Old Lyme Board of Selectmen
Regular Meeting: Monday, 3 January 2011
The Board of Selectmen held a Regular Meeting at 7:30 PM on Monday, 3 January 2011 in the Meeting Hall of the Old Lyme Memorial Town Hall. First Selectman Timothy Griswold, Selectman Skip Sibley and Selectwoman Bonnie Reemsnyder were present.
1. Approval of Minutes: 20 December 2010
Selectman Sibley moved to accept the minutes of 20 December 2010, and Selectwoman Reemsnyder seconded the motion. SO VOTED.
2. Communications – NONE
3. Appointments – Review of January Appointments
The Selectmen were given a handout with the proposed appointments for various Boards and Commissions. The January appointments will be voted on at the next Selectmen's meeting. There are still vacancies and First Selectman Griswold reminded residents that would like to be considered for an appointment to a Town Board or Commission to fill out a form which is available on the Town's website or at the Town Hall. A chart will be posted on the Town's website showing all vacancies.
4. Old Business
a. Discussion about the Single Stream Cart Purchase
There were three different styles of 95 gallon carts on display in the Meeting Hall. The Town has obtained bids from the three vendors. The bids include the cost of the carts, transporting the carts to Town, assembling the carts, distribution of the carts to residents, and keeping an inventory of the carts. The vendor will be selected at the next Selectmen's meeting. The carts will be ordered this month, with distribution in April.
Selectman Sibley asked if labels could be affixed to the carts listing what type of materials could be placed in the carts. First Selectmen Griswold stated that there will be information distributed with the carts listing what materials may be recycled.
b. Formation of the Organic Pesticide Committee
First Selectman Griswold stated that he has spoken to Don Bugbee, Director of Parks and Recreation, George James, Lauralyn Lewis, Rob Linde, Phil Neaton and Ron Tyler (who would serve as an ex-officio member) about serving on the Organic Pesticide Committee. Possibly the Parks and Recreation Director from Lyme (Jason Thornton) should be included on this Committee. Selectman Sibley suggested that John Rhodes, Facilities Director from District #18, should be considered to serve on the Committee as an ex-officio member. This group will meet next Wednesday as a "meet and greet" to get started.
5. New Business
a. The Blizzard of 2010
First Selectman Griswold reported that there was not much snow, but lots of wind damage from the storm on December 26. An e-mail was received from CL&P stating that 1,000 customers had lost power in Old Lyme during the storm. Twenty medical calls were addressed. The Public Works Department did an excellent job dealing with the storm damage and CL&P restored electricity to residents quickly.
b. New Town Hall Phone System Installed
First Selectmen Griswold reported that the new phone system has been installed in the Town Hall.
c. Renewal of Operation and Maintenance Agreement for the Septage Facility
First Selectman Griswold stated that there is a Septage Facility in Town which is operated by Shoreline Sanitation. A number of years ago the Town entered into an Operation and Management Agreement (“Agreement”) and a Lease for the facility. Both documents have technically expired. The Board of Selectmen will review the Agreement and Lease and act upon them at the next Selectmen's Meeting.
d. Renewal of the Lease with Gouvna Group, LLC for the Septage Facility
Included in discussion under item 5c.
e. Town Audit – FY 2010
First Selectmen Griswold reported that the Town Audit for Fiscal Year 2010 was presented to the Board of Finance at its last meeting. The audit showed that the Town had a very good year. The Undesignated Surplus Fund stands at a little under $3,500,000 and that equates to 11.17% of the Fiscal Year 2010 operating budget. The rating agencies like to see anywhere from 5-15%. The auditor stated that 11.17% was a very good number. In addition, the Town has nearly $700,000 in its Land Acquisition Fund, over $300,000 in its Revaluation Fund, over $200,000 in its Firefighters' Equipment Fund and over $800,000 in its Landfill Closure Fund. These funds enable the Town to pay for large expenses without having to distort the budget or borrow money.
The actual revenues were greater than budgeted ($256,372), and the expenses were less than budgeted ($534,605). Therefore, the undesignated surplus increased $790,977.
First Selectman Griswold reported that the tax collection rate for FY10 was 97.75% which is a slight drop from last year’s rate of 98.73%. This a consequence of the poor economy. This does not mean that the Town is losing tax dollars, only that they were not collected on time. The Town charges 18% interest on amounts that are not paid on time and this interest will represent revenue in the year it is collected. Selectwoman Reemsnyder stated that, due to the systems that Finance Director Nicole Stajduhar had implemented, the Town's financials are in excellent order and this makes the audits run more smoothly.
First Selectmen Griswold stated that the Annual Town Meeting will be on Monday, 24 January at 7:30 PM in the Middle School. Included in the agenda will be the acceptance of the Town Report from the Board of Finance and designation of the Town's Citizen of the Year.
6. Public Comment - NONE
7. Other Business – NONE
The next Board of Selectmen's meeting will be held on Tuesday, 18 January at 4:00 PM in the Meeting Hall of the Old Lyme Town Hall.
8. Adjournment
Selectman Sibley moved to adjourn the meeting at 8:08 PM, and Selectwoman Reemsnyder seconded the motion. SO VOTED.
Respectfully submitted, ~
Mary Ellen Garbarino
Recording Secretary
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