MINUTES

WATERTOWN TOWN COUNCIL

REGU= LAR MEETING

WATERTOWN HIGH SCHOOL

TECHNOLOGY CENTER

TUESDAY, SEPTEMBER 2, 2008, 7:30 P.M.

PRESENT: = &nb= sp; Elaine Adams, Chairman

&= nbsp; &nbs= p; &= nbsp; &nbs= p; Gary Bernier

&= nbsp; &nbs= p; &= nbsp; &nbs= p; Mr. Demirs

&= nbsp; &nbs= p; &= nbsp; &nbs= p; Richard DiFederico

&= nbsp; &nbs= p; &= nbsp; &nbs= p; Richard Fusco

&= nbsp; &nbs= p; &= nbsp; &nbs= p; Carl Mancini

&= nbsp; &nbs= p; &= nbsp; &nbs= p; Scott Marotta

&= nbsp; &nbs= p; &= nbsp; &nbs= p; Raymond Primini, Vice Chairman

&= nbsp; &nbs= p; &= nbsp; &nbs= p; Paul Rinaldi

ABSENT: &= nbsp; &nbs= p; None

OTHERS PRESENT: Roy Cavanaugh, Director of Public Works

&= nbsp; &nbs= p; &= nbsp; &nbs= p; Chuck Frigon, Town Manager

&= nbsp; &nbs= p; &= nbsp; &nbs= p; Paul Jessell, Town Attorney

&= nbsp; &nbs= p; &= nbsp; &nbs= p; Frank Nardelli, Assistant Town Manager/Finance Director

1.&nb= sp; Call Meeting To Order

Ms. = Adams, Chairman, Called the Regular Meeting to Order at 7:30 p.m.

Ms. = Adams, Chairman, Called a Recess while the Special Town Meeting resumed.

Ms. = Adams, Chairman, Reconvened the Regular Meeting at 8:45 p.m.

2.&nb= sp; Roll Call

Ms. LaForme, Board Clerk, executed the Roll Call.

3. Pledge of Allegi= ance

&= nbsp; Ms. Adams, Chairman, led the Pledge of Allegiance.

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Regular Meeting

September 2, 2008

Page 2

4.&nb= sp; Public Participation

Gary Stewart, 575 Northfield Road, Watert= own, CT&nbs= p; 06795

= ; Mr. Stewart: I’m back a= t the podium pretty much on the same issue I was last time I spoke a few weeks back. One thing has changed, and that is= that 2 Council members, who I won’t name, have actually been in contact wi= th me regarding the issue of the lawn installation on = Northfield Road. In fact late today I received a co= py of an email forwarded to me which I guess is the Town Manager’s response= to my comments and I actually didn’t have much more than 15 or 20 minute= s to look it over so I probably in the course of the next several days will come= up with a number of different points I wish I would have made tonight, but one= of them that comes to mind is that in the dissertation that was emailed talks about how the claim is, in fact, routine maintenance. I just want to say to the reasonab= le folks sitting before me as the Council, that if it was routine maintenance = then why in God’s name did it rise to the level that the C.E.O. of the Tow= n of Watertown needed to go out and meet with the property owner and the head of Public Wo= rks? It wasn’t routine maintenance. It is very clear= that it was not routine maintenance and it’s ridiculous, I mean all the ac= ts say it wasn’t. I am not saying that anybody in particular did anything wrong, I just wish people wo= uld come to the table and tell the truth. This was not routine maintenance, it was not the public policy of the Town of Watertown to do those kinds of improvements, it had nothing at all to do with public safety and it’s ridiculous to insist that it was, had to do with those things, absolutely ridiculous. I just wish that for once we could just be honest and say hey you know what, = we had poor judgment at work here and things went awry and we’re going t= o do better in the future. Why do = we have to try and hide the facts? In the paper it said that the topsoil was going to be paid for by the property= owner. (Inaudible) as my suspicions were = that that really didn’t take place unless somebody could tell me it did, t= he topsoil came from Town inventory and apparently based on what I’m rea= ding in this dissertation, that topsoil had no value whatsoever. I just want honest answers, that&#= 8217;s all I’m asking for, and if the Council accepts this as the full and f= inal accounting of this issue, then I’m just warning you that there are ot= her avenues that I will probably take which will include taking advantage of the ethics ordinance. I don’= ;t want to do that. I just want = honesty. Thank you.

