Board of Selectmen: Bantam Bumper, Sandy Beach Prowler, Early Voting, The Future of Trash, Woodridge Sediment

12/12/23

Previous week’s meeting minutes were approved unanimously as well as the town payroll and warrants for December 14th in the amount of $97,749.84.

An approximately 30 foot long by 24 inches in diameter culvert pipe was reportedly stolen near Holmes Road and Ivy Mountain Road over the weekend, according to First Selectman Todd Carusillo. “You got any Ring cameras out there that might have caught somebody stealing the pipe between Friday and Monday, please call the town hall,” Carusillo requested. Once a sighting is reported, the selectmen will contact state police to resolve the issue. The Caroline T. Brooks Fund, which provides medical needs to children under 18 who are unable to receive proper medical care, has remaining funds. Families can apply at First Selectman’s Office or the Goshen Congregational Church. Selectmen in the Region 6 transitioning to Region 20 School District are in support of a grant for a Region 6 Agricultural Program.

Recreation Department Director Erin Reilly proposed increasing wages for Camp Cochipianee summer employees. Carusillo explained the wage increase was a result of, “...cost of living went up, minimum wage went up, and we got to keep the kids over at the camp for lifeguards and CIT’s and everything.”

Carusillo contacted a company that produces covers for shipping containers to estimate how much it may cost to cover containers for the Public Works Department. He hopes to purchase the covers for $20,000 and $16,500 to help preserve equipment from outside elements.

For Public Comment, resident Audrey Blondin discussed a Town of Goshen code of ethics. “We don’t have one,” Carusillo claimed. “Apparently, they tried to get it passed in 2017 I believe it was and it didn’t go through.” “It was met with tremendous resistance”, Olson added. (Note: In response to later follow-up questions by The Goshen News, First Selectman Carusillo searched town records supposed to be implemented in November 2009, not 2017. It was not voted upon, however, and the Town has not since established a Code of Ethics.) Olson called for a code of ethics to be adopted and to create an ethics and found that a Code of Ethics was commission to enforce it. He hopes a code can be adopted within the next year or two.

Olson motioned for Woodridge Lake Property Owners' Association Maintenance Manager John Hay to fill a Woodridge Lake opening on the Lake Weed Committee, “He is extremely involved in the lake over there. He is the superintendent of the grounds and maintenance over there. A big part of John’s responsibilities are to oversee the health of the lake.” After a brief discussion, Hay was unanimously appointed to the committee. (Note: WLPOA General Manager Ed Dutka told Goshen News that Hay primarily works in maintenance of the grounds and lake.) Former selectman Mark Harris was unanimously appointed to the role of chairman for the Lake Weed Committee.

Carusillo alerted residents of openings in two town committees. A SEAT IS CURRENTLY AVAILABLE on the Economic Development Commission and the Recycling and Trash Advisory Committee is looking for another recycling coordinator. Recycling coordinators are paid $90 per month and Carusillo will fill in as an interim until a replacement is found. (Note: The Recycling Coordinator position has since been filled.)

Kinsella motioned to pay $1,057 as a deductible for an insurance claim. The Bantam Fire Company was assisting the Town of Goshen last week when they backed into a tree and bent their ambulance's bumper. “They asked us to cover the deductible on it…,” said Carusillo. “... I spoke to [Attorney] Chip [Roraback] and Chip said pay it because it was mutual aid and we can’t ruin relationships with somebody over a thousand bucks.” Olson supported this payment since Bantam offers aid to Goshen emergencies once a month on average, “It’s a great working relationship we have with the surrounding departments.” The motion was unanimously approved.

12/19/23

Previous week’s meeting minutes were approved unanimously as well as the town payroll and warrants for December 21st in the amount of $1,446,666.03. Before the minutes were approved, Scott Olson apologized for the minutes misinterpreting him saying the Goshen Ambulance doesn’t have the manpower, “If that is what you took away from what I had to say last week, I apologize… The point that I was trying to make is that I was certainly in favor of paying the invoice we received for the deductible… Certainly not that I feel that our fire company or ambulance is understaffed by any means, that’s not the case.” Todd Carusillo issued an additional correction that an electronic transfer from John Hancock was made on Wednesday not Tuesday.

