North Stonington Weekly Update 8/27/2021- Storm Recap, Route 49 Bridge Open, Town Meeting Results and More

Happy Friday North Stonington,

We hope you have had an enjoyable week! Things continue to be very busy around town.

Thankfully we recovered quickly from the Tropical Storm last Sunday. Though we did have at one point 40% of the town without power, Eversource was quickly brought into town and was making restoration throughout the storm. Our attention to tree trimming over the years has helped us have better results with storms and we are thankful for the Highway crew and state crews who are continuously doing that work. Our Emergency Responders, State Troopers, Highway crew, and Emergency Management Director Gary Baron were all very busy keeping everyone safe and functioning through the storm. Thanks for all of their efforts. 

In other Highway news, the crew was busy over the last couple of weeks keeping up on mowing and tree trimming. We completed a drainage extension in Kingswood prior to the remaining paving that is slated to take place in September. The new Kayak Trail soon to be opened near Boom Bridge was cleared of debris and readied for use. Projects were done at the rec including fixing the gate, removing coil from playground, fixing a damaged swing, and raking the volleyball courts. Truck 17 received a new air tank and governor. The Mack truck tire was fixed, and truck 6’s AC was worked on. 

The bridge over Wyassup brook on Route 49 was opened last week. It may be down to one lane at times to complete the work but it is now clear for passage. Thanks to everyone involved in this project as we are excited to now have a 3^rd bridge upgraded in our town over the last two years.

Thanks to everyone who came out or participated virtually in the Town Meeting Monday. The one question up for vote was an allocation of funds for the North Stonington Volunteer Fire Company to hire per diem staff. The vote passed and the funds will be allocated. The Company has already advertised for the position which will help cover daytime shifts which we often need extra help with since many of our volunteers are working during the day. We recognize that the question was “moved” before some online participants had a chance to comment. In the future, we will look to go to online comments first to be sure everyone has a chance to share their feedback. For those interested in watching the meeting a recording can be found here: https://www.northstoningtonct.gov/home/pages/special-town-meeting-hybrid-format-august-23-2021

On the COVID-19 front we continue to be concerned about the highly contagious delta variant. The good news is that those vaccinated are well protected. Even if you do get COVID after having the vaccine it is generally a milder case which does not end up in hospitalizations or fatality. Stonington and North Stonington recently came together to encourage mask wearing and vaccinations. The video can be seen here https://www.northstoningtonct.gov/home/pages/north-stonington-stonington-joint-message. We can’t stress enough how important it is to wear masks indoors now and get the vaccine if you are eligible. While you may be protected with the vaccination, wearing masks helps protect not only yourself but others. Remember kids under 12 are not eligible to be vaccinated yet so we must do what we can to stop the spread and protect those who are most vulnerable. Please do your part so we can hopefully soon get this virus behind us.

This past week our Sustainability Committee led by Alexis Kahn submitted for a re-designation for North Stonington once again become a Sustainable community. We have been fortunate enough through much hard work to receive this designation the past two years. We are hopeful to achieve this again in 2021. Thanks so much to the entire committee for their work pulling all of this data together. We also have created a Sustainability page on our website which will start having more information in the coming months: Sustainable North Stonington Site.

In the next month or so we are going to be rolling out our Everbridge Town notification system for non-emergency notifications. Everyone will have the ability to sign up for these notifications so keep your eyes peeled for the opportunity. This will be another way for us to keep the public informed of town goings on.

The Cultural Coalition will be helping administer a grant program for those adversely affected by COVID-19. This could include arts organizations, gig workers, libraries, historical organizations, or other groups dedicated to arts and culture in our town. If you need help or want to get involved check out their website and reach out to them directly  http://culturesect.org/town-of-north-stonington-arp/ .

We have been busy trying to implement the use of our American Rescue Plan funds for the purposes they are intended for. We have allocated some funding and continue to work on this at every Board of Selectmen meeting. Please join us at any upcoming meeting to be a part of the solutions in getting our community back on its feet as we hopefully begin to exit the worst of the COVID-19 pandemic.