TOWN OF OLD LYME
Board of Selectman
Regular Meeting Minutes
October 3, 2016
The Board of Selectman held a Regular Meeting at 7:30pm on October 3, 2016 in the Meeting Hall of the Old Lyme Memorial town Hall. First Selectman Reemsnyder, Selectwoman Mary Jo Nosal and Selectman Skip Sibley were present.
September 19, 2016
A motion was made by Selectman Sibley, seconded by Selectwoman Nosal, to approve the minutes of the September 19, 2016 Meeting Minutes. Motion passed.
A motion was made by Selectman Sibley, seconded by Selectwoman Nosal, to move item 5 a) up on the agenda. Motion passed.
5. a) Appointments to OLFD/EMS Pension Cte.
First Selectman Reemsnyder reminded the BOS she had sent the draft charge to the Committee and has not heard anything back and believes that the draft was acceptable. She did receive a list of people they would like to appoint to this committee and she has only received two forms so far. She gave an over view of the appointments including the Finance Director and herself as First Selectman. It is the consensus of the BOS to officially form this committee and make appointments at this meeting. They discussed the terms and agreed that one from each organization would be appointed for a two year term and each trustee would be appointed to a three year term. Thereafter, appointments would be for three year terms. The term of the First Selectman would coincide with her/his term and the Finance
Director’s term would be a defacto appointment. First Selectman Reemsnyder will have letters sent to everyone notifying them of their appointments. This will be a permanent committee starting immediately.
A motion was made by Selectman Sibley, seconded by Selectwoman Nosal, to appoint Arthur "Skip" Beebe, and Barbara Rozanski, to the OLFD/EMS Committee for a 3 yr. term ending Jan. 2019. Motion passed.
A motion was made by Selectwoman Nosal, seconded by Selectman Sibley, to appoint Richard Colangeli and Doris Coleman, to the OLFD/EMS Committee for a 2 yr. term ending Jan. 2018. Motion passed.
Other discussion included; Skip Beebe raised the question of who would break a tie in a vote should this occur. First Selectman Reemsnyder stated the Chairman of a Board or the First Selectman often only votes to break a tie and this is something the committee can review and decide. Skip Beebe reported everything is currently going smoothly and they are working on clearing up some paperwork confusion and the performance evaluation of the Plan Administrator.
- Communication: None
- Appointments: None
- Old Business:
- Boathouse Hains Park Improvements
First Selectman Reemsnyder reported the first requisition has been approved and the first check was sent out to Scope Construction. The committee hoped to have a meeting on Monday or Tuesday, but had to reschedule their meeting to Thursday at 6pm because they did not have a quorum. There are more change orders due to a change in the column sizes and removal of a drain found when they removed the slab. They will bring the change orders to the BOS for approval. They want to move on these quickly to avoid any delays.
Selectman Sibley reported the foundation walls have been poured and they are working on removing the drainage to prepare for the slab. They are moving ahead and updating the town map with these changes. First Selectman Reemsnyder added Paul Gianquinto has been working with the construction company on the costs of the change orders.
Selectman Sibley requested the BOS add the BHP Fundraising committee to the agenda so he could give an update on the event held on Friday night.
A motion was made by Selectman Sibley, seconded by Selectwoman Nosal, to add item f) Boathouse Hains Park Fundraising Committee, to the agenda under Old Business. Motion passed.
