North Stonington Update 7-31-2020- please remain vigilant and wear a mask, playground update, Town Hall & highway updates, & virtual discussion on equality and inclusion
Time flies and we can’t believe today is the last day of July! We hope everyone is enjoying this unusual summer as best they can.
This week the highway crew continued work by Billings Lake. Cutbacks were made on East Clarks Falls Road and a section was paved to fix drainage. The Grindstone Hill Road sign was replaced. Sweeping took place on Button Road, Puttker Road, and East Clarks Falls Road. Mowing and tree trimming continued throughout town.
We want to remind everyone to wear a mask when distance can’t be kept. With many restrictions loosening and people letting their guard down, we want to be as cautious as possible. To date CT has done a reasonable job of containing COVID but we must remain vigilant.
It is also time to be preparing for hurricanes. This season is predicted to be more active than previous seasons; the average water surface temperatures are markedly warmer, which doesn’t help to alleviate the threat. Please visit the town website for hurricane preparedness tips here… https://www.northstoningtonct.gov/home/bulletins/2020-hurricane-preparedness
The town recently applied for and received a housing planning grant which will help us to update our housing plan as required every 10 years. We are looking forward to putting this document together in the coming months.
You will soon receive in your mailbox a postcard which describes the new location for voting at the North Stonington Education Center (former middle/high school). Please be sure to read it so you are informed as to where to go for voting or when visiting the Registrar of Voters.
Speaking of the old middle/high school, we have now completed walk through with those tenants who were interested in renting, and contractors who were interested in bidding to demolish the building. We will look at all proposals that come in at the next Board of Selectmen’s meeting and discuss the options that work best for the town. We encourage everyone to attend the Board of Selectmen’s meeting, or any town meetings for that matter. They are all listed on the town website and all meetings are currently being broadcast via Zoom so you may attend either by phone or computer. Here’s a link to the last Board of Selectman’s meeting for those who missed it… https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XAJcZwg2vQ0
As you know, the Town Hall has remained open throughout the pandemic. Beginning Tuesday August 4th we will be unlocking the doors once again to the public so appointments will no longer be necessary. Masks are required when entering the building and if you do come by please keep your distance. We have safety protocols in place for the protection of staff and visitors. The dropbox outside will remain for those who prefer to leave documents rather than coming in. We thank everyone for your cooperation.
This past Sunday protesters/demonstrators visited North Stonington to speak out for equality and an end to racism. We were very thankful to the protest organizer Liv Rinkes for working with the town as she planned her event. It was a peaceful demonstration and was well organized. We are thankful for those who came, listened, and learned about our neighbors hardships and stories. We are also thankful to our troopers who did a great job of making sure nothing got out of hand as evidenced by there being no arrests or incidents. We thank Troop E for supplying two additional officers, Boyer and Chamrin, to join our local Resident Troopers McCarthy and Greene. We are fortunate in our area to have some fine and dedicated troopers and we thank them for their dedication and professionalism.
We do not feel the conversation can end with this event and after hearing from some of our neighbors we would like to facilitate more discussions about equality and inclusion. To that end we are looking to put together a series of virtual discussions on this topic. We will soon be setting this up so we can hear more from all of our neighbors about their experiences, and then talk about ways we may work to become a more united community.
The school reopening task force made up of parents, teachers, volunteers, and administration has been working very hard to put together strong plans for our schools to reopen at the end of the summer. Surveys went out to parents this past week and they are urging all parents to fill out the survey for each child. If you did not receive the survey in your email please contact central office at the school.
Finally we must give a shout out to the North Stonington PTO, specifically their playground committee. In only a couple of months’ time the group successfully raised nearly $100,000 through grants, business, and individual contributions to install a new playground as the old equipment was falling apart after many years of use. Cherenzia Excavation and Perkins Rubbish Removal helped to get the old equipment removed this past week. This is such a wonderful example of our community coming together for a great cause. We can’t wait to see the new playground equipment installed for our littlest ones to enjoy for years to come. Thanks to everyone who made this dream become a reality.
Have a great week!