Board of Selectmen

‘We May Want To Make Modifications’: Carlson Calls for Details in Security Plan

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New Canaan’s highest elected official on Tuesday called for more details of an ongoing initiative launched by the prior administration to bolster security in town. First Selectman Dionna Carlson joined fellow members of the Board of Selectmen during their regular meeting in approving a $15,000 contract with Darien Electric to do the electrical work needed to install security cameras at undisclosed locations throughout town. Carlson also asked how many more cameras need to go up. “How much more do we have to do?” she said during the meeting, held at Town Hall and via videoconference. 

“Who’s making the decision on where we’re putting the cameras?” Carlson said. She added that she’d like to schedule an executive session to discuss the matter in detail—out of the public eye, for security reasons.

Board of Selectmen

Outdoor Basketball Courts at Saxe To Get Major Upgrade

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The well-used basketball courts behind Saxe Middle School stand to get a major upgrade, thanks to the foresight and generosity of the Parent Teacher Council. Cracked and with weeds growing out of the asphalt, the outdoor courts currently aren’t regulation for middle school use, according to Saxe PTC Co-Presidents Jess Huetter and Jessica Knowles. Yet the courts rank among “the most utilized” spaces at Saxe by students and the wider community, Knowles told members of the Board of Selectmen at their most recent meeting. “There are kids of all grades, all ages at school, genders—it’s used on the weekends by the community, after soccer practice, lacrosse practice, kids come and play, there’s always pick-up basketball games,” Knowles said during a presentation to the selectmen at their Feb. 20 meeting, held at Town Hall and via videoconference.

Government

New Canaan Farmers Market Approved for April 20 Opening

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The Board of Selectmen at its most recent meeting approved use of the Lumberyard Lot downtown for the New Canaan Farmers Market for the upcoming season. The Farmers Market will be held 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. on Saturdays from April 20 to Dec. 21, following a 3-0 vote by First Selectman Dionna Carlson and Selectmen Steve Karl and Amy Murphy Carroll at their Feb. 20 meeting. “The farmers and the vendors are actually anxiously getting ready to get out there and be back to the community,” Market Master Lexi Gazy of Oxford-based Gazy Brothers Farm said at the meeting, held at Town Hall and via videoconference.

Affordable Housing Committee

Affordable Housing Committee Elects Officers, Hears from Town Officials at First Meeting

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A newly appointed committee charged with identifying properties in New Canaan where affordable housing units could be built, among other responsibilities, on Monday voted to elect a seasoned and widely respected municipal volunteer as its chair. At its first meeting, members of the Affordable Housing Committee voted 9-0 to elect former Planning & Zoning Commission chair John Goodwin to lead the group. 

In nominating him, Committee member Krista Neilson said that Goodwin’s time on P&Z “gives him a lot of insight into the work that we’re going to be doing here.”

“He sat in on approving Canaan Parish and Millport, I’m sure he probably dodged some 8-30g applications that didn’t come to us,” Neilson said during the meeting, held at Town Hall and via videoconference. She continued: “So he’s seen the whole gamut, at least, of how it comes to the town. And also, I think he has great experience being the chair of the Planning & Zoning Commission, which—those of you who haven’t had the pleasure of attending our meetings, can be quite long, quite contentious. I feel if you can chair that, you can chair most anything.

Amy Murphy Carroll

ARPA: Selectmen Vote to Transfer Remaining $750,000 to Town’s General Fund

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The Board of Selectmen on Tuesday voted unanimously to transfer all remaining funds from the American Rescue Plan Act or “ARPA” to New Canaan’s General Fund. First Selectman Dionna Carlson and Selectmen Steve Karl and Amy Murphy Carroll during their regular meeting voted 3-0 to return the $747,634 to the fund so that the town can spend however it wants, rather than along ARPA-specific guidelines. Murphy Carroll, who served on a joint Board of Finance and Town Council subcommittee that made recommendations about ARPA allocations, said the federal dollars can be used to reimburse communities that lost revenue due to the pandemic. “We did lose approximately $3 million in revenue, and I was always a fan personally of pulling it in, because once you pull it into the town, you can use it for whatever purpose,” she said during the meeting, held at Town Hall and via videoconference “If you allocate it directly this way, you have to really align with ARPA requirements. So I think it makes all the sense in the world for us to pull this in and then just allocate it out of our General Fund.