TOWN OF OLD LYME
BOARD OF SELECTMEN
MEETING MINUTES
The Board of Selectman held a Regular Meeting at 4:00 pm March 19, 2018 in the Meeting Hall of the Old Lyme Memorial Town Hall. First Selectman Bonnie Reemsnyder, Selectwoman Mary Jo Nosal and Selectman Chris Kerr were present.
5 March 2018 -Regular Meeting Minutes
A motion was made by Selectwoman Nosal, seconded by Selectman Kerr, to approve the minutes of the March 5, 2018 regular meeting. Motion passed.
2.Communication: None
3. Appointments:
Jean Wilczynski (D) – Pension Cte. 3 yr. term to Jan. ‘21
A motion was made by Selectwoman Nosal, seconded by Selectman Kerr, to appoint Jean Wilczynski to the Pension Cte. Motion passed.
Greg Futoma (D) – Open Space Comm. 3 yr. term to Jan. ‘20
A motion was made by Selectman Kerr, seconded by Selectwoman Nosal, to appoint Greg Futoma to the Open Space Cte. Motion passed.
Edie Twining (D) – Halls Road Improvements Cte.
Sabrina Foulke (D) – Halls Road Improvements Cte.
A motion was made by Selectwoman Nosal, seconded by Selectman Kerr, to appoint Edie Twining and Sabrina Foulke to the Halls Road Improvement Cte. Motion passed.
Andy Russell (R)– Police Services Option Cte.
A motion was made by Selectman Kerr, seconded by Selectwoman Nosal, to appoint Andy Russell to the Police Services Option Cte. Motion passed.
4. Old Business:
- Boathouse Hains Park Improvements Project
First Selectman Reemsnyder reported she had no update at this time.
- Rte. 156 Bikeway/Sound View Improvements
First Selectman Reemsnyder reported she has received the Certificate of compliance and will sign it and return. Selectwoman Nosal reported the Inspector has verified that all of the remaining work has been completed by the contractor. She also verified everything was completed. It is her understanding that once everything is signed and completed the State DOT will complete their walkthrough. First Selectman Reemsnyder added that Ed Adanti has also found everything to be in order and Public Works went down to tighten up some of the signs that were loose.
The BOS discussed possible dates for the Celebration and will look at May 4th around noontime, Selectwoman Nosal will check with the committee to see if this is ok with them and they will touch base at the next meeting.
First Selectman Reemsnyder reported the BOF had to cancel their last meeting due to the storm. At tomorrow night’s meeting they will be discussing the previous meeting agenda, there will also be a presentation on the Phoebe Griffin Noyes building renovation funding request, Capital Expense, Revenues, Abatements, and a presentation on the Halls Road Improvement Committee’s request for funding (Consultant & TIF District). She reported if they are able to get through all of the items on the agenda they will be able to determine if there will be an increase in the mill rate. She pointed out they have a couple of large expenditures this year, one being the Mile Creek Road bridge, half of which will be funded in next fiscal year, and repairs to the Lower Mill Pond Dam.
Selectwoman Nosal asked if the design they saw when last discussed will be the same. First Selectman Reemsnyder replied they are working on the details but the design is still relatively the same.
First Selectman Reemsnyder reported she has sent the comments and feedback to the Town Attorney. She has also had a conversation with him regarding the tone of the comments and the largest concerns being over reach of the Government, and the Open Space and Land Trust groups wanting conservation land to be totally exempt from the ordinance. He will review it and tweak the language to address the concerns and get it back to her. She will forward this onto the Selectmen once she receives it, so they can review it and decide how to go forward.
Selectwoman Nosal asked if First Selectman Reemsnyder could pass a copy of the comments onto the Sound View Commission. She will follow-up and get those to them.
- Police Services Options Committee
First Selectman Reemsnyder reported they had a meeting on March 6th. The committee began discussing a variety of options available to the Town of Old Lyme. One of the members of the committee shared a list of nine options, many of which are a reconfiguration of the number of Troopers, full-time & part-time local officers and collaborating with the Town of East Lyme. They will discuss each of the options and develop a pros and cons list for each. First Selectman Reemsnyder added she has submitted a copy of the draft proposal and costs from the Chief of Police for East Lyme for their review also.
The committee agreed they would like to meet with Michael Finklestein, Chief of Police from East Lyme to ask questions. First Selectman Reemsnyder has already reached out to him and he will be attending a future meeting to discuss with the committee and answer questions.
First Selectman Reemsnyder reported she has four people who have submitted their application forms. She gave a brief overview of “Sustainable CT Initiative”, some of the areas they can work on (9 Categories) to gain points and some of the area’s that they have already addressed including; LED street lights, having an Open Space Plan and the development of the Arts and Culture District.
She would like to appoint Louis Russo, Joe Camean, Jean Kilbride and Oliver Saracino to begin the Team and add additional members as she receives forms. She also feels they should not limit the number of members and instead look at what each member can bring to the Team.
A motion was made by Selectwoman Nosal, seconded by Selectman Kerr, to appoint Louis Russo, Joe Camean, Jean Kilbride, Oliver Saracino to the Sustainable CT Team. Motion passed.
First Selectman Reemsnyder will contact the members and schedule the first meeting.
