Volume 20, Number 28
Serving Durham, Middlefield and Rockfall
www.TownTimes.com
Friday, October 25, 2013
New superintendent selected The run down on Durham’s ballot
By Mark Dionne Town Times
At a special meeting on Oct. 16, the RSD13 Board of Education appointed Dr. Kathryn Veronesi as superintendent of schools. The appointment ends a search that began in April, when then superintendent of schools Sue Viccaro announced her departure. Veronesi, a graduate of Central Connecticut State University and Clark University, has been an educator and administrator in Cheshire, Plainville, and Hebron, among other places. “After reviewing the applications, conducting extensive interview sessions and soliciting feedback from over 80 participants from both the school and the extended community, the board is confident that Dr. Veronesi brings the leadership, personal characteristics and ed-
By Mark Dionne Town Times
Election activity has been quieter in Durham than it has in Middlefield in recent weeks. There are no selectman running for office in the election to take place on Nov. 5. First selectman Laura Francis’ term will not be up until 2015. In 2006, Durham revised its charter, changing the selectman’s term of office from two to four years. Selectmen John Szewczyk’s and Dr. Steve Levy’s terms will also end in 2015. According to Durham Town Clerk Kim Garvis, since municipal elections are held in odd years and with Durham’s four year cycle, the first selectman, selectman, tax collector, and town clerk will be up for election in 2015. In the upcoming election, there are four candidates for the Board of Finance running for four seats. Republican candidates Loraine Coe, current chair of the BOF, and Laurie Tuttle are running
New superintendent of RSD13 schools, Dr. Kathryn Veronesi, right, with Board of Education Chair Kerrie Flanagan. ucational background necessary to continue to enrich our educational programs and our overall student experiences here in RSD13,” said BOE chair Kerrie Flanagan. After her appointment,
Veronesi spoke about the community focus groups and surveys conducted by the BOE during the superintendent search. See Superintendent / Page 25
These days, less trash in Quinnipiac River Durham, Middlefield in the watershed By Daniel Jackson
for full six year terms. Democratic candidates M a r t i n A nderson a nd Molly Nolan are running to fill vacancies of four and two years, respectively. Tuttle and Anderson are currently serving as appointees on the BOF, and now have to be elected to finish those terms. “Unless anything else happens, those four are in,” said Garvis of the BOF race. The race for the Board of Assessment Appeals is t he f i rst one w it h more ca nd idates t h a n seats. Republican candidate Debra DeFelice and D emo c rat ic c a nd id ate Elizabeth White Booz are running for that office. Seven candidates are running for five seats on the Planning and Zoning Commission, which h a s n i ne members a s well as three alternates, who are elected separately. Republican candidates Alana Adams, Lisa Davenport, Peter Cascini, and Bonnie Ryder are runSee Ballot / Page 6
Town Times
See Watershed / Page 21
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Lex Sorrell, 15, picks up trash along Hanover Pond, Meriden. | (Dan Jackson/Town Times.)
The Quinnipiac River is the state’s most urban waterway. Over the years, the river, which starts in Plainville and runs south to Long Island Sound, has become polluted. Old industry waste, pesticides from lawns and litter all made its way into the Quinnipiac, according to the Quinnipiac River Watershed
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