= ; Ms. Adams: I usually don̵= 7;t address, but it seems that here we have a difference of opinion on just wha= t we consider public improvement. The thing that as far as the Town Manager going out, the Town Manager does go out quite a bit onto different job sites. I myself have gone with him at tim= es when we had flooding or if I happen to be up there and he just wants to make sure that tree has been removed, so he is a hands on Manager, as far as that day, when he did go out there, it’s not uncommon, Gary. It’s the type of Manager tha= t he is. He does have a good repoire with a= lot of the employees. He does go = around Town, as I said I have gone with him, so I can answer that as far as what t= ype of Manager he is, he does do that.

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September 2, 2008

Page 3

= ; Mr. Stewart: And I accept wha= t he just said but in this response it alludes to the fact that it was a problem resolution meeting that took place some time prior to the work actually tak= ing place. For the record, I’m not atta= cking the Town Manager specifically. I just want to know how this came to be and how it is that the C.E.O. of the = Town of Watertown made this decision without any knowledge of the Public Works Subcommittee and the entire time, I’ll be the first to admit, maybe y= our policies have changed since I was on the Council, but when I was on the Cou= ncil the Town Manager was not responsible for making those sorts of decisions.

= ; Ms. Adams: I can understand, = you know, what you’re saying, but as far as any, I was Chairman of Public= Works for 4 years and things like this would not have come before us, complaints possibly would have come before us depending on the degree and of course the dollars attached then is a matter of public, the subcommittee kind of prioritizes that, but something like this sitting there with no budget is t= he time we would go in and try to do drainage things that didn’t cost a = lot of money, cause as you’re well aware we can only spend 1/12 of a budg= et which kind of narrows out any kind of asphalt or the little bit we had left= to do that, so there is a difference of opinion here and I can respect what you’re saying.

= ; Mr. Stewart: I understand what you’re saying and I accept that you differ, I just think that each and every Council member should take the time to go and take a look, and please, call me on the telephone, email me, whatever your choice is and you tell me= how there was any public benefit to spending from the Town’s records that= I received, approximately $1,500 for the lawn and hold it out as the public benefit being a catch basin repair. It’s like piss in the ocean, that catch basin compared to the project that was done. If that’s the Town’s policy, I accept it. You guys make those decisions, Pub= lic Works makes those decisions. = If that’s the Town’s policy, that’s fine, I really don’= ;t think that’s the case though and I think by accepting this as the nor= m, you’re opening yourself up to a lot of requests for the same sort of service and they’re entitled to it.&= nbsp; If your position is that that was appropriate and within the Town’s rights to do, then you’re opening yourself up to a lot.<= span style=3D'mso-spacerun:yes'> I don’t think this exercisin= g of the right of way issue carries any weight whatsoever. It’s never been the TownR= 17;s policy to go in and do that because it’s a right of way we did it, it’= s in the public interest. Then do = all the other country roadsides and make our Town really beautiful, like you kn= ow the Sound of Music, how the landscape was in that movie, that’s how it should look in Watertown. If that’s our policy, let= 217;s do it.

= ; Ms. Adams: Again it comes dow= n to would we love to see it, I think everyone here would love to see it be beautiful = and I think we are going to be working towards that. Is it going to happen in a week? Absolutely not. But I hope over time that we are a= ble to do that.

= ; Mr. Stewart: For the record I personally am not in favor of the Town spending tax dollars to make beautif= ully landscaped roadsides on country roads that are already beautiful and if a property owner wants to landscape to the street, it should be their responsibility, and if it’s your policy to go ahead and do that maintenance for the property owner then I hereby request premium bark mulch= for my bed that abuts that runs along the street, approximately 100 feet long, = not quite as many feet wide but it would be very nice of you guys to drop off s= ome mulch and maybe send the crew over to spread that for me. Thank you.

