741 Colonel Ledyard Highway

Ledyard, Connecticut 06339-1551

(860) 464-3203

TOWN OF LEDYARD

Town Council

council@ledyardct.org

Meeting Minutes

Chairman Kevin J.

Dombrowski

Regular Meeting

Wednesday, February 8, 2023

7:00 PM

Town Hall Council Chambers

WORKING DRAFT

Remote: Information noted below:

In-Person: Council Chambers Town Hall Annex

Remote: Information noted below:

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CALL TO ORDER

IC.hairman Dombrowski called the meeting to order at 7:00 p.m. at the Council Chambers, Town

Hall Annex Building.

Chairman Dombrowski welcomed all to the Hybrid Meeting. He 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.

Chairman Kevin Dombrowski

Councilor Bill Saums

Present:

Councilor Andra Ingalls

Councilor Gary Paul

Councilor John Marshall

Councilor Mary K. McGrattan

Councilor S. Naomi Rodriguez

Councilor Tim Ryan

Councilor Whit Irwin

IV.

PRESENTATIONS

None.

RESIDENT & PROPERTY OWNERS (COMMENTS LIMITED TO THREE (3)

MINUTES

None.

VI.

COMMITTEE COMMISSION AND BOARD REPORTS

None.

VII. COMMENTS OF TOWN COUNCILORS

Councilor McGrattan announced Our Lady of Lourdes Ladies Guild would be sponsoring a

Fraud Prevention and Awareness Presentation on Monday, February 20, 2023 at 6:30 p.m. in

the Church Hall. The Guest Speaker would be Ledyard Police Sergeant Michael McKinney.

Councilor Rodriguez reminded everyone about the Law Enforcement Awards and

Appreciation Day scheduled for Sunday, February 19, 2023 at 4:00 p.m. - 7:00 p.m. at the

United Methodist Church, in Gales Ferry. Dinner would be provided at 5:00 p.m.

VIII. REVIEW AND APPROVAL OF MINUTES

MOTION to approve the following:

Town Council Public Hearing Minutes of January 25, 2023

Town Council Regular Meeting Minutes of January 25, 2023

APPROVED AND SO DECLARED

Andra Ingalls

RESULT:

MOVER:

John Marshall

SECONDER:

Dombrowski, Saums, Ingalls, Paul, Marshall, McGrattan, Rodriguez,

Ryan, and Irwin

AYE:

IX.

COMMUNICATIONS

Chairman Dombrowski stated a Communications List has been provided. He noted no referrals

were listed.

Communications List - February 8, 2023

REFERALS

XI.

COUNCIL SUB COMMITTEE, LIAISON REPORTS

Administration Committee

Councilor Ingalls stated the Administration Committee met earlier this evening and approved

the proposal to combine the Parks & Recreation Commission with the Senior Citizens

Commission. She stated the Committee discussed concerns that were submitted by Senior

Citizens Commission Chairman Norma Sokolski in her letter dated February 1, 2023. Councilor

Ingalls noted the Committee also recommended the Town Council set a Public Hearing date of

April 12, 2023 to receive comments on the proposed Ordinance to combine the two

Commissions.

RESULT:

Community Relations Committee

Councilor Paul stated the Community Relations Committee has not met since the last Town

Council meeting. He noted the Committee would be meeting on February 15, 2023.

RESULT:

Finance Committee

Councilor Saums stated the Finance Committee met on February 1, 2023 and in addition to

the items on tonight’s agenda the Committee also discussed the following: (1) Board of

Education Fiscal Year 2021/2022 Budget Surplus - Councilor Saums stated he reported to

the Finance Committee that he, the Mayor, the Superintendent of Schools, the Finance

Director, and the Board of Education Director of Finance and Human Capital met to discuss

transferring the Board of Education Fiscal Year 2021/2022 Operating Budget Surplus of

$448,253 to the BOE Capital Reserve Fund, which was required by the 1989 “Resolution

Creating a Funding Mechanism for Making Annual Appropriations to a Capital Reserve

Fund for the Board of Education”. He stated the consensus was that although the General

Government experienced a healthcare deficit of $861,753 because some healthcare costs

were overlooked last year during the budget preparation process, the Resolution should be

followed. He stated a written procedure was being developed to ensure this does not happen

again, and a process was agreed to between the Board of Education Central Office and the

General Government to keep all employee data in the Munis Financial System, keeping it

current, and to review and agree on healthcare expense forecast based on the data in advance

of budget preparation. The Finance Committee will review a motion to transfer the surplus

and make recommendations to the Town Council at their February 15, 2023 meeting; (2)

Fiscal Year 2023/2024 Budget Preparation - The Finance Director and the Mayor reported

that work was well under way in preparing the General Government Budget, and that there

was much work to do before the budget would be delivered to the Town Council on March

6, 2023 (the first Monday in March per Chapter VII of the Town Charter); (3) American

Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) Funding and Projects Status - The Committee reviewed the ARPA

Project List and discussed the status of projects started, completed, and not yet started.

