Call to Order: Leo Paul, Jr. called the meeting to order at 5:33 p.m. Also present were Paul Parsons, Ernest Bunnell, and R. Christopher Blake. William Dranginis arrived at 5:35 p.m.
Approval of Minutes: Motion: C. Blake moved to adopt the regular 1/5/10 meeting minutes and P. Parsons seconded. All voted aye and the motion carried.
Public Requests/Comments
Alan Landau, Chairman of the Board of Ethics, commented on its Board’s draft revision of the Code of Ethics and offered to answer any questions before the Board of Selectmen discusses it at its next meeting on February 2nd at the Bantam Borough Hall. [William Dranginis arrived.] Mr. Paul said that any endorsement by the Board will be contingent upon the Town Attorney’s approval.
Dwight Keeney, 132 Old Mount Tom Road, commented on the proposed Shepaug Crossing development in West Bantam. He said traffic safety and Town financing could be impacted. The previous development called Avalon Farms got almost to a Town meeting, where the Town would have been forced to finance the rerouting of Old Mount Tom Road’s intersection with Route 202.
Selectmen’s Requests: Motion: W. Dranginis moved to add to Tax Refunds, “Five Refunds, Total of $108.85, and P. Parsons seconded. All voted aye and the motion carried.
L. Paul informed the Board that he, D. Wilson and C. Politano had the ratings meeting in NY with Moody’s, and the Town anticipates an excellent rating for the upcoming sale of bonds.
Northfield Firehouse Update: No report
School Building Committee Update – Jack Healy: J. Healy reported a short meeting will be held on Thursday to approve invoices and he will then be looking forward to getting the statement audited and finalized.
Resignations: Robert S. Briggs from Recycling Advisory Committee, effective 11/17/08: Received and noted.
Interviews, Appointments & Reappointments
a) Reappoint James Koser to Tree Warden, term expiration 2/2011: Motion: W. Dranginis moved to reappoint James Koser as above and E. Bunnell seconded. All voted aye and the motion carried.
Liaison Reports/Commission-Committee Minutes: 12/9/09 BOE minutes; 1/6/10 BOE minutes (draft): P. Parsons asked if the Board of Finance minutes could be included each month in liaison reports, and. L. Paul said he would ask Roxanne Carroll to include them.
Vacancies: The list of current appointed vacancies is as follows:
Beautification Commission: One regular member, 2/2010, one alternate 2/2010
Conservation Commission: One regular member 12/2012; one alternate member 12/2012
Economic Development Commission: One alternate member 6/2011
Board of Ethics: Two regular members 6/2012; two alternate members 6/2010, 6/2011
Milton Historic District Commission: Two alternate members 1/2012
Northfield Firehouse Building Committee: 1 member
Park & Recreation: 1 alternate member 6/2013
Recycling Committee: Two members, 2/2010 and 2/2012
Sandy Beach Commission: One regular member 12/2011
Veteran’s Advisory Committee: One regular member 8/2012; two alternate members 8/2012
Water Pollution Control Authority: One alternate member; 1/2010
Tax Refunds: Five Refunds, Total of $108.85 Motion: C. Blake moved to approve the tax refunds for a total of $108.85, and W. Dranginis seconded. All voted aye and the motion carried.
