A season of candlelight....
Volume 16, Issue 34
Serving Durham, Middlefield and Rockfall
Friday, December 4, 2009
Appeals cause delays November’s smiling faces In response to an emergency plea from CATALES in Middletown, dancers at the Midand frustration over dlesex Dance Center in Middlefield collected 17 dozen cans of Friskies cat food in just three weeks. Pictured right are Savannah Ngo and Rachel Arreguin with the doathletic facility upgrades nations before they were delivered. By Stephanie Wilcox Town Times
The District 13 Board of Education and Building Committee members were hoping to take advantage of low prices this fall when they planned to go out to bid for athletic facility upgrades on the Coginchaug campus. Now they’re hoping, with the delay caused by two appeals against the plans, that prices will be good down the road. Unfortunately, no one is sure how far down the road it will be. According to Building Committee chair Bill Currlin, The project to upgrade the track and field and tennis courts was approved by the public and the Planning & Zoning Commission, and the money set aside cannot be used for anything else. Yet in the last two months, Attorney John Corona, on behalf of Guire Road resident Karen Cheyney, has filed two appeals against the site plan and the special permit to build 80foot light towers. “The vote was passed, the money has been appropriated and yet we’re stopped again,” said Superintendent Susan Viccaro. “It’s so frustrating because we can’t even predict when we can get started.” Currlin anticipates at least a seven-month delay before the project can be started. He expects the judge will look for procedural things, such as if motions and minutes were done correctly and if the special exceptions were approved. He is confident that the project will happen, but the timeline is now thrown way off. “It is not an option to stop the project,” Currlin explains. “It won’t and it can’t change the results. These are just stall tactics.”
Currlin and Viccaro point out that the project is no different than what was brought before the voters, and items that are supposedly of concern are items that were addressed in the hearings. “People want to know why someone would do this, and we don’t have the answer,” said Currlin. What they do know is that the attorney fees, already in the tens of thousands, are taking away from any additional items, such as scoreboards and bleachers, that may have come in time. Regardless of scoreboards and bleachers, the track has been unusable for meets for the last four years, and all “home” games have been held at Platt High School. The tennis teams have also not had home games in four years, though they were at least able to use Memorial School for home matches at the very end of the last season. The Coginchaug portion of the VinalCoginchaug football team, which finished the regular season with a record of 9-2, is splitting next year due to the number of Coginchaug players. They will need a home field. Viccaro explained that the district will have to find a place for these teams to practice and play on, but there will probably be additional costs to this, and she said busing kids is a huge cost. Not to
Anyone interested in donating to CATALES or adopting one of the 100 available cats should call 860-3449043. Through Dec. 17, MDC will accept donations of dog and cat food, blankets and cleaning supplies for the Animal Haven shelter in North Haven. Donations may be brought to the studio at 500 Main Street in Middlefield, Monday through Thursday from 4:30 to 8 p.m. Submitted by Toni-Lynn Miles
Above, Dot and Erv Barker enjoy themselves after the Middlefield Senior Center’s Thanksgiving dinner. Right center, Korn School third graders took a field trip to Bushy Hill Nature Center to learn about the cultural activities of the Woodland Indians.
See Appeals, page 19
In this issue ... Calendar .........................4-5 Columns .........................7-9 Letters .................10-11 & 21 Obituaries .......................20 Sports.......................16 & 18 Town Briefs ................12-14
Above, Tucker Fowler, Tatiana Perez, Josh Fazzino and Cade Buckheit show off the screen they assembled for a John Lyman School mural. Left, parents Jen Huddleston and Lucy Meigs are two of the community members who helped with the project. Photos by Stephanie Wilcox and submitted photos. For more photos go to www.towntimes.com