Ellington Sets Youth Safety Meeting After Green Road Incidents

ELLINGTON, CT — Ellington has announced a public meeting on youth safety after town officials raised alarms about ongoing trouble tied to gatherings on private property.

A flyer released this week promotes an April 29 event titled “No Party Is Worth A Life,” described as a community conversation on youth safety. The meeting is scheduled for 6 p.m. at the Ellington Senior Center.

According to the flyer, the event will focus on what organizers called the deadly risks of partying under power lines at a local party hotspot. It is being billed for parents and concerned community members in Ellington and surrounding towns.

The panel is expected to include resident state troopers, Eversource, a supervisory assistant state’s attorney, Ellington Youth Services and Ellington’s Youth Substance Prevention Coalition. The event is being hosted by Ellington’s Prevention Coalition, Developing Positive Youth Culture.

The announcement follows recent public comments from town officials about repeated problems on private property off Green Road. During the April 13 Board of Selectmen meeting, Town Administrator Matthew Reed said the town had met with property owners, state police and Eversource because of ongoing vandalism and trespassing in the area.

Reed said officials recently found pallets on the property, which he described as a sign somebody was preparing to have a fire and a party. He said two juveniles were arrested, an abandoned vehicle was removed and the site was cleared before there was any party, injury or fire.

In a social media post on April 17, First Selectman Laurie Burstein said the problem has been going on for years. She said she was glad to meet with landowners, emergency services and Eversource to try to address it.

Burstein also credited Ellington police and resident state troopers with quickly responding and removing pallets that were “getting ready to burn,” which she said helped prevent a potential forest fire and injuries.

Town officials have said the property is private and that enforcement action is expected when people are found trespassing or gathering there unlawfully.