741 Colonel Ledyard Highway

Ledyard, Connecticut 06339-1551

(860) 464-3203

TOWN OF LEDYARD

Town Council

council@ledyardct.org

Meeting Minutes

Special Meeting

Wednesday, August 6, 2025

7:00 PM

Town Hall Council Chambers

In-Person: Council Chambers Town Hall Annex

Remote: Information noted below:

Join Zoom Meeting from your Computer, Smart Phone or Tablet:

https://us06web.zoom.us/j/84204926231?pwd=sRDaNHpRh64fsnVgF2jViuAB4nZtvp.1

Audio Only: Telephone: +1 646 558 8656; Meeting ID: 842 0492 6231; Passcode: 007089

CALL TO ORDER

Chairman Pro-tem Brunelle called the meeting to order at 7:00 p.m. at the Council Chambers,

Town Hall Annex Building.

Chairman Pro-tem Brunelle welcomed all to the Hybrid Meeting. She stated for the

members of the Town Council and the Public who were participating via video

conference that the remote meeting information was available on the Agenda that was

posted on the Town’s Website - Granicus-Legistar Meeting Portal.

II.

PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE

ROLL CALL

III.

Councilor William Barnes

Councilor April Brunelle

Councilor Jessica Buhle

Councilor Kevin Dombrowski

Councilor Carmen Garcia-Irizarry

Councilor Tim Ryan

Present:

Councilor Tony Saccone

Councilor Gary St. Vil

IV.

ELECTION OF CHAIRMAN

Chairman Pro-tem Brunelle opened the floor for Nominations for Town Council Chairman:

MOTION to nominate Councilor Gary St. Vil for Chairman.

Moved by Councilor Dombrowski, seconded by Councilor Ryan

MOTION to close Nominations

Moved by Councilor Dombrowski, seconded by Councilor Buhle

VOTE: 8 - 0 Approved to close nominations.

Election of Chairman

Chairman Pro-tem Brunelle called for the vote on the Chairman.

APPROVED AND SO DECLARED

Kevin Dombrowski

RESULT:

MOVER:

Tim Ryan

SECONDER:

Barnes, Brunelle, Buhle, Dombrowski, Garcia-Irizarry, Ryan, Saccone, and

St. Vil

AYE:

RESULTS OF VOTE: Chairman Pro-tem Brunelle announced that Councilor St. Vil

has been elected Chairman to finish out the term of the Twenty-seventh Town Council

replacing former Chairman Rodriguez, who resigned because her family was being

relocated out of state for her husband’s work. She congratulated Chairman St. Vil and

noted that she would turn the meeting over to him.

Chairman St. Vil stated if the Town Council was amicable that he would recommend that

Chairman Pro-tem Brunelle continue to preside of this evening’s meeting.

The members of the Town Council congratulated Chairman St. Vil and noted they did

not object to Chairman St. Vil’s request.

APPOINTMENT OF TOWN COUNCILOR

MOTION to appoint Ms. Adrienne L. Parad (D) 5 Birch Street, Ledyard, to the Town Council

to fill a vacancy left by Chairman S. Naomi Rodriguz, in accordance with Chapter II Section 10

of the Town Charter.

Moved by Councilor Buhle, seconded by Councilor Garcia-Irizarry

Discussion: Councilor Garcia-Irizarry stated that Dr. Parad is a Primary Care Family Medical

Physician. She also noted that Dr. Parad has done a wonderful job as the President of Ledyard

Education Advancement Foundation (LEAF) and that she was involved in a number of town

events. She stated that she endorsed Dr. Parad’s appointment to the Town Council

Chairman Pro-tem Brunelle’s noted Councilor Garcia-Irizarry’s comments, and she stated that

Dr. Parad has been involved in a number of town events and that she was always pleasant to

work with.

Councilor Buhle stated that she agreed with both Councilor Garcia-Irizarry and Chairman

Pro-tem Brunelle comments. She noted Dr. Parad’s experience and insight that she would bring

to the Town Council. She stated that she thought it was important for the Town Council to have

a diverse group of opinions and experiences. She stated that she looked forward to all that Dr.

Parad would bring to the Town Council.

Councilor Barnes stated that he echoed Councilor Buhle’s comments, noting that he has had the

pleasure of being Dr. Parad’s neighbor for many years. He stated that he has enjoyed being in the

community with her and to see the work she had done as President of President of Ledyard

Education Advancement Foundation (LEAF). He stated this Town Council has a number of

engineers, which was not uncommon with its proximity to Electric Boat/General Dynamics;

however, he stated having someone from the medical profession on the Town Council would

bring a diversity of thoughts.

