Granby Drummer | April 2018

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Drummer FO R I M ME DIAT E DE LI V E RY

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Published by Citizens for a Better Granby a non-profit 501(c)3 organization

Volume XLVIII, No. 7 • April 2018

www.granbydrummer.com

Former Evonsion property continues to elicit substantial public comment by Shirley Murtha At the March 5 meeting of the Board of Selectmen, Town Manager John Ward gave an update on the status of the action regarding the use of the former Evonsion property. As reported in the last issue of the Drummer, three RFPs (Request for Proposal) had been submitted within the due date of January 31. The RFPs had been posted on various agricultural websites, in the Hartford Courant, and on other local media. The criteria on which the proposals were judged were: completeness, experience, success, access to equipment and financing, appropriateness and community benefit. The proposals from the House of Hayes and Rockwood Farm (Woodger) are for long-term lease of 25 years or more. The Hayes proposal offers $10,000 per year plus a 1 percent increase per year; the Rockwood offers $14,000 per year but is incomplete with the amount increase left as negotiable. The proposal from West-

meadow (Vaughan) was for purchase at $1.25 million. The proposals from Hayes and Rockwood cite the intention of rotating crops for silage; the Vaughan proposal involves the establishment of an organic dairy farm, including the building of a barn. Ward noted that all three proposals were appropriate. If the board was to decide in favor of a lease arrangement, he favored the Hayes proposal based on the long-standing presence of the family in Granby (eight generations) and the success of its operations to date. Prior to a lengthy session of public comment, the board members gave their personal thoughts. Mark Neumann favors the Westmeadow proposal as the best financially for the town. Sally King noted that if the property is purchased, the town loses control over what happens there, to which First Selectman Kuhnly replied that the town would retain development rights and that a conservation easement would preclude future development.

BOS cont’d. on p. 3

Vote at the April 23 Budget Referendum On Monday, April 23, the Town Budget Referendum will be held in the Town Hall Meeting Room in Granby Town Hall, 15 North Granby Road. The polls will be open from noon to 8 p.m. As with all opportunities to vote, plan to bring identification so you can be checked off the official voter list and issued a paper ballot. The check-in tables will be separated by street address, not last name. As in the past, non-registered, but otherwise eligible voters who own property in Granby in their own name, will also be allowed to vote. They will need to fill out a special form at the assessor’s table. Absentee ballots can be filed in person with the Town Clerk prior to the voting hours, not during the referendum. Poll workers are needed The registrar’s office is compiling an e-mail list of poll workers. Poll workers can be volunteers or paid, must be at least

16 years old and may choose to volunteer for a few hours, or as desired to fit their schedules. For more information, or to be added to the list, please email the registrars at: vr.granby.ct@gmail.com. Poll worker training will be done in April for the April 23 referendum and in June/July if there is an August 14 primary, and again in October for the November 6 election. Poll worker training is required to serve. High school senior registration drive The Registrars of Voters will be conducting a Spring Voter Registration Drive at the Granby Memorial High School on Wednesday, April 4. High school seniors who will be 18 years of age by the Nov. 6 elections will be eligible to register at this session. It would be helpful for those seniors who have Connecticut state-issued IDs to have these with them to facilitate the registration process.

Inside The Whisk........................ 19

Hungry Hearts Dinner........ 26

Nutmeg Dance.................. 24

Waypoints....................... 32

FREE

Valley Pre-School goes to “Florida” The 4s classes at Valley Pre-School took a magical beach vacation to Key West last month. The trip is an annual tradition for the school. See story on page 34. Submitted photo

Challenges and complexities in building 2018-19 budget By Michael B. Guarco, Jr., Chair, Board of Finance As the boards near the conclusion of the budget-making process in preparation to send the final product on to Public Hearing for review and comment, they are faced with twin difficulties: managing the moderate but constant increase in the cost of doing business, and the uncertainty in state aid levels as seen throughout last year’s rollercoaster ride. Granby has experienced a nearly million-dollar reduction in state funding from last year’s state budget compared

to what the Governor has proposed for the upcoming fiscal year. Absorbing the current proposals is the equivalent of a nearly 3 percent local tax rate increase, which adds to the difficulty in holding the line while simultaneously providing and maintaining quality municipal and educational program and services to the people of Granby. With salaries and benefits representing three quarters of the combined operating budget overall, as go contracts so goes the budget. In general, Granby salaries are in the middle third compared with

Budget cont’d. on p. 2

A community bands together By Jen Bell “When something happens to someone in your community, when you live in a small town, you band together and do what you can,” said Rebecca Lobo on NBC News Connecticut. Rebecca was referring to Katherine “Katie” O’Neill, 10-year-old Granby resident who was seriously injured over the long Presidents’ Day weekend when a dead tree fell on her as she was walking with a group (including her brother, PJ) in the McLean Game Refuge. One of the adults in the group called 911 and Lifestar was dispatched from Hartford Hospital in just minutes. Katie had surgery at Connecticut Children’s Medical

Center that day to treat several broken bones in her hand, arm, and leg. More seriously, Katie was placed in a medically induced coma following surgery on her skull which was necessary to relieve swelling on the brain. The first 72 hours were the most crucial, and Katie’s family braced themselves. Katie O’Neill The Granby community braced itself as well. Word about the accident quickly spread on social media and from television news

Community cont’d. on p. 7

Photo by Peter Dinella


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