TOWN OF OLD LYME
BOARD OF SELECTMEN
MEETING MINUTES
The Board of Selectmen held a Regular Meeting at 4:00 pm on April 15, 2019 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.
1 April 2019 -Regular Meeting Minutes
A motion was made by Selectwoman Nosal, seconded by Selectman Kerr, to approve the April 1, 2019 Regular meeting minutes. Motion passed.
1 April 2019 -Special Meeting Minutes
A motion was made by Selectman Kerr, seconded by Selectwoman Nosal, to approve the April 1, 2019 Special meeting minutes. Motion passed.
- Communication: None
- Appointments:
Peter Hunt (D) – Board of Assessment Appeals, alternate – 2 yr. term exp. Jan. 2020
A motion was made by Selectwoman Nosal, seconded by Selectman Kerr, to appoint Peter Hunt to the Board of Assessment appeals. Motion passed.
Baylee Drown (U) – Regional Agricultural Council – 6 yr. term exp. Jan. 2025
First Selectman Reemsnyder gave an overview of the Regional Agricultural Council and added that although Baylee Drown was not a resident of Old Lyme, she does have a working organic farm in Old Lyme. The BOS agreed it was a good idea to have Baylee serve on the council and report back to them, so they can become more familiar with the council.
A motion was made by Selectman Kerr, seconded by Selectwoman Nosal, to appoint Baylee Drown to the Regional Agricultural Council. Motion passed.
James Birge (U) – WPCA, alternate – 4 yr. term exp. Jan. 2021
A motion was made by Selectwoman Nosal, seconded by Selectman Kerr, to appoint James Birge to the WPCA as an alternate. Motion passed.
- Old Business:
- Project Updates
- Hains Park Bathrooms Committee
First Selectman Reemsnyder reported they are still working on signing the agreement with the architect and will update the selectmen at the next meeting.
- MC and Grassy Hill Road Bridges
First Selectman Reemsnyder reported she had no update on the Grassy Hill Road Bridge at this time. Regarding the Mile Creek Road Bridge, she reminded the selectmen of their conversation at the last meeting and reported after speaking with the engineer they agree it is best to reject all of the bids and go out to bid again. They are working on getting the bid documents together and will be re-advertising again soon.
- Community Connectivity Grant
First Selectman Reemsnyder reported the Community Connectivity Grant Committee held their first meeting on April 2nd. They began with introductions, reviewed the charge of the committee and began discussing the project, why they were doing it and the next steps. She also added that Selectwoman Nosal was elected secretary and their next meeting is scheduled for April 23rd.
- Lyme Academy College of Fine Arts
First Selectman Reemsnyder reported that she had a meeting with Steve Tagliatelle, the Chairman of the Lyme Academy Board and Bob Potter, Board member and gave the selectmen an overview of the meeting. One of the main points discussed was how they can re-engage with the Town and get their financial assistance and support. She let them know that most importantly they need to communicate with the BOS and BOF to help them understand what the plan is for going forward before they would be able to bring any funding to a Town Meeting.
Regarding the second payment due to the College the BOS agree that the second payment should be made and recommend it be made to the College after the disassociation with the University of New Haven occurs on May 28th. The BOS would like to see the second payment go towards the Lyme transition fund.
- FY 2020 Budget hearing tonight
First Selectman Reemsnyder reminded everyone the FY 2020 budget hearing is tonight at 7:30 pm in the Town Hall Meeting Hall. There will be a presentation and discussion on the challenges faced by the Town this year.
- Update on Municipal Training workshop
First Selectman Reemsnyder reported the Municipal Training workshop was held on April 10th and they had approximately 30 - 40 attendees with good representation from all of the Boards and Commissions. Members from the CT Economic Resource Center (CERC) gave a good presentation with a lot of information and data. There was a lot of good discussion and the acknowledgement that the low number of commercial/industrial property in Old Lyme does not help with mitigating the property tax burden on residents. First Selectman Reemsnyder added this was a great segway for the upcoming SWOT (Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats) Analysis Training.
- Solid Waste Ordinance Amendments – Public Hearing update
First Selectman Reemsnyder reported the public hearing was held last Tuesday night, April 9th and there were about 7 residents in attendance for the hearing. They provided a power point presentation on the cell tower lease and its changes along with a section by section review of the solid waste ordinance amendments.
- Special Town Meeting April 16th
- Citizen of the Year – Postponed to the May 20th meeting.
Cell Tower Lease
Amendments to Solid Waste Ordinance
First Selectman Reemsnyder reported that the announcement for the Citizen of the Year Award will need to be postponed to the May 20th meeting. The Cell Tower Lease and the Amendments to the Solid Waste Ordinance will remain on the agenda for the meeting tomorrow night.
5. New Business:
- Haulers Registration Form
First Selectman Reemsnyder began by reminding the selectmen it is a state statute that all solid waste/single stream haulers who come into Old Lyme must register with the Town. After reviewing forms from a couple of other towns, she developed a draft for Old Lyme. The BOS discussed the form, being able to enforce recycle containers are available for businesses/commercial properties and the option of a registration fee. Following their discussion, the BOS agreed on the draft form with a few minor wording changes and further agree on charging a $0 registration fee for this year.
A motion was made by Selectwoman Nosal, seconded by Selectman Kerr, to approve the draft registration form. Motion passed.
A motion was made by Selectwoman Nosal, seconded by Selectman Kerr, to set a fee of $0.00 for hauler registrations. Motion passed.
- Discussion on Town Owned Property
First Selectman Reemsnyder reported it was brought to her attention that the Town owns a lot due to a recent foreclosure, which is assessed for $51,100. It cost the Town $8,000 in legal fees for the foreclosure. She recommends selling the property and putting the money back into the Town. She also shared information on additional parcels of land owned by the Town. She gave the selectmen a packet of the properties and they discussed the individual properties and lots. They also discussed the possibility of residents who neighbor the smaller lots being interested in purchasing them as well as working with HOPE to see if the property or lots could be utilized for affordable housing. First Selectman Reemsnyder will reach out to the residents and HOPE to see if there is any interest in the property or lots and report back to the BOS.
- Neighborhood Assistance Act – applicants
First Selectman Reemsnyder reminded the selectmen that they had set a tentative date of May 20th at 3:30pm for the hearing. She reported that Cathy has reached out to both the Lyme Art Association and the Florence Griswold Museum with the date. In addition, they may have a third applicant, LEARN and she will make sure they are aware of the hearing date and recommends they make the May 20th date official.
A motion was made by Selectwoman Nosal, seconded by Selectman Kerr, to schedule the public hearing for May 20th at 3:30pm in the Meeting Hall of Town Hall. Motion passed.
6. Public Comment: None
7. Other Business:
Selectwoman Nosal asked for an update on the confusion for the beach pass notice on news and announcements. First Selectman Reemsnyder replied there was some confusion on the cost of the additional passes, but this has been clarified. She also added that people have already begun registering and have heard some good comments about going to tags and being able to move them from car to car.
8. Executive Session: None
9. Adjournment:
A motion was made by Selectwoman Nosal, seconded by Selectman Kerr, to adjourn at 4:49pm. Motion passed.
Respectfully submitted,
Patti Broedlin
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