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Regular Meeting

September 2, 2008

Page 4

Kevin Killeen, 430 Northfield Road, Watert= own, CT&nbs= p; 06795

= ; Mr. Killeen: I’m actual= ly here to speak on behalf of my neighbor, Gary Stewart. In the over 12 years or so that I’ve known Gary we have not always been in principal agreement on iss= ues, but I will give Gary this much, he has always spoken objectively and heR= 17;s always spoken honestly and it’s disconcerting to me to hear the lack = of cogent respond concerning this issue. Gary has done his homework on this. I = live 3 properties down from the property that was in question. There’s no question in my mi= nd whatsoever that it was a private property improvement and if you have the i= nterest, you could drive by and make that same determination. It sticks in my craw just more tha= n a little bit as a Board of Education member to scratch and claw for the benef= it of our Town’s children when we’re told that the Town Council is= considering turning off street lamps and are doing so, and are sending letters to peopl= e in our community saying if you and your neighbors want that light turned on, t= hen you’re going to have to pay for it.&= nbsp; That’s unacceptable. That’s a level of service that was provided to that community = well within the tax burden that they’ve always paid. Again I’m miffed because whi= le we say we’re turning off lights to save money, we’re spending prob= ably about $3,800 in commercial value to improve the roadside for a piece of pri= vate property. And I, like my neig= hbor Gary Stewart, would say that I would respectfully request some improvement = to my roadside as well, if it’s the purpose of this Council to engage in business of that nature. Now if it isn’t, and I think that the Counci= l has to find the root of this issue, why it was done in the manner in which it w= as and address it appropriately and objectively as I believe Mr. Stewart has, = I, for one, want to do my part and make my roadside property as attractive as = it can be and do so but it’s just so upsetting to hear neighbors come be= fore you and get the type of answers that are non-answers, and respectfully Madam Chairman I know you said that we have a difference of opinion, but once you= see the property, that piece of property that was improved had never received a positive level of care in the time that I have lived there, and all of us a= long that road do our part to try and maintain our own properties. Where catch basin issues occurred,= obviously that’s the Town’s responsibly and I don’t believe Mr. Ste= wart was objecting to that. What h= e is objecting to is about $3,800 worth of commercial repair to a private proper= ty and now we’re turning off lights to help pay our taxes. Thank you very much.

Tom Hill, 166 Icehouse Road, Watertow= n, CT&nbs= p; 06795

= ; Mr. Hill: Our street had a lo= t of damage from water and heavy rains and flooding and I want to thank the Town Manager and the Department of Public Works for fixing up our street and listening to the requests, etc. &= nbsp; #2, I recently went, I’ve been championing for the greenways as a quality= of life issue for Watertown in the last couple of years. = I went over the other day and saw your Town Engineer, Chuck Berger, who gave me a = nice report of what he’s working on and I would just like to urge the Coun= cil to please push on these greenways. <= /span>You don’t need to pave, you can just put cinder down, any parts of the To= wn that you can get those greenways in I think is a definite quality of life i= ssue and anyone who wants to know more about that, I posted a recent terrific article by Howard Fielding on the success that Cheshire and Middlebury have= had in quality of life with their greenways. I don’t mean to make a commer= cial out of this but if you look on tomhill.com I’ve got it posted. I like living here and I want to t= hank you for all your service.

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Regular Meeting

September 2, 2008

Page 5

Trish Kropp, 80 Highland Avenue, Waterto= wn, CT&nbs= p; 06795

= ; Ms. Kropp: I actually came be= cause of the lights, my immediate neighbor got the letter, pole #6066. Is there any other items that you = cut out of the budget that are safety items the way these street lights are saf= ety items?

Ms. Adams: I can have the Manager and Fra= nk get together, I mean there was a very long list of items. We cut a cop, we cut . . . .the li= st does go on. There is an appeal process though for you neighbor to contact Roy Cavanaugh.

Ms. Kropp: Was that in the letter?

Ms. Adams: I didn’t see the. . . . yes, it’s in the letter, to contact him so he can review it, cause this is just like a first run through. You’re right, there is probably going to be lights that we really need to keep on = and if there is a disagreement or doesn’t agree with his (inaudible) then= you can go to the Public Works Subcommittee and (inaudible) they would have a s= ay on just whether or not (inaudible).

Ms. Kropp: Also, that piece of grass on Northfield Road (inaudible) is that a dog?

Ms. Adams: Yea, we’re going to meet Dunn= an tonight.

Ms. Kropp: That grass is about the size of your front yard, Elaine. We’= re not talking about a strip this wide and 100 feet long like along the front of <= st1:City w:st=3D"on">Gary’s hous= e. I took a ride a week ago. It’s a huge amount of area t= hat was covered with topsoil and grass seed and something definitely needs to be checked into, because I don’t care who did the work, I don’t ca= re where the topsoil came from, it shouldn’t be unless it’s a serv= ice we’re offering all of the taxpayers in Watertown.

Ms. Adams: This is our new police dog, Dunnan. He looks very friendly. On our agenda tonig= ht we are accepting a gift of $1,000 for his care and upkeep so Kevin, can you gi= ve us an overview of our newest member of the Force?

Kevin Conard, K-9 Police Officer, = Watertown, CT 06795=

= ; Officer Conard: He was found roam= ing about 4 months ago, we’re not exactly sure where he was, 2 girls from Town dropped him off at the Police Department. He was in the pound for 2 months, n= obody claimed him, and the Chief and I have been working on getting a canine program star= ted again so we had the State Police trainer come up and evaluate him and he sa= id he seemed okay so we decided to use him.&n= bsp; So Monday we start at the State Police Training for K-9 classes. It’s 15 weeks. We’ll be trained in tracking, evidence recovery, amber protection, bitwork, building searches and we do a= lot of obstacle courses and stuff like that. He’s very energetic, he likes= kids.