- Rte. 156 Bikeway/Sound View Improvements
First Selectman Reemsnyder reported they had a meeting last week where they reviewed documents, and addressed any loose questions, reviewed the preconstruction meeting minutes, and how the DOT and WMC will be managing change orders. B&W is on standby awaiting the arrival of materials and the catch basins that needed to be special ordered, and they are planning to begin work on or around October 10th. The Ground Breaking Ceremony took place at 10:30 this morning at the flag pole on Hartford Ave. The BOS, BSC, B&W, WMC, DOT, and committee members were present for the ceremony. The next committee meeting is scheduled for Oct. 24th at 4:30pm at the Town Hall. Once the project officially starts, there will be weekly meetings of the inspectors, contractors and PW
Supervisor for updates. Minutes of these meetings will be made available and shared with the Committee. B&W anticipates once the project begins it will move fairly quickly and they don’t anticipate any issues because they are not digging very deeply. Selectwoman Nosal noted they had been advised to video tape the existing conditions and that has been done. A copy has been sent to BSC group and a copy is on file in Town Hall should any concerns arise.
- Administrative Order/WPCA Update
First Selectman Reemsnyder reported she had received a phone call from Carlos Esguerra from CT DEEP to let her know he has been reviewing the scope of work from Woodard and Curran for the work on the well evaluation for Hawks Nest Beach and she expects to hear from him later this week. The WPCA meets next week so they will be able to discuss and respond to the comments at their meeting.
First Selectman Reemsnyder gave an update on the outstanding invoices from 2015; she requested that Woodard and Curran resubmit them itemized descriptions of the work completed. These have been received and forwarded onto DEEP. She asked DEEP about the scope of work that was completed and for an opinion on what was reasonable and if it is eligible for clean water funds. She has not heard back from them yet.
Selectwoman Nosal asked for an update on the Private Beach Associations discussions with New London. First Selectman Reemsnyder reported it is her understanding that they are very close to an agreement with East Lyme and New London WPCA’s; everyone seems to be on the same page. She noted the private beach associations did submit a non-refundable check for $10,000 requested from the New London WPCA to continue negotiations.
- Special Town Meeting – Sept. 27, 2016 – recap
First Selectman Reemsnyder gave a recap of the Sept. 27th Town Meeting. There were approximately 200 residents in attendance. The CALL included:
- Approval on Sound View Improvements construction total of $911,100- that is to accommodate the $34,000 increase. They did approve the original $877,000and the Town Attorney agreed the additional $34,000 should be approved at a Town Meeting. It is important to note that the increase is due to the bids coming in higher than expected and the additional required contingency. Approved by a vote of 102-74.
- Joining Ledge Light Health District – Steve Mansfield was out of town, but his Finance Director presented at the Town Meeting. Approved by a vote of 82-79 in favor. There are a few items she will be following up on including; giving the legal notice, providing them with the official signed Town Meeting minutes to the Department of Public Health, and sign the agreement with LLHD based on the agreement previously discussed with them.
- Utility/Access easement in Hains Park-There was actually two items: 1. The Ingress/egress Easements in Hains Park for three properties and 2. A well and septic system easement for one property. Both were approved unanimously.
The BOS also discussed the current legislation going forward in Hartford right now to mandate towns to join health districts. This would allow the state to dictate what percentage towns would pay into Health Districts and possibly which district they would join. First Selectman Reemsnyder pointed out that CCM is looking into this and has a meeting scheduled with the Health Department Commissioner to discuss the legislation.
They are glad they have been proactive with joining Ledge Light Health District and will be represented on their board and in part of the decisions on the future costs. LLHD is very efficient, has good management, and takes advantage of the many grants available to provide excellent resources to their members.
The detailed minutes of the Town Meeting can be found on the town website.
- Hains Park Boathouse Fundraising Committee
First Selectman Reemsnyder reported she has not had a chance to meet with the Finance Director to see if there is specific language she would like added but will do so. The BOS discussed the start and end dates of the committee and agreed it would start now and end in a year and the committee would be made up of five members.
Selectman Sibley reported that there was an event sponsored by the Old Lyme Rowing Association and hosted by a town resident. There were about 60 people present at the event and they raised some money that evening.
