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Board of Selectmen Minutes 08/17/2009
Old Lyme Board of Selectmen
Regular Meeting Monday, August 17, 2009

The Board of Selectmen held a regular meeting at 7:30 P.M. on Monday, August 17, 2009 in the Meeting Hall at the Old Lyme Memorial Town Hall. First Selectman Timothy Griswold, Selectman Skip Sibley and Selectwoman Bonnie Reemsnyder were present.

1.  Approval of Minutes: 3 August 2009 (Regular)
The minutes of the regular meeting on August 3 were reviewed. Selectman Sibley moved to accept the minutes as presented. Selectwoman Reemsnyder seconded the motion. SO VOTED.

MOTION: Selectwoman Reemsnyder made a motion, seconded by Selectman Sibley, to add the Eklund Property Boundary proposal to the agenda. SO VOTED.

2. Eklund Property Boundary – Angus MacDonald
Tom Metcalf, Town Engineer, recommends the Town accept the proposal subject to some conditions: the road should be 4 rods (66 feet) wide.  There is a 3ft diameter well tile on proposed Lot #1 and Mr. Metcalf wants to make sure it’s not encroaching on the proposed boundary line.  There is an old stone foundation on Lot #2 that is over the line and he recommends there be an easement.  The Town should have the boundary of the Eklund property on the north side of the street identified. The future owner of Lot #2 will need a driveway permit to obtain access to the lot. The property owners of the proposed subdivision should also be responsible for maintaining the stone wall.
The Town’s attorney will need to clarify a few points before the Selectmen approve the proposal.  The matter will then go before the Planning Commission at its next meeting on Sept. 10. The Board of Selectmen meets on Sept. 8 so all points should be handled by the attorneys before that.

3. Communications
        a. CRRA – Old Lyme to Host Ash Landfill?
The CRRA sent all the towns in Connecticut letters asking if any would be willing to host an ash landfill. The proposal to site the ash landfill in a gravel pit in Franklin was voted down by the Franklin voters at a town referendum, however the DEP will have the final say about any location. The ash landfill would bring in over $1 million to the host town. Selectman Griswold drafted the following letter in response:
        “Mr. Kirk: Thank you for your letter of August 5, 2009, in which you asked if the Town of Old Lyme would be interested in hosting an ash landfill for CRRA.  I presented this proposal to the Board of Selectmen. The Board is unanimous in its opinion that the Town of Old Lyme should not host the ash landfill. The Board believes this would be inconsistent with the Town’s plan of conservation and development. While such a landfill would produce significant income, the impact of such an operation on the rural character of Old Lyme would not be an acceptable trade-off. On behalf of the Board of Selectmen I thank you for providing us the opportunity to consider the proposal. The Selectmen believe the state of Connecticut must develop an ash landfill within Connecticut in order to save its residents between $7 and $9 per ton in ash disposal costs. We appreciate the proactive approach CRRA has taken to come up with a solution. We are hopeful that a CRRA ash landfill site will be approved in the near future.”

There was a discussion about the ash landfill, Selectman Sibley and Selectwoman Reemsnyder agreed that it should not be in Old Lyme, and approved of Selectman Griswold’s letter.

        b. Susan Woody – Donation of Painting
Mrs. Susan Woody generously donated a painting by Mary Connors titled “Sterling City Road in Lyme” to the Town Hall collection. Betty Chamberlain, a member of the Town Hall Building Committee, has been asked to decide where the painting should hang.

        c. Mark Lander – Thanks to Public Works
Mark Lander wrote a letter thanking the Public Works Dept. for quickly fixing a fence near Rogers Lake dam.

4. Appointments: None
                
5. Old Business:
        a. Bus Barn Project – Update on Discussions with District 18
Selectman Griswold had a discussion with the school Superintendant and Susan Fogliano, Chairman of the Board of Education, about extending the commitment to park buses at the Four Mile River Rd. facility for a period longer than 10 years, as agreed by the Bd. of Education last November. The Superintendent and Mrs. Fogliano both felt that the arrangement approved by the Board should stand, keeping the 10 year commitment with rent at $50,000. They agreed the bus barn site was the best location for the buses and will speak in favor of it at the Town Meeting.
Selectman Sibley stated that it would be a good idea to get some sort of commitment to extend the term well before the end of the 10 year term.

        b. Church Corner Project – Update
The project was scheduled to start this Monday, after the contractor finished another job. Selectman Griswold will call the contractor and find out what is causing the delay.

        c. Public Works Garage Renovation – Update
There will be a meeting this Wednesday at 9 a.m. with Delta Building Co. to discuss the project. The 45 day project should be finished in October if it starts at the beginning of September.

        d. Town Hall Renovation Project – Update
There will be a meeting with the architect’s representative, the Clerk of the Works, the engineering consultant and the HVAC person to talk about some issues with the HVAC system. The architect’s rep will separately update the punch list and price things that need to be completed as well as list/cost out the disputed items (photovoltaic’s, etc). The Town’s lawyer has drafted a letter to send to the bonding company which will be a notice of the contractor’s default. It will put the contractor on notice that these items are long overdue. The letter should go out this week.
        