Mr. Rinaldi: How old is he?

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Regular Meeting

September 2, 2008

Page 6

= ; Officer Conard: He’s under = 2, probably a year and a half to 2 years.&nbs= p; They found him roaming and we ended up with him.

= ; Ms. Adams: I know we have use= d K-9 for crowd control in the past as well.

= ; Officer Conard: Yea, you’ll probably see him for most of the (inaudible) here in Town.

= ; Ms. Adams: Do you have plans = to go in the schools with him and help educate children somehow, kind of like a community outreach in time?

Officer Conard: Whatever the Chief wants. He’s friendly enough I think= to do something like that. After he’s out of that school for a year he can go back (inaudible). He’s definitely good with ki= ds, so I wouldn’t mind doing that.

= ; Ms. Adams: You’re conti= nuing to accept contributions for (inaudible)?

Officer Conard: Yes, absolutely.

Ms. Adams: Where is he staying, with you?

= ; Officer Conard: Yea, in my house.= He’s been living homer with = me, my wife and 2 little girls, 3 and 2 and he’s fine with them. The youngest one likes to pull his= tail and sit on his head, pulls him and he just turns and walks away. I’ve even got him to wait at= the stairs so he kids can go up and down and then he goes so he doesn’t k= nock them over. He’s very pa= tient.

= ; Ms. Adams: We’ll put a = push on to accept contributions so he can continue to eat, okay? Any other questions? Okay, thank you for bringing him b= y.

&= nbsp; Ms. Adams, Chairman, Closed Public Participation at 8:08 p.m.

5.&nb= sp; Minutes=

&= nbsp; A. Regular Meeting Minutes – August 18, 2008

= ; &n= bsp; MOTION: (Mr. = Fusco, sec. Mr. Primini) to Approve the Regular Meeting Minutes dated August 18, 2= 008 as presented.

= ; &n= bsp; Discussion: Ms. Adams: Item #1, Ms. Adams, Chairman, call= ed a 5 Minute Recess while the Lion’s Club held their raffle. It wasn’t the Lion’s C= lub; that was the Heritage Scholarship.

= ; &n= bsp; In Favor: &= nbsp; Ms. Adams, Mr. Bernier, Mr. Fusco, Mr. Mancini, Mr. Primini, Mr. Rinaldi

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Regular Meeting

September 2, 2008

Page 7

= ; &n= bsp; Opposed: = None

= ; &n= bsp; Abstained: Mr. Demirs, Mr. DiFederico, Mr. Marotta

&= nbsp; &= nbsp; MOTION CARRIED (6-0-3)

6.&nb= sp; Chairman’s Report

A.&n= bsp; = ; Correspondence

Ms. Adams: I received a letter, but I can̵= 7;t find it right now. I’ll= have to read it at the next meeting.

7.&nb= sp; Town Manager’s Reports

&= nbsp; Mr. Frigon gave the following report:

&= nbsp; Water Study

The water rate study has been put out to bid, an RFP has been published and tha= t bid is opening on September 30^th, so I’ll report on that proba= bly the second meeting in October.

Code Red

The test last Friday went well. We launched a test at 7:00 p.m. on Friday.&nb= sp; That test called 6,840 people who were signed up, and of those 6,840= , we connected with 4,149, leaving 2,691 that we could not connect with. Those that we get back a report th= at are no answer we’ll continue to keep on the list. Those we received, almost 98% of t= hose 2,600 that are operated assisted, those will be taken off the list, 3 diffe= rent attempts were tried. All in a= ll the test went very well. I want to thank the public, they did exactly as asked, they did not contact the Police Department. Only 2 individual= s did, far fewer less than we expected and all in all the test went very well. So that system is now up and runni= ng, it does need to be refined some and we’re set for a launch at any time.<= /p>

Ms. Adams: People should know that they can ei= ther do online and register on line if they did not receive or the coupon in the Town Times.

Mr. Frigon: Yes, there is a form in the Town T= imes that they can clip and either deliver or mail in, they can go on line and s= ign up their cell phone or home phone there, or they can stop by any Town Office and get an application there, most Town offices anyway.

= ; Mr. Fusco: I received a call,= and it’s a long message.

= ; Mr. Frigon: It was a long message, it was a test message.

= ; Mr. Fusco: During supper time= . Do you just, after you receive the message, do you just put it back down, because it’s a recorded messag= e or do you have to listen to the end to check in or just as long as you answer = it?