5. New Business:
- Private Parking Lots – 2018 Permit Fees
First Selectman Reemsnyder began by giving an overview of how the fee for each private parking lot is calculated (#of spaces x $30/space = Fee) for permitted parking lots. They currently have nine permitted parking lots, one of which isowned by the Town of OL. They will be sending out the notices soon reminding them of the rules, asking for their layouts and the cost of the permit. She would like to hear from the Selectmen their thoughts on the current $30 per space fee or if they should look at increasing it. Each of the parking lots are required to post (provided by the Town) the rules. The BOS discussed the current range of costs being paid by private parking lots, the last time the cost was increased (5 years ago), possibly a percentage increase to assist with costs of maintenance for the port-a-potties, and the additional
support for summer troopers in the Sound View area.
She will try to get numbers from the Finance Dept. on parking costs and revenue over the last five years and they will discuss this further at the next meeting.
First Selectman Reemsnyder reported the MS4 draft plan has been posted on the Town Website for the last 30 days and she has received no responses yet. In response to Selectwoman Nosal’s questions at the last meeting, she has reviewed the draft again and will address her questions. She gave each of the Selectmen a copy of the draft and pointed out some of the tasks the BOS is responsible for accomplishing and where they are with each task including:
- Implementing Public Education and Outreach – There is a book available on the website and in the Selectman’s Office on Clean Waters & Fact Sheets (these are also posted on the website under News & Announcements).
- Addressing Education & Outreach for pollutants of concern (caring for your septic system, animal waste and water quality) – The Engineering Firm they are working with has provided fact sheets and these will also be posted on the Town website and alternating on News and Announcements.
- Public Involvement – The Plan has been posted on the website for public feedback.
- Illicit Discharge – Developing a plan for illicit discharge and a reporting form.
She also noted that some of the other areas have been addressed by Zoning, Land Use and Public Works including; developing a street sweeping program, catch basin cleaning program alternating every other year, infrastructure repair (ongoing), 2007 ordinance on storm water management will be amended if needed due to DEEP requirements.
She also added that the Engineer, Nathan L Jacobson has been working on this and is an expert in this field and continues to work with her to get all the items completed. After the 30 days, the draft plan will become official and a copy will be filed with DEEP. She asked the Selectmen to get back to her with any feedback they have and if they would like, she can invite the engineer to attend a meeting to answer any questions they have.
6. Public Comment: None
7. Other Business:
First Selectman Reemsnyder reported she has reached out to the officers at the Phoebe Griffin Noyes Library and suggested they begin to plan for public information sessions in the near future. She also submitted the questions Selectwoman Nosal had and just received an email today with the answers and she will forward this onto the Selectmen.
Selectwoman Nosal asked if there was any more information on bonding vs loans discussion. First Selectmen Reemsnyder replied they have received some numbers from Webster Bank, but thinks Bonding may be the better option as this enables them lower interest rates over a longer period of time.
She also reminded them that the Phoebe Griffin Noyes Library will be at the BOF meeting tomorrow night to give them their presentation.
First Selectman Reemsnyder reported the Building Official position posting closed on March 9th. They have received 17 applications and the committee is reviewing them to determine who they will be interviewing. She will keep the BOS updated on their progress
First Selectman Reemsnyder reported she has revisited the option to put security cameras down in the Sound View area. She spoke with Eversource and they can put the cameras on their poles, but they will be required to approve the specs of what is being installed and a surety bond. She has sent the specs sheet to Eversource and they have sent her the agreement. She received an updated quote (still under $11,000 and already in the budget) on 1 camera (1 pole) for the parking lot, 1 camera (1pole) that has three heads in a 90-degree angle. The cameras can record up to 30 days, have zoom review feature, remote wireless access and the data can be stored on a hard drive. She added that they will need to post signs alerting the public that the area is under surveillance. She is hoping they can have these in place before Memorial
Day.
Selectman Kerr asked if she had any update on the pump station lease agreement. First Selectman Reemsnyder replied she has reached out but has received no response.
Selectwoman Nosal asked if there was any update on the IT function. First Selectman Reemsnyder reported she has been looking into managed IT, she has met with or spoken with three different companies to compare what they offer.
She had a conversation with Cathy Frank (who handles current posting on the website), the BOF and their current consultant to begin the process to explore what the best model is for Old Lyme.
Selectwoman Nosal asked if First Selectman Reemsnyder could bring them up to speed on drinking water funding.
First Selectman Reemsnyder replied she would rather answer this with notes in front of her because this is very complex. She did briefly state that they were invited by the DWSRF to a meeting along with CT Water , DEEP Sanitation Engineer, to clearly understand where the need is for new piping, or expansion of service and what the costs are and to put a hold on the funds available through the State of CT so those projects can be accomplished as part of the sewer installations. In Sound View, the area they are addressing the need, is for replacement pipes and not expansion of services.
Selectwoman Nosal stated she heard that the DOT plans to pave Rt. 156 in 2019. She asked if she has any knowledge of this and asked if the committee needed to do anything to get the bike lanes added? First Selectman Reemsnyder replied that she expects DOT will reach out to notify them about this work and when they do she will share the bike paths with them then.
Selectwoman Nosal shared that there is a meeting tonight at 7:00pm at the Middle School to educate parents and students regarding Vaping.
8. Executive Session: None
9. Adjournment:
A motion was made by Selectman Kerr, seconded by Selectwoman Nosal, to adjourn at 5:24 pm. Motion passed.
Respectfully submitted,
Patti Broedlin
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