VOTE: 8 - 0 Approved and so declared

APPROVED AND SO DECLARED

Jessica Buhle

RESULT:

MOVER:

Carmen Garcia-Irizarry

SECONDER:

Barnes, Brunelle, Buhle, Dombrowski, Garcia-Irizarry, Ryan, Saccone, and

St. Vil

AYE:

Chairman Pro-tem Brunelle Congratulated Dr. Parad for her Appointment and she welcome her

to the Town Council.

Members of the Town Council welcomed Dr. Parad aboard!

Chairman Pro-tem Brunelle invited Ms. Parad to join the Town Council on the dais; and ask

that she visit the Town Clerk’s Office to be sworn in as soon as possible. She note that Ms.

Parad was welcome to participate in tonight’s discussions, however, she would not be eligible

to vote on items until she has taken the Oath of Office.

VI.

REVIEW AND APPROVAL OF MINUTES

MOTION to approve the following:

Regular Meeting Minutes of July 9, 2025

Special Meeting Minutes of July 23, 2025

Moved by Councilor Garcia-Irizarry, seconded by Councilor Buhle

VOTE: 8 - 0 Approved and so declared

APPROVED AND SO DECLARED

Carmen Garcia-Irizarry

Jessica Buhle

RESULT:

MOVER:

SECONDER:

VII. BUSINESS OF THE MEETING

CONSENT CALENDAR

This was Approved and so declared.

APPROVED AND SO DECLARED

RESULT:

MOTION to reappoint the following members the Agricultural Commission for a three (3) year

term ending September 24, 2028:

*1.

Ms. Allyson Angelini (U) 193 Iron Street, Ledyard (Regular Member)

Ms. Katie Yuhas (U) 34 Meetinghouse Lane, Gales, Ferry (Regular Member)

Mr. Steve Martic (R) 59R-2 Long Pond South, Ledyard (Alternate Member)

APPROVED AND SO DECLARED

RESULT:

MOTION to reappoint Mr. Michael Cherry (U) 5 Whippoorwill Drive, Gales Ferry, as the

Mayor’s Representative to the Southeastern Connecticut Water Authority for a two (2) year term

ending August 31, 2027.

*2.

*3.

APPROVED AND SO DECLARED

MOTION to approve Standing Bid Waivers as follows:

RESULT:

Vendors included in the Town of Ledyard Standing Bid Waiver List for FY 25/26,

Capital Region Purchasing Council Bids,

State of Connecticut bids,

Other states' bids, purchasing cooperatives (i.e. Sourcewell) , and federal government bids.

Moved by Councilor Dombrowski, seconded by Councilor Saccone

Discussion: Although there is typically no discussion regarding Consent Calendar Items, as they

are considered “routine items of business”; Councilor Ryan mentioned that the Standing Bid

Waiver List has been reduced from previous years; and that it included two new vendors.

Councilor Ryan also noted that he was pleased to see Mr. Cherry was still interested in

volunteering to serve the town. He stated that Mr. Cherry was a very good asset for the town.

Councilor Barnes suggested going forward that the Standing Bid Waiver List include the dollar

amount that was spent the prior year for each of the Vendors listed; or that it provide a threshold

such as over $50,000 was spent the prior year. Councilor Ryan noted that Councilor Barnes was

inferring that if the town was spending a significant amount of money with a particular vendor

that the town may want to reconsider including that vendor on the Standing Bid Waiver List. He

noted in past years the Standing Bid Waiver List only consisted of the first three columns, and

that the last three columns have recently been added, which has provided more value. He stated

Finance Director Matthew Bonin has been accommodating in adding more information to the

Standing Bid Waiver List; noting that although adding the amounts spent for each of the vendors

would involve more work that he did not think adding the dollar amount; or over a certain

threshold, was out of reach.

VOTE:

8 - 0 Approved and so declared

APPROVED AND SO DECLARED

Kevin Dombrowski

RESULT:

MOVER:

Tony Saccone

SECONDER:

Barnes, Brunelle, Buhle, Dombrowski, Garcia-Irizarry, Ryan, Saccone, and

St. Vil

AYE:

Finance Committee

MOTION to appropriate $10,000 to Account #21020301-57300-G0015 (Fire Marshall - New

Equipment - State Grant).