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September 2, 2008

Page 8

Mr. Frigon: Because this was a test obviously y= ou can disconnect the call at any time, but normally we would like to think that t= he messages would not be that long. This didn’t cost us, they allowed us a test at no charge, but normally in = the case of an emergency we’d like to think that you would listen to the whole message and then just disconnect at the end.

Mr. Fusco: Yes, we would, but it was going on= and on and on.

Mr. Frigon: Yes, it was as lengthy as it was b= ecause we were encouraging people to make sure that they understood not to call ei= ther the Police or the Fire Department.

Rotary Club Sign Donation

The Rotary Club President took on a personal project outfitting the Town with s= ome signs, “Drive Carefully, Protect our Children”, sponsored by Ro= tary International. All 4 signs we= re donated to the Town, all have been installed with the cooperation of the Pu= blic Works Department and the Police Department. The locations are Bunker Hill, Guernseytown, Neill, Hillcrest, Hamilton, French, Falls, Colonial, but the signs are up and they look wonderful. They= are a substantial size, 24 x 36, they really catch your eye and hopefully they&= #8217;ll help to slow traffic in those areas. I want to publicly recognize and thank the Rotary Club for their donation.

= ; Ms. Adams: This isn’t t= he first time, like the Lion’s Club, that the Rotary has come forward. We recognized the Lion’s Club at our last meeting, so next meeting perha= ps we can recognize Rotary for all their good work.

Town Hall Air Study

I try to report quarterly on the Town Hall air quality. The studies were performed again on 8/8/08 and all the indicators came back as favorable.

Mr. Mancini: Are they the same levels of accepta= nce, are they improving every 3 months, are they maintaining? Has there been a change from 2 or 3 years ago?

= ; Mr. Frigon: There was a signi= ficant change when we put the air scrubber in.&nb= sp; As a matter of fact the contractor who does the testing did a second test at no charge only because he didn’t really trust the results of = the first test and as it works they were correct. None of this is to say that there = still aren’t issues with the Town Hall.&nb= sp; We still need to resolve those issues, but we are successful in maki= ng sure that the air quality is maintained at a safe level.

= ; Mr. Mancini: My question was = (Tape #1, side A ended – may have missed some).

= ; Mr. Frigon: It has gotten significantly better with the air scrubber on it but it’s always goin= g to change. If it’s a wet s= eason it’s going to change, etc.

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September 2, 2008

Page 9

FEMA

Per the direction of the Town Council we did submit an application to FEMA for = the Luciana property and although unofficial we did receive that grant for 75% which means that the Luciani’s would have to in the very near future = come up with the 25% but there is now an avenue for them to get their property satisfactorily repaired and to somehow remove that water. I don’t know what the exact = plan is to do that is.

Sylvan Lake/DinNunzio/Ledge Roads

The water main extension we received a STEAP grant for, and that is being suppl= emented with some funds this year, that is out to bid and we’re opening that = bid on September 9, 2008.

Mr. Bernier: Do you hope to have a pipe in = the ground in the Spring?

= ; Mr. Frigon: Yes, we would hop= e that construction would begin very soon after the bid opening. Financially we’re ready to g= o on this, as long as the bids come in within reason.

8.&nb= sp; New Business

&= nbsp; A. Consider Appointments to Boards and Commissions

&= nbsp; &nbs= p; MOTION: (Mr. = Marotta, sec. Mr. Primini) I move to nominate Robert Colangelo, 612 Middlebury Road, Watertown, CT to fill an expi= red term as Constable, with Term to Expire January 31, 2010.

<= span style=3D'mso-tab-count:1'> &= nbsp; &= nbsp; Discussion: None<= /p>

<= o:p>

&= nbsp; &nbs= p; MOTION PASSED UNANIMOUSLY

&= nbsp; B. = Consider Authorizing the Town Manager to execute on behalf of the Town of Watertown a Memorandum of Understanding with the Sta= te f Connecticut, Dep= artment of Emergency Management and Homeland Security for participation n the FY 20= 09 Emergency Management Performance Grant Program

R= ESOLUTION

&= nbsp; &nbs= p; BE IT RESOLVED, that the Town Manager, Charles Frigon, be and hereby is author= ized to act on behalf of the Watertown Town Council in executing a Memorandum of Understanding with the State of Connecticut, Department of Emergency Manage= ment and Homeland Security, for participation the FY 2009 Emergency Management Performance Grant Program.

&= nbsp; &nbs= p; Dated at Watertown, Connecticut this 2^nd day of September, 2008.

