[0:00] Okay, buddy.
[0:01] Okay, thank you. Um, I'm
[0:03] going to call a
[0:04] meeting of the
[0:05] full Committee for
[0:07] Monday, September 28,
[0:08] 2026. Um, Madam
[0:09] Secretary, could
[0:10] you please announce the list
[0:11] ?
[0:11] Mayor Russ, Deputy
[0:12] Mayor Sheffield, Councillor
[0:13] Miguel Roy, Councillor
[0:14] Piazza, Councillor Jones.
[0:15] Present.
[0:16] Thank you. Um, the first
[0:17] item on the
[0:18] agenda is the Giordano Family Foundation
[0:19] . Um, we have the
[0:22] Eastern
[0:23] Connecticut Community Foundation here tonight. If you
[0:24] guys want to
[0:25] come up, we have Megan
[0:26] Brown, the COO
[0:28] , and Lauren Parda, our
[0:29] immediate
[0:30] development director,
[0:31] not ours, but theirs. Um, and
[0:33] Director Juhasz
[0:34] will provide an overview. Thank you,
[0:38] ma'am.
[0:41] Good.
[0:42] Thank you.
[0:50] So, I believe the
[0:51] board may have known
[0:53] about it, but, um, if
[0:54] not, we were a
[0:55] beneficiary or a
[0:56] trustee of, um, the
[0:58] Sharon
[0:59] Giordano Trust. Um, this
[1:01] trust was set up by
[1:02] Sal, um, with
[1:04] her daughter, who
[1:05] was the
[1:06] trustee. Um, Sharon
[1:09] died in March
[1:11] 2026, which was then
[1:12] entered into the
[1:13] probate case, and
[1:15] the city ended up receiving
[1:16] approximately $3.8 million
[1:17] , the interest and
[1:18] dividends of which
[1:19] could be
[1:20] used for certain,
[1:22] um, things that were
[1:23] designated in the trust:
[1:24] meaning training
[1:25] programs for city
[1:27] employees, um,
[1:28] tuition assistance
[1:29] for
[1:30] city residents,
[1:31] improvements to
[1:32] Eastern Point Beach, and
[1:34] recreation programs
[1:35] and improvements to
[1:36] Washington Park. The way it works is
[1:42] that the money
[1:42] is transferred to the
[1:44] Community Fund,
[1:45] which will control
[1:46] it, and then they, in
[1:47] turn,
[1:48] will pay
[1:49] dividends to the city annually from the
[1:51] interest accrued on that money
[1:52] . Now I have
[1:55] more to say about this
[1:56] .
[1:58] Of course. So, we
[2:01] call this a
[2:01] trust fund, which
[2:03] means it's what
[2:04] we call the
[2:05] spent
[2:07] fund balance. Am I
[2:08] okay?
[2:09] Yes, we have a
[2:12] spent
[2:13] fund balance that will be there
[2:14] every year. Our board
[2:15] sets our
[2:16] spending rule
[2:17] each year. It is usually
[2:20] between 4 and 6%.
[2:22] You can now
[2:23] expect about 4%
[2:24] of the fund's value.
[2:27] It works so that
[2:29] at the end of the year,
[2:30] our
[2:31] investment
[2:32] return is calculated and all of
[2:33] our investments are
[2:34] pooled together. After
[2:37] calculating
[2:38] the return, each
[2:39] of our 650 funds
[2:41] receives a share of the
[2:42] income based on the
[2:43] size of their fund.
[2:46] And it will be the same with
[2:47] this fund. Typically,
[2:50] you know, our investment returns
[2:53] fluctuate from year to
[2:54] year, but over a 10-
[2:55] year period, you
[2:57] can expect a
[2:58] 7 to 8% return.
[3:01] This will be the median
[3:03] rate. So, when the
[3:08] year-end investment return is calculated, we
[3:09] usually do it in
[3:11] January, and you can
[3:12] expect to receive a
[3:13] grant check
[3:14] around the beginning of
[3:15] February for that 4%, depending
[3:17] on the value of the trust.
[3:20] This will probably be
[3:21] a little over 100,000 per
[3:22] year indefinitely. And
[3:25] the fund will be in the fund, and
[3:26] then it will be
[3:27] financed and
[3:28] grow indefinitely
[3:29] . So, this amount
[3:31] will only increase over time.
[3:35] Do you have any questions or
[3:36] comments? Um,
[3:41] Council Love joins us at 6:08. Are there any
[3:45] questions?
[3:46] Greetings. Um, I'm here
[3:48] . I apologize for
[3:49] the delay. Um, between
[3:51] switching
[3:52] phones, it says 5
[3:53] hours.
[3:55] Thank you. We work for the
[3:58] Giordano family trust. Um, we just
[4:00] got a review of the sums.
[4:04] Um, deputy mayor.
[4:09] Um, yes, that is, um, out of, I
[4:11] think, 3.8 2 million,
[4:13] um, that is, dividends on
[4:15] average 4% of this
[4:17] 3.28 will be, um, for
[4:19] each January, I think,
[4:21] going to the city. Yes,
[4:26] continue.
[4:27] And the goal is to keep
[4:29] that 3.8 growing over
[4:31] time.
[4:31] Good.
[4:32] So as it grows,
[4:33] the amount you
[4:34] receive will likely
[4:35] grow as well.
[4:37] Good. And your
[4:38] dividends, um, are they, I
[4:40] think, annual or, you
[4:41] know, quarterly
[4:43] dividends? How is the
[4:45] trust financed, guys?
[4:48] Yes, the investment
[4:50] return
[4:50] is calculated
[4:51] annually, and then we
[4:52] send, um, what
[4:54] we call the
[4:55] expense portion of the
[4:56] fund. We usually
[4:57] do this around the
[4:59] first week of
[5:00] February. So you can
[5:01] plan for this check
[5:02] every year, and like
[5:03] Megan said, it will grow
[5:05] over time.
[5:06] Good. And to you, Ron,
[5:08] I wonder if this money will go
[5:10] into the general
[5:11] fund or something, or you
[5:12] said that...
[5:13] Uh, the plan right now
[5:14] is to create a
[5:16] special
[5:17] revenue fund in the city. So
[5:18] these dividends
[5:19] will come in, and it
[5:20] won't be a budget
[5:21] fund in the general
[5:22] fund as such, but this
[5:23] money will
[5:24] be in a
[5:24] special revenue fund
[5:26] designated for the
[5:27] purposes that the trust has identified
[5:28] . This way,
[5:29] if a larger
[5:30] project arises for which we
[5:31] want to accumulate
[5:32] dividends over a couple of
[5:33] years, we can
[5:34] do so by leaving
[5:35] them in a special
[5:36] income fund.
[5:39] Thank you.
[5:41] Are there any more questions?
[5:43] Councilor Piazza.
[5:45] Thank you. Thank you.
[5:46] Yes, um, more of a
[5:47] comment. Um, I just
[5:49] want to thank
[5:50] the family for being
[5:51] so kind and generous
[5:52] to the city of Groton. I
[5:53] think it just
[5:54] shows the love that, um
[5:55] , the family has for the
[5:56] city of Groton, and that in
[5:57] itself speaks volumes
[5:59] . So I just want to
[6:00] thank them. You know, I mean
[6:01] , money is a
[6:03] wonderful gift. I
[6:04] mean, but I think it
[6:05] all comes from the
[6:06] heart, obviously, and
[6:07] their kindness. So I
[6:08] just want to
[6:09] thank my family. Are
[6:11] there any other
[6:12] comments? Question?
[6:16] Advisor Bois. Uh,
[6:20] thank you, Madam Mayor. Uh, I
[6:25] apologize for not being here
[6:26] on time, but,
[6:28] um, I think, looking
[6:29] at our agenda package
[6:31] and what
[6:33] this community fund can be used for, is
[6:35] it the community, uh,
[6:36] fund that will determine what
[6:38] happens, or
[6:40] should the city, uh, council, uh, meet
[6:41] to determine what
[6:43] action plan we're going to
[6:49] use these
[6:50] funds for in the future? The
[6:54] trust document
[6:55] outlines how these funds are to
[6:56] be
[6:57] used. Uh, yeah, I
[7:00] forgot your name. As you
[7:03] said, uh, it
[7:05] outlines how these funds
[7:06] should be
[7:07] used. The
[7:08] trust document
[7:09] is always the lead
[7:10] document and the
[7:11] Attorney General
[7:12] will contact the
[7:13] Public Trust
[7:14] so that we can
[7:15] report to them that
[7:16] they are
[7:16] being used
[7:17] appropriately when
[7:19] we provide them to you. So
[7:21] we ask you to report this to us,
[7:22] perhaps annually
[7:24] . We provide, uh,
[7:26] send you
[7:27] grant funds. You
[7:30] determine how you
[7:31] use them, and
[7:32] then if you
[7:33] report back to us briefly, we
[7:34] can share
[7:35] that with the
[7:36] Attorney General.
[7:41] Good, because, again
[7:43] , what I see in the
[7:44] documents provided
[7:45] are the curriculum
[7:46] and
[7:47] information, the
[7:48] tuition assistance,
[7:49] these recreational
[7:50] programs at
[7:51] Eastern Point Beach in
[7:53] Washington Park. That's a
[7:55] summary of what
[7:58] these
[7:59] funds can be used for, right?
[8:01] Yes.
[8:04] Okay, so I think
[8:05] one thing I'm asking
[8:07] through the mayor is do
[8:08] we need to determine as a council
[8:09] and mayor
[8:10] what our action plan is
[8:11] for using
[8:12] these funds? Again
[8:18] , should we
[8:19] reach out to the
[8:20] finance department
[8:21] to see what
[8:22] our action plan is for
[8:24] using them? I wouldn't
[8:27] want these things
[8:28] to drag on and then
[8:29] say, "Oh, suddenly
[8:31] we have money."
