The Berlin
Cit itiz ize en Berlin’s Only Hometown Newspaper
Volume 13, Number 41
Thursday, October 8, 2009
Small crowd for school forum By Olivia L. Lawrence Associate Editor A public forum on the status of Berlin’s school facilities drew an audience of about 75 people to Berlin High School Sept. 29. The evening started off with a tour of the facility and the subsequent meeting provided a lively discussion of the needs of and public perceptions about the state of Berlin’s five schools. The forum, headed by Mayor Adam Salina and Board of Education President Gary Brochu, included
members of the school board and council. Also in attendance were Superintendent of Schools Michael Cicchetti, Public Works Director Art Simonian and Town Manager Denise McNair. “You’ve seen it first hand. It’s your obligation to talk to others in the community,” Brochu told the audience. “We’re past disagreeing on whether or not there is a need.” Brochu said facilities problems shouldn’t be seen as a “parent issue” but as a See Forum, page 8
Photo by Paul Salina
A fair-goer checks out one of the goats in the petting zoo at the Berlin Fair.
Rain can’t stop fair success By Olivia L. Lawrence Associate Editor
Citizen photo by Olivia L. Lawrence
About 75 residents turned out last week for a forum on the state of our schools.
Election 2009
Intro to BOE candidates By Olivia L. Lawrence Associate Editor In the next few weeks leading up to the Nov. 3 election, The Citizen will be bringing readers information on all the candidates seeking office: Town Council, Board of Education, Police Commission,
and Board of Assessment Appeals. This week the spotlight is on the five individuals running for three openings on the Board of Education. The nine member board is nonpartisan and terms are stagSee BOE, page 5
Subtract Saturday’s uncooperative weather from the picture and this year’s 61st annual Berlin Fair was picture perfect. “It was good,” said fair President Jeff Glatz giving a quick overview of the three day extravaganza that virtually the whole town looks forward to and participates in each fall. The Berlin Lions Club sponsors the event. As to his experience overseeing the event, Glatz said there is no one aspect that is more dominant than the others. “The whole thing jumps out at me — the entire fair. It was a very successful fair and I want to say ‘thank you’ to the community. It was just fantastic.” As for Saturday (Oct. 3) afternoon’s deluge complete with thunderstorms, Glatz said “The skies opened up. It was unbelievable. We survived it. We were a little concerned with the weather and made some announcements that storms were coming through and please be careful and take cover.” But despite that glitch, Glatz said “We closed nothing down.” Friday’s (Oct. 2) influx of visitors was bigger than usual, no doubt because many came early due to sketchy weather predicted for
Saturday. The weather Saturday started out okay, but by mid-afternoon the rain had moved in. Electronic signs on the highways warned motorists of mud in the parking lots and advised them to access the fair using shuttle busses from outlying sites. The majority of visitors complied. The gate for Sunday, Oct. 4, the final day of the fair, was “very good,” Glatz said. The crowd for Grand Funk Railroad’s Sunday concert — which took place under a perfect autumn sky — was estimated at 6,000. It was huge, Glatz said. The Lions do not divulge exact figures on attendance or proceeds, but Glatz said. “It was less paid attendance than last year” due to reduced attendance Saturday which is usually the biggest day. Still, an estimated 40,000 people made their way to Beckley Road fairgrounds. Glatz said there were no disruptive incidents that involved fairgoers. “The crowd was very good and kudos to the police department. It was a long weekend for them — but I think they enjoyed it.” He added “The Berlin Fair is the biggest thing happening in town. People just love the Berlin Fair. It was interesting in this position
See Fair, page 9