2020 Annual Town Report
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Annual Report Town of Old Saybrook, Connecticut MIDDLESEX COUNTY Second Congressional District Twentieth Senatorial District Thirty-Third Senatorial District Twenty-Third Assembly District The seal of Old Saybrook was adopted from the College Arms of Saybrook College of Yale University. The seal is heraldically described as follows: “Quarterly I and IV azure, three lions rampant, or: II and III sable, engrailed cross within a border engrailed, both or, five roundels sable on the cross.” The significance of the seal and its relation to the Town of Old Saybrook is as follows: Quarters I and IV are for Fiennes, the family of the Lord Saye and Sele; II and III are for Greville, the family of Lord Brooke. These ancient coats recall two of the seventeenth- century English Proprietors of land at the mouth of the Connecticut River. Old Saybrook was the site of the Collegiate School of Connecticut, which was relocated to New Haven in 1716 and became Yale University. Year Ending June 30th, 2020 TABLE OF CONTENTS SECTION I TOWN OF OLD SAYBROOK – PROFILE ........................................................................5 IN MEMORIAM ......................................................................................................................6 OLD SAYBROOK EMPLOYEES AND MEMBERS OF BOARDS AND COMMISSIONS ............................................................7 SECTION II ACTON PUBLIC LIBRARY .................................................................................................19 ACTON PUBLIC LIBRARY, THE FRIENDS OF THE ....................................................22 AMBULANCE ASSOCIATION ..........................................................................................23 AQUIFER PROTECTION AGENCY .................................................................................24 ARCHITECTURAL REVIEW BOARD ..............................................................................24 ASSESSMENT APPEALS BOARD ...................................................................................24 ASSESSOR .............................................................................................................................25 BUILDING DEPARTMENT ................................................................................................27 CONNECTICUT RIVER AREA HEALTH DISTRICT .....................................................28 CONNECTICUT RIVER GATEWAY COMMISSION ....................................................31 CONSERVATION COMMISSION ....................................................................................32 CYPRESS CEMETERY ASSOCIATION, INC ..................................................................34 ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT COMMISSION .............................................................35 EDUCATION, BOARD OF .................................................................................................38 EMERGENCY MANAGEMENT ........................................................................................51 ESTUARY COUNCIL OF SENIORS .................................................................................54 ESTUARY TRANSIT DISTRICT.........................................................................................55 FINANCE DIRECTOR ..........................................................................................................56 FIRE DEPARTMENT ............................................................................................................58 FIRE MARSHAL ....................................................................................................................61 HARBOR MANAGEMENT COMMISSION ...................................................................62 HISTORIC DISTRICT COMMISSION .............................................................................63 HISTORICAL SOCIETY, OLD SAYBROOK ...................................................................64 INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY ......................................................................................67 INLAND WETLANDS & WATERCOURSES COMMISSION .....................................69 KATHARINE HEPBURN CULTURAL ARTS CENTER ................................................69 LAND USE DEPARTMENT ................................................................................................71 LOWER CT RIVER VALLEY COUNCIL OF GOVERNMENTS ...................................72 PARKS AND RECREATION DEPARTMENT .................................................................75 PENSION AND EMPLOYEE BENEFITS BOARD .........................................................78 PLANNING COMMISSION ...............................................................................................79 POLICE SERVICES, DEPARTMENT OF .........................................................................80 PROBATE COURT ................................................................................................................86 PUBLIC HEALTH NURSING BOARD .............................................................................87 PUBLIC WORKS ...................................................................................................................89 REGISTRARS OF VOTERS .................................................................................................90 RIVERSIDE CEMETERY ASSOCIATION, INC ...............................................................91 SELECTMEN, BOARD OF ..................................................................................................92 SHORELINE SOUP KITCHENS & PANTRIES ...............................................................95 TAX COLLECTOR ................................................................................................................96 TOWN CLERK AND REGISTRAR OF VITAL STATISTICS .........................................97 TOWN TREASURER ............................................................................................................97 TRANSFER STATION ..........................................................................................................98 WATER POLLUTION CONTROL AUTHORITY ........................................................ 100 YOUTH AND FAMILY SERVICES ..................................................................................101 ZONING BOARD OF APPEALS .................................................................................... 106 ZONING COMMISSION ................................................................................................. 106 SECTION III EMPLOYEE WAGES AND REPRESENTATION ..........................................................109 EMPLOYEE BENEFITS ......................................................................................................110 SECTION IV FINANCIAL REPORT ........................................................................................................117 OLD SAYBROOK “Where the Connecticut River meets Long Island Sound” Old Saybrook dates back to 1635 when a company of English Puritans headed by Viscount Saye and Sele and Lord Brooke, and led by one John Winthrop, Jr., erected a fort to guard the river entrance…which in turn was guarded by a sandy shoal bar that called for precise piloting to enter. The residents blessed this shoal for it was a natural barrier against over-industrialization and helped to preserve the integrity of the environment with all of its natural beauty. When a deep channel was dredged and breakwaters erected, ships no longer had to off-load at Saybrook Point. Thus, the channel up river was opened for expansion of trade, commercial fishing and shipbuilding, traditional occupations that have carried on over the years. 5 SECTION I TOWN OF OLD SAYBROOK — PROFILE LOCATION: Middlesex County West Side of the Mouth of the Connecticut River 45 miles from Hartford 101 miles from New York 105 miles from Boston Latitude 41° 17´ N. Longitude 72° 25´ W. Town Area – 15.3 square miles Total Town Roads – 72 miles TOWN INCORPORATION: July 8, 1854 FORM OF GOVERNMENT: Town Meeting /Board of Selectmen/Board of Finance Net Grand List of October 1, 2019 – 2,301,690,063 Mill Rate: 20.05 Assessment Ratio: 70% Grand List Date: October 1, 2019 Grand Levy: $46,148,885.76 Two Voting Districts POPULATION: U.S. Census Bureau Estimate: 10,061 School Enrollment: 1,195 PROPERTY: Residential Dwellings: 5,614 Commercial/Industrial Dwellings: 470 Motor Vehicles: 12,616 Business Personal Property Accounts: 3,029 REPRESENTATIVES: State Representative Devin Carney [R], 23rd Assembly District State Senators Paul M. Formica [R], 20th Senatorial District Voting District 1 Norm Needleman [D], 33rd Senatorial District Voting District 2 Congressman Joseph Courtney [D], 2nd Congressional District United States Senators Richard Blumenthal [D] Christopher Murphy [D] TOWN WEBSITE: www.oldsaybrookct.org 6 IN MEMORIAM Richard Firman O’Brien (1943-2019) Richard was a veteran who served in the U.S. Navy. Following his military career, he lived in Old Saybrook for some time where he was a member of the Old Saybrook Police Department for 28 years, attaining the rank of detective sergeant before his retirement. Charles A. Roberston (1947-2020) Charles joined the Old Saybrook Fire Department on July 1, 1997 and served on numerous committees including the Nominating Committee and the Hayride Fundraiser. Perhaps his most significant contribution was his service as chair of the Building Renovation Committee where, for close to three years beginning in 1999, he oversaw a million-dollar