MINUTES
CITY COUNCIL & WPC AUTHORITY
OCTOBER 17, 2005
A REGULAR MEETING of the City Council & WPC Authority was held on Monday, October 17, 2005, in the Council Chambers.
Those in attendance included Mayor Owen J. Quinn, Jr., City Councilors Thomas C. Jerram, Paul F. Samele, Jr., Marie P. Soliani, James F. McKenna, Paul W. Summers, and Drake L. Waldron, Corp. Counsel Albert Vasko, Comptroller Alice Proulx, City Engineer Edward Fabbri, Purchasing Agent Charlene Antonelli, Zoning & Inland Wetlands Enforcement Officer Kimberly Barbieri, Police Chief Robert Milano, Traffic Officer Robert Shopey, Economic Development Coordinator Christina Emery, and Secretary to the Mayor Maurette Meyer.
Mayor Quinn called the meeting to order at 6:35 p.m.
Mayor Quinn called for a moment of silence for the passing of former Mayor, Hodges Waldron.
CERTIFICATES OF APPRECIATION #020
On a motion by Councilor Jerram, seconded by Councilor McKenna, the Council voted unanimously to award Certificates of Appreciation to student interns.
Mayor Quinn indicated that a small pizza party had just been given in honor of five student interns who earned academic credits for the work they performed in several city offices during the summer months. He recognized Jo An Cracco for organizing the program.
The students who were given Certificates of Appreciation included the following:
Jason Carmignani, who worked in Inland Wetlands
Amanda Good, who worked in the Traffic Division of the Police Department
Colin Good, who worked in the Mayor’s Office
Gillian Barbieri, who worked in the City Clerk’s Office
Peter Lee, who worked in the Building Department
Mayor Quinn and the City Council congratulated the interns for doing a great job in volunteering their time to the city.
OPEN TO THE PUBLIC ##580
On a motion by Councilor Jerram, seconded by Councilor Samele, the Council voted unanimously to open the meeting to the public.
Paul Ruzbasan, 476 Litchfield Street, expressed his concern over the fact that his neighbor dug a ditch and diverted water over a three foot wall onto his property. He further stated that he filed a complaint with the former Building Inspector, Frank Cardello, who had allegedly notified his neighbor that he couldn’t divert water onto another person’s property. Mr. Ruzbasan asked if the city had an ordinance to protect a landowner in such an instance.
Mayor Quinn informed Mr. Ruzbasan that the city had no such ordinance; however, no one should be doing such a thing. He also informed him that Mr. Cardello had since retired and been replaced with a new Building Inspector, Brett Zuraitis, whom he would confer with about the situation.
Joseph Friscia, 2600 Torringford West Street, introduced himself as a proposed member of the new Conservation Commission, and thanked the administration for taking a pro-active approach in keeping the City of Torrington the place to live.
UPDATE: BLIGHTED PROPERTIES #870
On a motion by Councilor Waldron, seconded by Councilor Summers, the Council voted unanimously to review the update of blighted properties: 10 Highland Ave. & 117 Water St. (Visconti and Laliberti, respectively.)
Chief of Staff, David Rivera, stated that the Mayor’s Office received a letter from Mr. Laliberte stating that he could not be present at this meeting and would be available for the next Council meeting or the one after that.
Mayor Quinn and Zoning & Inland Wetlands Enforcement Officer Kimberly Barbieri informed the Council that Mr. Visconti had changed all of his phones, and that the only two sides of the house that are visible from the road have been sided. Mrs. Barbieri indicated that sending him certified mail would be the next step. Mayor Quinn stated that a follow up would take place during the next meeting.
CONSERVATION COMMISSION APPOINTMENTS #920
On a motion by Councilor Jerram, seconded by Councilor Waldron, the Council voted unanimously to appoint the following members to the newly reinstated Conservation Commission.
The names include the following: Rick Bette (IW Liaison), Butch Klug, Elmer Patrick, Linda Beyus, Bill Haygood, Maurette Meyers, and Joseph Friscia.
A & E AUTO SERVICE, INC. #1025
On a motion by Councilor Samele, seconded by Councilor Waldron, the Council voted unanimously to accept the Board of Safety’s recommendation to award the bid to repair the Fire Department ladder truck, to the low bidder, A & E Auto Service Inc, of Wolcott, CT for $16,150.00.
INTERSTATE FORD #1045
On a motion by Councilor McKenna, seconded by Councilor Jerram, the
Council voted unanimously to accept the Purchasing Agent’s recommendation to award the bid to replace the pick up truck for the Park and Recreation Department to the low bidder, Interstate Ford, of Hartford, CT.
QUARTERLY TRANSFERS #1055
On a motion by Councilor Summers, seconded by Councilor Soliani, the Council voted unanimously to accept the quarterly transfer request from Comptroller, Alice Proulx, and referred it to the Board of Finance.
W. W. MANCHESTER #1100
On a motion by Councilor Summers, seconded by Councilor Soliani, the Council voted unanimously to authorize the payment of $50,000.00 from Sanitary Sewers Capitol Improvement Fund to W.W. Manchester Construction Co., Inc. for work on the Brass Mill Dam Sanitary Sewer Extension.
