Posted by Bob on January 28, 2011 under Daily Blogs | 
Our office issued an Executive Order implementing a parking ban indefinitely this afternoon (1/28/2011). Section 18-106 et seq., and specifically Section 18-109, of the Borough Code of Ordinances give the mayor the authority to impose such a ban “whenever the safety conditions of public roadways are adversely affected by weather conditions”. The Executive Order can be viewed here.
The Naugatuck Police Department has been attempting to enforce the parking ban in a reasonable manner given the unprecedented amount of snow that has accumulated throughout the Borough. Unfortunately numerous vehicles are preventing Department of Public Works plow drivers from clearing snow from roads with cars parked curbside. In addition, many cars parked curbside are restricting the width of roads already narrowed by significant snow accumulation. This presents a safety hazard for pedestrians and drivers. While our Police Department will continue to exercise good judgment when enforcing the ban, efforts to address problem areas will be increased in coming days. Those parking vehicles or other items of personal property along non-exempted, sides of streets should be fully aware that they risk incurring the penalties and inconvenience for doing so.
Additional information is available on the Borough’s website at www.naugatuck-ct.gov.
Posted by Bob on January 27, 2011 under Daily Blogs |
Trash and recycling collection in Naugatuck is postponed for Thursday, January 27, 2011, as a result of Winter Storm Denis. The new schedule for the remainder of the week is as follows:
- Regular Thursday, January 27, 2011, collection will be Friday, January 28, 2011; and
- Regular Friday, January 28, 2011, collection will be Saturday, January 29, 2011.
Posted by Bob on under Daily Blogs |
All non-essential Borough of Naugatuck departments shall open at 12:00 Noon due to Winter Storm Denis. Employees in all non-essential departments should report to work for 12:00 Noon.
Essential Departments are the following: Fire Department, Police Department, Public Works Department and all other Borough departments with emergency management responsibilities. Operations of the aforementioned essential departments shall be at the sole discretion of the applicable department head.
This delay is being implemented for the sole purpose of promoting public safety and the safety of Borough employees and shall not be construed as precedent or past practice.
Posted by Bob on January 26, 2011 under Daily Blogs |
As Governor Malloy and the Connecticut General Assembly begin the significant challenge of addressing our state’s budget deficit, the amount of state funding allocated to municipalities for education will undoubtedly be a topic of discussion. During last year’s session, some suggested that Connecticut reduce its Educational Cost Sharing (“ECS”) funding commitment to cities and towns as a way to lower state spending.
Naugatuck received TWENTY NINE MILLION TWO HUNDRED ELEVEN THOUSAND FOUR HUNDRED ONE and 00/100THS ($29,211,401.00) DOLLARS from ECS funds for the 2010-2011 fiscal year. That amount was unchanged from 2009-2010. That figure includes, however, approximately FOUR MILLION ONE HUNDRED THOUSAND and 00/100THS ($4,100,000.00) DOLLARS of American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (“ARRA”), or stimulus dollars, from the federal government. ARRA funds were allocated to states to prevent significant cuts to education resulting from the recession. Connecticut simply reduced its state funding for ECS by an amount equivalent to the ARRA dollars received. Unfortunately those funds will not be available for the 2011-2012 fiscal year, and it is anticipated that the subject of ECS funding will again generate significant debate.
The Connecticut Conference of Municipalities (“CCM”) just issued of a series of recommendations on the subject which will be submitted to the Department of Education. The document can be viewed here.
Locally, the Joint Boards of Finance and Mayor and Burgesses (“Joint Boards”) will begin the budget process for 2011-2012 in a couple weeks. Even a small cut in ECS funding would have devastating consequences for Naugatuck’s budget.
Posted by Bob on January 22, 2011 under Daily Blogs |
The following is a link to an interesting article regarding Wednesday (1/19/2011) morning’s ice problems by Roy Fuchs and Aaron Leo on the Trumbull Patch site:
http://trumbull.patch.com/articles/another-kind-of-winter-storm
Posted by Bob on January 21, 2011 under Daily Blogs |
Numerous Winter storms over the past month will impact the completion of the Parcel C remediation. While only about three (3) weeks of basic remediation work remain unfinished, the repeated need to stop activities and clean-up after storms has made the long-awaited conclusion of the project logistically unfeasible given the costs.
The project manager from remediation contractor Manafort Brothers, Inc. (“Manafort”), informed our office this week that the many storms and significant snow accumulation since December, 2010, have slowed efforts to complete the project this Winter. While Manafort has been assuming these unforeseen but significant costs to this point, they are no longer able to do so. Being so close to completion, Manafort was working around the weather, but the multiple snow storms in the past week have made doing so impractical. Continuing to work through additional Winter weather events could increase costs by estimates up to SEVEN THOUSAND and 00/100THS ($7,000.00) DOLLARS per storm. After discussions with all Renaissance Place partners and Borough personnel, our office made a decision for which there was collective agreement to delay the project until the early Spring. There simply was no justifiable reason to incur extra costs given the fact that construction would not likely begin on Parcel C until the late Spring or Summer at the earliest. There also would have been minor work required in the Spring regardless.