Transfers: None
Old Business
a) Old Bantam School Property Discussion: L. Paul said he asked John Martin to attend the meeting based on the discussion from the last meeting. Mr. Martin of John Martin Associates was the architect for the Town Hall Building Committee’s work. Jack Healy was also present from that Committee. Mr. Martin repeated his findings on his study of feasibility of town offices located at the old Bantam School. He gave extra consideration to that site as well as the current Town Hall site over several others and did as-built drawings of both buildings. He showed his drawing of the Bantam site with all spaces inserted based on square-foot allotments. There were many technical problems in the old building and two new vaults would have to be built. All the windows are single-pane glass and there is virtually no insulation in the building. A new roof and a full sprinkler system would be needed. All the restrooms would be gutted and redone. There would be a large expense to bring the building to minimum standards. The location is not near the center of Litchfield, which would take people away and eventually tear the fabric of the town apart. The resulting conclusion was that the present Town Hall site was the better choice. Mr. Dranginis asked what the cost would be and Mr. Martin said he realized it would be fairly expensive and hard to put a figure on at this point, and it would still not be a central location. Mr. Dranginis then questioned the zoning designation and was told that it is a Bantam Borough Zoning issue, not the Town of Litchfield. J. Healy added that based on the public hearings and resulting input, the committee’s feeling of keeping the location in the center of Town was substantiated. Selling the Bantam facility could offset the cost of the expansion and renovation of the current location. He said a rough estimate of renovating the Bantam facility of 26,000 square feet at $200/sq. ft. would be over $5 million invested in that building. W. Dranginis asked about cyber Town Hall where people can access Town offices and do their business online. J. Healy said the Town is working toward this. L. Paul said that many people still come into the offices every day, however.
Continuing the discussion on the disposition of the old Bantam School, L. Paul said that the talk is that the G.A. Court #18 will be gone from the Bantam School facility and into Torrington by 2013. W. Dranginis asked what the Borough Planning and Zoning felt about the property, and Mr. Paul said the Selectmen were given copies of the letter from the Borough that stated they preferred the Town did not sell the building. Mr. Dranginis suggested possible buyers who would fit into a residential zone, and Mr. Paul said it was not the Town’s job to sell the building or decide how it would be best used. The Board should decide what it prefers to do with the building and then look at options. If it should be approved at Town meeting to be sold, it would be at that juncture that uses of the building are discussed and details are worked out between the Bantam Planning and Zoning Commission and the potential buyer. Motion: C. Blake moved to authorize the First Selectman to pursue selling the old Bantam School complex; i.e., going to the Board of Finance, coordinating with other agencies, talking to realtors about a listing, and talking with the Town Attorney to see if there are any difficulties on the land records like contingencies or reservations. Paul Parsons seconded the motion. In discussion Mr. Blake thought it would be prudent to look into this matter knowing what is happening with the State moving out. The income will then be lost that supports the maintenance of the building. He thought the First Selectman should investigate the market for the building and what can be realized for it and report back to the Board for a decision. E. Bunnell asked if it would be wise to talk to the Borough Warden and Board of Burgesses to discuss the matter to keep the communication open. Mr. Paul said he had talked to Mr. Sheldon and would be willing to talk again to come to some kind of agreement, knowing the Board of Selectmen is looking into selling it and that it is a Town building. The letter from the Borough was the result of prior conversations. Mr. Paul said that if the Board votes to move forward, he will not slow the process down if the Borough does not agree. C. Blake said that in the Borough’s letter of 12/14/09 there were some comments that indicate they do not understand all the facts. They should have the opportunity to understand the true facts, and L. Paul said he would attend one of their meetings if the Selectmen vote to move forward. P. Parsons said he could address their letter in response to the things they say that the Selectmen do not agree with. He questioned Mr. Paul about the Town Hall plan and renting Bantam temporarily should it be sold. Mr. Paul said the Town Hall needs to be upgraded and all Selectmen agreed. If this motion is voted upon favorably, the Board can move forward to Town meeting to put the Bantam facility on the market. That would be a good indicator that the Town wishes to move forward with the project. The project would provide meeting space with a room for nearly 50 people and two smaller meeting rooms. The public would be able to access hunting and fishing licenses, assessment information, etc. from their homes with upgrades that would be accomplished. With the economy today, the price tag on this project could be significantly less due to the economic condition and contractor surge in bidding on jobs. He felt it is important to the residents of the community to give them a facility that is convenient and easy to use. Vote: Upon voting all voted aye and the motion passed unanimously.
b) Progress on Bill Payment for Northfield Firehouse: C. Politano explained there are still issues to be resolved; i.e., the leaking roof and outside electrical lighting. LaRosa believes that regarding the $9,000 CL&P invoice, LaRosa would only be responsible for the portion up to June 30, 2009 ($3,700) and the fire company would pick up the balance after June 30th. C. Blake said the Selectmen had authorized payment of that bill subject to resolution of the CL&P issue. C. Politano told him the Building Committee is working with LaRosa, the Fire Co. and CL&P toward a resolution. L. Paul assumed there would have to be some negotiation between the Fire Co. and LaRosa. E. Bunnell said the roof issue is a very minor problem and only needs to be better sealed around the chimney.