[8:32] Let's spend them
[8:34] on this. Let's
[8:35] spend it on that." I
[8:37] think it would be
[8:38] prudent for us
[8:39] to have an action plan
[8:40] or at least identify
[8:41] some need in these
[8:42] four areas. Um,
[8:48] so that we have a
[8:49] strategy for the
[8:50] future, so that we
[8:51] can determine
[8:52] what we want to
[8:53] use these
[8:54] funds for with the trust that has
[8:56] been, um,
[8:56] blessed to the city of
[8:58] Groton.
[9:01] Hmm, thanks for
[9:03] the question. So the idea
[9:04] was that,
[9:06] um, the money
[9:06] would come to the
[9:07] city. As soon as they
[9:09] come to the city,
[9:10] um, before that, we will
[9:11] create a committee in the city of
[9:13] non-partisan, um,
[9:14] parties, so that the people who will
[9:15] not
[9:16] benefit from this
[9:17] will consider all the
[9:18] options, um, and then
[9:20] we will be happy
[9:20] to inform you of
[9:22] what that committee
[9:23] proposes to
[9:24] give you
[9:24] recommendations on
[9:25] how this money
[9:26] will be used. And
[9:29] then the idea is to
[9:32] budget it every year so you
[9:33] know exactly where that money is
[9:34] going. But we want to
[9:37] make sure that
[9:38] we can review
[9:39] all the information and
[9:40] all sorts of requests from
[9:42] department heads about
[9:43] how this could be
[9:44] used
[9:45] before we develop a plan
[9:47] for council consideration.
[9:50] And Madam Mayor, will you be the one
[9:52] to organize this
[9:53] committee?
[9:54] Yes.
[9:56] What are your considerations
[9:57] regarding the structure or
[10:03] people who would be
[10:04] involved in the work of
[10:05] such a committee?
[10:09] These will be our
[10:10] employees. We
[10:14] will ask if
[10:15] they are interested in
[10:16] being part of this
[10:17] committee, but we
[10:18] want to make sure
[10:19] that these are people who will not
[10:20] benefit from
[10:22] this money so that we
[10:23] have a broad idea
[10:24] of ​​how this can be
[10:25] done.
[10:31] And we have an
[10:32] ethics committee, so that gives us a
[10:33] certain amount of
[10:34] safety net to
[10:35] make sure that
[10:36] individuals are not
[10:37] benefiting from
[10:38] this conflict of
[10:39] interest or anything like
[10:41] that, so I
[10:46] would agree with your
[10:47] point on that,
[10:48] Madam Mayor.
[10:49] Absolutely. Thank you.
[10:52] Madam Mayor.
[10:53] Yes.
[10:54] I also want to briefly
[10:55] note that many
[10:56] trust documents
[10:58] actually name
[10:59] the amounts or percentages to be
[11:01] used for
[11:02] each item.
[11:04] Since this
[11:05] trust document
[11:06] does not do this, it
[11:07] means you can
[11:09] use it
[11:10] at your discretion,
[11:11] deciding how you
[11:12] want to
[11:12] distribute it. So in
[11:14] certain years you may
[11:15] want to do all
[11:16] four things, in other
[11:18] years you may not
[11:18] want to, but we don't
[11:20] mind you
[11:20] using your
[11:21] discretion, for the city
[11:22] to use its
[11:24] discretion.
[11:24] Thank you. Thank you for this
[11:26] clarification.
[11:27] To the Deputy Mayor.
[11:28] Um, and Ron, again
[11:30] , the money that
[11:31] comes in every year doesn't
[11:32] need to be spent.
[11:33] Right. They
[11:34] remain in this
[11:35] special fund.
[11:36] They don't need to,
[11:37] you know, be spent
[11:38] every year.
[11:39] Right. This would be the
[11:40] purpose of contributing to a
[11:41] special
[11:41] revenue fund so that it can
[11:42] accumulate if there is a
[11:43] larger project.
[11:44] But as the mayor said, we will
[11:45] make sure that these
[11:46] amounts are
[11:46] presented
[11:47] during budget
[11:48] season, just to be on
[11:49] schedule.
[11:50] They won't be
[11:51] part of the
[11:52] general fund budget
[11:53] because of the timing of
[11:53] dividends and
[11:55] just the timing of
[11:56] anything that can be
[11:57] cut with the budget.
[11:59] But, like I said,
[12:00] if we want to
[12:01] do a bigger
[12:02] project on the beach or in a
[12:03] park, that could
[12:04] take a couple of
[12:05] years. But we want to
[12:07] make sure we
[12:08] use it
[12:10] according to the trust
[12:11] and distribute it
[12:12] according to the
[12:13] wishes and purpose.
[12:15] And just to
[12:16] clarify, you said
[12:17] that the community foundation
[12:18] doesn't mind if we
[12:19] send a note
[12:20] saying that we're
[12:21] saving this money
[12:22] for a special
[12:23] project in the
[12:24] future.
[12:25] I think if there is a
[12:27] plan, of course.
[12:28] Good. Thank you. Are there
[12:31] any other questions or
[12:32] comments? Okay, not
[12:35] seeing any, I'll make a
[12:36] motion
[12:37] to move this to the
[12:38] mayor and
[12:39] council meeting. I do this
[12:40] every year in October. Is it
[12:44] October 5th? Let
[12:45] me make sure
[12:46] I understand everything correctly
[12:47] . October 5.
[12:49] So, it is proposed.
[12:50] So, the proposal.
[12:52] Second.
[12:52] And the second. Hmm, are there any more
[12:54] questions or everyone
[12:56] who is "in favor", sorry.
[12:57] Yes.
[12:58] Is
[12:59] anyone against it? Did anyone
[13:01] abstain? Most of
[13:02] the proposals were adopted
[13:03] unanimously. Hmm,
[13:04] next–update of
[13:05] data from
[13:06] traffic cameras.
[13:07] Captain, thank you very much for being
[13:08] here.
[13:10] Captain Lita and
[13:11] Officer Rosa.
[13:23] Good evening.
[13:25] Madam
[13:27] Mayor, you're welcome. As you
[13:31] know, our program
[13:32] was a kind of
[13:33] aggressive campaign
[13:34] to inform
[13:35] the public and
[13:37] make them aware of the
[13:38] condition of our cameras; but
[13:39] I thought it would be appropriate to
[13:40] reach out to you
[13:41] to make sure
[13:43] you understand what's
[13:44] going on, because
[13:45] sometimes residents
[13:46] come to you with
[13:47] questions. Our
[13:52] cameras started
[13:53] working on October 11 and 14
[13:55] . So, on October 11th
[13:57] , I believe it was
[13:59] Thames Street and
[14:00] CBS Highway, and then
[14:02] Mitchell Street went live on
[14:04] October 14th. Or
[14:05] September 14th, sorry.
[14:07] Running ahead. Er,
[14:09] so it's September. This is our
[14:11] notice period,
[14:12] our 30-day
[14:13] notice period, okay?
[14:16] Uh, so on October 11th and 14th,
[14:17] violators
[14:19] will be issued
[14:20] fines, okay? Uh,
[14:25] right now, I think we've
[14:26] observed
[14:28] about 11,000
[14:29] violators. Uh, so
[14:33] together, uh, at all
[14:35] intersections, so
[14:37] in 2 weeks?
[14:38] 3 weeks. In 3 weeks,
[14:40] okay? So, as you can see
[14:44] , hopefully, and
[14:45] again, our goal is to
[14:46] reduce the number of
[14:48] violators.
[14:51] I hope as soon as
[14:53] people start
[14:53] getting
[14:54] warnings. They,
[14:57] um, haven't received
[14:58] any yet due to
[14:59] fixing some
[15:00] bugs in the system.
[15:02] So, they should be
[15:04] getting...I think
[15:05] Officer Rosa just
[15:06] looked at a few of
[15:07] them. So, they're out
[15:10] this week. And, once
[15:12] they start
[15:14] getting
[15:14] warnings,
[15:15] hopefully they'll
[15:16] reduce the number of
[15:17] speeding violations
[15:19] . And from October 11 and 14, there will be
[15:24] no more warnings. Violators
[15:27] will receive fines at
[15:29] that time. Good?
[15:32] Do you have any questions or
[15:33] comments? Councilor
[15:34] Jones, thank you. We've
[15:42] met a few times about this
[15:43] , and I think the
[15:45] board as a collective has a
[15:46] pretty good understanding of
[15:47] the goals and, um, the
[15:48] importance of this. But
[15:53] just for the heck of it,
[15:54] could you do
[15:55] me a favor and
[15:56] explain, because I think
[15:58] the public
[15:59] might be a little
[16:00] confused about
[16:01] what exactly the difference is between a
[16:03] speed camera and a
[16:08] speed enforcement camera?
[16:09] Please.
[16:15] Speed ​​cameras are
[16:16] only active when there is a
[16:17] violation, if you
[16:18] exceed the
[16:19] speed threshold. We are
[16:23] recording data at this
[16:24] time.
[16:26] Speed ​​cameras are
[16:27] more of an
[16:28] investigative tool. They
[16:32] record license
[16:33] plates that
[16:34] pass through a
[16:35] certain location. OK? And
[16:37] this is constant. This is an
[16:39] investigative tool and is
[16:40] not related to
[16:42] speed cameras. He is
[16:43] separate. It is
[16:45] governed by, ahem,
[16:46] different laws than
[16:48] speed cameras. OK? It's
[16:52] not like
[16:53] people think, it's not our
[16:54] attempt to track
[16:55] people unless they've
[16:56] committed a crime using a
[16:58] speed camera.
[17:02] OK? We have one
[17:05] speed camera in the city of
[17:06] Groton. Speed ​​cameras
[17:09] capture violators.