Councilor Saums noted that Councilor Ryan suggested that a running total of funds spent vs.

funds appropriated for each project be included in the tracking workbook; (4) “Resolution

Establishing Administrator/Department Head Benefits” - The Committee did not take action

on the proposed revisions to the “Resolution Establishing Administrator/Department Head

Benefits” because the Administrator of Human Resources was still working on it. The

Finance Committee planned to work on it at the February 15, 2023 meeting.

RESULT:

Land Use/Planning/Public Works Committee

Councilor Paul stated the LUPPW Committee met on February 6, 2023 and he noted in addition

to their routine work that Conservation Commission Chairman Michael Marelli attended the

meeting to discuss the Commission’s interest to purchase a 36-acre +/- parcel located at 154

Stoddards Wharf Road which was currently owned by Pfizer. He stated the asking price was

$195,000 and that the Commission was looking to apply for an Open Space Watershed Grant

offered by the State of Connecticut that would pay up-to 65% of the purchase of the property.

He explained this was just in the beginning stages and that they recommended Mr. Marelli

work with the Mayor’s Office regarding the Conservation Commission’s interest to purchase

the open space parcel; and about negotiating on the price of the property; and that they

follow all town procedures with regard to applying for the Grant and for the town to

purchase property.

RESULT:

Economic Development Commission

Councilor Paul stated the EDC met on February 7, 2023 and discussed the following: (1)

Business Directory was coming along great. EDC was working to develop a Form for new

businesses to be added to the Business Directory; (2) Marketing Video was still in the

development stages and would feature the following segments: Welcome, About the

Community, Quality of Life, and Business and Commerce. Some footage would be videoed

in June, 2023. Therefore, the EDC was also looking for pictures and videos to add into the

Marketing Video that would showcase the other three seasons in Ledyard. The video was

being paid for by the advertisers; (3) Ribbon Cuttings will be held on Saturday, February 18,

2023 for the following new businesses in Gales Ferry: (a) My Pets World at 10:00 a.m.; and

(b) Dollar General at 11:15 a.m.

Ledyard Beautification Committee

Councilor Ingalls stated the Beautification Committee met on February 7, 2023 and

addressed the following: (1) Election of New Officers as follows: Chairman Jennifer

Eastbourne; Vice-Chairman Kate Kohrs; Recording Secretary and Treasurer Jennifer

Holdsworth. Ms. Holdsworth would fill both roles until the Committee can identify someone

to take one of the roles; (2) New Members - Because the Committee had three new Members

they spent time updating them on past business. The Committee still had three vacancies

that needed to be filled; (3) Flowerpots at Municipal Buildings - The Committee discussed

the sustainability of providing flowerpots at various Municipal Buildings (Town Hall, Police

Station, Parks & Recreation/Senior Citizens Center). They also discussed who watered the

flowerpots, suitability of the size of the flowerpots and where the flowerpots were stored off

season. The also discussed whether the flowerpots were the best use of the Committee’s time

and resources; (4) Ideas for New Beautification Projects; and New Fundraising Projects were

discussed; (5) Meeting Schedule - The Committee discussed the possibility to add special

meetings to their calendar. The Committee currently meets quarterly which was not often

enough for continuity and planning purposes. Councilor Ingalls concluded by noting the

Committee’s next meeting would be held on April 4, 2023.

Housing Authority

Councilor McGrattan stated the Housing Authority met on February 6, 2023 and discussed

the following: (1) Renovation work to the apartments should begin in April, 2023. The

renovation/improvement work had been scheduled to begin in September, 2022; however,

due to various approval processes, etc. the start of the project was delayed; and (2) Smoking

Policy - The Board was still working on the Smoking Policy.