Northwest Hills Council of Governments (COG) announced the closure of the Materials Innovation and Recycling Authority (MIRA) Dissolution Authority in 2027. MIRA receives municipal solid waste and conducts single or dual stream recycling at its Essex and Torrington Transfer Stations. Goshen is one of 12 municipalities that use the stations. Torrington officials proposed purchasing the Torrington station themselves while others proposed the COG buy the stations as a group. Carusillo expressed concern with Goshen being a part of this purchase, “I don’t know if the COG– if Goshen really wants to be a part of buying an old transfer station that might have contamination.” Carusillo will continue discussing the topic with local municipalities at COG’s next meeting on January 12th. He urged residents to purchase more recyclable products and use recycling bins to lower town trash weights, “As a community we’re going to have to start shopping smart… Stay away from the foams because the foams add weight… All your newspapers and cardboard should be going in the recycling bin because the weight has to come down.”

Goshen Registrars of Voters Nanci Howard and Dawn Wilkes submitted dates for early voting for 2024’s Presidential Primary. Early voting will take place on Tuesday, March 26th through Saturday, March 30th. That week’s selectmen meeting will take place in Carusillo’s office instead of the town conference room in order to avoid disrupting the voting. “The only office that will be affected on that Presidential Primary will be Board of Selectmen,” Carusillo explained. “So we’ll probably have the meeting on Zoom in my office instead of in here.” For the Presidential Election in late October and early November 2024, meetings of the selectmen and Lake Weed Committee, library gatherings, and Marty’s Morning Hour will be affected and have their normal locations moved. A schedule of the Early Voting process will be provided soon. Carusillo expects this schedule to be posted on the Goshen Town Calendar.

Carusillo plans to appoint Lisa Albreada-Ponte to become the town’s latest recycling coordinator. Former coordinator Paul Collins resigned from the Recycling & Trash Advisory Committee in November following his election to the Board of Finance. Albreada-Ponte is a 3M certified specialist at the Torrington-based industrial product distributor The Binding Source, “She came in for a quick interview. She was very pleasant, very knowledgeable about recycling and trash and everything… She’s going to go home and download the application, fill it out, get it back to us.” Carusillo expects to appoint her during the next selectmen meeting.

12/26/23

Previous week’s meeting minutes were approved unanimously as well as the town payroll and warrants for December 28th in the amount of $68,575.56.

For the First Selectman’s Report, Carusillo reported that they sent out the check to resolve an insurance claim after a Bantam Fire Company ambulance backed into a tree while responding to an emergency in town. A man was seen suspiciously looking into people’s houses and garages near 78 Sandy Beach Rd. “....Once the lights went on, they ran for their lives,” Carusillo explained. “But the guy had a ponytail. He was white with a ponytail and a hoodie that was hanging down… And he looked around between 30 and 35 years old, honestly.” Residents were able to capture him on camera early in the morning. Nothing was stolen but Carusillo urged residents to lock their doors and report any suspicious activity to him and state police.

Town Historian Henrietta Horvay asked to have the dates for early voting verified. Carusillo didn’t have the dates on hand but Goshen Registrar of Voters Dawn Wilkes, who originally submitted the dates, was in attendance to answer Horvay’s question, “The dates are the Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, and Saturday before Easter. That’s correct. 10 [am] to 6 [pm] every day.” Planning and Zoning Commission Secretary Cynthia Barrett reported that two truck tires were dumped on Town Hill Rd near Beach Street. Carusillo will have the Public Works Department investigate and remove the tires.

For New Business, Lisa Albreada-Ponte submitted her application to become the new Recycling Coordinator and accepted the position. Carusillo expects Albreada-Ponte to be a great addition to the committee, “She brings…13 years of working in her parents’ refuse business down in Torrington. She’s going to be a great asset to the town.” Carusillo plans to talk with USA Waste & Recycling, Inc. and Joe Rocco of the Goshen-based Joe Rocco Rubbish Removal, LLC to help develop a plan to remove Goshen’s trash before the Materials Innovation and Recycling Authority (MIRA) Dissolution Authority close its Essex and Torrington Transfer Stations in 2027. Both companies are registered to work in the state according to the Connecticut State Business website. “Everything’s getting shipped to Massachusetts and then out to Ohio but we have to be proactive on this the next three years and make sure we have it all lined up for Goshen residents so we know where our trash is going,” said Carusillo. “I’m going to start chatting with different companies. There might be a new transfer station being opened on in Waterbury…”

1/2/24

Previous week’s meeting minutes were approved unanimously as well as the town payroll and warrants for January 4th in the amount of $27,692.86. Selectman Dexter Kinsella did not attend and was excused.