[17:11] Anyone going
[17:12] 11
[17:13] miles over the
[17:14] speed limit. Does
[17:17] this answer your
[17:18] question?
[17:20] Yes, and I asked about
[17:21] this a few months
[17:22] ago, but just so
[17:23] we can get it on the record again
[17:24] . We do not
[17:27] collect license
[17:28] plates. This is not something that
[17:30] is stored. We can't
[17:33] really
[17:34] dig in and
[17:35] see that, oh, there was a
[17:36] suspect or
[17:37] someone who committed
[17:38] something other than a
[17:41] speeding ticket here, right?
[17:43] We can't
[17:44] use these
[17:45] images to
[17:46] piece something bigger
[17:47] together or anything like that
[17:48] for
[17:49] investigative purposes,
[17:50] right?
[17:50] This is only related to
[17:51] speed. Speed ​​cameras are
[17:54] not used
[17:55] for investigations.
[17:56] Good. Thank you very much.
[17:58] Good.
[17:59] I appreciate it.
[17:59] Something else? Deputy
[18:03] mayor? Have
[18:06] you been approached by
[18:07] people outside of the city of
[18:08] Groton about these cameras
[18:10] and, you know, their
[18:11] impact on, you know,
[18:12] they say you
[18:13] guys shouldn't
[18:15] do this and,
[18:16] you know, our community that
[18:17] we're fighting with, like
[18:19] East Lyme, I think is a
[18:20] perfect example. Is
[18:24] there a comparison like,
[18:26] you know, like the city of
[18:27] Groton and so on? Is this
[18:31] some kind of negative
[18:32] reaction, I should
[18:33] say?
[18:36] For the residents of the city of
[18:37] Groton, the majority of
[18:38] residents are “in favor.”
[18:41] OK. Every now and then
[18:44] we meet
[18:45] someone who is
[18:46] against cameras, and they
[18:47] cite
[18:48] privacy–that’s the
[18:49] most typical
[18:50] argument. Again
[18:53] , we are not looking,
[18:54] these
[18:55] speed cameras are not
[18:56] for
[18:57] investigative purposes. Your
[19:00] license plate
[19:01] only appears
[19:02] if there is a violation.
[19:04] OK. Speed ​​cameras
[19:06] are something else entirely, and
[19:07] like I said, we
[19:09] only have one camera in the city of Groton
[19:10] , and it's
[19:11] for
[19:12] investigative purposes, so...
[19:13] Okay.
[19:14] So we also... We were
[19:15] told that the cameras wouldn't
[19:16] even turn on.
[19:18] They are turned off
[19:19] unless a radar-
[19:21] triggered event occurs
[19:22] . So at this
[19:23] point, the
[19:24] vehicle that violated the
[19:25] rules will be
[19:26] tracked.
[19:28] So the advisor, um,
[19:29] activates the camera,
[19:30] essentially.
[19:31] Right. Yes.
[19:32] OK. Yes. OK.
[19:36] Councilor Piazza.
[19:37] Thank you, Mayor. Um, on the
[19:38] cameras themselves, so is there
[19:39] something that actually
[19:41] flashes, otherwise the person would
[19:42] n't even know
[19:43] they were taking a picture of the
[19:44] back of a
[19:44] vehicle
[19:46] ?
[19:46] So, we have
[19:46] warning
[19:47] signs in advance.
[19:48] Good.
[19:49] Uh, there
[19:50] are several
[19:50] warning
[19:51] signs in front of each camera.
[19:52] Hmm.
[19:52] Um, there might be
[19:53] a flash or
[19:54] overexposure,
[19:55] but I'm not sure
[19:56] they meant to
[19:56] set them up next
[19:57] to the
[19:58] light poles.
[19:59] Good.
[19:59] Reason.
[20:01] And how long does it take, uh,
[20:02] if someone breaks the
[20:03] speed limit for
[20:05] it to actually
[20:06] record it? So, the camera
[20:08] is in one
[20:09] place, how long does
[20:10] it take to capture the
[20:11] vehicle?
[20:12] It captures the rear of the
[20:13] vehicle
[20:14] , so you drive
[20:15] past the camera.
[20:16] Good.
[20:17] And then she fixes
[20:18] you. I don't know the exact
[20:20] distance.
[20:21] Good.
[20:21] Um, but it
[20:23] captures the rear
[20:23] license plate.
[20:24] Good. And I know
[20:26] when the public
[20:27] here was debating
[20:28] their pros and cons
[20:29] on this,
[20:30] some people were
[20:31] concerned, especially
[20:32] in Clarence B, about two
[20:33] cars together, are
[20:34] they really going...
[20:35] Yeah, so
[20:36] get the right
[20:37] car? So if you
[20:38] could just
[20:38] explain that. Sorry?
[20:40] The system
[20:40] is calibrated for
[20:41] this. The stripes
[20:42] are measured.
[20:42] Good.
[20:43] Uh, and then there's a
[20:44] computer program
[20:45] that, you know, you
[20:46] input
[20:46] the measurement into, and it
[20:48] calibrates itself for
[20:48] that.
[20:49] Good.
[20:50] So Clarence B has
[20:51] two cameras, one
[20:52] for each... That
[20:53] 's right. Yes, I
[20:55] noticed that. Uh, I have
[20:56] one more question. What is the
[20:57] approximate
[20:59] monetary penalty?
[21:01] The receipt itself costs
[21:03] $50. There is a
[21:09] $15 processing fee, which
[21:10] makes the total $65. A second
[21:11] violation costs
[21:13] $75, and again
[21:14] , that processing fee
[21:17] is added to it as well.
[21:20] Okay, so the total
[21:21] penalty amount that
[21:22] a person will see on
[21:23] their bill will not
[21:24] be
[21:25] $50, it will
[21:26] include a
[21:30] $15 processing fee, so that's an
[21:32] addition.
[21:33] And you can
[21:33] pay for all of this online, right?
[21:35] Uh, you can do it
[21:36] online, completely
[21:37] online.
[21:38] Okay, thank you. Are there
[21:41] any more questions?
[21:43] Mr. Councilor Jones.
[21:45] I would just like to
[21:46] have one more comment
[21:47] . If, theoretically, as
[21:53] you know, the same
[21:54] people who complain
[21:55] about violations, maybe
[21:57] with these cameras,
[21:58] maybe they can
[21:59] track themselves
[22:00] much more effectively
[22:01] , driving with a cell
[22:03] phone, because
[22:04] they bounce
[22:05] off cell towers
[22:06] and all sorts of
[22:07] other things... We
[22:09] track
[22:10] geolocation quite easily
[22:11] with GPS. Just
[22:15] wanted to let you know.
[22:17] Could you
[22:18] confirm this as well?
[22:21] Yes, that, and we were just
[22:22] talking about easy
[22:23] passes. You know,
[22:26] right before
[22:27] this...
[22:27] Your cell
[22:28] phone
[22:28] will track you
[22:29] much better than a
[22:30] black camera or a
[22:32] speed camera.
[22:32] Yes, it's more like
[22:33] point-to-
[22:35] point tracking.
[22:36] Yes. Stay tuned to
[22:39] Dateline, thank you.
[22:44] Are there any more questions? Oh,
[22:47] Councilor West.
[22:51] Uh, Captain Officer,
[22:53] thank you for providing this
[22:54] information. I think
[22:58] the update will be
[22:59] important
[23:00] moving forward,
[23:01] at least in the
[23:02] initial stages. I
[23:05] appreciate you bringing
[23:06] attention to the
[23:07] back of the
[23:08] car, because I know
[23:09] that during the public
[23:11] hearings, people were
[23:11] worried about
[23:13] seeing mobile
[23:14] spaces and other
[23:15] things like that.
[23:18] Hypothetically, if
[23:19] someone was caught speeding on the
[23:20] Gold Star Bridge
[23:23] and
[23:24] received a warning
[23:25] , that would include the
[23:26] rear of the
[23:27] car. The only thing that
[23:31] concerns me, and Officer
[23:32] Rose Rose, you've already
[23:33] raised this
[23:34] issue regarding
[23:35] calibration. I
[23:37] just want to
[23:38] make sure we are
[23:39] ensuring the
[23:40] correct
[23:40] calibration. I don't
[23:41] think it's up
[23:43] to you all, is
[23:44] it? Does it depend
[23:45] on the firm that
[23:50] actually holds
[23:51] the cameras? And the reason
[23:54] I mention this is because
[23:57] we have a big
[23:58] problem with
[23:59] traffic on the Gold
[24:00] Star Bridge right now, and one of the things
[24:02] I see is that the
[24:03] traffic cameras
[24:04] are working when the
[24:05] traffic lights are flashing. And if it
[24:09] happens
[24:10] north, and it doesn't
[24:12] happen. So,
[24:16] if some people
[24:17] see that they
[24:18] have been issued a
[24:19] warning or a
[24:20] fine for a
[24:22] traffic violation, I pay attention every day to see
[24:23] if that
[24:24] light is flashing. And we don't have
[24:31] that problem
[24:33] because you gave
[24:33] the public two
[24:34] warnings before
[24:36] going
[24:37] north and south
[24:38] on Clarence B.
[24:39] Sharp Highway to say, "
[24:40] Hey, you're going to get hit
[24:41] if you cross the
[24:42] threshold." Is that correct?
[24:48] Yes.
