Winsted Board of Selectmen: Gas Pipeline & Greenway Progress, 2027 Budgets

10/20/25
Present: Linda Groppo, Troy Lamere, Paul Marino, Town Manager Paul Harrington, Mayor Todd Arcelaschi, Town Clerk Glenn Albanesius, William Hester, Althea Candy Perez, and William Pozzo

As early voting kicked off in Connecticut last month, the Winchester Board of Selectmen took part in a demonstration of how new voting tabulators will be used to count ballots during the Nov. 4 municipal election.

During the demonstration at the board’s regular meeting on Oct. 20, two representatives from the Registrars of Voters said that the tabulators are not connected to the internet and that voters will still cast their votes as usual on paper ballots. The ballots will then be fed into a tabulator, scanned, and counted.

Selectmen took turns at using one of the tabulators that was brought in for the demonstration. Online tutorials on how to use the tabulators are available at the Election Information Center at the ct.gov portal.

Among other items discussed during the meeting, the town’s Eversource gas main project is on track to complete upgrades by the second week of November, said Town Manager Harrington. The major pipeline work is finished, he added.

The pipeline, which will span from Main Street at Case Avenue to Main Street at High Street, will replace more than 2,300 feet of leak-prone cast iron and bare steel lines, according to the town’s website.

Harrington also provided an update on the town’s request for qualifications and proposals (RFQ/RFP), issued Oct. 7, for the redevelopment of the Mountainside Drive/Wallens Hill property. RFQ proposals are due by Dec. 1, and RFPs are due on or before Feb. 2, 2026, he said.

“All signs look positive” for the project, Harrington said, adding that the phone has been steadily ringing with interest from developers.

The 2027 budget development process has begun with department heads meeting to coordinate a capital improvement plan, Harrington said. The group has reviewed historical funding and identified potential challenges for the upcoming year, he said.

The ad hoc committee for the Sue Grossman Still River Greenway project is making progress, identifying a tentative preferred route pending completion of property easements and environmental reviews, Harrington said.

The committee was formed in preparation for the planned multi-use trail project to connect the Greenway directly to Downtown Winsted. The project now has a page on the town’s website.

The board currently has $2.5 million in grant funding toward the completion of the project, Harrington said. This funding will go toward engineering and construction of the two final segments of the project, which will complete the trail connection into Winsted and Torrington, according to the town’s web page.

“Although [that’s] a quite fair bit of money, we do have some early projections on what it’s going to cost to build phase three and phase four,” Harrington said. “If everything goes the way it is … the project’s going to cost about $5 million.”

Harrington noted that the state Department of Energy is offering Connecticut Recreational Trail Grants totaling about $2 million, which he believes is “up for grabs.” The board unanimously passed a motion for the town to submit a letter of support for the recreational trails grant application.

As of September 30, the town’s total revenue is $17,309,665, representing 42.2% of the budget, Harrington said. Expenditures are $11,552,403, which is roughly 28.16% of the budget. Cash flow in the general fund is $26,483,232.

The board unanimously approved the nomination of Thomas Cook as an alternate member on the Zoning Board of Appeals. His term will expire in May 2029.

The board also observed a moment of silence for former Winsted Mayor Nancy Eisenlohr, who passed away on September 22.