In addition, authorize the expenditure of up to $10,000 to complete the upgrade to the

Emergency Operations Center (EOC) for Emergency Management.

The funding source for this project is the Town of Ledyard’s FY 2026 Nuclear Safety

Emergency Program Funding Allocation.

Moved by Councilor Buhle, seconded by Councilor Ryan

Discussion: Director of Emergency Management/Fire Marshall Jim Mann, attending remotely via

Zoom, explained that every year the town was eligible to receive grant funding through the Nuclear

Safety Emergency Program to provide improvements to the Emergency Operations Center

(EOC), which was located in the basement of the High School. He stated this year Ledyard was

eligible to receive $16,000 from the Nuclear Safety Emergency Program and that the funds

would be used for: (1) Radio upgrades to continue their work to switch over to the State-wide 4T

and 2T on the 800 mg ban; and (2) Complete the Communication Upgrade at the Police

Department. He stated once they spend the money that the State would fully reimburse the town.

VOTE:

8 - 0 Approved and so declared

APPROVED AND SO DECLARED

Jessica Buhle

RESULT:

MOVER:

Tim Ryan

SECONDER:

Barnes, Brunelle, Buhle, Dombrowski, Garcia-Irizarry, Ryan, Saccone, and

St. Vil

AYE:

MOTION to recommend Mayor Fred B. Allyn III execute "Standard Fast Track and Study

Process Generator Interconnection Agreement" and "Contingent Approval for INT-109249"

between The Connecticut Light and Power Company d/b/a Eversource Energy for INT-109249 -

Juliet Long School_Ledyard Board of Education.

In addition, authorize payment of $1972.00 to Eversource Energy for Metter Cost - INT-109249

- Juliet Long Elementary School_Ledyard Board of Education - Netting Non-Residential

(NRES) - 165.6kW.

Moved by Councilor Ryan, seconded by Buhle

Discussion:Mayor Allyn, III explained with the completion of the solar array installation at the

Juliet W. Long School that the next step was to enter into the Generator Interconnection

Agreement with Eversource. He stated once the Agreement was in place Eversource could turn the

solar energy system on. He stated the town expects to save about $4,000 per month in electric costs

with the solar array panels on the Juliet W. Long School. He noted that a solar array system would

also be installed at the Gales Ferry School once the roof has been completed, stating that the Gales

Ferry School would have a larger solar array.

Mayor Allyn continued by explaining the meter would show the amount of energy that was being

generated by the solar array system versus the amount of energy that was being provided by

Eversource. He stated the Agreement that it would allow Eversource to turn on the solar array

system to enable the solar energy for the town to start earning dividends.

Councilor Garcia-Irizarry questioned how long it was going to take for Eversource to turn the

solar array system on. Mayor Allyn stated if the Town Council provides authorization this

evening that he would sign the Agreement tomorrow. He stated in speaking with Board of

Education Director of Facilities and Grounds Wayne Donaldson that it should only take a couple

of weeks for Eversource to turn the solar array system on.

Councilor Ryan stated within the first month that the $1,972 cost to purchase the meter would be

more than offset by the anticipated savings in their electric bill. He questioned whether there

would be a Ribbon Cutting Ceremony when Eversource flips the switch to turn on the solar array

system.

VOTE:

8 - 0 Approved and so declared

APPROVED AND SO DECLARED

Tim Ryan

RESULT:

MOVER:

Jessica Buhle

SECONDER:

Barnes, Brunelle, Buhle, Dombrowski, Garcia-Irizarry, Ryan, Saccone, and

St. Vil

AYE:

Administration Committee

MOTION to approve proposed Assistant to the Director of Land Use & Planning Job

Description as presented in the draft dated June 10, 2025.

Moved by Councilor Dombrowski, seconded by Councilor Buhle

Discussion: Councilor Buhle noted that there were three job descriptions on tonight’s agenda

that were presented by Human Resources Director Christine Dias. She explained that each of

the job descriptions were being updated to reflect the current duties that were being performed.

Councilor Dombrowski stated three job descriptions they were addressing this evening would

not be creating any new positions, noting that all of these positions were currently filled. He

stated as Councilor Buhle stated they were codifying the current roles and responsibilities into

the job descriptions. He stated that the town was not hiring any additional individuals. However,

he stated should they need to fill the positions in the future that the job description would

accurately reflect the requirements of the positions.