[24:49] we have it
[24:50] 24/7. So we
[24:53] don't need
[24:54] flashing lights to
[24:55] tell you the
[24:56] camera is working. She
[24:59] works constantly. Um, the
[25:02] bridge was actually
[25:02] blinking this
[25:04] morning when I
[25:04] arrived. So it
[25:06] seems like it's
[25:08] active now. Um, regarding
[25:12] calibration, uh, we
[25:13] have received
[25:14] calibration certificates, which we
[25:16] will publish on the
[25:17] website. So we will
[25:19] also
[25:19] be posting
[25:20] updates, any
[25:21] updates that we
[25:22] can, will also be
[25:24] posted on the
[25:25] website. Uh, because
[25:26] we want to
[25:26] ensure complete
[25:28] transparency. So we
[25:30] will publish the reports and the
[25:32] calibration documents will be
[25:33] there. Also, when you
[25:36] get a quote, uh,
[25:37] there will be a link
[25:38] to check the
[25:40] calibration certificate, uh.
[25:43] Good. And again,
[25:44] uh, just as a
[25:45] follow-up to this,
[25:47] uh, thank you. I
[25:48] mean, 11,000
[25:49] speeding violations
[25:50] over a 3-week
[25:52] period is pretty
[25:53] significant. Uh, I have to be
[25:56] honest, it was a big
[25:58] cue for me to
[25:59] step on the pedal,
[26:00] seeing those two
[26:01] signs there, and that camera
[26:02] there, even though it was during the
[26:04] warning
[26:05] period. Uh, but
[26:08] some people, I can see
[26:09] why they're having a hard time
[26:11] , but
[26:12] hopefully this will
[26:16] solve the problem
[26:17] that the
[26:18] camera was supposed to create, which is what we
[26:19] talked about from the
[26:20] beginning, which is to
[26:21] increase safety
[26:22] on the highways of the city of
[26:24] Groton. So, uh, thank you
[26:27] all for that. I appreciate it.
[26:29] Yes, sir.
[26:30] Good. Thank you. Are there
[26:32] any more questions? Yes.
[26:35] Thank you, mayor. Uh, the same thing as
[26:37] losing my train of
[26:38] thought. Uh, what did I want
[26:42] to ask? What would...Are there
[26:50] any...Well, I'm
[26:51] sure there would be,
[26:52] but what would be the
[26:53] typical argument that
[26:55] someone gets a
[26:56] violation? Whatever the
[26:59] argument is, they'll
[27:01] say, "Oh, it's not me,"
[27:02] either it's because of that, or
[27:03] we had a storm up
[27:04] north, you know, that
[27:06] came in during the
[27:07] storm and maybe
[27:08] adjusted the
[27:09] calibration. I'm
[27:11] just wondering what
[27:12] you think would be the
[27:13] main argument
[27:14] that someone could
[27:15] say that could
[27:16] make us
[27:17] reach out to the
[27:18] company and say,
[27:19] "Hey, we get
[27:20] a lot of the same
[27:21] questions about this
[27:22] ."
[27:25] So, there is an
[27:26] appeal procedure. The first step of the
[27:29] process is for
[27:30] them to
[27:30] call the
[27:31] number and explain
[27:32] their reasons. Hmm, that
[27:34] will be tested at
[27:35] this level. Hmm, then
[27:36] they have the option to
[27:37] actually come in to
[27:38] talk to
[27:39] the inspector who
[27:40] is conducting the hearing
[27:41] to appeal it.
[27:42] OK? And if they're
[27:44] still not satisfied,
[27:45] then they can
[27:45] go to...it
[27:46] can be appealed to the
[27:48] state courts.
[27:49] OK? The vehicle owner is
[27:52] responsible for the
[27:53] fine. OK? So,
[27:56] here's how it works.
[27:58] OK?
[27:59] And my other question is, uh
[28:01] , will there be a report that
[28:02] you're going to put out on the
[28:03] website about the
[28:04] benefits of it, like,
[28:05] "Since we
[28:06] installed the speed cameras,
[28:08] we've had fewer
[28:09] violations and
[28:10] fewer
[28:11] accidents," and will
[28:12] any of that be
[28:13] published so
[28:14] the public
[28:15] can see the benefits of it?
[28:18] So, now we are
[28:18] looking at what
[28:19] reports we can
[28:20] generate
[28:21] using this
[28:22] system. Uh, I can
[28:24] track
[28:26] first-time offenders
[28:27] and repeat offenders
[28:30] or more.
[28:32] The goal, obviously, is to
[28:34] reduce the number of
[28:35] these habitual
[28:36] offenders, first.
[28:38] And then, you know,
[28:39] see a decrease in
[28:40] the number of first
[28:41] violations. So,
[28:43] overall, the goal is to
[28:44] reduce
[28:46] speeding,
[28:46] to
[28:47] enforce, uh,
[28:48] speed limits.
[28:50] And, uh, but what if,
[28:51] by reviewing and
[28:53] studying the various reports,
[28:54] we published everything we
[28:56] could. Just
[28:58] so the public
[28:59] can see what's
[29:00] going on, uh, and
[29:02] how it works.
[29:04] Thank you.
[29:05] Yes.
[29:08] I will say that I have received,
[29:09] ahem, quite a few phone
[29:10] calls from
[29:11] residents who are still
[29:13] concerned about
[29:14] speeding in their
[29:15] neighborhoods. Hmm, some of
[29:17] them concern these
[29:18] areas, some of them concern
[29:19] nearby or other
[29:21] areas. Hmm, people who
[29:22] asked, "Can
[29:23] I install speed cameras
[29:25] on my side of town
[29:26] ?" Hmm, so in total, I
[29:28] think I've gotten two
[29:29] phone calls
[29:30] from people who are
[29:31] concerned about, um,
[29:32] cameras, mainly
[29:34] flood control cameras.
[29:35] Hmm, hmm, no, when I
[29:36] was explaining about
[29:37] speed cameras,
[29:38] it wasn't as
[29:39] big a
[29:39] concern as
[29:41] flood cameras. So, um, that's the
[29:42] feedback I have on this
[29:44] . There are
[29:47] no other questions. This was
[29:48] just informational,
[29:49] so thank you.
[29:50] Okay, please.
[29:51] Thank you. Good.
[29:55] Hmm, next–acceptance of
[29:56] state guarantees.
[30:00] Hmm, so
[30:01] the backstory is
[30:03] that in February
[30:04] 2025, um, GG GZA, um,
[30:06] noticed that the pier at
[30:07] Grizold Point was in a
[30:09] state of distress. So
[30:13] the city, um, asked
[30:15] them to assess its condition,
[30:17] um, um, and on October 6, 2025,
[30:19] the city received
[30:20] that assessment. The assessment
[30:22] showed that the pier
[30:23] was in very
[30:25] poor condition. Hmm,
[30:27] we were offered
[30:28] three options for repairing the
[30:29] pier. Hmm, just
[30:32] to make repairs–that’s,
[30:33] um, let me
[30:34] make sure I’m
[30:35] calculating
[30:37] these numbers correctly. I should have
[30:39] re- Hmm, the first
[30:42] option was to just
[30:44] repair the pier. Hmm, and it
[30:47] was worth between
[30:49] $700,000 and $900,000. Hmm, it
[30:55] cost between $1 and
[30:57] $1.5 million to clean up the pier and do nothing. And
[30:59] then to replace the pier,
[31:00] they estimated it at
[31:01] $3.5 million. From
[31:03] 2 to 3.5 million
[31:05] dollars. Hmm, so I
[31:06] got this report
[31:07] shortly after I
[31:08] became mayor. Hmm, and
[31:09] I knew we didn't have
[31:11] $3.5 million to
[31:12] repair the pier. Hmm, I
[31:14] felt like it was us,
[31:15] as a team, that felt it was
[31:16] very important
[31:17] to replace this pier.
[31:18] It has quite
[31:19] historical significance.
[31:20] It was part of the
[31:21] original
[31:23] Griswold Hotel. Hmm, so I started
[31:24] looking into
[31:25] financing options. Um,
[31:27] after a while, um, the
[31:29] initial request
[31:30] I made was
[31:31] rejected. Um, I
[31:33] went to the state and
[31:34] had to ask for
[31:35] $3.5 million. Um,
[31:37] but it didn't work. It
[31:39] was because of the bonds.
[31:43] Um, and so I continued to
[31:44] , um, work with
[31:45] our
[31:45] state representatives
[31:47] , um, with the Democratic bondholders
[31:49] in the House of
[31:50] Representatives and um, with the
[31:51] governor's office
[31:52] and a lot of people in the
[31:54] state. So, um, a
[31:56] huge thank you to
[31:58] everyone. Um, but we
[31:59] found out, um, a few
[32:00] weeks ago that we
[32:01] received $3.5 million
[32:03] from the
[32:08] Connecticut Department of Energy and Environmental Protection, um,
[32:09] through grants and
[32:11] state bond assistance.
[32:14] Um, and I'm here to
[32:15] ask for your
[32:16] approval to
[32:17] accept this
[32:18] grant. Um, the steps
[32:20] are that
[32:21] we need to
[32:22] approve this grant.
[32:24] This will be the first step.
[32:25] We need to
[32:26] get some
[32:27] paperwork done for...Um,
[32:28] while we're looking for
[32:29] grant funds. So,
[32:30] additionally we are looking at,
[32:31] we have applied for
[32:33] , um,
[32:34] $150,000 in a
[32:36] small vessel improvement grant, a
[32:39] small harbor improvement grant
[32:40] through the
[32:41] Connecticut Port Authority
[32:42] for design,
[32:43] engineering,
[32:44] environmental
[32:45] review and permitting
[32:46] for this pier. Um, and once
[32:48] we
[32:48] know that, um,
[32:50] hopefully we'll
[32:51] get it. This is a
[32:52] matching grant.
[32:55] The goal is to
[32:56] do all of this and
[32:57] then consider the
[32:58] groundbreaking work.
[33:00] Um, the goal is to
[33:01] complete
[33:03] this by October 2028.
[33:05] Um, but my first
[33:06] step is to get a $
[33:08] 3.5 million grant
[33:10] from the state. Are there
[33:12] any questions?
