Chair Report: October 11 & 12 Special and Regular Meeting Review

Good Morning, and happy Harvest Festival Eve Friday! From the Council Chair, providing a review of the special and regular meetings held on October 11th and a special meeting on October 12th.

First, the Town Council met in Executive Session to discuss a personnel matter.

The Council then moved on to regular session, unanimously approving ARPA Funding Use to support a 50% reduction on Recreation Programs to not exceed $200,000 dollars. These funds will cover expenses for roughly 1.5 years and leave additional funding available to the Recreation Department for extra and/or new programming for all ages.

The second item of business was a meeting with the Tolland Public Library Foundation Board to present their annual report to the Tolland Town Council. This report included their activities and accomplishments over the last year, goals for the upcoming year and their approved budget. Questions were raised confirming their role and functions, the Oral History Project and ongoing outreach to seniors

The third item of business was a unanimous approval to apply for the Federal Local Bridge Program to support four priority projects that include Gerber Drive bridge over Gages Brooks, Industrial Park Roads East as well as West bridges over Gages Brook and South River Road #2 bridge over the Willimantic River. If awarded, they will cover 100% of the project costs for the town.

The fourth and final item of business before Town Council was a resolution to approve the reuse of capital project funds of a boiler and controls replacement at Tolland High School. This equipment has been identified as having a number of significant issues for repair due to cracks and replacement of obsolete controls. After some questions to BoE staff and discussion among council members, the resolution was approved on a 5-2 vote.

The Tolland Town Council also held second special meeting this week on Wednesday, October 12th to discuss a pending claim as well as a Real Estate Transaction (Lease) in executive session.

To view the Town Council Meeting Minutes and Packets, please visit:

October 11 Special Minutes - https://ecode360.com/TO1208/document/687781667.pdf October 11 Regular Minutes - https://ecode360.com/TO1208/document/687781718.pdf

October 12 Special Minutes – Not yet available

October 11 Packet - https://www.tollandct.gov/sites/g/files/vyhlif3921/f/uploads/october_11_2022_council_packet.pdf

Town Manager October Report - https://www.tollandct.gov/sites/g/files/vyhlif3921/f/uploads/october_11_2022_town_managers_report.pdf

Thank you for taking time to review the Town Council’s upcoming meeting. To submit any questions or comments to the Tolland Town Council, please email towncouncil@tollandct.gov . I hope you all get a chance to enjoy the ever growing 2nd Annual Harvest Festival this Saturday on the Tolland Green!