XII. REPORT OF THE MAYOR

REPORT OF THE MAYOR:

Mayor Allyn, III, reported on the following: (1) Fiscal Year 2023/2024 Budget Preparations -

Mayor Allyn stated he has completed meeting with Department Heads, noting that the current

proposed budget, excluding the Board of Education’s numbers, has come in $3.4 million over

the current fiscal year, after he has already cut about $400,000 from the Department Head’s

budget submittals. He stated some of the proposed budget increase was capital driven, noting

there were a number of projects, that may need to be funded over a period of a few years. He

stated the proposed Fiscal Year 2023/2024 Budget will be pared down before it was delivered to

the Town Council on March 6, 2023; (2) Greater Norwich Area Chamber of Commerce Annual

Dinner - Mayor Allyn stated he attended the event that was held at the Mashantucket Pequot

Reservation Museum at which about 300 people were in attendance. He stated he had the

privilege to introduce the “Business of the Year” that was awarded to Dave and Debbie Vessels

of AA Lock & Key. He stated the recipients were elated, noting that they did some amazing

things during their 35th year of being in business which included giving substantial gifts to about

ten different charities over the course of the year; (3) Bush Pond - Lantern Hill Valley Park

Lease - Mayor Allyn stated the Lease the Town Council approved at their January 25, 2023

meeting has been signed and executed with Bob and Betsy Graham. He stated Parks &

Recreation Director Scott Johnson, Jr., would be meeting with Public Works Director Steve

Masalin to begin preliminatywork on the Park; (4) Connecticut Conference of Municipalities

(CCM) State Budget Meeting - February 3, 2023 - Mayor Allyn stated at last week’s meeting

they received some insight on what they were expecting from the State’s budget proposal. He

stated the Governor has since released his Fiscal Year 2023/2024 Budget noting that State

funding for Ledyard looked stable. He stated he would keep the Town Council informed as State

budget numbers become available; (5) Linda C. Davis Food Pantry Non-Profit Sponsorship -

Mayor Allyn explained because the Food Pantry was not sponsored by a non-profit organization,

that the Food Panty only qualified to receive T-Fab food items from the Connecticut Food Share,

which included five specific food type items. He explained that the T-Fab Items were the foods

that the Food Pantry would give to anyone who has requested food, with no questions asked. He

stated on February 7, 2023 the Ledyard Rotary Foundation agreed to sponsor the Linda C. Davis

Food Panty. He stated by having the sponsorship of the Ledyard Rotary Foundation that the

Food Panty was now eligible to receive all of the foods that were distributed thru Connecticut

Food Share, which were donated from stores such as Costco, BJ’s Wholesale, Whole Foods. He

stated they had a small ceremony at the Linda C. Davis Food Pantry with the Rotarians and

Connecticut Food Share Board Chairman Beth Henry. He stated under the Linda C. Davis Food

Pantry sign a plaque has been placed stating “Sponsored by the Ledyard Rotary Foundation”; (8)

Lantern Hill Road-Whitford Brook Bridge State Grant Funding - Mayor Allyn thanked State

Senator Cathy Osten for securing the $3 million for the bridge and dam replacement and repairs.

He stated the town now had an executed Agreement with the State to receive the $3 million

grant funding and that Public Works Director/Town Engineer Steve Masalin was working to

prepare the Request for Qualifications (RFQ) which would be followed by a Request for

Proposals (RFP) for the project. He stated the hope was to have the bridge replacement work

completed this calendar year; (9) Eversource Easement Request - Mayor Allyn noted that

Eversource has requested a permanent easement through the Clark Farm property for $5,000. He

stated the proposed easement would bisect the most useable portion of the property. He stated

Eversource currently had a temporary easement over the property because they were replacing

all of the former wooden structures with the steel monopoles which were supposed to last 50 -

100 years. He stated if that were the case he did not see why Eversource would need an

easement to do work. He stated a formal proposal has not yet been received from Eversource

and he noted if the Town Council wanted to discuss this proposal at another meeting and vote on

the request, that he would deliver their decision; (10) Winter Operations - Mayor Allyn stated

there was no measurable snow in the weather forecast thru February 17, 2023, and it poses a

unique situation for the town, because they have a commitment to buy 250 tons of road salt this

year. He stated Public Works Director/Town Engineer Steve Masalin has never found himself in

a position to accept 250 tons of road salt when there was full salt shed; (11) Ribbon Cuttings -

Mayor Allyn stated as Councilor Paul reported earlier this evening during his Economic

Development Commission Report, two Ribbon Cuttings were scheduled for Saturday, February

18, 2023 for the following new businesses in Gales Ferry: (a) My Pets World at 10:00 a.m.;

and (b) Dollar General at 11:15 a.m. He stated one of the Ribbon Cuttings was scheduled for

February 4, 2023, but due to the below zero temperatures that weekend the event was

rescheduled. He stated Dollar General had a soft opening and things were going well. He

stated that he hoped folks would be able to join them in welcoming the new businesses at the

Ribbon Cuttings.