[33:15] To the Deputy Mayor.
[33:16] Again,
[33:17] these are not bonds. This is a
[33:19] grant. I just want
[33:21] to make sure of
[33:22] the decision.
[33:22] Grant.
[33:23] Good. This is great.
[33:27] Yes.
[33:28] I know it's far in
[33:29] the future, but once
[33:30] it's
[33:31] completed, um, because I don't
[33:32] think anyone will
[33:33] actually be able to
[33:35] access it right now.
[33:36] Right?
[33:36] You cannot
[33:37] access the north
[33:38] part of the pier. You
[33:39] can
[33:40] access the southern
[33:41] part of the pier.
[33:42] So what do we plan to
[33:42] use in
[33:43] the future regarding the
[33:44] pier?
[33:44] Hmm, it
[33:45] will continue to be a
[33:46] fishing pier.
[33:47] It will be
[33:48] ADA compliant. That was
[33:49] one of my main
[33:50] push points, um, is that
[33:51] this is really our only
[33:53] accessible
[33:54] fishing pier in the city of
[33:55] Groton. In addition, it is an
[33:56] incentive for
[33:57] economic
[33:58] development. Hmm, I
[34:00] spoke to the
[34:00] owner of Ken's Tackle who
[34:02] said that between
[34:03] the closure of Streeter Pier
[34:04] and the partial
[34:05] closure of this one, and
[34:06] it was closed for
[34:08] quite a while
[34:09] during the
[34:10] seawall project, um,
[34:11] her business was
[34:12] struggling and she
[34:13] reported it to
[34:14] the governor, um, and I
[34:16] think that
[34:16] helped. Um, um, and that
[34:21] it
[34:21] will definitely meet
[34:23] ADA requirements. This will be a
[34:24] place where you can
[34:25] fish. You can
[34:27] have a relaxed,
[34:28] passive vacation,
[34:29] um, on this pier.
[34:30] Perfectly.
[34:31] Hmm.
[34:31] Thank you.
[34:32] Yes.
[34:34] Councilor Jones.
[34:37] Yes, I just wanted to say
[34:38] hello. I know
[34:41] you lobbied for this, as did
[34:42] , um, you know, other
[34:44] people in our
[34:45] district. So, um, thank you.
[34:50] Um, and I know, you know, I
[34:51] understand that there's probably a little bit of
[34:53] concern when
[34:55] people hear that we're
[34:56] going to do some
[34:57] building there. Um, but as
[35:01] for the grant, I
[35:05] fully support it.
[35:06] Um, I think it's going to be
[35:08] really good for
[35:09] the area, and, um, I
[35:10] think this council might
[35:12] be a little more
[35:13] knowledgeable about
[35:14] some of the questions that
[35:15] we're probably going to need to
[35:17] ask when it
[35:18] comes time for
[35:19] engineering work, and,
[35:20] um, but yeah, I'm a little
[35:21] excited about it. So
[35:24] congratulations.
[35:25] Thank you. Are there any other
[35:27] questions or
[35:28] comments? Mr.
[35:30] Councilor Embry.
[35:32] Thank you, Madam Mayor. Um,
[35:34] again, I, um, echo
[35:35] the sentiments of, um, Councilor
[35:37] Jones, and, um, thank you to
[35:38] our
[35:39] state representative
[35:40] for, um, getting
[35:42] this
[35:43] grant funding, and also to you for
[35:46] working hard to
[35:47] try to solve
[35:51] this problem. We, um,
[35:53] solved one
[35:54] problem. We
[35:55] needed to
[35:56] solve this other
[35:57] problem. I guess the
[35:58] question I have
[35:59] now is, will
[36:03] this solve the problem
[36:05] with this grant that we're
[36:06] getting? And if
[36:11] there are some
[36:12] anticipated
[36:13] cost overruns,
[36:14] who will bear the
[36:15] burden of those overruns
[36:22] if for some reason
[36:23] we have to
[36:24] revisit what
[36:25] we have dealt with in the
[36:26] past in this area
[36:27] ?
[36:32] So when we
[36:33] look at the
[36:34] design and
[36:35] engineering of this
[36:36] project, um, it's well
[36:37] known how much
[36:38] money we have for this, and we're going
[36:40] to support it, we're going to
[36:41] do it a little bit in
[36:42] reverse, in that this is what
[36:43] we have, and we're not
[36:44] going to
[36:46] go over that amount.
[36:48] Hmm, so what can you
[36:49] do with that
[36:51] amount of money?
[36:53] Good. Hmm, my
[36:56] follow-up on this is
[36:58] that I would like
[37:00] this pier, as
[37:01] historic as it is
[37:02] , to be extended,
[37:03] if possible, in
[37:04] some way, for
[37:05] example, at this
[37:07] stage of design.
[37:13] Hmm, and the reason I
[37:14] say this is on the
[37:15] southwest
[37:16] point, if you
[37:17] throw out the moorings
[37:18] for casting, you
[37:19] deal with
[37:20] rocks and a lot of
[37:21] other, um,
[37:22] problems. If we
[37:32] could extend this,
[37:33] uh, southern point of the
[37:34] dock further, it could
[37:35] reduce the impact of
[37:36] stormwater,
[37:37] at least on the
[37:39] Shore Avenue side that has been
[37:40] restored and
[37:41] replaced. I'm not saying
[37:51] that on the
[37:51] southernmost point
[37:53] we still have
[37:54] issues with where there's
[37:55] some
[37:56] stormwater runoff that
[37:57] runs onto Shore Avenue from
[37:58] that end, but I, I,
[38:00] if there's an opportunity for
[38:01] us to extend that
[38:02] pier, uh, further, I would
[38:03] fully support
[38:05] it for a couple of reasons.
[38:09] Fishing, and also, uh
[38:11] , the environment.
[38:12] Good.
[38:14] Thank you.
[38:15] Of course. Are there any other
[38:16] questions or
[38:17] comments? Okay, not
[38:19] seeing any, I will make a
[38:20] motion
[38:21] to move this to the
[38:22] mayor and council on
[38:23] October 5th.
[38:24] So, it is proposed.
[38:25] Second.
[38:26] So, the proposal and the
[38:28] second. Everyone who is "in favor"?
[38:30] Yes. Yes.
[38:31] Is
[38:32] anyone against it? Did anyone
[38:34] abstain? Adopted
[38:35] unanimously. Okay,
[38:37] moving on to the
[38:38] Planet
[38:39] Fitness donation. Uh, the city of Groton
[38:42] has had
[38:44] exercise machines in our
[38:45] basement for quite some time. Uh-huh. Um, it
[38:48] was in pieces, I would
[38:50] say, um, that's the
[38:51] best way to put it
[38:52] , brought,
[38:53] um, from different
[38:55] people's homes, different places.
[38:57] Um, but after all,
[38:58] most of it is
[38:59] already out of
[39:00] service. Um,
[39:04] our, um...So one
[39:06] day
[39:06] someone
[39:08] from Planet Fitness called me, a manager from
[39:09] Planet Fitness, and um, in a
[39:10] follow-up
[39:11] email,
[39:12] asked if
[39:13] they would ever get rid of
[39:14] , um, the
[39:15] exercise machines. This
[39:20] started a very
[39:21] long conversation between the
[39:22] two of us, and, um, we were
[39:27] offered, um,
[39:29] some, fitness
[39:30] equipment. Um, the city is
[39:33] currently finalizing its
[39:36] equipment usage policy. Um, it's
[39:38] not
[39:39] finalized yet, um, but it
[39:40] will be done before
[39:41] we bring
[39:42] the equipment into the
[39:43] building. We're working
[39:44] on a place in the basement,
[39:46] um, to house
[39:47] this equipment, um,
[39:48] and also on
[39:48] the possibility of
[39:49] putting some of
[39:50] the equipment in our
[39:51] fire stations
[39:52] so they don't have to
[39:53] come here to
[39:54] use it
[39:55] because they have some of the
[39:56] equipment at the
[39:57] fire station.
[40:01] So, we're asking for, um,
[40:02] a resolution, um,
[40:03] approval of the will
[40:04] from the board to accept a
[40:06] donation from Planet Fitness
[40:07] in the form of exercise equipment.
[40:12] To the Deputy Mayor.
[40:14] Um, it won't be
[40:15] specific dollars, it's
[40:16] pure equipment. It's
[40:17] just
[40:18] pure equipment. Yes
[40:20] , they don't donate
[40:21] money, they donate
[40:22] equipment. Yes, the
[40:26] council square.
[40:27] Thank you, mayor. So, will there be
[40:29] any
[40:30] equipment testing? Would anyone
[40:31] really jump on a
[40:32] treadmill or
[40:33] elliptical trainer
[40:34] to make sure
[40:35] it works? Does
[40:36] it have to go through this
[40:37] process before we
[40:38] receive it, or do we
[40:39] just take it as
[40:40] is?
[40:42] Um, we can
[40:42] confirm that everything
[40:44] works. Absolutely.
[40:51] Mr. Councilor Ambo.
[40:54] Thank you, Madam Mayor. Is this what
[40:56] we want? I
[41:03] think I...Is it something that's
[41:05] needed and wanted,
[41:06] or is it something that, uh, you
[41:07] know, we just
[41:09] perceive as...uh...I
[41:10] ...I...I do it all
[41:11] the time. This...I love the
[41:15] grant. I love all
[41:17] things gift-giving, but
[41:19] , uh, is this something that's
[41:20] needed or, you know,
[41:21] requested?
[41:24] Hmm, that's what they asked for. Hmm,
[41:27] there were comments that
[41:29] our training
[41:30] equipment, which
[41:31] was used
[41:32] primarily by our
[41:33] police department but
[41:34] also by other departments,
[41:36] hmm, had seen better days.