6. New Business:
        a. Acceptance of Briar Hill Drive (to Town Meeting)
Although Briar Hill Drive was built in the 1970s, it was never officially accepted as a town road because the town never received the deed from the owners (the Highland Corp). Now the town has the deed, but needs to find out if the road was officially approved at a Town Meeting, contingent upon receipt of the deed. If so, nothing more needs to be done. Otherwise the road needs to be accepted at a Town Meeting.

        b. Special Town Meeting – 7:30 PM Monday 24 Aug 09 Middle School
A Special Town Meeting has been set for Monday, August 24, 2009 at 7:30 PM at the Middle School. Items on the agenda will include:
  • Bus Barn Appropriation of $675,000
  • Amendment to Building on Unaccepted Roads Ordinance
  • Acceptance of Briar Hill Drive as a Town road (possible)
MOTION: Selectwoman Reemsnyder made a motion, seconded by Selectman Sibley, to have a Special Town Meeting on August 24 at 7:30 PM at the Middle School. SO VOTED.

        c. Old Lyme Designated as a Preserve America Community
Old Lyme has been approved as a Preserve America Community, one of 11 communities in CT, (and 760 in the U. S.) to receive this designation.  The Historic District Commission applied for the designation to recognize Old Lyme’s commitment to preserving its history and to make additional grant funds available to the town.
The Preserve America Community program recognizes communities that:
  • protect and celebrate their heritage
  • use their historic assets for economic development and community revitalization
  • encourage people to experience and appreciate local historic resources through education and heritage tourism programs
Old Lyme’s Historic District (listed on the National Register of Historic Places) was established in 1971 and is the oldest in our regional planning area.  The town has made this commitment to protect and celebrate its heritage. This can be seen at the annual Memorial Day parade and the Midsummer Festival, and in the activities and programs of the town’s Historic District Commission, the Florence Griswold Museum and the Lyme Historical Society, the Old Lyme Historical Society, The Old Lyme Art Alliance, the Lyme Academy College of Fine Arts, and the Lyme Art Association.
Benefits of designation include:
  • White House recognition;
  • a certificate of recognition;
  • a Preserve America Community road sign;
  • eligibility for Preserve America grants ($20,000 - $250,000 with cash or in-kind match)
  • authorization to use the Preserve America logo on signs, flags, banners, and promotional materials;
  • listing in a Web-based Preserve America Community directory;
  • national and regional press releases; and
  • enhanced community visibility and pride
        g. Stoneleigh Knoll Drive area – Drainage Issues
A meeting was held to discuss the drainage problems in the Stoneleigh Knoll Drive area, which is very flat. Water does not drain properly and residents have problems with water ponding in the area. The drainage system that was put in place 50-60 years ago when there were very few houses but it is not working well now. The drainage system will be evaluated to see what is causing the problem.

        h. Thomas Heinssen – Sworn in as 5th Police Officer
Thomas Heinssen was sworn in as the town’s 5th Police Officer on August 11th. He will be starting in mid-September, after completing some course work and receiving his POSTC certification. He retired from the State Police on June 30th and has worked in Old Lyme as out Trooper Sergeant in the past.

        i. The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society – Walk Proclamation
The Leukemia and Lymphoma Society will be having a fund raising walk in Waterford on Wednesday, September 30, at Harkness Park. The Town of Old Lyme will designate September, 2009, as Leukemia, Lymphoma and Melanoma awareness month via a proclamation. Blood cancers currently afflict more than 900,000 Americans with an estimated 138,000 new cases diagnosed each year. Leukemia, Lymphoma and Melanoma will kill an estimated 53,000 people in the United States this year.

7. Public Comment: None
Mr. Bill Foland expressed his frustration at the lack of information on various town building projects. He would like the town and the Board of Selectmen to provide more information and oversight on the projects. He commented on the problems the town has had with the Town Hall Renovation Project. He also wanted to know where the money needed for the Bus Barn is coming from and stated that he will ask about it at the upcoming Town Meeting.

Troy Flemming of Portland Ave. wants to operate a golf cart in Sound View (on town roads). Selectman Griswold replied that the Town may authorize the use golf carts on town roads with speed limits of 25 MPH or less, but the town and the state police are concerned about the safety of using the carts on the roads in the Sound View area because of the traffic congestion, especially on the weekends. There has been talk about a registration process to help define and clarify the situation. The town will be working with the State Police to re-evaluate the situation and address safety issues.

Andrea Flemming also talked about the rules for using golf carts. She wants to drop off family members at the beach and has had problems. She asked about using town alleys rather than the streets and using the town parking lot.  

Russ Carlo asked about the dunes that had been bulldozed near Sound View because he is very concerned about the fragile environment there. Selectman Griswold replied that he had spoken with Ann Brown, ZEO, who said that the DEP does not have jurisdiction over the dunes. Right now, the town does not have jurisdiction over them either. However, when the new flood maps of the area are created, she said the town will have jurisdiction over them. Right now there is nothing the town or the DEP can do.

Bill Foland commented on the beach buggy/golf cart problems in Sound View.  He asked about the authority structure of the police in town. Selectman Griswold stated that the town police are supervised by the State Police.

8. Other Business:
Selectwoman Reemsnyder stated that she visited the Sound View area and saw that there are fences that are below the high water mark that extend into the water, thereby blocking access. She stated that the situation should be checked and letters sent to the beach associations responsibl,e asking them to remove the fences.

9. Adjournment:
Selectman Sibley moved, Selectwoman Reemsnyder seconded, to adjourn the meeting at 8:48 PM. SO VOTED.


Respectfully submitted,  


Martha Hansen
Recording Secretary