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North Stonington Weekly Update 1-15-2021 - Vaccine Available 75+, New Registrars Hours, State Updates & More!

Happy Friday North Stonington,

Another very busy week comes to a close here in our town.

This week the highway crew was busy cutting trees on Dennison Hill Rd, Miller Rd, and the school bus lot. Maintenance was performed on some town properties changing out some Town Hall ceiling tiles, Senior Center air filters, the Senior Center bus, fixing the damaged fence at the Rec Center and taking down the volleyball nets. Potholes and beaver dams throughout town were evaluated. Various dead trees were marked around town for future removal. Next week we will continue to cut trees and check water ways.

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The vaccine rollout continues with phase 1b having been announced. The State is urging those 75 and older to sign up for your vaccine now as well as all of those who were in phase 1a. Ledge Light Health offered the following press release yesterday…

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Contact: Stephen Mansfield REHS, MPH

Director of Health, LLHD

860-448-4882 ext.1307

District Residents 75 and Older Can Register for COVID-19 Vaccine

Today, the State of Connecticut opened COVID-19 vaccine eligibility to individuals aged 75 and older. Ledge Light Health District is committed to assuring that all individuals have access to vaccinations as they become eligible, and as vaccine is available. Individuals aged 75 and older who wish to be vaccinated can register for a vaccination through a number of channels:

• Online at https://llhd.org/

• Online at https://ct.gov/covidvaccine

• By phone at 877-918-2224

In addition to these methods, some individuals may be contacted by their healthcare provider to schedule a vaccination, if their provider is participating in the vaccination program.

All vaccinations are offered by appointment; people must first register through one of the systems listed above to secure an appointment. Vaccine supply remains limited and patience is requested.

Although the availability of vaccine will help reduce the morbidity and mortality associated with COVID-19 long term, it is only one of the tools that we have in our toolbox to fight this pandemic; it is an imperative that everyone remain diligent and continue to practice social distancing and appropriate mask protocols.

While Ledge Light Health District is one of the vaccination providers, they do not make decisions about who is eligible for vaccinations. Our staff are monitoring information regarding vaccine eligibility as it is released by the State of Connecticut. The State has indicated that certain frontline essential workers as well as individuals between the ages of 65 and 74 and those individuals ages 16 to 64 who have underlying health conditions that put them at greater risk will become eligible in the coming weeks. The public is invited to visit the Health District’s website, www.llhd.org and social media pages frequently for up-to-date information.

The State has been doing a good job of administering the vaccine. The partnership with Walgreens and CVS successfully resulted in all who are in nursing homes that wished to be vaccinated having been. While the messaging has at times been confusing and the amount of vaccine coming from the federal government often unknown, the State is doing their best to communicate and get more and more people vaccinated. The Governor is urging patience with the process and feel free to keep on the State website to remain up-to-date on the latest developments.

The Registrars office beginning next week will be open Monday and Wednesday 2-5pm and Tuesdays and Thursdays 10-1pm. They will not be open this coming Monday due to the Martin Luther King Jr. Holiday. Remember if you need to visit the Registrars, their office is located in the media center at the North Stonington Education Center 298 Norwich Westerly Road.

Speaking of the Education Center, we are looking for tenants to occupy the vacant areas of the building. We will be working hard over the next several months to bring new neighbors in. If you have anyone you feel would be interested here is a link to one of the listings for the space… https://smartmls.mlsmatrix.com/Matrix/Public/Portal.aspx?ID=DE-61540516181&eml=TVVyZ29Abm9ydGhzdG9uaW5ndG9uY3QuZ292. We will be working through marketing plans to get the word out to area educational partners and institutions who may have interest in becoming a part of our community. 

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For those affected by COVID-19 you may apply for the deferral program for your 2nd installment and Motor Vehicle Supplemental bills that are not escrowed or paid for by a leasing company. This is for current bills only and does not apply to delinquent bills. Forms must be returned to the Tax Collector’s office by email, mail or secure drop box by January 25, 2021.  The deferment program will offer a grace period for tax payments that are due January 1, 2021 to a deferred period due date of April 1, 2021.  If you apply and do not pay by April 1, 2021 the interest will revert back to the original due date of January 1, 2021 – 6%. As always you may also pay your taxes online by clicking this link… https://www.mytaxbill.org/inet/bill/home.do?town=northstonington

A final meeting of the CT Coalition for Sustainable Materials Management took place this week. This group was made up of leaders from around the state and focused on the waste disposal issues we are facing here in CT. There were a number of recommendations to help become more focused on sustainability and being ecofriendly, some of these will be brought forward in legislation this upcoming session at the State. More to come as these issues develop.

The State held a meeting this week to discuss COVID case levels here as they have risen exponentially in Southeastern CT. They are urging everyone to please heed the warnings and wear masks when distance can’t be kept. Spread continues among close family and friends. We are close to getting everyone vaccinated so if we can just stay focused a little longer we can all get through this together and healthy.

Please join us next Thursday evening for our annual Tri-Board meeting. You will have the opportunity to ask your legislators Senator Heather Sommers, Representative Greg Howard, as well as receive updates from Chairman of the Board of Finance Dan Spring, Chairwoman of the Board of Education Christine Wagner, and First Selectman Mike Urgo. The information to access the meeting is here: Please click the link below to join the webinar:

Finally, the regular biweekly meeting took place this past week with the Governor and municipal leaders throughout the State. As we have done on previous calls, the Lieutenant Governor and council were asked to be sure towns have the ability to send their budget to a vote of the people this year vs. having the Boards vote on it. This suggestion was taken and seemed likely to occur. We also asked them to expand no excuse absentee and mail in voting for other town vote purposes so that those who are not comfortable during these times are able to cast their ballot safely. This was done for the primaries and general election and worked very well. Both suggestions were responded to by Governors Council and hopefully an Executive Order will be forthcoming on these topics.

 

That’s it for today. Have a great week!
Mike Urgo First Selectman