&= nbsp; &nbs= p; &= nbsp; &nbs= p; &= nbsp; &nbs= p; &= nbsp; &= nbsp; &nbs= p; &= nbsp; &nbs= p; &= nbsp;

&= nbsp; &nbs= p; &= nbsp; &nbs= p; &= nbsp; &nbs= p; &= nbsp; Elaine H. Adams, Chairman

&= nbsp; &nbs= p; &= nbsp; &nbs= p; &= nbsp; &nbs= p; &= nbsp; Watertown Town Co= uncil

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<= o:p>

<= span style=3D'mso-tab-count:2'> &= nbsp; &nbs= p; MOTION: (Mr. = Marotta, sec. Mr. Primini) I move to authorize the Town Manager to execute on behalf= of the Town of Watertown a Memorandum of Understanding with the State of Connecticut, Department of Emergency Management and Homeland Security for p= articipation in the FY 2009 Emergency Management Performance Grant Program.

<= o:p>

<= span style=3D'mso-tab-count:2'> &= nbsp; &nbs= p; Discussion: None<= /p>

&= nbsp; &nbs= p; MOTION PASSED UNANIMOUSLY

&n= bsp;

&= nbsp; C. Consider a Resolution authorizing the Town Manager to act on behalf of the Town of Watertown in executing a Memorandum of Agreement with the State pf Connecti= cut, Department of Emergency Management and Homeland Security regarding Statewide Tactical On-Scene Communications System (STOCS) Box

R= ESOLUTION

&= nbsp; &nbs= p; BE IT RESOLVED, that the Town Manager, Charles Frigon, be and hereby is author= ized to act on behalf of the Watertown Town Council in executing a Memorandum of Understanding with the State of Connecticut, Department of Emergency Manage= ment and Homeland Security regarding Statewide Tactical On-Scene Communications System (STOCS) Box.

&= nbsp; &nbs= p; Dated at Watertown, Connecticut this 2^nd day of September, 2008.

&= nbsp; &nbs= p; &= nbsp; &nbs= p; &= nbsp; &nbs= p; &= nbsp; &= nbsp; &nbs= p; &= nbsp; &nbs= p; &= nbsp;

&= nbsp; &nbs= p; &= nbsp; &nbs= p; &= nbsp; &nbs= p; &= nbsp; Elaine H. Adams, Chairman

&= nbsp; &nbs= p; &= nbsp; &nbs= p; &= nbsp; &nbs= p; &= nbsp; Watertown Town Cou= ncil

&n= bsp;

&= nbsp; &nbs= p; MOTION: (Mr. = Marotta, sec. Mr. Primini) I move to approve the Resolution authorizing the Town Man= ager to act on behalf of the Town of Watertown in executing a Memorandum of Agreement with the State of Connecticut, Department of Emergency Management= and Homeland Security regarding Statewide Tactical On-Scene Communications Syst= em (STOCS) Box.

&n= bsp;

&= nbsp; &nbs= p; Discussion: Mr. Fusco: Just give me an idea of what that = is.

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Page 11

&n= bsp;

&= nbsp; &nbs= p; &= nbsp; &nbs= p; Mr. Frigon: STOCS Box is a tactical on scene communications system and very simply put it resembles a suitcase with an antenna permanently attached to the exterior. You open the suitcase, raise the a= ntenna and you can insert up to, I believe a dozen portable radios, talking on different frequencies and each one of those will speak to each other. For instance if the Waterbury Fire Department were to be working a scene here in Watertown, in order for them = to communicate to the Watertown Fire or Police Department, they just take one = of their portables, plug it into the STOCS Box, we plug it in one of ours and = they automatically speak to each other (inaudible) vehicles over their communica= tions systems.

&n= bsp;

&= nbsp; &nbs= p; &= nbsp; = ; Mr. Demirs: I didn’t kn= ow either, I was going to ask you.

= ; &n= bsp; = ; &n= bsp; Mr. Frigon: It’s a terr= ific system. It works well. The State has already issued 50 of= them and there will be 100 altogether in the State. The first 50 were issued to = the larger cities and the casino areas, the more largely populated areas, and t= he other 50 are competitive and we’re very hopeful that we will have one here in Watertown<= /st1:City>.

&= nbsp; &nbs= p; MOTION PASSED UNANIMOUSLY

&n= bsp;

&= nbsp; D. Consider an Appropriation from the General Fund in the amount of $1,000 to the Police Department account 010-50460-020-0000 Special Police Supplies; Funds have b= een donated by Mr. David Kaufman, 110 Oak Drive, Watertown, for the Watertown Police Department K-9 Program

&= nbsp; &nbs= p; MOTION: (Mr. = Marotta, sec. Mr. Primini) I move to approve an appropriation from the General Fund = in the amount of $1,000 to the Police Department account 010-50460-020-0000 Special Police Supplies for the Police Department K-9 Program.

