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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. 33
Conservation Commission chairman to depart By TERRENCE S.MCAULIFFE The Middlebury Conservation Commission (CC) at its Sept. 24 meeting approved a South Street subdivision, postponed a decision on a Ravenwood Drive house, accepted applications for two projects along Lake Quassapaug and said goodbye to Chairman Paul Bowler. In an unexpected announcement at the end of the meeting, Bowler said he had decided not to be reappointed as a commissioner when his term expires in October. He is a 12-year veteran of the commission who became chairman when former Chairman Tom Gormley stepped down to run for first selectman in 2007. Bowler also serves as a member of the police commission and is running for reelection to that commission. Bowler gave no reason for his decision and left without comment after the meeting. A decision on Raymond Brennan’s two-bedroom, 1,800-squarefoot house on Ravenwood Drive was postponed until Oct. 29. Professional Engineer Brian Baker of Civil1 said curtain drains and catch basins were already in place. He said placement of the house and driveway within the regulated area was caused by contour of the land, placement of the septic system and well, and the existence of perforated town drainage pipes. Baker staked the planned house and driveway locations for commissioner review after the application was accepted July 30, and a public hearing was added to the agenda after neighboring homeowners organized a petition. Susan Tamburini of 50 Ravenwood Drive and Libero Mancini of 56 Ravenwood Drive spoke against the construction. Tamburini showed photographs of flooded areas and said she had been told the area was wetlands that could never be built on. Mancini said recently installed curtain drains were overflowing a perforated drain pipe and causing flooding. Baker said water flow from the proposed project would flow away from wetlands and have no adverse effect. Bowler said the decision needed to be made from engineering calculations. Professional soil scientist David Lord said he had refreshed the wetland flags and stated some of the wetlands
had water that could not escape after storm events. He said invasive Japanese Knotweed would be removed in a three-year plan. A four-lot subdivision application at 677 South Street by Marian, Sarah and Charles Larkin was approved in a 5-1 vote. Civil engineer Ronald Wolff said an existing twofamily house on one of the lots would be converted to one family. The 21-acre property contains 3.3 acres of wetlands fed from a concrete culvert draining water from under nearby Interstate 84. Although a proposed common driveway would run over an existing wood road utilizing two 30-inch pipes to permit wetlands water flow, Wolff also needed to offer a single-driveway-per-lot plan for commissioners to review and approve before he could modify the plan for a common driveway. Woodbury landscape architect Lisa Turoczi said water and silt flow would be controlled by a series of berms utilizing the many rocks on the property. Invasive Japanese Barberry plants would be removed, and the continuing maintenance would be the responsibility of the owner of lot four. In an extensive discussion of driveway construction and pitch, Wolff said only portions of the driveway with a grade of more than 15 percent would be paved, and no curbing would be used. He said stone swales would help prevent erosion from storm water. A West Shore Homeowners Association application to widen existing roads in the Lake Quassapaug cottage community to 18 feet from 14 feet was unanimously accepted for commissioner review. The widening is required by town ordinance and was recommended by Town Engineer John Calabrese and First Selectman Edward B. St. John. An application by Mary Ann Dawkins of 33 Tyler Cove to replace a demolished cottage at 32 Tyler Cove with a garage was unanimously accepted for review. Dawkins was instructed to supply a detailed plot plan showing the location and dimensions of the proposed construction and affected areas. The next regular CC meeting will be Tuesday, Oct. 29, at 7:30 p.m. in Room 26 at Shepardson Community Center.
EIDC to discuss Pilot Seasoning with assessor By TERRENCE S. MCAULIFFE The Middlebury Economic and Industrial Development Commission (EIDC) at its Sept. 24 meeting discussed a tax incentive application by Mary Volpe for the planned Pilot Seasoning Company building at 68 North Benson Road. Co-chairman Gerry Matthews told commissioners an initial application received earlier in September had been supplemented with a copy of the warranty deed and a few other items of additional required information. Volpe previously appeared at the June 25 meeting for architectural review and received unanimous approval after lengthy discussion of appearance standards in the LI-200 light industrial zone.
Matthews asked commissioners to review the updated package in preparation for a review with interim tax assessor Joyce Alegi and a possible vote at the next meeting. In attendance at the meeting as part of the requirements for a Citizenship in the Community merit badge were Troop 44 Boy Scouts Adam von Kannewurff and Thomas O’Donnell. Matthews explained the procedures as he went through the agenda and answered their questions, including the use of Robert’s Rules of Order and sticking closely to the published meeting topics. The next regular EIDC meeting will be Tuesday, Oct. 22, at 6:30 p.m. in the Town Hall conference room.
