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“May all your troubles last as long as your New Year’s resolutions.” ~ Joey Adams
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Bee Intelligencer Informing the towns of Middlebury, Southbury, Woodbury, Naugatuck, Oxford and Watertown AN INDEPENDENTLY OWNED FREE COMMUNITY NEWSPAPER
Volume IX, No. 46
Middlebury hires assessor By MARJORIE NEEDHAM Five months ago, former assessor Dan Kenny surprised Middlebury officials by handing in his two-week’s notice to take a position in Bridgeport. Now the town has hired his replacement, Chris Kelsey. Kelsey currently serves as Newtown’s assessor and will become Middlebury’s assessor Tuesday, Jan. 21, 2014. His annual salary will be $70,000. His salary in Newtown is $69,712. Joyce Allegi, who has served as interim assessor since Kenny left, will finish here Dec. 31, 2013. Allegi, who retired four years ago from serving as Naugatuck’s assessor, said Monday Middlebury is a lovely town. “If I were younger, I would have applied for the job,” she said. Asked if she would stay on until Kelsey is able to assume his responsibilities in January, she said, “Due to the timing, I am unable to stay. I think the town is in good shape.” In a phone interview Monday, Kelsey agreed with her. He said he already had worked with Allegi several days to get up to speed with issues here in Middlebury. “The interim assessor is leaving the town in very good shape,” he said. Kelsey, 33, said he wanted to finish his work on Newtown’s grand list before starting in Middlebury. “I don’t want to leave the town in the lurch without an assessor,” he said of Newtown. He said due to grand list preparation (grand lists are due Jan. 31 each year), it was a bad time of year to leave as an assessor and a bad time to start as an assessor. He said Middlebury will likely ask for an extension of its grand list filing deadline. He said he expects to ask (through First Selectman Edward B. St. John) for a one-month extension, so the grand list will be submitted by the end of February.
Friday, December 27, 2013
Dreaming of a white Christmas ...
Kelsey said he got into assessment in 1999. He has served as Newtown’s assessor since 2008 and was the deputy assessor in Rocky Hill before that. Asked why he applied for the Middlebury position, he said, “I live right down the road in Woodbury. I grew up in the Waterbury area and have always liked Middlebury. It’s a great little town. For me it’s downsizing. It slows down the pace, and I save 20 minutes each way commuting.” He said his home is 4.5 miles from Middlebury. Comparing the two positions, Newtown has 12,000 property parcels while Middlebury has 3,800. The grand list in Newtown is about $3 billion while Middlebury’s is just under $1 billion. The population is smaller, too, with Newtown at 28,000 and Middlebury close to 8,000. Allegi said Monday she was hired to work up to 35 hours a week, and the workload here has required that many hours. St. John said although there has been some discussion about the job being a part-time position, it really is a full-time job. “The workload of the assessor’s office dictates it be a full-time position,” he said. St. John predicted we will see an increase in construction, especially now that Toll Brothers is building at Ridgewood. “We’re going to be busy, and that is a Godsend,” he said. Assessor candidates were interviewed by a committee comprising William Stowell, Patricia Trevor and Elizabeth Callahan. They narrowed applicants down to two finalists, and St. John said he sat in on the final interviews when Kelsey was chosen. St. John said, “I think Chris is very knowledgeable and will be an asset to the town. He’s a seasoned assessor who knows what he is doing. Newtown’s loss is Middlebury’s gain.