It is expected that the final weeks of remediation will resume in mid-March, weather permitting. Given that the Borough’s goal is to complete this project within budget and construction would not begin before Spring, it is prudent that we not incur additional costs simply to complete Parcel C during the heart of Winter.
Posted by Bob on under Daily Blogs |
There has been no change to trash and recycling collection as a result of today’s (1/21/2011) snow. There was also collection on the Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., holiday, so the regular schedule has been unchanged this week.
Posted by Bob on January 20, 2011 under Daily Blogs |
The newly-formed Naugatuck Cultural Council (“NCC”) agreed to assist Naugatuck High School with an International Cultural Heritage Night planned for Thursday, March 24, 2011. Prior to last evening’s (1/19/2011) meeting of the NCC, there were plans to hold an outdoor, NCC kick-off event sometime during the Spring of 2011. Given the uncertainty of future weather and the fact that the high school had an event already planned, it was decided to combine efforts to promote the significant cultural diversity in the Borough.
The NCC was formed to celebrate Naugatuck’s rich heritage as a Borough of immigrants and proactively welcome new and emerging populations into the social fabric of our community. Over the past six (6) months, the Council has developed a Mission Statement, elected officers and begun to formulate strategies to address goals and objectives. Ralph Roper was elected as Chair, with Maria Fidalgo and Indira Reyes serve as Co-Chairs. The NCC is an open membership committee meaning any stakeholder can participate similar to the Blight and Beautification Council. Please feel free to contact us at bob@bobmezzo.com if you are interested in becoming involved. We are constantly seeking additional stakeholders.
Anne Marie Chuckrey, Chair of the Naugatuck High School World Language Department, is chairing the International Cultural Heritage Night in coordination with Principal Francis Serratore. The event seeks to feature the Borough’s numerous cultural heritages through music, literature, fashion and the arts. Anyone interested in participating should download the form here (in Word format) and return prior to March 1, 2011.
It is estimated that approximately one hundred eighty (180) different cultures comprise the Naugatuck Family. The NCC is excited to partner with the high school to showcase not only the rich and unique traditions from where our ancestors came, but all the common values that bind us together.
In addition, the NCC is planning to erect a large map of the World, centered by the Borough of Naugatuck, on the Fourth (4th) Floor of Town Hall. Soon residents, public officials and visiting students will be able to link Naugatuck with the countries and/or regions of their origin. More information will follow.
Posted by Bob on January 19, 2011 under Daily Blogs |
As posted earlier, schools were ultimately closed in Naugatuck today after an initial two (2) hour delay. While our office does not make the decision regarding school closings or delays, there was a series of events that resulted in the fifth (5th) consecutive school day being cancelled.
Decisions regarding school closings and delays are made by the Superintendent and the Board of Education Business Manager. The Business Manager personally drove roads around 5:00 AM this morning, at which time streets were in relatively good condition given recent weather. The decision was made to implement a two (2) hour delay to give Public Works crews a couple extra hours to prepare roads for bus travel.
Shortly after 6:00 AM, precipitation began to fall, and froze quickly in higher elevations. Our Police Department began to respond to numerous traffic incidents after roads became icy. Multiple roads were temporarily closed as a result of accidents, which slowed access by sand and plow trucks. In addition, our bus company reported that drivers were having difficulty arriving at work and that there were problems moving buses. It is my understanding that a decision was than made to close schools rather than begin bus pick-ups for high school routes. The decision was made in the interests of public safety.
It is a decision that I support. There was no fault on behalf of education officials who erred on the side of caution when reports of accidents and icy roads became numerous between 6:00 AM and 7:30 AM. Our Public Works crews plowed and sanded last night and were prepared for our first (1st) day of school in a week. We were not prepared for the morning’s additional precipitation and how quickly it froze on streets throughout the Borough. For that, I take responsibility and need to ensure that we can respond better on shorter notice to similar events.
There has been no attempt to withhold resources for any economic reasons during the recent surge of inclement weather. While we have a responsibility to taxpayers to manage limited resources appropriately, we do not balance that task with public safety. While are employees have responded tremendously and worked significant amounts of overtime this past week, we continue to respond to numerous problem areas throughout Naugatuck.
We realize that there is significant inconvenience to many as a result of multiple Winter storms, high levels of snow accumulation and numerous school closings. We also realize that residents are frustrated with continued disruption to normal life. Current forecasts are predicting additional snow for Friday (1/19/2011) morning. Please be assured that we will continue our attempts to improve our response to this unprecedented weather. We appreciate the collective patience of our residents under very trying circumstances.
If you are experiencing specific problems in your neighborhoods, please feel free to email me ( bob@bobmezzo.com ) or contact our Public Works Department ( 203-720-7072 ) directly.
Posted by Bob on under Daily Blogs |
Naugatuck Schools are closed on Wednesday, January 19, 2011. There was an initial report of a two (2) hour delay, but a decision was later reached to cancel schools as a result of unsafe traffic conditions in numerous areas.
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