TRACY CESAN
There have been several projects going on in Southwick. They have been keeping me busy and away from my updates. So I sit here trying to figure out which topics to talk about and have decided instead of going into great length about one topic, I will catch everyone up to date on what has been going on in Town Hall and around the community this past summer.
Whalley Park Whalley Park is the hot topic. It has been approved by the Park and Recreation Commission, the CPC Commission (Community Preservation Commission) and supported by all three selectmen to be one of the articles on the town warrant for the town meeting scheduled for October 10, 2012. There have been some difficulties getting Whalley Park to the point where it can be placed in front of the town residents for a vote to accept the park. There are many questions as to if the park can financially support itself, if the town can afford it, who will control it and what kind of activities will be promoted? The good news is that there are answers to these questions. I believe in time the park can financially support itself. I am hoping for a two year startup time. In other words, within two years the park will be financially able to support itself. In the meantime, the Whalley Family has generously donated $100,000 for the first two years to absorb the cost of maintenance while the Park and Rec. establishes the park. The Park and Rec. Commission has been given, under the deed, the task of running the park. There are several activities that are expected to be held at Whalley Park; baseball, soccer, softball, and lacrosse tournaments, concerts, car shows, movie nights, fireworks, fairs, and private functions (renting of the gigantic pavilion). So, are there opportunities to generate revenue? The answer is yes. I would like the public to keep in mind this is a wonderful addition to our town and it is another service that the town will be providing our community.
Sewer Interceptor One of the articles on the warrant at the next town meeting is the acceptance of the federal government USDA funding for the sewer parallel interceptor project. This project will satisfy the requirement for the town to vacate the Westfield sewer pipe that we currently use, and will also allow us to have the ability to send 500,000 gallons per day of effluent to the Westfield waste water treatment plant. We have purchased and have owned this capacity for many years. Without this project, our current ability to send waste to Westfield is 175,000 gallons per day because we are limited by the small diameter pipe that we currently use. This project is important because it will allow the town to create a second sewer project that will service more of our community in the future. This is a project that I support.
Request for a bylaw to protect dogs from hot cars. Tracy Root, the Town’s Animal Control Officer, has come to two Selectmen’s meeting requesting that the Selectmen consider adding a bylaw in the Town of Southwick protecting dogs from being left in hot cars. The way I understand it, the only recourse Officer Root has is to report it to the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. Then, the state has the opportunity to impose charges on a felony level and this could take months. I believe the bylaw is a good idea for two reasons. The first reason: it gives Officer Root the power to generate warnings and impose a monetary infraction while simultaneously (which is the second reason) taking the extreme off the table of an automatic felony charge. Don’t get me wrong, I believe leaving a dog in a car with the windows rolled up is inhumane and fits the definition of cruelty to an animal. But leaving our town without a bylaw limits Officer Root’s options as to how she can pursue the crime. Officer Root wants to impose a tier progression for offensives. For example, Officer Root states that some dog owners leave their dog in a car for five minutes, not even thinking the animal is in danger, and the temperature soars to dangerous levels. At times like this, Officer Root would use her good judgment and issue a warning and educate the owner, perhaps not imposing a fine on the owner. At other times, when neglect is obvious or it is a second offense, Officer Root, with the bylaw in place, would have more power and be able to issue a fine herself without turning to the state. This bylaw, if considered, is not to place another law and restriction on the people of Southwick but rather it would be put into place to protect an animal that otherwise can’t protect itself. The details have not been worked out, the infraction, and the fee for the offense is still in its development stage, but I support Officer Root in her commitment to pursue this bylaw. Please send your opinions about this issue my way.
College Highway Project For the most part we are past the intense part of the College Highway construction project with all of the storm drains, road preparation, curbs, and sidewalks completed. That is the good news, because the traveling delays are now very short with no detours. The bad news is that the utility companies that are tasked with moving the wires from the old pole locations to the new locations have been delayed because they were taking care of their fellow utility needs in the southern states, after devastating storms this past summer. They have been in town now for four weeks and are getting it done. The new schedule for completion of the total project is Halloween. The utility poles will be pulled out of the road surface and the road will be paved in October. The road will be striped and the sidewalks will be finished.
DPW Garage and the old garage. The DPW and Water Department have moved to 661 College Highway and the old garage behind the police station will be demolished. We are currently getting prepared to remove the asbestos and other hazardous materials from the old garage. After this is done the old garage and wooden building will be removed. I have toured the new DPW garage with the other two selectmen and it has come to completion in a timely and efficient way. The DPW garage is not only home to our DPW but also a satellite home to our emergency response team for the Town of Southwick. The DPW Director and most of its workers reside at the new location. There are still a few more employee transitions to make but the effort is there and I believe the office will be staffed appropriately in a short period of time. These final transitions will make the DPW run smoothly and efficiently.
Update on the construction of the Senior Center The Senior Center is coming along but it will fall short of meeting its deadline for completion. The town is working with the construction company to finalize and narrow down the “new completion date.” The company has been instructed to utilize all personnel and resources to complete this project as close to the original projected date as possible. This will be a topic I will update you on in the near future.
Town Meeting, October 10, 2012 The Town meeting is scheduled to be held at the Southwick Tolland Regional High School. I ask that you set aside the time and attend the meeting. There are many topics. I will list them but to go into depth would be lengthy. The topics are as follows: Whalley Park acceptance, Sewer Interceptor (acceptance of a grant and approval for a loan, which will eventually be offset by assessed betterments to the homes which benefit from the use of the sewer system), purchasing of the Kellogg property, through a loan and CPC (Community Preservation Commission) funds and managed by the Conservation Commission, water and sewer projects, and the new sign rules and regulations for the Town of Southwick (which has been a long time in the making with tremendous effort put forth by the Planning Board). Attending this meeting is a great opportunity to voice your opinion and your opportunity to vote your opinion and get a synopsis of the ongoing events in our community. I hope to see you there.
Tracy’s opinion corner I have been in office now for five months. I have yet to voice my opinion about ongoing issues, instead only stating facts and sharing information. I am introducing the opinion corner because I want the citizens to not only receive updates from me on projects and events but to see the Selectmen’s office from my point of you and perspective. I will address hot topics and things I think we as town employees and elected officials can do better. I will share the facets of town hall, the achievements of some outstanding employees, and give you an insight to the day -to-day operations of the Southwick Town Hall. I encourage you to e-mail me hot topics, things you have heard and need clarification on, things you want to see improved, or things you are happy about and want those issues noticed. These e-mails will help me understand what you are interested in and want to learn more about.
Signing off for today and look forward to sharing more with you in the near future. You can contact me at [email protected].
Best Regards,
Selectman Tracy Cesan
Disclaimer: The views expressed in this column are those of the author and not the staff, editor, or publisher of the Westfield News.