Rain pours down on Middlebury’s Christmas tree Monday as it stands on the green that shows no trace of snow. Warm temperatures and the rain washed away all the snow and have thinned, if not melted, ice that had formed on area ponds. The menorah erected to celebrate Hanukkah stands in the background. (Marjorie Needham photo)
Donegan alleges discrimination By MARJORIE NEEDHAM Middlebury’s former zoning enforcement officer Jean Donegan has filed a complaint with the Connecticut Commission on Human Rights and Opportunities alleging the town discriminated against her because of her age and sex. The complaint, received in the town clerk’s office Dec. 6, 2013, requires a written answer to the commission within 30 days of its receipt. Donegan’s affidavit was filed with the commission Nov. 26. In it, she states she was terminated, and she believes her sex and age (listed as 67) were factors in the
termination. She refers to Connecticut General Statue 46a-60(a)(1), which prohibits discriminatory employment practices. In her affidavit, Donegan states she had no attendance or performance issues during her employment and was never formally disciplined for any reason. She also says her job duties increased two years ago, and at that time she also was required to document her daily work activities. She says she was the only town employee required to do this. She states the allegations about her job performance made by then Planning and Zoning Commission Chairman Curtis Bo-
sco were “false and fabricated by the Commission.” She says that is why she refused to sign a letter of discipline detailing those false allegations. No further attempts to discipline her were made, she says in the complaint, until she received notice of her dismissal in June this year. Subsequently, the Planning and Zoning Commission appointed Bosco (who stepped down as chairman) as the town’s zoning enforcement officer. Donegan states in the complaint Bosco is at least 10 years younger than she and is male. She asks the c ommission to investigate the complaint for her.
Library launches senior learning programs By MARJORIE NEEDHAM The Middlebury Public Library will launch two new programs in January, a grant-funded series of six presentations aimed at seniors and an ongoing series of programs aimed at lifelong learners. The first is funded by a grant from the Connecticut Community Foundation (CCF). The second is the brain child of Middlebury resident Ron Clark, who took the idea of programming for seniors and, with fellow resident Fran Brennan, will be promoting book discussions, speakers, films and music geared to lifelong learners. The programs funded through a grant from the Connecticut Community Foundation will be a Jan. 10 yoga program, a Feb. 7 Left to right Joan Arnold and Jo-Ann LoRusso of the Middlebury Public Library and resident Ron program on fraud, a March 7 proClark are bringing new programs for seniors to the library. One is funded through a grant to the gram on nutrition, an April 11 library; the other results from Clark’s efforts to expand on programs funded by the grant. disaster preparedness program, (Marjorie Needham photo) a May 9 program on mental
health and a June 13 music program featuring the Survivors Swing Band. A feature of the grant-funded programs is they will be offered during the day when the Middlebury Senior Center minibus is available. Seniors who need transportation to the program can contact Middlebury Senior Services at 203-577-4166 in advance to make transportation reservations. The first presentation, Holistic Yoga with Cynthia De Pecol, will be Friday, Jan. 10, at 11 a.m. Yoga enthusiasts are invited to join De Pecol , a holistic life and wellness coach, as she provides instruction on how to create harmony among body, mind and spirit through holistic yoga. Young and old (active seniors) are welcome. The February program on fraud will be presented by the Middlebury Police Department.
The March program on nutrition will be presented by Camillo Fitness of Fairfield, Conn. Owner Gary Camillo will speak about low-cost, high-nutrition eating for seniors and will give a live cooking demonstration. In April, a representative from the state department of public health will speak on disaster preparedness, and in May, the same Ron Clark who had the idea for non-grant-funded programs, will speak on mental health. Clark, is a former state trooper and also worked as a psychiatric registered nurse for five years. Clark said Monday he will speak about the responsibility each of us has for our own mental health. The last of the six grant-funded programs will be a June program featuring the Survivors Swing Band. Arnold said, “We want to
– See Library on page 5
Inside this Issue Adoptable Pets................ 8 Book Review................... 2 Classifieds....................... 7 Community Calendar....... 2 Fire Log........................... 2 In Brief............................ 4
Library Happenings.......... 2 Nuggets for Life.............. 6 Region 15 School Calendar....3 Senior Center News......... 3 Sports Quiz..................... 6 Varsity Sports Calendar.... 5
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Happy New Year to all our readers!
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Middlebury girls capture holiday championship
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