BOARD OF SELECTMEN
Meeting Minutes
Regular Meeting September 20, 2010
Town Office Building – Lower Level Conference Room 6:30 P.M.
First Selectman Mailhos called the meeting to order at 6:30 P.M. with the following in attendance: Selectmen Millix & Blessington, Lynn Nicholls and residents. First Selectman Mailhos led the Pledge of Allegiance.
Approval of Minutes:
The Joint meeting minutes are still pending as the other committees have not met yet to review.
Selectman Blessington moved to approve the minutes of September 7, 2010 with the following correction:
Under “Old business – Selectman Blessington said it is 1/7th of an acre” Should read: “Selectman Blessington said it is 7/10 of an acre”
Selectman Millix seconded the motion.
Vote: 3 Yes (Mailhos, Millix & Blessington) 0 No.
Present to Speak:
No one.
Correspondence:
A list of correspondence was available at the meeting and in the Selectman’s office.
First Selectman Status Report
First Selectman Mailhos went over the updated report:
*Center School Water Project – The Road will really be paved by the end of this week. The trench work is complete. First Selectman Mailhos will draft a letter to OPM to request for a change of the scope of work to include the connection to Center School with the remaining funds.
*River Road Complex – The bids are in for the materials and construction work. The Recreation Commission will meet tomorrow night and make recommendations for awarding the contracts. Pavilion bids are due tomorrow as well. We will hold a special meeting to formally award the contracts later this week assuming the Recreation Commission submits a recommendation to the Board of Selectmen.
*EECBG Grant – We only received one bid for the energy improvements to the Town Office Building. The Energy Advisory Committee will meet and review the bid. They will make a recommendation to award once reviewed.
*Senior Housing Phase III – We are waiting for word on DECD pre-development loan, apparently DECD thinks the proposed engineering costs are too high.
*Knowlton Property – We will soon be closing on the property that we paid for with DEP grant money. Murtha Cullina will be handling the closing and easement contract. Closing date is to be determined.
*STEAP Application 2010- We are still waiting for news on the approvals.
*Polster Bridge – We have applied for a grant to do the needed repairs, and should hear if it has been approved within the next two weeks.
* Site improvements at the Old Town Pit – The final approval has been granted by Planning & Zoning, and we will then order the materials to create bins and begin site improvement work.
* Fire Department / Ambulance Service Contracts – A meeting will be held next Monday (9/27) to review draft #2.
*Pump Station Damage – The denial letter has been forwarded to John Scanlon of CL&P to review.
Public Works:
Lynn said the crew finished chip sealing at 5:30 today. They will return to the normal brush cutting and roadside mowing route tomorrow. First Selectman Mailhos said that she and Lynn have recently reviewed the Public Works work schedule and they are pretty much on schedule.
At the last meeting, it was discussed whether or not we should Try CCM’s reverse auction for the new dump truck. First Selectman Mailhos had done some research, and found that no one has performed a reverse auction for a custom made truck, and the specs would need to be extremely specific. She would rather our Town not be an experimental subject for something that large. The pick up truck, however might work in the reverse auction. Lynn will check the state bid, and get three quotes before we make a decision.
Lastly, Lynn wanted to note that people have been speeding, and ignoring the fact that the crews are working on the roads. Next year we may have to look into hiring a State Trooper. Also, she stated that we had sent out post cards to warn residents that the crews would be chip sealing, and they ended up cutting down a basket ball hoop that was cemented at the end of Lindsey Lane, which came close to injuring a worker. They also had to knock on someone’s door at 6:00 AM to have a car moved on the same road.
New Business:
- Proclamation – Domestic Violence Awareness Month
First Selectman Mailhos moved to adopt the following Proclamation:
Proclamation for Domestic Violence Awareness Month
WHEREAS, domestic violence is a serious crime that affects people of all races, ages, gender and income levels; and
WHEREAS, domestic violence is widespread and affects over 4 million Americans each year; and
WHEREAS, one in three Americans have witnessed an incident of domestic violence; and
WHEREAS, children that grow up in violent homes are believed to be abused and neglected at a rate higher than the national average; and
WHEREAS, domestic violence costs the nation billions of dollars annually in medical expenses, police and court costs, shelters, foster care, sick leave, absenteeism, and non-productivity; and
WHEREAS, only a coordinated community effort will put a stop to this heinous crime; and
WHEREAS, Domestic Violence Awareness Month provides an excellent opportunity for citizens to learn more about preventing domestic violence and to show support for the numerous organizations and individuals who provide critical advocacy, services and assistance to victims;
NOW, THEREFORE, I, Christina B. Mailhos, do hereby proclaim the month of October as DOMESTIC VIOLENCE AWARENESS MONTH and urge our citizens to work together to eliminate domestic violence from our community.
Dated this 20th day of September, 2010 - Christina B. Mailhos, First Selectman
Selectman Millix seconded the motion.
Vote: 3 Yes (Mailhos, Millix & Blessington) 0 No.
First Selectman Mailhos moved to refund $132.30 to Michelle West, P.O. Box 67000, Department 231601; Detroit, MI, 48276 for a refund credit of a sold vehicle.
Selectman Blessington seconded the motion.
Vote: 3 Yes (Mailhos, Millix & Blessington) 0 No.
First Selectman Mailhos moved to refund $102.16 to Honda Lease Trust; 600 Kelly Way; Holyoke, MA 01040; for a refund credit of a sold vehicle.
Selectman Millix seconded the motion.
Vote: 3 Yes (Mailhos, Millix & Blessington) 0 No.
- Upcoming Budget Season discussion
First Selectman Mailhos attended the last Board of Finance meeting. Chairman Schoppmann will be drafting a letter which will be sent to all departments, asking them to start working on their budgets earlier this year. It is anticipated that we may not get the same funding from the State as usual and we could be looking at a 2 mil increase if our services remain the same and we don’t increase revenues. Selectman Millix said it is threatened every year. Selectman Blessington said we should aim at a worst case scenario, because someday it is going to happen. Selectman Millix said that there is a cost associated with the services we provide and he would like to see something more concrete before drastically making cuts. Selectman Blessington said we will be discussing regionalizing some
services at our next meeting, which could cut some costs. First Selectman Mailhos sent a list of things to work on to be prioritized for that discussion.
Good & Welfare:
Congratulations to Mr. and Mrs. Palacko of 214 Village Hill Road. They received their C/O on Friday and they have moved in their new home.
First Selectman Mailhos made a plug for the upcoming 8th annual car show, which will be October 2 (rain date- October 3) on the Town Green.
There will be a free WINCOG Economic Development workshop on September 29, at 6:30. It will be at the Coventry Town Hall Annex. Dinner will be provided. They are trying to get all of the Towns in the WINCOG region to focus on Economic Development. Some towns don’t even have Economic Development Commissions. First Selectman Mailhos urged anyone interested to attend.
The Wishes on Wheels Convoy was yesterday. There was a huge turnout; Lynn said there were over 400 trucks. Some came as far as Pennsylvania. Mr. Wiecenski went up to the festivities at the Fed Ex facility, and said it was very nice. He would like to see our Fire Departments involved next year.
First Selectman Mailhos said the flea market was a success this year.
Robin Campbell reminded everyone of the Referendum for the Region 19 Athletic Renovation - which will be next Tuesday, September 28.
First Selectman Mailhos motioned to adjourn the meeting at 7:05 P.M.
Selectman Millix seconded the motion.
Vote: 3 Yes (Mailhos, Millix & Blessington) 0 No.
Respectfully submitted,
Robin Campbell
Robin H. Campbell
Administrative Assistant
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