Emergency Services, Resources Main Topic of Wednesday's Annual Town Meeting

The town will discuss emergency management services and resources and the Farmington River hydroelectric project at tonight’s annual meeting.

The first topic will be the main subject and was selected with weather incidents, especially the debilitating October snowstorm, fresh on people’s minds. Selectmen picked the topics at a December meeting. 

First Selectman Richard Barlow has consistently praised the efforts of town staff and volunteers during the storm and its aftermath but said that some residents were not aware of some of the services the town offered, even including the operation of a shelter at the community center.

“We wanted to use the town meeting as a forum to really explain what services the town is able to provide to residents in emergencies,” Barlow said.

While there was some technical challenges during the storm, such as the town’s e-mail going down for part of it, Barlow said there are other steps residents can take, such as signing up for the town’s Q-Alert system and registering their cell phones to receive emergency alerts.

The second topic of the night will be the town’s hydroelectric project, an effort to potentially reactive the upper and/or lower Collinsville dams to produce power. The topic was discussed at a town meeting a few years ago but an update will be useful, Barlow said.

“People are continually interested in updates on what’s going on with that,” Barlow said.

The town meeting is informational only. While the town charter prohibits binding votes, Barlow thinks it’s still an important event.

“I think it’s a great tradition,” he said. “It gives people a chance to get out and get information on an important topic or two.”

Barlow said it is also another great chance to showcase the town’s revamped Town Hall Auditorium. A $10,000 Connecticut Light and Power grant was awarded to restore the room and Trevor Pierce coordinated the work as an Eagle Scout Project a few years ago.

The meeting will take place Wednesday, Jan. 18 at 7 p.m. in the auditorium at 4 Market St., Collinsville.