this event. W. Webster offered to participate in this community event as a resident of Fenwick to discuss their wildlife restoration project. He asked M. Momparler to forward E. Grochowski’s contact information.
L. Ritzhaupt suggested Committee members submit an article for the next Saybrook Events magazine. The deadline for submission is 6/3/15. They can discuss their report and update the community on what they’ve been working on including education and outreach. C. Nelson offered to write the article.
T. Gezo mentioned an article about the Solar Challenge he read in The Harbor News. He thought that the Solar Challenge event might give the CC SLRCAC an opportunity for education and outreach.
Stephen Mongillo from the Water Pollution Control Authority asked L. Ritzhaupt to distribute an article published by Save the Sound entitled, “Getting to a Healthy Long Island Sound: The Urgency of a New Regional Nitrogen Plan.”
IV. DISCUSSION
- Educational Strategies & Community Involvement
L. Ritzhaupt said he thinks the presentation will be composed of three parts: an introduction explaining why the SLRCAC was formed, an overview of sea Level Rise and climate change “Sea Level Rise 101” and then draft recommendations based on the committee’s review of current data. The amount of time for each section including questions and answers was discussed with the total presentation lasting about 90 minutes.
The questions that the Committee has been using as a guide from the beginning, “Where are we?”, “Where are we going?” and “How do we get there?” will be addressed.
Committee members would like to communicate to the public that they are not experts themselves, but they took time to learn more about this issue and they invited experts to come and talk with them to educate them. They are just residents themselves, not professional environmentalists.
Committee members would like to include suggestions for interested attendees on how they can be involved and engaged.
R. Yust will add approximately 20 photo slides to the presentation.
S. Prisloe will post the written power point slides for the presentation to a shared web site, so Committee members can make notes for suggested changes. Each section will have 2 power point slides.
V. ADJOURNMENT
The meeting was adjourned at 5:00 p.m. until the next regularly scheduled meeting of the Conservation Commission’s Sea Level Rise Climate Adaptation Committee on Thursday, June 11, 2015 at 3:30 p.m., Town Hall, 302 Main Street, and 1st Floor Conference Room.
Respectfully Submitted,
Kathleen Noyes, Recording Clerk
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