Government

Selectmen Approve $170,000 for Waveny Pond Improvements

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Officials last week approved $170,000 in town spending toward the dredging of Waveny Pond and improvements around it. 

The figure is to be matched by funds supplied by a nonprofit organization, following a 3-0 vote by the Board of Selectmen at its regular meeting, held Aug. 20 in Town Hall. Work to be completed by Redding-based Nazzaro Inc. includes not only the first known dredge of the pond at the foot of the sledding hill, but also creation of a dock and observation area, guiderails and plantings, according to Maria Coplit, town engineer in the New Canaan Department of Public Works. The project cost is estimated at $325,406, with an additional contingency of $48,811, according to Coplit. The Waveny Park Conservancy is to match the town’s $170,000 contribution toward the project, and the approximately $34,000 beyond the $340,000 from both the town and organization will be held in escrow, Coplit said.

Board of Education

Officials Approve $152,000 for Grass Treatment Products on Town Parks, Athletic Fields

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Town officials on Tuesday approved two contracts worth a total of approximately $152,000 for grass treatment at New Canaan’s parks and school athletic fields. The Board of Selectmen voted 3-0 in favor of contracts that will see grass treatments including the application of pesticides and fertilizers in some cases, according to John Howe, superintendent of parks with the New Canaan Department of Public Works. 

Exactly how chemicals are applied depends on factors such as how much use a field gets (for instance, Irwin Park has “very little use”), and whether it’s a school field, Howe told the selectmen at their regular meeting, held in Town Hall. “We don’t apply any pesticides to the school athletic fields, but we do have one application on park fields for grubs, broad-leaf weeds and crabgrass,” Howe said. First Selectman Kevin Moynihan, and Selectmen Kit Devereaux and Nick Williams voted in favor of a $131,200 contract with Burlington, Mass.-based Tom Irwin Inc. for the purchase of grass treatment products and a $21,016 contract with Harwinton-based Championship Turf for the application of the products. Asked by Williams whether the Board of Education prohibits the use of pesticides on school fields, Howe said that there is a state law banning the use of “turf grass pesticides” in schools serving children through eighth grade.

Government

Selectman Devereaux Seeks To See Proposals from Parties Who Want To Buy Vine Cottage

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Selectman Kit Devereaux on Tuesday called for New Canaan’s highest elected official to make a review of proposals to purchase a prominent town-owned building downtown “more transparent” than so far considered. 

Telling First Selectman Kevin Moynihan that Vine Cottage is “important to a lot of people,” Devereaux asked that responses to the town’s request for proposals for the building be made available for public review. “The people own the building and I think they deserve to know how the selection is made,” Devereaux said during the Board of Selectmen’s regular meeting, held in Town Hall. The Board voted 2-1 in June to approve an ‘RFP’ for Vine Cottage, with Devereaux opposing the move and Selectman Nick Williams and Moynihan in favor. Last month, Devereaux pressed Moynihan to allow herself and Williams to see the proposals. Noting that Moynihan during a media briefing last week disclosed that four parties have shown interest in the ca.-1859 building located opposite the fire house on Main Street, Devereaux said that in making a decision among “that essentially is making the choice for the town, so I think it should be as transparent as possible.”

Moynihan said his plan has been to sit down with the Department of Public Works director and buildings superintendent, as well as the chairman of the Town Council and Board of Finance, to make a recommendation to the selectmen about what to do next.

Board of Selectmen

Selectmen Approve $9,000 Contract for New Furniture at Senior Center

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Town officials last week approved an approximately $9,000 contract with a Wallingford-based for new furniture at the local senior center. The Board of Selectmen voted 3-0 in favor of the $9,166.10 contract for new chairs and tables from INSALCO Corporation. 

Recreation Director Steve Benko said the chairs in the dining area at Lapham Community Center are “have seen thousands of hours of use” and that the laminate on the tabletops has worn off in spots. The frames of the chairs in place now are OK “but the fabric seats are all stained” and unusable,” Benko told the selectmen at their regular meeting, held in Town Hall. First Selectman Kevin Moynihan and Selectmen Kit Devereaux and Nick Williams voted for the contract. The selectmen asked Benko how old the existing furniture is (10 to 20 years) and what the town intends to do with it (get rid of it).

Bill Oestmann

Officials Approve $97,000 Contract To Replace Day Care Center Roof

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Town officials last week approved a contract worth nearly $100,000 for the installation of a new roof at a local day care. Department of Public Works Building Superintendent Bill Oestmann proposed the contract with Stamford-based J. Antonelli Roofing at the Board of Selectmen’s Aug. 6 regular meeting, held at Town Hall. 

Approved 3-0 by First Selectman Kevin Moynihan and Selectmen Nick Williams and Kit Devereaux, the project will see the rear portion of the Day Care Center of New Canaan’s roof replaced, Oestmann said. “It’s a flat roof, it’s 30-something years old, it is leaking,” he said. For the past several years, Oestmann said, he has had contractors patch the roof, but now a review by engineers has concluded that “it’s time” for a new roof.