[41:40] Hmm, besides, there
[41:41] was a
[41:42] renovation there, and part of
[41:44] it was covered in, hmm,
[41:45] just garbage, and
[41:46] now it's just not
[41:47] in very good condition
[41:48] . Also, our
[41:51] fire stations
[41:52] have simulators, but
[41:54] I don't know how much of
[41:55] it has been purchased, and
[41:56] how much...sorry, I'm
[41:57] looking at our
[41:58] firefighters in the
[41:59] back row and
[42:00] how much of it
[42:01] has accumulated in the
[42:02] process. Hmm, so
[42:05] hopefully we
[42:06] can give
[42:07] employees
[42:08] the opportunity to
[42:09] train, hmm, to
[42:10] improve their
[42:11] physical fitness
[42:12] for work. Councilor
[42:17] Jones:
[42:19] Yeah, I can't not that
[42:21] I'm not that I'm
[42:25] plugging Planet Fitness,
[42:26] but I go there
[42:27] a few times a
[42:28] week and they just had
[42:30] all their
[42:31] equipment inspected. So
[42:33] I guess
[42:34] a lot of
[42:35] things come from there. They
[42:37] replaced everything, and I
[42:38] mean, I've been working there for
[42:40] years, and
[42:41] before they
[42:42] replaced it, everything was in
[42:43] pretty good
[42:44] shape. Yeah, back then,
[42:46] you know, there were a few
[42:47] weird exercise machines
[42:48] that, you know,
[42:48] needed repairs,
[42:50] but it's not that
[42:51] we don't get
[42:52] junk, you know. That's exactly what it is
[42:58] .
[42:59] Planet Fitness regularly
[43:00] replaces its
[43:01] equipment. So, that's how
[43:05] this conversation started,
[43:06] that they reworked the
[43:08] equipment in Groton,
[43:09] and unfortunately we didn't
[43:10] get it. We didn't know it was
[43:13] happening
[43:15] until they
[43:15] invited us to the
[43:16] grand opening.
[43:19] So, but that's exactly where the
[43:20] conversation started. Yes
[43:26] , Councilor Piazza.
[43:27] Thank you, mayor. I just
[43:29] think it's a great
[43:30] idea, especially if the
[43:31] staff reaches out
[43:32] to us. And I
[43:33] mean, who can
[43:34] fight? Like,
[43:35] health above all else,
[43:37] you know? We
[43:38] don't have healthy people,
[43:39] otherwise we can
[43:40] do our
[43:40] job, you know? I
[43:41] mean, the physical
[43:43] turns into
[43:43] the mental when you
[43:44] do the exercises.
[43:45] So, I think this is a
[43:47] great benefit for
[43:48] employees.
[43:49] Thank you.
[43:49] Hmm. Are
[43:52] there any other
[43:52] questions or
[43:53] comments? Seeing
[43:55] none, I will make a
[43:56] motion to defer
[43:57] this matter to the
[43:58] Mayor and Council on October 5th.
[44:00] So it's included.
[44:01] Second.
[44:01] There is a second proposal.
[44:03] Everyone who is "in favor"?
[44:04] Yes. Yes.
[44:05] Is
[44:06] anyone against it? Are there those who
[44:08] abstained? This
[44:09] was adopted unanimously
[44:10] . Good. Next, um, Graton
[44:14] Sub Vets asked for
[44:15] donations. Hmm,
[44:18] Ron, can you explain
[44:20] that?
[44:21] I will explain.
[44:22] You can explain not just the
[44:27] donation request itself, but
[44:28] where the
[44:29] money comes from.
[44:34] So, in your package of
[44:35] documents was the
[44:36] initial resolution
[44:37] that established
[44:39] donation procedures, um,
[44:40] for this city council
[44:42] , which allocates
[44:43] $5,000 annually for
[44:44] donations to
[44:45] be distributed
[44:46] upon your approval.
[44:49] This can be up to 20% per
[44:50] donation,
[44:51] so the maximum
[44:52] donation can
[44:53] reach thousands of
[44:54] dollars for any
[44:55] one donation.
[44:56] As I said, it is
[44:57] limited to 5,000 per
[44:59] fiscal year. This
[45:01] money, ahem, comes from the
[45:03] community development fund,
[45:06] whose source of income is the
[45:07] C-Max generators. This
[45:09] money goes there,
[45:10] so it's not money that
[45:11] comes from the
[45:11] general fund. This is
[45:12] money that is
[45:13] set aside in a
[45:14] special
[45:15] revenue fund. So that's where the
[45:16] money comes from, and
[45:17] then I, the mayor, can
[45:18] look into this
[45:19] donation request in more detail. And
[45:20] one more quick
[45:21] question before I
[45:22] sit down at your desks, and
[45:23] we can also
[45:23] send this via
[45:24] email.
[45:25] This is the history of all
[45:26] the donations we have
[45:28] made from these funds
[45:30] since 2015. So, you'll
[45:31] see all the
[45:32] organizations we
[45:33] donated to, in
[45:34] dollars, for each year up to the
[45:35] current one. And
[45:36] so far, in 2027, we have
[45:38] only made one
[45:39] donation, and that
[45:40] was for a $
[45:42] 500 bus to the Carter Art Museum
[45:43] . So there are still $4,500 in donations left for the
[45:44] fiscal year
[45:48] .
[45:48] Thank you. So, if
[45:50] you look back,
[45:51] starting in 2019,
[45:53] we gave, um, veterans -
[45:54] Saturday workers, we gave
[45:56] them $300, then
[45:57] again in 2021 we
[45:59] did $500, and then
[46:00] over the last 2
[46:01] years we did
[46:03] $1,000. Um, and
[46:04] actually the
[46:05] donation amount is up
[46:06] to you. Um, the request was
[46:07] made to
[46:08] their
[46:09] Gratitude,
[46:10] Caring, and
[46:11] Sharing Committee. Each year, the
[46:12] Groton
[46:13] Subbotniks
[46:13] host a
[46:15] Thanksgiving dinner at
[46:16] their club for
[46:18] active duty sailors, their
[46:19] friends and family, as well
[46:20] as veterans,
[46:21] rescue workers and
[46:22] others during the holiday. In
[46:23] 2025, they provided
[46:26] over 2,700 meals.
[46:28] Councilor Piazza and I were
[46:29] there in the distribution line.
[46:31] It's just a constant
[46:32] stream of "yes-yes-yes-yes." Um,
[46:34] and how great that it
[46:35] gets to everyone
[46:37] who can't
[46:38] come there, they
[46:39] deliver. Um, they
[46:41] also deliver it to
[46:43] the rescuers and
[46:44] then, um, serve the food right
[46:45] there. Therefore. Are
[46:48] there any
[46:49] discussions about this
[46:50] ? Yes.
[46:52] Well, like I said,
[46:56] $1,000 last
[46:57] year, was that
[46:58] enough to
[46:59] cover
[47:00] food costs, or were we,
[47:02] you know, short,
[47:03] you know?
[47:04] So they get
[47:05] donations from other
[47:06] people besides, um, the
[47:07] city council.
[47:08] The most we
[47:09] can give them is
[47:10] $1,000. You have a choice
[47:12] whether you want to give them something
[47:13] or not. So it's
[47:14] really a council decision.
[47:16] 1000 dollars is a fine.
[47:19] We're doing it again
[47:20] this year, so...
[47:21] Any other comments?
[47:23] Yes.
[47:23] Just a note:
[47:25] I really
[47:25] like it. We
[47:26] do this with my, um,
[47:27] kids and I, and I
[47:29] think it's an
[47:29] amazing thing.
[47:30] And the people who
[47:31] run it are amazing.
[47:34] They are a well-oiled
[47:35] machine. A
[47:36] well-oiled machine,
[47:37] that's true. So
[47:38] if anyone here wants to
[47:39] help, it's you who won't
[47:40] get into chaos. It's a
[47:42] very well-oiled
[47:43] machine and it just
[47:44] moves, moves, and
[47:45] moves, moves, It's a great
[47:48] thing, and then
[47:48] getting ready for
[47:49] dinner, it's really
[47:50] nice. Therefore.
[47:52] I will say that, um, it's not
[47:53] worth completely
[47:54] overshadowing Subvets, but
[47:55] they are also always
[47:56] looking for
[47:58] Thanksgiving desserts. So, if
[47:59] you don't have a free
[48:00] Thanksgiving morning
[48:01] and can't
[48:02] volunteer, you
[48:03] can always donate,
[48:04] um, pies or other
[48:05] Thanksgiving desserts
[48:06] . Um, and they
[48:07] also accept
[48:08] monetary donations for
[48:10] this. So, um, if this is
[48:11] something that anyone in
[48:12] the public
[48:13] is interested in. Any
[48:16] other questions or
[48:17] comments? If you
[48:19] want to do...Oh,
[48:20] yes. I
[48:20] just want to
[48:21] make sure before that that we
[48:22] reach a consensus
[48:23] on the dollar amount
[48:24] because at this
[48:24] point we don't have anything
[48:25] . I know I've heard
[48:26] some numbers, but
[48:27] just to
[48:28] make sure. Is
[48:29] there any other amount
[48:30] you would like? Okay,
[48:33] then I'll ask you
[48:34] to make a donation, um,
[48:36] you'll make a donation.
[48:37] If you want to
[48:38] make, um,
[48:39] an offer.
[48:40] Um, yes, for $1,000.
[48:42] Yes, I will make this
[48:43] suggestion.
[48:44] Bring this up for
[48:45] consideration by the mayor and council on
[48:47] October 5th?
[48:48] So, a suggestion.
[48:49] Second. Do you have any
[48:51] questions or comments?
[48:52] Okay, I see, no.