c) Center School/LIS/LHS Surveillance System - Bid Modification: J. Healy said they originally asked for performance based-bids as opposed to a specification-based bid. In further review of the bids, Mr. Healy asked low-bidder Select-Telecon to estimate the added cost of enclosing the wiring in conduits. Also they asked for an estimate on ten infrared cameras for the dark back side of the school. The increase is about $20,000 or $21,000 so he is asking for approval of the change order to show a revised total of $103,005, which is still the low bid by about $13,000. Motion: Paul Parsons moved to accept the modification as presented, and W. Dranginis seconded the motion. C. Blake asked about the wires being able to be cut, and J. Healy said it is all interior wiring. E. Bunnell asked for confirmation that there was no need to go back to a Town meeting because the modification was over $20,000. L. Paul said the funding was already in place and the Selectmen are just approving spending more because of the modifications. Upon voting all voted aye and the motion carried.
d) Consider Approval of 2010/2011 Capital Projects Budget: Discussions continued, focusing on whether some of the Public Works road work funding should be moved into the operating budget. Motion: C. Blake moved to approve the Capital Improvements Committee’s recommendation dated 12/16/09 for 2010/2011 capital budget of $2,289,979. W. Dranginis seconded the motion. P. Parsons felt the amount should be reduced because this is not the time to be increasing the capital budget, especially in the Ten-Year Road Program. L. Paul said that program already has an increase of close to $400,000, so the addition of $200,000 from Capital to operating would increase the Public Works budget by $600,000. W. Dranginis had questions about the Ten-Year Road Program and David T. Wilson answered them. P. Parsons then recommended keeping the Capital budget the same as last year. D. Wilson said that by deferring out the road projects, the yearly numbers are going to get higher whether it’s done in Capital or the operating budget; and either way, it will not help the taxpayer. J. Healy said the bridges are abnormally high this year with several bridges that need attention. L. Paul recalled that last year $300,000 had been taken out of Capital, but was not put into operating because there was enough of Capital money in the Capital Non-recurring or in the Capital Ten-Year Road Program that could be carried forward into this year to fund the chip sealing that needed to be done last year. So the operating budget has already been increased by $300,000 in the Ten-Year Road Program. If the money is taken our of Capital this year, he couldn’t afford to put it in operating, so we will be short $212,000 in this year’s Ten-Year Road Program for road work. C. Blake said it doesn’t necessarily have to fall to operating unless they agree to pay for it out of operating. The impact of being short in the operating budget will mean deferring maintenance on the roads. D. Wilson noted that although no one likes to borrow money, the rates are low now. After their meeting with Moody’s, the Town is expecting reaffirmation that its rating will stay the same, and they are very satisfied with the way the Town is funding pensions, the annual borrowing and the potential for the Town Hall. They see no negative impact with the current level of borrowing or with the prospect of building a new Town Hall. E. Bunnell expressed concern with borrowing money for short-term projects and would like to accelerate the phase-out from Capital. L. Paul agreed and said the $212,000 could be pulled out of Capital and put into operating. During the budget process, the decision will have to be made where the money will be taken from if it is determined the budget will have to be reduced by that amount. Motion Withdrawn: C. Blake withdrew his motion, and W. Dranginis withdrew his second. Motion: C. Blake moved to adopt the Capital Improvement Committee’s recommendation dated 12/16/09 for Capital budget year 2010/2011 in the amount of $ 2,079,979, reflecting a $210,000 reduction in the proposed Ten-Year Road Program. W. Dranginis seconded the motion. Upon voting all voted aye and the motion carried.
New Business: None
Correspondence: None
Motion: W. Dranginis moved to adjourn at 6:44 p.m. and C. Blake seconded. All voted aye and the motion passed.
Leo Paul, Jr., First Selectman
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