&n= bsp;

<= span style=3D'mso-tab-count:2'> &= nbsp; &nbs= p; Discussion: = ; Ms. Adams: This is the $1,000= that we received from Mr. David Kaufman, 110 Oak Drive, Watertown for the Watertown Police Department K-9 Program. This is a very, very generous gift= so that money was deposited into the General Fund and we need to appropriate i= t to the line item.

<= o:p>

&= nbsp; &nbs= p; MOTION PASSED UNANIMOUSLY

Watertown Town Council

Regular Meeting

September 2, 2008

Page 12

&= nbsp; E. = Consider Setting a Special Town Meeting date, time, and place to consider an appropriation of $234,167.15 from Town Road Aid funds for Paving Rehab for Section IX (bounded by Route 673, Woolson Street, Northfield Road, Fern Hill Road, and Route 6) with additional work being done on Colonial Avenue, Wool= son Street, lower Nova Scotia Hill Road and several other smaller sections of roadway in Town.

&= nbsp; &nbs= p; MOTION: (Mr. Marotta, sec. Mr. Primini) I move to set a Special Town Meeting to be held = on September 15, 2008 at 7:00 p.m. at the Watertown High School Technology Roo= m to consider an appropriation of $234,167.15 from Town Road Aid funds for Paving Rehab for Section IX (bounded by Route 63, Woolson Street, Northfield Road, Fern Hill Road, and Route 6) with additional work being done on Colonial Avenue, Woolson Street, lower Nova Scotia Hill Road and several other small= er sections of roadway in Town.

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&= nbsp; &nbs= p; Discussion: Mr. Cavanaugh: Thank you for the opportunity to sp= eak tonight. What the Department is requesting = is that the Town Council consider setting a Town Meeting for the appropriation= of some funds which are remaining in Town Road Aid for the specific purpose of doing some pavement overlays. Unfortunately based on the asphalt prices, what’s happened recently, we have striked the last section called several other smaller sec= tions roadway in town. We just open= ed up an asphalt bid price and it’s 37% higher than what it was 3 months ag= o so Colonial Avenue is going to soak up more funds that we anticipated but we’ll still be able to do Woolson Street<= /st1:address> and a chunk over by Judson= Road, that sort of thing.

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&= nbsp; &nbs= p; &= nbsp; &nbs= p; Ms. Adams: So can you explain what Town R= oad Aid funds are? Where does that mo= ney come from?

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&= nbsp; &nbs= p; &= nbsp; &nbs= p; Mr. Cavanaugh: Correct me if I’m wrong, Fran= k, the Town is reimbursed by the State of Connecticut, Department of Transportatio= n, a certain set fee based on the per mileage of an accepted, improved and unimproved roads. This is a c= heck that gets sent to the Town twice a year and it’s deposited into the Town R= oad Aid Fund. These funds are usu= ally appropriated as part of the general budget process. As you were going through every so= often what happens is when the project comes in under budget or a project is determined to be unfeasible for whatever reason and the funds are cancelled this money is carried over from year to year so periodically what we need t= o do is go back and decide where it’s going to be used in accordance with = the program guidelines. Town Road= Aid funds can be used for overlaying roads, it can be used for engineering, it = can be used for bridge work, that sort of thing.

Watertown Town Council

Regular Meeting

September 2, 2008

Page 13

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&= nbsp; &nbs= p; &= nbsp; &nbs= p; Ms. Adams: Only, it can only be used for specific items, for road improvement, bridge improvement, it can’t be used to take care of the police dog or to give to the Board for Ed.

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&= nbsp; &nbs= p; &= nbsp; &nbs= p; Mr. Cavanaugh: Or sidewalks or any of that, there = are specific program guidelines. It’s from the Department of Transportation for maintenance of roads. This is one of the rea= sons that we’ve been so aggressive over the last couple of years in bringi= ng all of the roads into the system that we could to maximize the rest of this program. The individual appro= priation each time we get is determined by the legislative action of the State of Connecticut Town Road Aid. It used to be like 3 times higher = about 6 years ago, we’re getting about 1/3of what we got before.

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&= nbsp; &nbs= p; &= nbsp; &nbs= p; Mr. Primini: How much is asphalt going for = now?

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&= nbsp; &nbs= p; &= nbsp; &nbs= p; Mr. Cavanaugh: When we opened up bids in April (inaudible) was $71.20 a ton. The asphalt we just opened up this past week was $99.40 a ton. When I started here 6 years ago we= were looking at about $40.00 a ton. Asphalt is a petroleum product, it takes a lot of petroleum to make it and to trans= port it (inaudible). That’s = one of the reasons we’re doing fractions of roads than what we used to do.

