Volume 18, Number 36
Berlin’s Only Hometown Newspaper
www.berlincitizen.com
Thursday, November 6, 2014
Economic development at Webster Square By Charles Kreutzkamp The Berlin Citizen
Roller derby players, adoptable kittens, dancers, and vendors all came to the Webster Square plaza Oct. 31. The occasion was the grand re-opening of Ocean State Job Lot, which moved to a new building in Webster Square, less than 1,000 feet from the previous location. The new building is the former home of A&P Super Foodmart. The new location allows for a store about twice the size of the old location. Current employees were retained, and new employees are being hired for multiple positions. Job Lot purchased the property for approximately $3.3 million last December. Job Lot executives joined the Mayor, Town Manager, and several Town Council members to celebrate the
reopening and the company’s 36-year history in New England the morning of Oct. 31 with a ribbon cutting ceremony. According to Job Lot Marketing Head David Sarlitto, the chain places a lot of emphasis on being a “good neighbor” in their communities. The ribbon cutting took place in the shadow of a tractor-trailer stuffed full of 30,000 pounds of non-perishable food donations to support Foodshare, a Bloomfield-based group dedicated to ending hunger and alleviating poverty in the greater Hartford area. Job Lot also invited, among other organizations, the Friends of Berlin Animal Control to attend, raising Senior Vice Commander-in-Chief of the United States Veterans of Foreign Wars, John awareness about the needs Biedrzycki, greets area veterans at the Berlin VFW. | Charles Kreutzkamp / The Berlin Citizen of the non-profit, no-kill aniSee Development / Page 18
Police station: what happens now? By Charles Kreutzkamp The Berlin Citizen
With the vote on the new police station settled, many in Berlin may be wondering what comes next. Although the election results will be posted on The Berlin Citizen website by the time these words are read, they came out after press time. If the number of “yes” votes on the police station exceeded the number of “no” votes the answer to what happens next is simple: A new police sta-
tion that meets the stated needs of the department will be built on the corner of Farmington Avenue. The project timeline proposed will lead to the new police station opening in 2016 to coincide with the opening of the Hartford Line. Although there are a wide number of factors that could affect the tax burden relative to the project, it is estimated by the Town Manager and the finance department that the cost of the project would See Station / Page 17
Young vets face tough issues, says VFW VIP By Charles Kreutzkamp The Berlin Citizen
This generation’s veterans are facing a number of new challenges, according to the Senior Vice Commander-in-Chief of the United States Veterans of Foreign Wars, John Biedrzycki. Those trials include problems with the Department of Veterans Affairs and predatory educational programs that take advantage of VA benefits. Biedrzycki recently visited six locations in Connecticut, including the Berlin VFW. The second in command of the national VFW leadership, Biedrzycki will likely become commander-in-chief, accord-
ing to tradition, explained Berlin VFW Post Commander Tom Uznanski. Uznanski said it was a great honor for such an important VFW leader to come to town. Biedrzycki spoke with local veterans on a number of topics, including the aging population of VFW membership. This is one reason, Uznanski and Biedrzycki agreed, the VFW should pay special attention to the issues faced by Iraq and Afghanistan veterans. “The whole mission of the VFW is veterans helping veterans,” Uznanski said. “Each generation of veterans has different issues,” Biedrzycki said. Many of the
aging veterans, for example, were exposed to Agent Orange, including Biedrzycki himself. This next generation of veterans includes 12,000 amputees, Biedrzycki said, and more is being discovered about traumatic brain injury, and how it relates to PTSD. “These young men and women need help and guidance when they come back and we are an excellent organization for that,” Biedrzycki said. “The commitment to veterans doesn’t end when the battle is over. The true cost of service lasts a lifetime,” the senior vice comSee Vets / Page 19