VOTE:

8 - 0 Approved and so declared

APPROVED AND SO DECLARED

Kevin Dombrowski

RESULT:

MOVER:

Jessica Buhle

SECONDER:

Barnes, Brunelle, Buhle, Dombrowski, Garcia-Irizarry, Ryan, Saccone, and

St. Vil

AYE:

MOTION to approve proposed updates to the Office Assistant II - Mayor’s Office job

description as presented in the draft dated June 24, 2025.

Moved by Councilor Buhle, seconded by Councilor Saccone

Discussion: Councilor Dombrowski stated that they were updating the Office Assistant II -

Mayor’s Office Job Description; as described in Item # 5 above.

VOTE:

8 - 0 Approved and so declared

APPROVED AND SO DECLARED

Jessica Buhle

RESULT:

MOVER:

Kevin Dombrowski

SECONDER:

Barnes, Brunelle, Buhle, Dombrowski, Garcia-Irizarry, Ryan, Saccone, and

St. Vil

AYE:

MOTION to approve proposed updates to Executive Assistant to the Mayor job description as

presented in the draft dated June 24, 2025.

Moved by Councilor Dombrowski seconded by Councilor Buhle

Discussion: Councilor Dombrowski stated as described in Items #5 & #6 they were simply

updating the Executive Assistant to the Mayor Job Description; as described above.

VOTE:

8 - 0 Approved and so declared

APPROVED AND SO DECLARED

Kevin Dombrowski

RESULT:

MOVER:

Jessica Buhle

SECONDER:

Barnes, Brunelle, Buhle, Dombrowski, Garcia-Irizarry, Ryan, Saccone, and

St. Vil

AYE:

MOTION to appoint Mr. James Philopena (D) 80 Avery Hill Road, Ledyard, to the Board of

Assessment Appeals to complete a four (4) year term ending December 5, 2027 to fill a vacancy

left by Ms. Lineweaver.

Moved by Councilor Buhle, seconded by Councilor Dombrowski

Discussion: None.

VOTE:

8 - 0 Approved and so declared

APPROVED AND SO DECLARED

Jessica Buhle

RESULT:

MOVER:

Kevin Dombrowski

SECONDER:

Barnes, Brunelle, Buhle, Dombrowski, Garcia-Irizarry, Ryan, Saccone, and

St. Vil

AYE:

MOTION to appoint Ms. Jennifer Bingham (D) 826 West Drive, Gales Ferry, as an Alternate

Member to the Board of Assessment Appeals to complete a four (4) year term ending August 26,

2028 to fill a vacancy left by Mr. Nelson.

10.

Moved by Councilor Dombroski, seconded by Councilor Saccone

Discussion: None.

VOTE:

8 - 0 Approved and so declared

APPROVED AND SO DECLARED

Kevin Dombrowski

RESULT:

MOVER:

Tony Saccone

SECONDER:

Barnes, Brunelle, Buhle, Dombrowski, Garcia-Irizarry, Ryan, Saccone, and

St. Vil

AYE:

MOTION to appoint Mr. Greg Lockhart (D) 30 Tanger Lane, Gales Ferry, to the Planning &

Zoning Commission, as an Alternate Member to complete a three (3) year term ending

December 31, 2025 to fill a vacancy left by Mr. Harwood.

11.

Moved by Councilor Buhle, seconded by Councilor Dombrowski

Discussion: None.

VOTE:

8 - 0 Approved and so declared

APPROVED AND SO DECLARED

Jessica Buhle

RESULT:

MOVER:

Kevin Dombrowski

SECONDER:

Barnes, Brunelle, Buhle, Dombrowski, Garcia-Irizarry, Ryan, Saccone, and

St. Vil

AYE:

VIII. ADJOURNMENT

Councilor Pro-tem Brunelle stated before they adjourn, she wanted to mention that because

there was a some concern as to whether they would have a quorum for their August 13, 2025

meeting; tonight’s Special Meeting was called. Therefore, she stated the August 13, 2025

and their August 27th (as agreed upon for our Summer Meeting Schedule) meetings will be

canceled unless some urgent business comes up.

Councilor Buhle moved to adjourn, seconded by Councilor Dombrowski

VOTE: 8 - 0 Approved and so declared. The meeting adjourned at 7:21 p.m.

___________________________________

Transcribed by Roxanne M. Maher

Administrative Assistant to the Town Council

I, April Brunelle, Chairman Pro-tem of the Ledyard Town Council,

hereby certify that the above and foregoing is a true and correct copy of

the minutes of the Special Town Council Meeting held on August 6, 2025

___________________________________

April Brunelle, Chairman Pro-tem