Open House at Powder Ridge: Saturday, Jan. 30 and Sunday, Jan 31, 11 a.m.-1 p.m. both days.
Serving Durham, Middlefield and Rockfall
Volume 16, Issue 42
State statute has potential to hurt Durham Fair By Stephanie Wilcox Town Times
A meeting was held at the Durham Library on Jan. 24 with members of the Durham Fair Association, State Fair Association and other fairs throughout Connecticut to discuss a little known state statute and determine ways to work around it before it negatively effects fairs and other community events. The state Department of Health (DPH) enacted the Mass Gathering Act in 1971 in response to music events at Woodstock in New York and Powder Ridge in Connecticut for health and public safety reasons. It was designed for one-time events held in a temporary facility with limited infrastructure. The statute outlines detailed requirements, such as potable water, a specific number of separate enclosed toilets, illumination, telephones and security guards (one for every 750 people) and applies to events with 2,000 or more in attendance. The statute surfaced this summer when the hours of operation for mass gatherings dropped from 18 in one day to 12, thus the Durham Fair, along with many other fairs,
musters and major events, became subject to the statute’s regulations. State Representative Matt Lesser, who was at the meeting, clarified that the statute is not directly targeting agricultural fairs, but rather is trying to avoid situations where towns learn about large, unregulated events only after an ambulance is called and people’s health and safety is in peril. “It’s clearly a bad statute,” said Lesser, who is on the Board of Public Health. “The good news is DPH is committed to revising it, and they don’t want (fairs) to have to change their status quo. They know some of the provisions make no sense.” For instance, many members of the audience wondered why fairs with established grounds, like the Durham Fair, are affected by the statute. After all, Durham Fair president Gene Chiappetta stated, governmentsponsored fairs that are held on regularly-established fairgrounds — in other words 4-H fairs —are already exempt from the statute. One person remarked, See Fair, page 21
Roses for Autism
Second annual Nutmeg at Night
The kids were enthusiastic. The teams were competitive. The spectators involved. What event could be so exciting? A football game? No, it was Nutmeg at Night. On Thursday, Jan. 21, Nutmeg at Night, the annual game show for students in grades 46, was held at Memorial School. Each year in Connecticut, 10 books geared to the reading levels and interests of children in grades 4-6 are nominated to win the Intermediate Nutmeg Award. Students read these books and then vote for their favorite. To participate in Nutmeg Night, a collaborative effort between Memorial School, Durham Public Library and Levi E. Coe Library, students read at least three of the Nutmeg nominees. Participants are divided into teams of three or four. They answer trivia questions written by the librarians. The team that answers the most questions correctly receives medals. Above, 2010 Nutmeggers! Photo and text by Vicki Berry
Powder Ridge proposal almost ready to present to Middlefield residents By Sue VanDerzee Town Times Though some residents and town officials have bemoaned a lack of continuing information, a proposal for the sale of the Powder Ridge Ski Area
In this issue ... It was all smiles at the Roses for Autism ribbon cutting. From left, Jim and Eli Lyman, Julie Hipp, of Connecticut Autism Spectrum Resource Center and Tom Pinchbeck and Lori Gregan from Pinchbeck’s Rose Farm in Guilford. See full story on page 10.
Friday, Januar y 29, 2010
Calendar............................4 Devil’s Advocate ........11-18 Libraries .........................25 Obituaries .......................27 Puzzles.....................20 & 22 Sports ..........................28-31 Town Briefs ............3, 20-22
should be presented to the voters of Middlefield in the next few weeks. The proposal will involve, according to former selectman Dave Lowry who has been involved with this project from the beginning of the bankruptcy proceedings against former owner Ken Leavitt, an offer of purchase from Dan Frank of CDF Associates LLC, partnered with Snow Time, Inc. Snow Time, Inc. owns three ski areas in Pennsylvania – Ski Liberty, Ski Roundtop and Whitetail. CEO Irv Naylor, who started Snow Time in the
1960s, received a National Ski Area Association lifetime achievement award in 2004. Dan Frank is a former associate of Snow Time who spun off to buy and manage Windham Mountain Ski Area in New York State. Some history In April 2007, the town voted overwhelmingly in a referendum to bond up to $2.85 million to acquire the 239-acre Powder Ridge Ski Area, which was then in the throes of bankruptcy proceedings. At the end of bankruptcy pro-
See Powder Ridge, page 5