Friday, September 27, 2013
MVFD Wins Best Overall Trophy
Members of the Middlebury Volunteer Fire Department (MVFD), MVFD Ladies’ Auxiliary and Junior Firefighters pose for a group photo Sunday, Sept. 22, in South Windsor. The department won Best Overall Trophy, or first place overall, at the Connecticut State Firefighters’ Association Convention. It was their 11th time winning the trophy. (Kristen Kales photo)
Quassy concert turns into mass casualty event By MARJORIE NEEDHAM A music concert at Quassy Amusement Park attended by 1,200 young people had to be stopped at about 10:30 p.m. Saturday, Sept. 21, when concertgoers started collapsing from drug overdoses. Officials declared a mass casualty event and called for assistance from area police, the state police, the Middlebury Volunteer Fire Department (MVFD) medical personnel and area medics. The concert was supposed to last until midnight. Acting Police Chief Richard Wildman said Wednesday four people collapsed, three came to authorities for help and one person went to a Waterbury hospital on their own. Wildman said more may have been affected. He said concertgoers came from all over – Virginia, Massachusetts, Vermont, Maine, New York and other states. “They may have gone home and checked in at a hospital,” Wildman said, “but there is no way I can ever trace that.” Just after 10 p.m. Saturday, Officer Al Cronin notified state police and area police that there was a large crowd at the concert. Wildman said it was a good thing he did that because when the call for assistance for a mass casualty event went out at 10:39 p.m., area officials were not caught off guard. About 30 officers from Naugatuck, Woodbury, Watertown, State Police Troop A and State Police Troop L responded. Three K-9s were used to sweep the park to make sure no drug overdose victims were overlooked. The scene was secured at 12:12 a.m. Sunday. Wildman reported in a press release early Sunday morning that the four people collapsed almost simultaneously. Three police officers working at the park began giving medical assistance with help from a nurse who was hired for the event. Wildman said the drug was causing seizures and vomiting, so maintaining an airway was a top priority. “We can do CPR and keep your airway open, but we need medics,” he said. A male about 17 or 18 was breathless and pulseless, and two officers began working on him with CPR and a defibrillator. Ambulances rushing to the scene included Campion from Waterbury and the MVFD ambulance. The ambulances transported four people to hospitals, two to St. Mary’s Hospital and two to Waterbury Hospital. Wildman said the person affected most severely by the drug was released from the hospital Tuesday. He said the four taken to the hospital were in critical condition and one had to be defibrillated a second time three hours after arriving at the hospital.
Wildman said the drug overdoses were caused by 2C-P, also called “Molly.” He said it is the new Ecstasy. It overheats the body and takes effect 3 to 5 hours after it is used. Wikipedia said it is a psychedelic drug discovered by Alexander Shulgin. In a book he wrote, Shulgin describes it as one of the most potent compounds in the 2C family of psychedelics, rivaled only by 2C-TFM. “The problem is it’s coming in from China,” Wildman said. “The problem is the way its cut. Someone makes it in a tent in their back yard. They cut it with rat poison, whatever they can get their hands on. It’s all about profit.” The drug can be smoked, snorted or taken by tablet, and Wildman said its cost in 2012 was $20 to $30 a dose. Wildman said young people should avoid this drug. “The problem is you don’t know what it’s cut with. If it’s rat poison, you’re going to die,” he said. Asked if the person who sold the drugs had been caught, Wildman said in a situation like the one Saturday night, the police don’t really care about catching the drug peddler. “We care about keeping these kids alive. It’s all about saving a 19-year-old’s life,” he said. Wildman said he ran a background check on the concert organizers, Tight Crew, which bills itself as a New England-based event organizer, before they came and nothing showed up. “They pay their bills and nothing
popped up bad,” he said. He said Tight Crew is based in Rhode Island. Wildman described the crowd as well-behaved both before and after the incident. He said there were no fights and no unruly behavior. He said attendees ranged in age from 13 to 30, but the majority were college-age youth in their early twenties. The event Saturday night was not the largest event Quassy has hosted. Wildman said a Jamaican festival drew 5,000 to the park. In response to this newspaper’s request for an interview with Quassy co-owner George Frantzis, Quassy Director of Marketing and Public Relations Ron Gustafson sent the following statement: “On Saturday, Sept. 21, Quassy Amusement Park allowed an outside promotion company to host an event at the park. Our thoughts and prayers are with those individuals involved in the unfortunate incident. We carefully scrutinized the history of the production firm, and indications were the company had presented numerous similar events without incident. The park is grateful for the Middlebury Police and the emergency responders for the handling of this incident.” One person was arrested at the event. Kyle Stoddard, 30, of New Milford, Conn., was charged with interfering with a police officer for his actions while police were trying to treat those who overdosed. Wildman said he reached out to regional intelligence centers Tuesday to let them know what happened so other police departments can prepare for events like this. “This drug is fairly new and the reaction to drug is fairly new, so the more information we feed into the system, the more it helps,” he said.
National Drug Facts Week The school year has begun, and the National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA) is encouraging educators, community groups and parents to begin planning events for the fourth annual National Drug Facts Week. It will begin Jan. 27 and end Feb. 2, 2014. Hundreds of educational events around the country are expected to connect teens with scientific experts in the drug-abuse field. Also during National Drug Facts Week, NIDA scientists will hold their
annual Web chat with teens around the country. Drug Facts Chat Day will be held Jan. 28 from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. EST. Details on the popular annual chat, including registration information and transcripts from previous years, can be found at drugfactsweek.drugabuse.gov/ chat. National Drug Facts Week encourages and stimulates community-based events
– See Drug Facts on page 3
Inside this Issue Library Happenings.......... 2 Nuggets for Life.............. 6 Obituaries....................... 5 Region 15 School Calendar....3 Senior Center News......... 3 Sports Quiz..................... 6 Varsity Sports Calendar.... 6
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REALTORS Reach Out Food Drive
Upcoming Events
Adoptable Pets................ 8 Book Review................... 2 Classifieds....................... 7 Community Calendar....... 2 Fire Log........................... 2 In Brief............................ 4 Legal Notices.................. 7
What: Bannon and Hebert Properties food rally to collect nonperishable food items for the hungry When: 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Where: Outside Dinova’s Four Corners Grocery on Middlebury Road in Middlebury
saturday
Sept. 28
Panthers fall to Bobcats on second-half flurry
Page 6 Fenn’s Farm Annual Fall Farm Tour What: When: Where: Cost:
Farm tour; hot dogs, donuts, cider and apples; photo contest; pumpkin raffle 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. Fenn Farm at 55 Artillery Road in Middlebury Free
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