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&= nbsp; &nbs= p; &= nbsp; &nbs= p; Mr. Primini: I was shocked when it was $71.= 00 a ton and now it’s $99.00 a ton, and that’s why the cost of the projects over the past years is getting worse and worse. Hopefully prices will be coming do= wn a little bit, but they won’t come down that much.

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&= nbsp; &nbs= p; &= nbsp; &nbs= p; Mr. Cavanaugh: I don’t think we’ll see= $1.50 a gallon of gas anytime soon.

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&= nbsp; &nbs= p; &= nbsp; &nbs= p; Mr. Fusco: Frank, do we have a line item = for Town Road Aid fund?

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&= nbsp; &nbs= p; &= nbsp; &nbs= p; Mr. Nardelli: It’s a separate fund, that= 217;s correct.

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&= nbsp; &nbs= p; &= nbsp; &nbs= p; Mr. Fusco: So the money is there now. Why do we need a Town Meeting to t= ake the money out if it’s already earmarked for the roads?

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&= nbsp; &nbs= p; &= nbsp; &nbs= p; Mr. Nardelli: Some of these go way back and (inaudible). Now you have to = re-appropriate these funds because the expenditure (inaudible) from the Town to expend the funds.

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&= nbsp; &nbs= p; &= nbsp; &nbs= p; Ms. Adams: Roy had said we could take off any other projects, do we need to amend the motion?&= nbsp; And several other smaller sections of roadway in the Town.

Watertown Town Council

Regular Meeting

September 2, 2008

Page 14

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&= nbsp; &nbs= p; &= nbsp; &nbs= p; Mr. Cavanaugh: I don’t think so, that was by= the way of lowering the expectations. When I figure out the quantity of asphalt that’s needed on different roadway projects, I put in a fudge factor for level (inaudible).<= span style=3D'mso-spacerun:yes'> And I put several other smaller se= ctions of roadway in Town that was more of a hope than a (inaudible) project.

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&= nbsp; &nbs= p; MOTION PASSED UNANIMOUSLY

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9. Public Participa= tion

= ; None

&= nbsp; Ms. Adams, Chairman, Closed Public Participation at 9:29 p.m.

10. Executive Session=

= ; A. Pending Litigation – Siemon Realty versus Town of Watertown

= ; B. = Virginia Stewart versus Town of Waterto= wn

&= nbsp; &nbs= p; MOTION: (Mr. = Demirs, sec. Mr. Bernier) I move to enter into Executive Session at 9:30 p.m. with = the 9 members of the Town Council present, Attorney Jessell, the Town Manager, and the Assistant Town Manager to discuss Pending Litigation - Siemon Realty Versus Town of Watertown and Virginia Stewart ve= rsus the Town of Watertown.

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&= nbsp; &nbs= p; Discussion: None<= /p>

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&= nbsp; &nbs= p; MOTION PASSED UNANIMOUSLY

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&= nbsp; Present During Executive Session

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&= nbsp; Elaine Adams

&= nbsp; Gary Bernier

&= nbsp; Dave Demirs

&= nbsp; Rich DiFederico

&= nbsp; Rich Fusco

&= nbsp; Carl Mancini

&= nbsp; Scott Marotta

&= nbsp; Ray Primini

&= nbsp; Paul Rinaldi

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&= nbsp; Charles Frigon

&= nbsp; Paul Jessell

&= nbsp; Frank Nardelli

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&= nbsp; Attorney Paul Jessell left the Executive Session at 10:15 p.m.

Watertown Town Council

Regular Meeting

September 2, 2008

Page 15

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&= nbsp; Ms. Adams, Reconvened the Regular Meeting at 10:20 p.m.

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&= nbsp; No Motions Were Made; No Votes Were Taken.

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11.&n= bsp; Consider Authorizing the Settlement in the Siemon Realty versus Town of Watertown pending Litigation Case (Tabl= ed 08/18/08)

= ; Not Discussed.

12. Adjournment

= ; MOTION: (Mr. = Rinaldi, sec. Mr. Demirs) to Adjourn the Regular Meeting at 10:21 p.m.

<= /span>Discussion: None<= /p>

<= /span>MOTION PASSED UNANIMOUSLY

<= /span>Regular Meeting Adjourned at 10:21 p.m.

Respectfully submitted,

Elaine H. Adams, Chairman

Watertown Town Cou= ncil

Approved: _______________________________

Lynn M. LaF= orme, Clerk