The Berlin
Cit itiz ize en
Volume 15, Number 30
Berlin’s Only Hometown Newspaper
Thursday, July 28, 2011
Hatchery closes Sept. 1, fish will be released By Daniel Jackson Special to The Citizen
At the garden gate Midsummer has arrived. Forget the doldrums caused by too much heat and endless days. It’s time to savor the height of the season and all the fleeting pleasures we’ll remember fondly come winter. In this edition, you’ll find gardening advice for the ills that plague the vegetable patch, photos readers submitted to our Beautiful Berlin summer photo theme, irresistable blueberry recipes, and a story about an East Berlin fig grove. These are just a few of the treasures that summer imparts. We think it’s time to pour a glass of lemonade, pull up a lawn chair and take it all in. — The editor
Blueberries! See page 5.
Since the 1800s, the Kensington Fish Hatchery has raised fish. Now, due to state budget cuts, the hatchery will close Sept. 1. Hatchery employees were informed of the state’s decision July 19. In recent history, the hatchery, run by the Department of Energy and Environmental Protection, has produced, on average, one million trout and salmon per year. These fish went to stock Connecticut’s lakes and rivers. “It will be a serious blow to our salmon restoration program,” said Robert Jones, president of the Connecticut River Salmon Association and former Chief of the Bureau of Fisheries and Wildlife at DEP. Currently, the Kensington Hatchery is the only Con-
necticut run hatchery to produce Atlantic salmon. Discontinuing the hatchery will not necessarily mean the total loss of the salmon restoration program. Connecticut is part of the Connecticut River Atlantic Salmon Commission, a collaborative effort by the federal government and four states to restore salmon populations in the Connecticut River valley. The Kensington Fish Hatchery contributed 20 percent of the salmon to the program. With the closing of the hatchery comes lay-offs for three employees from the hatchery program. At this time, employees are expected to be transferred to other positions. The hatchery may be saved if state employees vote on the new concession vote
See Hatchery, page 8
New candidates, old wounds Parties ready for race By Olivia L. Lawrence The Berlin Citizen
A fig grove in East Berlin? See page 7.
This month, Democrats and Republicans selected their candidates for Town Council as well as for other boards. But the council race is bound to hold the spotlight and some tension is already in the air. Republican incumbent Councilor Kari Maier Drost will not run again for council. Instead, she’s putting her name in for the Board of Assessment Appeals. Drost said she and her husband made the decision as their young family keeps them busy. Stepping back, af-
ter one term, seemed to be the right course, she said. “I hope I was able to provide a voice for some of the people in town. I did enjoy it and learned a lot.” But Drost also cited concerns with “disrespect and hostility to myself and the public by the majority” party on the council. “I thought I could work towards changing that, but it’s pretty engrained.” Drost said “It’s ironic that there’s a campaign against bullying in our schools and yet we allow it from our leadership.”
See Race, page 6