[48:54] Everyone who is "in favor"? Hmm, yes.
[48:56] Is
[48:57] anyone against it? Is there anyone
[48:58] who abstained?
[48:59] Adopted unanimously
[49:01] . Good. Next on the
[49:05] agenda is the
[49:06] donation we
[49:07] received. So, you
[49:09] accept the donation.
[49:11] Um, we talked about this
[49:13] at the last
[49:14] Committee of the
[49:15] Whole meeting, that we
[49:16] were having a holiday
[49:18] light parade and that
[49:19] we went out, um,
[49:20] to solicit donations from
[49:21] local businesses
[49:23] , and we got
[49:24] $1,000 from Karn's Automotive
[49:25] Sales and Services, and we
[49:26] got a
[49:28] sponsorship in the form of
[49:29] candy and treats.
[49:32] And then we also
[49:33] received a
[49:34] $500 donation
[49:36] from Outer Light Brewing Company. Are there
[49:39] any questions or
[49:40] comments about this
[49:41] ? No, I would like to
[49:48] thank them both
[49:50] . Hmm, that's really
[49:51] great. We are very happy about
[49:53] this. Hmm, this will be our
[49:54] first holiday
[49:55] light parade and
[49:56] tree lighting.
[49:58] So we are happy to do
[49:59] this with the help of our
[50:00] local businesses
[50:02] . Um, no questions or
[50:04] comments, I'll
[50:05] make a motion
[50:06] to move the donation
[50:08] from Karn's Automotive to the
[50:10] October 5th Mayor and Council meeting.
[50:12] So, a suggestion.
[50:14] Second.
[50:15] Everyone who is "in favor".
[50:17] Yes. Yes. Yes. Yes. Is
[50:22] anyone against it? Are there any
[50:25] abstainers? Mr.
[50:27] Councilor Embosse, I did not
[50:28] receive your
[50:29] vote.
[50:32] Maybe he moved away
[50:34] .
[50:36] Mr. Councilor Emboss?
[50:39] Sorry, I'm in favor.
[50:41] Oh, thank you. And then I
[50:44] make a motion
[50:45] to move the donation
[50:46] from Outer Light Brewing Company to the
[50:49] October 8th Mayor and Council meeting.
[50:51] So, a suggestion. On
[50:52] October 5th, I lied.
[50:54] So, a suggestion.
[50:55] Thank you.
[50:56] Second.
[50:57] There is a second proposal.
[50:58] Everyone who is "in favor".
[50:59] Yes. Yes. Yes. Yes. Is
[51:03] anyone against it? Are there any
[51:04] abstainers?
[51:05] The proposal was adopted
[51:06] unanimously. Thank you.
[51:08] Um, next up, we have
[51:09] Chief Tompkins,
[51:10] fire
[51:11] truck repair.
[51:22] Good. Good evening
[51:24] .
[51:24] Good evening.
[51:26] Uh, I believe
[51:27] your packages include, um,
[51:28] a list of repairs
[51:30] we need to make
[51:31] to the ladder cart. Um,
[51:35] this is G15. It's probably
[51:37] written here. Uh, every year
[51:38] we do, um,
[51:39] preventive
[51:40] maintenance on our
[51:42] carts. Um, and for a
[51:44] ladder cart, they
[51:45] also check the
[51:47] ladder part of it.
[51:50] Um, during this
[51:51] time they discovered, um,
[51:52] many, um, shortcomings,
[51:54] um, that needed to be
[51:56] fixed. Um, here's a
[51:58] list of various,
[52:02] um, things that
[52:03] needed to be
[52:04] addressed. Um, the reason
[52:05] we packaged this
[52:06] as a single unit, and I'm here
[52:08] before you today, is because
[52:09] it
[52:10] costs over
[52:11] $20,000. And therefore it
[52:12] needs your
[52:13] approval. Um, that's not
[52:16] something we can
[52:17] choose because it's, um, a
[52:19] Pierce ladder cart. And that
[52:22] 's why Firematic is the
[52:23] Pierce dealer in the area. Um
[52:26] , and they, um, are the ones who
[52:27] will do the work.
[52:30] Uh, most of this
[52:31] work here is on the
[52:33] ladder itself. If
[52:34] you look down at the
[52:35] hydraulic cylinders
[52:37] , the pulleys are part of the
[52:38] system that raises
[52:40] the ladder and extends it
[52:41] , etc. So, they would have to
[52:44] do the work. As
[52:46] you can see, that's
[52:48] over $29,000 in total.
[52:50] We have operating
[52:51] funds. The budget includes
[52:54] expenses for
[52:56] truck repairs and maintenance. So,
[52:59] for now, we will
[53:00] use
[53:01] these funds to
[53:02] pay for this. Are there any
[53:04] questions?
[53:07] I'll just repeat, these are
[53:09] essentially budget
[53:10] expenses for repairs.
[53:12] Good. Yeah, that's...
[53:15] out of my
[53:16] budget, but yeah. I have
[53:17] about
[53:18] $50,000 that I've already
[53:19] spent. But
[53:20] last year we
[53:21] were obviously in a
[53:22] difficult position.
[53:25] So, we put off
[53:26] a lot of things that we
[53:27] could have put off, uh
[53:28] , on this budget, and
[53:29] now it's starting to
[53:31] catch up with us. So, but,
[53:33] uh, we're on budget right now
[53:34] , and you
[53:35] know, I'm going to need to
[53:36] save in
[53:37] other places, if anything
[53:38] .
[53:40] We have done most of the
[53:41] preventive
[53:42] maintenance. So
[53:43] now, when something
[53:44] breaks, we have to
[53:46] fix it.
[53:47] So...
[53:48] Okay. Just, uh,
[53:50] wondering how long it
[53:51] will take to
[53:52] repair? How long
[53:54] will it be out of
[53:55] service?
[53:57] Uh, I don't really know.
[54:00] We...we'll plan it
[54:01] ...Hopefully, we'll,
[54:02] you know, go through this
[54:04] process...Uh, we'll
[54:05] plan it. They'll, uh
[54:06] , gather the materials
[54:07] and everything so that when
[54:09] we get it there,
[54:10] it takes as
[54:11] little time as possible. We will be
[54:13] on schedule. They'll have
[54:14] everything they need, and
[54:16] they'll, uh, and they'll
[54:17] do the repairs. But
[54:18] , I think, a week. But
[54:21] it happens, uh,
[54:22] regularly for us and
[54:23] for our
[54:25] mutual aid partners. So,
[54:27] we have
[54:27] mutual aid, and we
[54:28] will call
[54:29] them as needed.
[54:30] That was my question
[54:31] . I'm sure there's a
[54:32] backup plan, who do
[54:33] you know...
[54:34] Yeah. We don't have a
[54:35] backup engine, uh
[54:36] , ladder, but we would
[54:37] call Beacon Bridge
[54:38] or New
[54:39] London Mystic Subbase. Yes.
[54:40] We have...We have
[54:41] contingencies that we
[54:42] take advantage of
[54:43] all the time.
[54:43] Good. Good. Thank you.
[54:45] Councilor Piazza.
[54:47] So, this does not currently
[54:48] disable the ladder truck
[54:49] . Right?
[54:51] The ladder is working.
[54:53] She was taken up for
[54:53] preventive
[54:54] maintenance. These are
[54:56] the drawbacks, and, uh, it's
[54:58] working now.
[55:00] Good. Thank you. Anyone else
[55:05] ? Good. Seeing no
[55:10] other issues, I make a
[55:11] motion to move
[55:12] this to the
[55:13] October 5th Mayor and Council meeting. So,
[55:14] it's done. Second.
[55:16] Friend's suggestion. Who is
[55:17] for it?
[55:18] Yes. Yes. Is
[55:19] anyone against it? Did anyone
[55:21] abstain? Adopted
[55:22] unanimously.
[55:23] Next step. Um, we're
[55:25] bringing you an update
[55:26] on the
[55:27] West
[55:28] Pleasant Valley Fire District. You are here.
[55:33] Um, so, as you guys
[55:34] know, we passed
[55:36] an ordinance
[55:37] establishing
[55:38] fire
[55:39] marshal meetings in the city of
[55:40] Groton. The next
[55:43] step was
[55:44] to talk to West
[55:45] Pleasant Valley,
[55:46] as we provide
[55:47] fire services and
[55:48] fire
[55:49] marshal services for West
[55:50] Pleasant Valley.
[55:53] Chief Tompkins,
[55:54] Director Juhasz, and I
[55:56] met with the
[55:58] West Pleasant
[55:59] Valley Fire District Board of Directors. They were
[56:04] satisfied with our
[56:05] demands and
[56:06] signed the agreement. It
[56:10] stated
[56:12] August 26, 2026. It's
[56:15] in your package. Is there
[56:18] anything else? So basically,
[56:22] when someone in West
[56:23] Pleasant Valley
[56:24] goes to the
[56:26] city's building department, they're told
[56:27] that they also
[56:28] need to go
[56:29] to the
[56:30] city's building department, and they
[56:31] can pay, they'll
[56:32] eventually be able to
[56:33] pay them right
[56:34] online. Currently, online
[56:38] services are still
[56:38] being refined, but
[56:40] they can
[56:40] calculate how much you
[56:41] will need to
[56:42] pay. Did I
[56:45] miss something? Good.
[56:50] Any. Yes, Counselor
[56:52] Weiss.