TORRINGFORD SCHOOL BUILDING PAYMENTS #1110
On a motion by Councilor Jerram, seconded by Councilor Waldron, the Council voted unanimously to authorize the following payments from the Torringford School Building Fund #314:
Company Invoice # Description Amount
Friar Asso., Inc. 26 Contract Admin. $ 15,691.00
O & G Ind., Inc. 15 Services thru 8/31/05 $445,933.00
Unicom 96400 Patch Cable $ 146.56
Unicom 96401 Cisco Smartnet Maint. $ 808.99
Unicom 96549 Patch Cable, switch ports$ 23,321.66
Unicom 96552 Network Adapter $ 9,863.04
Unicom 96994 Patch Cable $ 111.77
Enviro Science 4 Project Monitoring $ 10,722.00
INSALCO Corp 1 Furniture $ 4,372.21
Krueger Int’l, Inc 1 Furniture $105,712.73
Enviro Science 5 Project Monitoring $ 2,766.00
Councilor McKenna inquired about possible problems with leaky roofs.
Mayor Quinn said he had heard about some problems they were dealing with but didn’t know the extent of the matter. He would look into it.
SECTION B #1145
On a motion by Councilor McKenna, seconded by Councilor Summers, the Council voted unanimously to consider business in Section B.
ATLAS COMPANIES #1150
On a motion by Councilor Summers, seconded by Councilor McKenna, the Council voted unanimously to accept the purchasing agent’s recommendation to award the bid for Guide Rail Installation to the low bidder, Atlas Companies, a division of PGP Group, LLC Branford, CT for $46,903.50.
CONSERVATION COMMISSION #1230
On a motion by Councilor McKenna, seconded by Councilor Jerram, the Council voted unanimously to approve $700.00 from Contingency to use as start up funds for the Conservation Commission, and referred it to the Board of Finance.
TRANSFER FUNDS #1240
On a motion by Councilor Summers, seconded by Councilor Waldron, the Council voted unanimously to approve the transfer of $10,000.00 from 10-47-5651 Contingency to 10-26-5245 City Hall Building Maintenance for pending work including asbestos abatement, investigate recent roof leaks, roof repairs, and on-going building maintenance and referred it to the Board of Finance.
Mayor Quinn stated that funds had been budgeted for City Hall maintenance to take care of fire safety and American Disability issues; however, additional funds were necessary to take care of asbestos problems and a leaky roof.
BUILDING DEPT. REPORT #1310
On a motion by Councilor Jerram, seconded by Councilor Summers, the Council voted unanimously to accept the Building Department Report for September 2005.
BUS: DEPT HEADS #1315
On a motion by Councilor Jerram, seconded by Councilor Waldron, the Council voted unanimously to consider business presented by Department Heads.
Zoning & Inland Wetlands Enforcement Officer Kimberly Barbieri thanked the Council for their support toward the new Conservation Commission. They would come back before the Council in the near future to get their input concerning the Commission’s direction and goal.
BUS: MAYOR & MEMBERS #1360
On a motion by Councilor McKenna, seconded by Councilor Summers, the Council voted unanimously to consider business presented by Mayor Quinn and members of the City Council.
Councilor Waldron thanked everyone for all the support and condolences he and his family received in the passing of his father, former Mayor Hodges Waldron, and thanked the Police and Fire Departments for providing the honor guard and police escort.
Councilor Jerram inquired whether bicycles would be permitted on the new skate park.
Chief of Staff David Rivera indicated that the Parks & Recreation Commission had recently met about the rules and regulations of the skate park. The Mayor had also sent a letter to the Parks & Recreation Director to make certain that authorization was given to buy very thick, 7 gauge steel, so that it could be used for bicycle stunts, as well as skate boards, roller blades, and two wheel scooters. It was his belief that the Park & Recreation Commission had finalized their rules and regulations and that bicycles were included. Sign up for permission to use the park once it’s open is now taking place.
Councilor Jerram commended the Street Department for keeping the streets clear during the many days of rain.
Councilor McKenna congratulated the student interns for the fine work they had done.
Mayor Quinn thanked Jo An Cracco for organizing the interns, and thanked JoAnn O’Connor for organizing their pizza party.
In regard to the recent rainy days, Mayor Quinn stated that he decided at approximately 8 p.m. on Friday, October 14th, to set up a mini emergency operations center at the Fire Department. Lt. Michael Emanuel had been keeping him abreast of what was going on and providing him with hourly reports since 3:00 p.m. By 8:00 p.m., the fire department was approximately 25 to 30 calls behind, so he called in the Police Chief, the Fire Chief, and the Public Works Director, on an emergency status. Certain roads were closed, and several people stranded on South Main Street were assisted. The Public Works Director and the Fire Chief visited all tributaries and main arteries of the Naugatuck River to make certain that we wouldn’t have a repeat of the 1955 flood. The 2nd shift of
the Police Department was authorized to remain on duty and the 3rd shift was called in early. The Fire Department started going door to door at 10:00 p.m. to notify residents that there was a flooding situation and that they should monitor their basements.
The last decision was whether they would open an emergency shelter for displaced people. Instead, they decided that area hotels and/or motels could be used for a night.
He commended the Street Department for their efforts in public safety, as well as the Water Pollution Control employees, the Police and Fire Departments and Campion Ambulance.
ADJOURNMENT #1690
On a motion by Councilor Jerram, seconded by Councilor McKenna, the Council voted unanimously to adjourn at 7:25 p.m.
ATTEST: JOSEPH L. QUARTIERO, CMC
CITY CLERK
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