- Appointments to OLFD/EMS Pension Cte- moved up on the agenda
- No Smoking Policy Request
First Selectman Reemsnyder reviewed the beginning discussion from the last meeting and asked for thoughts from the BOS. She would like to see them seriously consider having a no smoking policy on public parks and beaches and possibly banning smoking within 50 feet from town buildings. Selectwoman Nosal has reviewed the examples of policies and ordinances and feels if they are going to establish something they should include all public town areas including vehicles. She preferred the policies over the ordinances and feels if they are going to do it they should go all the way. Selectman Sibley agrees with Selectwoman Nosal and thinks if they are going to do this they should ban smoking entirely on town property. He does feel that there should be consideration for designated smoking areas for the
Town Hall and Public Works Departments for employees. The BOS agrees there should be no smoking at public parks and beaches. They will investigate further regarding the 50 feet from the building vs the designated smoking areas and what other towns are doing. They will continue to look into this and discuss further.
First Selectman Reemsnyder gave a brief update; she has spoken with Richard from Tanko lighting to see if it was possible to do just an area of lighting and he said they did pilot projects all the time. They can work within our budget; we currently have $5,000 in the budget for street light replacement. He suggested doing an area using two different manufacturers and two different heating levels; residential and commercial so people can see the differences. First Selectman Reemsnyder has arranged to have a conference call with Tim Griswold and Chris Kerr so they can decide on an area for the pilot project. This will give people a chance to see the difference and assist them in making a decision on which type of lighting to go forward with.
- New Social Services Coordinator
First Selectman Reemsnyder reported on the New Social Services Coordinator for Old Lyme. The committee has completed the interview process and has offered the position to Jennifer Datum a resident of the Town of Old Lyme. She has accepted the position and will begin this week. Her references were very good and she came highly recommended. Her strengths noted during the reference checks included good organizational skills, decision making skills; she is very compassionate and will be a great addition to the Town.
- Public Comment: None
- Other Business:
First Selectman Reemsnyder wished the former Director of the Phoebe Griffin Noyes Library, Mary Fiorelli well wishes in her retirement. She has been with the library for sixteen years and has done a phenomenal job.
First Selectman Reemsnyder added that the “Bound for the Sound” event was held down on Hartford Ave, which is the LOL Education Fundraiser which includes a 5k, 10k and fun run. It was a very crowded, busy, high energy and successful event. She thanks the LOL Education Foundation, public works and police for all of their hard work and their help with coordinating the event.
First Selectman Reemsnyder added thanks to Cathy Frank as she has provided the Selectmen with a copy of the openings for Boards and Commissions; they will be making appointments in December for those appointments expiring in January. Cathy has put together a copy of the letter going out to each of the Board/Commission Chairs reminding them whose terms are expiring and a list of vacancies. It was noted that the Ethics Commission is highlighted in yellow because the BOS does not approve those appointments, the Commission makes appointments themselves.
Selectman Sibley asked for an update on the Lease agreement between the Town and District 18. Parks & Rec and the Treasurer have expressed interest in how that will be framed. He was a little surprised at the last Leadership meeting the Superintendent wasn’t aware of any of the concerns that they had. First Selectman Reemsnyder replied she met with Ian Neviaser a little over a week ago and he reiterated what had been said at an earlier meeting, and he was caught off guard at the Leadership meeting. They reviewed the lease and the email from Bob Dunn and he doesn’t have any problems with the suggestions and he would like to mirror what has been happening. They will take responsibility for maintenance and improvements. The lease will clearly reflect that and some of Bob Dunn’s concerns have
already been addressed. This will be reviewed by the Town Attorney to determine where the wording should be changed. She will update the changes made with Bob Dunn as soon as she can.
Selectwoman Nosal requested they add a plan for the financial review to the next agenda. Specifically to identify the key policies that keep coming up during audits. If the Finance Director can provide them with a list they could begin by addressing those.
- Executive Session: None
- Adjournment:
A motion was made by Selectman Sibley, seconded by Selectwoman Nosal, to adjourn at 8:35pm. Motion passed.
Respectfully Submitted by,
Patti Broedlin
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