Volume 21, Number 2
www.berlincitizen.com
Thursday, March 2, 2017
Council considers plans for downtown
BHS to perform ‘Once Upon a Mattress’ By Ashley Kus Citizen staff
By Ashley Kus Citizen staff
Dressed in vibrant costumes, Berlin High School students sang and danced their way into a medieval fairy tale last week in preparation for the spring musical, “Once Upon a Mattress.” “I’m very excited for the show,” said Caylie Whiteside, a Berlin High School senior. “It’s really different from anything I’ve ever been in.”
Several downtown properties are being considered for future development, including town-owned land once considered for a new police station.
Berlin High School senior Mark Bosse sings as Minstrel in the spring musical “Once Upon a Mattress.” | Photos by Ashley Kus, The Berlin Citizen Cast members hold Caylie Whiteside on their shoulders during rehearsal.
Whiteside plays Princess Winnifred in the musical adaption of “The Princess and the Pea.” The high school senior is introduced to the audience covered in leaves and seaweed. “She has frogs as pets, she lives in a swamp and she’s very confident with herself,” Whiteside said of the character.
“We’re looking at what it could be,” Economic Development Director Chris Edge said of the property set aside for the station. “A lot is purely discussion and concepts.” A proposal for a $16 million police station was voted down by the Town Council last summer. The Farmington Avenue property, divided into three parcels, is being studied by CivicMoxie, a consulting firm hired by the town to help develop a downtown revitalization plan. “We are thinking about what fits with the character of Berlin,” said
See Play, A5
See Downtown, A2
Berlin police administer anti-overdose drug 16 times By Ashley Kus Citizen staff
Since Berlin police first began carrying naloxone, officers have administered the live-saving drug 16 times to revive people from opioid overdoses.
Deputy Police Chief John Klett. The police department began carrying naloxone, known by the brand name Narcan, last February. All officers have since been trained in administering the intranasal anti-overdose medication.
Previously, Hunter’s Am“We’re fortunate we’ve been bulance was the only first able to get there in time,” said responder in town that car-
ried naloxone. Police typically arrive first at the scene, however.
That person has not relapsed since the last overdose, Klett said.
Legislation was passed last year requiring all municipalities to ensure designated first responders are trained and equipped with naloxone.
The medication is ordered by the department and included in the budget under “operating materials.” Klett said the department has not yet had to ask for additional money for the medication.
Klett said all the individuals who were treated with naloxone survived. Police had to treat one person three times.
Naloxone costs roughly $50 per dose. A supply of a dozen
doses costs $600. Klett said police have had to use the medication an average of a little more than once a month to save a life. “You can’t put a price on that,” he said. During a recent 10-day stretch, however, the naloxone was used twice. Klett See Overdoses, A2