April 12 Update From Bethel First Selectman Carter

**News Release Submitted by Bethel First Selectman Dan Carter**

April 12, 2024

Dear Bethel,

While much our attention over the last few months has been on the 2024-2025 annual budget which is up for a referendum vote on April 23rd, most Town department heads have met with the comptroller and First Selectman over the last few weeks for the final quarterly budget review of the 2023-2024 budget. We are on track to finish the year on budget!

We had a complaint this week about an overflowing garbage can on Greenwood Ave. Unfortunately, we couldn’t find who put it there, so our highway department took care of it. Spring time appears to be the time of year that more litter is tossed out on our roads and parking lots. Thank you to the residents who called the mess to our attention and thank you to all who help keep Bethel clean!

State Rep Marty Foncello and The Cascades in Stony Hill hosted Connecticut Attorney General William Tong this week to discuss many of the scams that victimize seniors in Bethel. He covered many of the more notable ways criminals separate our seniors from their life savings. The big take home message is there are resources available from the Elder Justice Hotline at 1-860-808-5555. His presentation was fantastic and we have asked for him to return for another at our Senior Center in the fall.

The next Office Hours in Wednesday, April 17th from 7 am to 8:30 am at Town Hall in the First Selectman office.

Check out upcoming public hearings at https://bethel-ct.gov/2024-public-hearing.
Public Hearing: Zoning Board of Appeals, Tuesday, April 16, 2024 at 6:00 pm

Congrats to the members of the Bethel Senior Center! With some additional grant funding provided by the state, their kitchen and an ADA compliant bathroom were remodeled. The town also replaced their commercial refrigerator in the commercial kitchen. Stop in and take a look.

It can devastate an entire community when a student or students are involved in an accident on prom night. The Bethel High School “Post Prom” is an annual alcohol and drug free event held to keep our kids and community safe on prom night. It is run by Bethel High School parents, and teachers and volunteers. Donations of any size are greatly appreciated to help with activities, decorations, food, and prizes. Last week, Rich Tibbitts was the “guest bartender” at Portofino’s where 10% of proceeds went to Post Prom. Visit Notch 8 on April 29th and mention Post Prom during lunch or dinner and a donation will be made to the cause. If you would like to contribute, send a check to “BHS PTSO” with “post prom” in the memo to Bethel High School at 300 Whittlesey Drive. Venmo is also an option: https://venmo.com/u/BHS-PTSO. Contact BHSpostprom06801@gmail.com with questions.

The Annual Bethel Community Earth Day Event is back and better than ever! The infamous “Trashapaloza,” town wide cleanup, kicks off at 10 am and runs to 12 pm. Berardinelli Services is providing a dumpster behind Town Hall. After the dropping off trash, celebrate at the Earth Day Fair on the Town Hall lawn 11 am to 2 pm. There will be engaging games, vendors and a free raffle. For more information email sustainblebethel@bethel-ct.gov.

Our own Broken Symmetry will be participating in the Annual CT Beer Fest 2024 sponsored by the CT Brewers’ Guild on Saturday, April 20th at the Connecticut Convention Center in Hartford. If you aren’t picking up trash in Bethel for Earth Day, you may to check out tickets at https://www.connecticut.beer/ctbeerfest2024/
Registration for Bethel Parks & Recreation Day Camp begins on Monday, April 22nd at 9:00 am. Camp runs from June 24th to August 2nd. Visit https://bethelct.myrec.com/info/default.aspx for more info camp and other amazing opportunities!

Putt FORE Paws returns on June 10th to the beautiful Redding Country Club. Please join in for a day of golf and goodwill at the Joyce Allen Memorial Tournament. This event is a celebration of community, compassion, and the love of the game. Sponsorship opportunities are available, and golfer registration is open. Register or sponsor https://e.givesmart.com/events/BM1/

A big shoutout to Hannah Stowell and her Voting Registration Assembly at Bethel High School. Her well organized Capstone Project registered well over 70 students to vote! Thank you for your civic engagement, Hannah!

Congrats to Joey O’Hara and Mackenzie Variale, our athletes of the week!

Girls lacrosse, girls tennis, and Bethel Softball all had wins this week! Outstanding Wildcats!

A shoutout to the girls track team who registered 13 SWC qualifying times and 12 state qualifying times this week!

Have a great weekend!
Dan