Questions to the Mayor -

Councilor Ryan noted the Eversource easement over the Clark Farm property and he

questioned whether the $5,000 was a one-time payment or was it in perpetuity. Mayor Allyn

stated the $5,000 Eversource offered for the easement was a single one-time payment.

Chairman Dombrowski addressed the requested Eversource easement over the Clark Farm

property, noting that this was the one large piece of usable land that the town owned. He

stated to bisect the property with an easement would prohibit the town from ever thinking

about doing anything on that property. He stated one of the use options discussed for the

property was in the event the town had to build a new High School, noting that the Clark

Farm was the only town-owned property where they could build a High School. He stated if

they granted the easement the property would be landlocked to a point where it could only be

used as open space. He stated he would be more amenable to an easement that went around

the perimeter of the property, noting that would grant Eversource what they wanted, which

was to gain access if they needed to; but at the same time maintained the majority of parcel

being useful for the town. He went on to note the proposed easement was located where the

Tri-Town Trail was being constructed. Mayor Allyn stated he could provide the Town

Council with the sketch that he sent to Eversource, which was for the easement to hug the

perimeter of the property, as Chairman Dombrowski suggested. However, he stated that

Eversource responded stating that was not what they wanted, noting that they wanted to go

through the property. Chairman Dombrowski stated if that was the case, then his response to

Eversource was “No”. Mayor Allyn stated he would deliver that message to Eversource.

RESULT:

XIII. OLD BUSINESS

None.

XIV. NEW BUSINESS

Finance Committee

MOTION to authorize the purchase of a 2015 Ford Utility vehicle in the amount of $12,000

from Account # 21020551-57510 (GFFC CNR Vehicle) and authorize the transfer of $7,500

from Account # 21020551-57300 (GFFD CNR New Equipment) to Account # 21020551-57510

(GFFD CNR Vehicle).

Moved by Councilor Saums, seconded by Councilor Ryan

Discussion: Councilor Saums stated the Gales Ferry Fire Chief’s 2004 Tahoe vehicle was aging

and it was beyond reasonable repair, noting that it had 167,000 miles on it, and the dashboard no

longer lights up, noting that the costs to repair the electronics was more than the value of the

vehicle itself. Therefore, he stated the Fire Chief has requested authorization to purchase a used

2015 Ford, which had 67,000 miles on it, as a stop gap measure.

Councilor Saums went on to explain that Gales Ferry Fire Chief Tony Saccone, who was present

this evening, received quotes for three used vehicles and felt that the 2015 Ford was the best

option noting that they would receive $1,500 for the trade-in of the current vehicle, which would

bring the cost to purchase the used 2015 vehicle to $10,500. He noted that Account

#21020551-57510 (GFFC CNR Vehicle) currently had an available balance of $4,500; and

Account # 21020551-57300 (GFFD CNR New Equipment) had a current available balance of

$122,754, prior to the proposed transfer.

Councilor Ryan stated during the Finance Committee’s discussion they agreed that going

forward that the funding for the Fire Chief’s vehicles for both Fire Companies (Ledyard Center

and Gales Ferry) would be included in the Fire Apparatus Replacement Capital Improvement

Plan and that they would further discuss that during the Fiscal Year 2023/2024 Budget

preparation.

VOTEA:p9p-ro0ved and so declared

APPROVED AND SO DECLARED

Bill Saums

RESULT:

MOVER:

Tim Ryan

SECONDER:

Dombrowski, Saums, Ingalls, Paul, Marshall, McGrattan, Rodriguez,

Ryan, and Irwin

AYE:

MOTION to allocate funds from the American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) for the replacement of

the following HVAC Systems:

•

Ledyard Emergency Services Building at 11 Fairway Drive, $200,000

Ledyard Senior Citizens Facility at 12 Van Tassel Drive, $155,000

Moved by Councilor Saums, seconded by Councilor Ingalls

Discussion: Councilor Saums stated that he has been communicating with Public Works

Director/Town Engineer Steve Masalin about these two HVAC System replacement projects

(Emergency Services Building and the Parks and Recreation/Senior Citizens Facility). He provided

some background noting the following:

· Emergency Services Building was constructed in the 2004 and had two separate heating

systems:

(1) Phase I - Heating System for the Fire Apparatus Bays where the apparatus was

housed was currently working fine. Councilor Saums provided some background noting

that there were multiple failures of heating and A/C system in the building. He stated

because of the urgency to provide heat in the Apparatus Bays that Phase I has been

completed. He stated these heating repairs involved the straightforward

replacement/reorientation, noting the total cost of the project was $84,000 which

included the associated electrical work. He also noted that the air handlers 3 & 4 in the

Emergency Services Building have been taken care of, noting that the Modine Heaters

were removed, and they installed radiant heat in the Apparatus Bays. He stated the

Modine Heaters were reused where they could these types of heating units. He stated

funds were drawn from the Building Upgrade Reserve Account to pay for this project.