[56:54] Thank you, Madam Mayor, and I
[56:56] will say it again. Thank you
[56:57] , Madam Mayor. Thank you,
[56:59] Chief Tompkins,
[57:01] you know, you eradicated
[57:02] it. This is something that
[57:08] our
[57:09] public
[57:10] safety and
[57:10] public works committee has been working on in
[57:11] another area to
[57:12] try to improve
[57:14] our fire protection
[57:15] and bring in more full-
[57:16] time
[57:16] employees, and we
[57:18] were trying to find a
[57:19] source of revenue that
[57:20] we didn't really
[57:21] have. We haven't
[57:26] used it before. And I'm
[57:28] grateful to you guys
[57:29] for all of this hard
[57:30] work, and to the
[57:31] committee members for
[57:32] having these
[57:33] discussions to
[57:34] try to get to
[57:36] this point. Hmm, that
[57:41] includes not only the
[57:42] West
[57:43] Pleasant Valley Fire District, but also the
[57:44] new developments at Fairview
[57:46] Homes, right?
[57:51] Yes, any permits
[57:52] currently coming in
[57:54] West Pleasant Valley,
[57:55] including Fairview,
[57:56] will be subject
[57:57] to fees.
[57:59] Right. And again
[58:03] , I
[58:04] support this 110%. Um, you
[58:11] know, you guys, you
[58:12] and your deputy
[58:13] chief, you've
[58:16] worked hard over the years to
[58:17] make sure that
[58:19] any buildings that
[58:20] are built or
[58:21] renovated
[58:22] meet the
[58:22] fire
[58:24] safety parameters of the city of Groton.
[58:29] Hmm, and ensured that
[58:32] they were safe
[58:33] and secure. And I'm
[58:36] grateful that you guys are
[58:37] now getting a
[58:38] source of income for the
[58:39] hard work that you
[58:40] do, based on the
[58:43] Connecticut General Statutes, which we
[58:44] determined were, you
[58:49] know, designed to ensure that
[58:50] you
[58:51] get these
[58:52] sources of income for the
[58:53] work that you
[58:54] do. So,
[58:55] thank you for that. I
[58:56] appreciate it.
[58:59] Are there any other questions
[59:01] or comments? Again
[59:03] , this is just
[59:03] informational
[59:04] material, so we don't
[59:05] need to
[59:06] transfer anything. We just
[59:07] wanted to make sure
[59:08] you know that this
[59:09] matter has been finally
[59:10] agreed upon and that we are
[59:11] moving forward. Oh
[59:13] Councilor Mbuwa.
[59:15] Sorry. I I I I just a
[59:16] quick
[59:17] follow-up question. Hmm
[59:18] , do we need to
[59:19] hold a public
[59:20] hearing on this
[59:21] , or will this
[59:22] be
[59:23] brought up at our
[59:24] next, uh,
[59:25] mayor and
[59:26] council meeting and then we'll
[59:27] just approve it
[59:28] and then it'll be
[59:29] passed.
[59:30] He doesn't need to be
[59:31] approved by anyone on the
[59:32] council because he's approved by the
[59:33] West
[59:34] Pleasant Valley Fire District, er,
[59:35] West Pleasant Valley.
[59:41] So it's not
[59:41] brought before
[59:42] the mayor and then before the
[59:43] council. Good.
[59:47] Right. Seeing this,
[59:50] um, I make a
[59:51] motion to
[59:52] go into closed
[59:54] session pursuant
[59:55] to Connecticut General
[59:56] Statutes
[59:56] 1-206 a,
[59:58] regarding personnel and
[59:59] appointments for the
[1:00:00] fire department,
[1:00:01] including the council, the mayor,
[1:00:03] um, Chief
[1:00:04] Tompkins, Michael
[1:00:05] Page, and Richard
[1:00:06] Russo.
[1:00:09] So it is proposed.
[1:00:10] Second.
[1:00:11] Proposal and second.
[1:00:14] Everyone who is "in favor".
[1:00:15] Yes.
[1:00:16] Okay, we're in
[1:00:17] closed session.
[1:00:18] It is 7:05.
[1:00:20] Uh, Madam Mayor, I won't be
[1:00:22] able to attend
[1:00:23] because I have someone
[1:00:24] delivering documents.
[1:00:26] So I'll leave it to you
[1:00:29] , if you have the
[1:00:30] quorum. If not, then
[1:00:32] I have a quorum. I have a
[1:00:33] quorum. Everything is fine.
[1:00:35] So, Councilor Amboise
[1:00:36] leaves the meeting at
[1:00:37] 6:05, and there's nothing, well, there
[1:00:39] will be something from the closed
[1:00:40] session, but that's
[1:00:41] okay. We have a
[1:00:42] quorum.
[1:00:43] Thank you, Madam Mayor.
[1:00:44] Thank you.
[1:00:45] Good night.
[1:00:46] We
[1:00:49] need to wait a
[1:00:50] minute. We
[1:00:52] need to wait a
[1:00:53] minute. We're still on
[1:00:54] ...Can we
[1:00:55] do this? Um, we'll
[1:00:56] do them separately.
[1:00:57] Recording stopped.
[1:00:58] We will make them. Oh, do
[1:01:00] we need to
[1:01:01] go in and out
[1:01:02] if we...
[1:01:03] Yes, I suppose so.
[1:01:06] Oh, okay. Remind
[1:01:09] me. Hmm,
[1:01:10] I don't know if it's
[1:01:11] necessary.
[1:04:05] Thank you for noticing this. It's
[1:04:10] a shame I didn't
[1:04:11] notice either.
[1:04:15] Recording is in progress.
[1:04:16] Okay, we're back
[1:04:18] at 7:09. I'm going to, um, move to
[1:04:21] overturn
[1:04:21] the motion that's currently under
[1:04:23] consideration to go into
[1:04:24] closed
[1:04:25] session because we
[1:04:26] added both people
[1:04:28] together. So if you
[1:04:29] can, um, if the
[1:04:30] deputy mayor, if
[1:04:31] you agree to withdraw
[1:04:33] your proposal.
[1:04:34] Yes.
[1:04:35] And Councilor Piazza, if
[1:04:36] you agree to rescind
[1:04:38] your second
[1:04:38] offer.
[1:04:39] Hooray.
[1:04:39] Good. Um, so this
[1:04:41] proposal has been canceled
[1:04:42] . So I'll take
[1:04:43] the offer. Let's
[1:04:44] try this a second time.
[1:04:46] I make a motion
[1:04:47] to go into
[1:04:48] closed session
[1:04:49] pursuant to
[1:04:51] Connecticut General Statutes 1-206 a,
[1:04:52] personnel appointments,
[1:04:54] fire department,
[1:04:55] including mayor, council, chief
[1:04:57] Tompkins, and Michael
[1:04:58] Page.
[1:04:59] So, it is proposed.
[1:05:01] Secondly.
[1:05:01] There is a proposal and a friend
[1:05:03] . Everyone who is "in favor"?
[1:05:04] Yes. Yes.
[1:05:05] Is
[1:05:05] anyone against it? Are there any
[1:05:06] abstainers? 7:10.
[1:05:09] We are now moving into
[1:05:10] closed session. Just
[1:05:11] a moment until we
[1:05:12] get out of the cell.
[1:05:15] Recording stopped.
[1:09:04] Mhm.
[1:10:59] Good.
[1:11:27] Okay, we left the
[1:11:28] closed session
[1:11:30] at 7:16. I make
[1:11:31] a motion to
[1:11:33] move to a closed
[1:11:34] session pursuant
[1:11:35] to CGS 1-206 a, personnel
[1:11:36] appointments and
[1:11:37] appointments for the
[1:11:39] fire department,
[1:11:40] including the Mayor,
[1:11:41] Council Chief
[1:11:42] Tompkins, and Richard
[1:11:43] Russo.
[1:11:44] So, it is proposed.
[1:11:46] Secondly.
[1:11:46] This is a proposal and a
[1:11:47] friend. Have questions or
[1:11:49] comments? No, everyone
[1:11:51] who is "in favor"?
[1:11:52] Yes.
[1:11:53] Is
[1:11:54] anyone against it? Are there any
[1:11:55] abstainers?
[1:11:56] Unanimously. We'll
[1:11:57] return to
[1:11:59] closed session
[1:12:00] at 7:16, 7:17, sorry.
[1:16:44] Ahem.
[1:18:35] Good. It is 7:23, and the
[1:18:37] closed session
[1:18:39] is over. Um, I will make
[1:18:43] a motion to
[1:18:44] submit to the mayor and
[1:18:46] council on October 5th
[1:18:47] a motion to
[1:18:48] appoint Michael
[1:18:49] Page as fire chief.
[1:18:51] So it is
[1:18:53] proposed.
[1:18:55] Secondly.
[1:18:55] This is a proposal and a
[1:18:56] friend. Have questions or
[1:18:58] comments? Everyone who is "
[1:18:59] for"?
[1:19:00] Yes. Yes.
[1:19:02] Are there any objections? Are there any
[1:19:04] abstainers? Seeing
[1:19:07] that there is none, it is carried
[1:19:09] unanimously, and I will
[1:19:10] make a motion
[1:19:11] to appoint, um,
[1:19:12] Richard Russo as
[1:19:13] fire chief at the
[1:19:15] October 5th meeting of the mayor and council.
[1:19:18] So it is proposed.
[1:19:20] Secondly.
[1:19:20] There is a proposal and a friend
[1:19:22] . Have questions or
[1:19:23] comments? Everyone who is "
[1:19:24] for"?
[1:19:25] Yes.
[1:19:27] Are there any objections? Are there any
[1:19:28] abstainers? Seeing
[1:19:30] that there is none, it is adopted
[1:19:31] unanimously. I will make
[1:19:32] a motion to
[1:19:33] postpone the
[1:19:34] meeting.
[1:19:34] I will make a motion to
[1:19:35] postpone the
[1:19:36] meeting.
[1:19:36] Second.
[1:19:37] Everyone who is "in favor"?
[1:19:38] Yes.
[1:19:39] The meeting
[1:19:40] has been postponed.
[1:19:41] Thank you very much.
[1:19:42] Thank you.