Board of Selectmen

Town Re-Hires Tom Stadler for Some Former Job Duties

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About one year after retiring from New Canaan’s municipal government, Tom Stadler is set to return to handle some of the duties he performed while in the town administrative officer role. Stadler had served as New Canaan’s risk manager and when he retired “we discovered that there is a piece we are missing,” according to First Selectman Kevin Moynihan. “We met with CIRMA [Connecticut Interlocal Risk Management Agency] recently and in order to have someone work on the immediate claim of incidence, we need someone local and someone who is available and Tom always was available for that,” Moynihan said during a regular Board of Selectmen meeting, held Aug. 17 at Town Hall and via videoconference. “He is in retirement.

America Rescue Plan Act

Selectman Williams: $6 Million from Federal Rescue Plan Act Should Go to Restoring General Fund

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The town has already lost millions of dollars in revenue due to COVID-19, with more losses to come as New Canaan emerges from the pandemic, so municipal officials should look to use $6 million in new federal funding to restore the town’s General Fund, Selectman Nick Williams said. The $3 million that New Canaan should get this week through the America Rescue Plan Act just about covers losses already incurred in areas such as parking, recreation programs and property rentals, Williams noted during the June 15 Board of Selectmen meeting. And New Canaan has “other continuing negative trends on revenue” that should be addressed in a second $3 million payment from the federal government that’s expected to come within the next 12 months, Williams said during the meeting, held both in person at Town Hall and via videoconference. 

“Do we need to proactively say, ‘Oh we are going to get $3 million next year, Christmas has come early, what do we do with that money?’ ” he said. “It seems to me that prudence would augur that we just maybe just see how things go. Is there a rush?

Government

Town To Market Waveny Fireworks as ‘Residents-Only’

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Though police say they’re not anticipating a major rise in attendees for this year’s Independence Day weekend picnic and fireworks at Waveny, the volunteer committee that organizes the event is marketing it as “residents-only.”

The Family Fourth Committee long has urged those planning to attend the event, scheduled this year for Saturday, July 3, to buy parking/entry passes and typically sells more than 2,000 of them. Of those, about 1,800 are purchased by New Canaan residents in a normal year. The standalone fund to put on the event is supported by pass sales (it has about $70,000 in it currently). Those driving into Waveny or New Canaan High School to park without a pass have been allowed to enter, in part because it’s a practical impossibility to hold up the line talking to them about their passes or trying to have them turn around. Noting that some towns canceled their own fireworks shows this year due to uncertainty about pandemic-related restrictions, Committee members voiced fears at meetings held May 20 and 27 that the Waveny event could see so many people come that it overwhelms the park and becomes unsafe for pedestrians.

Around Town

Congregational Church: Dispute with Town Regarding Ownership of God’s Acre To Continue through Summer

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A dispute dating back to September between the Congregational Church of New Canaan and the town’s highest elected official regarding ownership of God’s Acre is expected to continue through the summer, according to the church’s pastor. In a letter sent Friday to the congregation, the Rev. Chapin Garner said the church’s attorney and trustees “will continue to engage the town in deliberation over our First Selectman [Kevin Moynihan]’s assertion that the Town of New Canaan owns God’s Acre.”

“In the past few weeks, we have shared a fair amount of documentation about God’s Acre history with our town officials in response to a commitment from all our Selectmen to approach the issue with open minds and genuine interest in understanding our history and the history of our ancient burial ground across the street from our Meeting House,” the letter said. “Additionally, I recognize that many of our church members and friends may not know the original purpose, or our church’s stewardship, of God’s Acre that dates back to 1736. Five years after the founding of ‘Canaan Parish’ and sixty-five years before the incorporation of the Town of New Canaan.”

Garner, who is to go on sabbatical May 1, called the God’s Acre dispute an “important issue that has yet to be resolved that will require continued conversation throughout the summer.”

A citizen-led effort to create the terrace launched in early-2019, when the committee formed to create a year-round gathering space at the top of God’s Acre where the Town Band also could set up each Dec. 24.

Board of Selectmen

Town To Exceed $300,000 Budget for Legal Fees

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The town is on pace to exceed its fiscal year 2021 budget of $300,000 in legal fees by tens of thousands of dollars, records show. Members of the Board of Selectmen discussed the high legal costs during their regular meeting Tuesday, while approving payment of a $40,271 legal bill for March from the town attorney’s firm that brought the total spent since July 1 to $297,967.79, according to a summary invoice. The town pays a $8,500 monthly retainer to Berchem Moses PC. “So we are definitely going to go over budget this year,” Selectman Nick Williams said during the meeting. “We’ve only got $2,000 remaining in the budget.”

As he has in the past, Williams noted that the single most-expensive legal matter on the bill involves a dispute over a proposed terrace on God’s Acre and ownership of the property.