He stated Phase I was not part of tonight’s request.

(2) Phase II - was the Heating System for the reminder of the building which included

the Meeting Room, Offices, and Dormitory, which was the system that has failed and

was the system that they were addressing tonight. He explained that that radiant heating

in this part of the Emergency Services Building would not work, noting that they needed

to replace the boiler and put in a cooling unit which would require a substantial

realignment to meet present and prospective building needs. He explained that a quote

was received through a CT State Bid proposal for $190,000. The Air Temp proposal

was attached to the agenda on the meeting portal; and that this price was good until

February 19, 2023. He stated that Public Works Director/Town Engineer Steve Masalin

has added some funding to cover electrical services that may be needed to support the

project. He also noted although the Omni Partners Government Services Bidding

(Trane) prepared a Bid that it was not completed; and therefore, was not attached to the

Agenda on the meeting portal.

· Parks and Recreation/Senior Center Facility - Constructed in 1991:

Councilor Saums stated the Parks and Recreation/Senior Center has been operating with a

partial A/C and had to use window air conditioning units last summer. He stated the

32-year-old building had the original heating equipment that was inefficient and was also due

for replacement. He stated separate proposals for the heating and the air conditioning were

obtained through the CT State Bid pricing in the amounts of $75,000 and $72,000,

respectively (Air Temp proposal, was attached to the agenda on the meeting portal) for a

combined total of $147,000. He stated both of these proposals were also good until February

19, 2023. He stated that they had previously received a separate proposal through Omni

Partners Government Services Bidding (Trane) for the combined package in the amount of

$262,000 - $293,000.

Councilor Saums stated that Mr. Masalin works to use all of the different opportunities

available to save administration time, to take advantage of the competitive bidding process in

other ways, and to get the best possible price. He stated because the cost of these HVAC

projects seemed to be expensive the Finance Committee discussed with Public Works

Director/Town Engineer Steve Masalin the possibility of obtaining better pricing if they

solicited bids outside of the State Bid List. He stated to solicit additional bids that it would

require hiring an engineer to prepare a Request for Proposals (RFP); and they were not

confident that the savings they might get by soliciting bids outside the State Bid List, would pay

for the engineering costs and the RFP. He went on to state that although they have had both

good and bad experiences using the State Bid List process, that they have found that generally

these opportunities were more viable than other approaches. He noted as an example at their

October 12, 2022 meeting the Town Council voted to move forward with the State Bid List

proposal for the construction of the concrete floor at the Town Green Vo-Ag Pole Barn, only

after they spent more time and money to solicit additional bids, which came in higher than the

State Bid proposal.

Councilor Saums stated they also discussed Councilor Marshall’s suggestion to consider

replacing the existing HVAC Systems with a Geothermal System, noting that the Mayor has a

Geothermal System in his house, which was installed during new construction. He stated it

would not be advantageous to install a Geothermal System in an existing building because it

needed to be coupled with spray foam insulation, to create a tight building envelope for the

system to work and so that the electric costs would not soar, noting that during the winter the

system used electricity to compress the water coming up from the well. He went on to explain in

addition to trying to install spray foam insulation into the entire exterior wall cavities and roof

trusses in an existing building, such as the Emergency Services Building, that it would also need

to include costs for an engineering evaluation, the design work which would need to include

integrating the system with the sites which were very tight, along with subterrain issues at both

the Emergency Services Building and the Parks and Recreation/Senior Citizens Facility.

Councilor Ryan noted that some additional funding was included in both projects for other

miscellaneous costs related to the projects such as electrical work, etc.

Councilor Paul stated from his personal experience in working in the field of HVAC systems

that he was pleased that the town did not choose to use Trane, noting that they were typically

more expensive, noting that they had proprietary parts, which could be harder to get, making the

systems more expensive to maintain.

Councilor Saums concluded by stating that a bid waiver was not required for either of these two

projects because they were using contractors on the State Bid List.

VOTE:

9 - 0 Approved and so declared

APPROVED AND SO DECLARED

Bill Saums

RESULT:

MOVER:

Andra Ingalls

SECONDER:

Dombrowski, Saums, Ingalls, Paul, Marshall, McGrattan, Rodriguez,

Ryan, and Irwin

AYE:

General Business