Renee DeSimone resigned as Goshen Public Library’s Children’s Programmer after she found a new, full-time job in Sharon and Antonio Damiani stepped down as a full-time member of the Board of Fire Commissioners in order to become an alternate on the board. “I got a letter of resignation from Tony Damiani as Fire Commissioner,” Carusillo explained. “He would like to step down to alternate because of his job.” The paid Children’s Programmer position’s availability will be posted. No further criminal or suspicious activity has been seen near Sandy Beach Road since the sighting of a man looking in properties last week.

For Public Comment, Marissa Wright, owner of the local organic produce Wright Farm, asked about the status of both the fire company and public works department’s needs assessments for a new storage facility and if they were conducted in-house. “The fire company is doing their needs assessment and public works is doing theirs,” Carusillo replied. “...They’re doing it in-house right now. They are talking with an engineer about it… but I don’t want to spend hundreds of thousands of dollars doing an assessment.” He did not divulge who this engineer is or what company they may be a part of. Neither department has released an update yet on how far along they are in the needs assessments.

Olson motioned to appoint Fire Commission alternate Seth Breakell as a regular member of the board of Fire Commissioners to replace Damiani. This was unanimously approved. Carusillo motioned to appoint Damiani as the new Fire Commission alternate. This was unanimously approved. Breakell asked the selectmen if he had to be re-sworn in for this new position. Carusillo was unsure but told Breakell to contact Town Clerk Barbara Breor.

Carusillo read percentages collected from tax collector Rebecca Juchert-Derungs’ January 2024 report, “Right now the real estate is at 64.44%, personal property is at 60.71%, motor vehicle is at 96.71%, and motor vehicle supplement is at 1.31%. So, the supplemental tax is still out cause it’s so high… $81,000 is owed but she’s right around average for this time of year anyways. So by the end of this month, first week of February, the numbers should be way up.” The tax collector’s report was unanimously received and accepted.

1/9/24

The previous week’s meeting minutes were approved unanimously as well as the town payroll and warrants for January 11th in the amount of $63,370.16. All selectmen were in attendance.

First Selectman Todd Carusillo advised residents to report any downed trees or damage to public property to Town Hall or Eversource amid recent heavy rainfall, snow, and wind.

For Correspondence, Scott Olson discussed the informal way the Woodridge Lake Property Owners Association and the Town of Goshen agreed to devoting $20,000 each for lake refurbishment. “Essentially what was brought up to my attention, was that the Town of Goshen and the Woodridge Lake Property Owners Association have an unwritten agreement where… portions of it benefit the Woodridge Lake Association, portions of it are the responsibility of the town,” Olson explained. “There’s been an agreement apparently in place for some years that the Woodridge Lake Association writes checks to the Town of Goshen typically in the amount of either $10,000 or $20,000 and those checks are just held by the town.” Funds were used to establish catch basins and culverts to prevent trash, sediments, contaminants, and nitrates from flowing into the lake. This agreement was initially agreed upon verbally under the tenure of former First Selectman Robert Valentine in 2007 but it had no official writings or recordings of transactions. Association President Michael Edison and General Manager Ed Dutka agreed with the selectmen that the agreement must be conducted properly with a paper trail. Carusillo will meet with Edison and Dutka to help write a formal agreement. Dexter Kinsella called for Valentine to join in order to help develop the formal agreement since he was there at its inception. Carusillo agreed.

The board received and reviewed town budgets for the 2024-2025 fiscal year from the Board of Finance. The Board of Assessment of Appeals received an increase of $76 to $2,815, Fire Marshalls received an increase of $50 to $15,766, Inland Wetland Commission received an increase of $25 to $5,472, Land Use Enforcement received an increase of $150 to $22,534, Miscellaneous Expenditures Budget received a decrease of $125 to $4,275, Organizational Dues received an increase of $242, Tyler Lake Dam and East Street North Mowing received an increase of $282 to $720, Welfare Department received a decrease of $600 to $6,742, and Treasurer received a decrease of $200 to $10,765. All other budgets remained the same from the previous year.

The board received and reviewed Tax Collector Rebecca Juchert-Derungs’ tax report. Real Estate had 70.39% collected, Personal Property had 61.12% collected, Motor Vehicle had 97.12% collected, and Motor Vehicle Substitute had 25.94% collected, totalling to $8,197,645.10 paid so far.