City Council

Margerie Reservoir Trail Advisory Committee May 21, 2024 - 6PM 1.Committee Chair Holly Robinson called the meeting to order at 6:05p.m. on Tuesday, May 21, 2024. Present were Committee Members Antonio Iadarola, Public Works Director & City Engineer, City of Danbury & Town Engineer, New Fairfield; David Day, Public Utilities Superintendent, City of Danbury; Peter Hearn, New Fairfield; Joseph Mortelliti, Outside Counsel, City of Danbury; Jeff Main, CLA and Parks, New Fairfield. Absent: Ann Marie Mellas, Alternate, New Fairfield; and Ken Gucker, Alternate, Danbury. Present from the public were four individuals. 2. Minutes Chair Robinson provided an overview of the concerns that were added to the RFP at the last meeting including questions and concerns about environmental, wildlife and bald eagles, conservation, privacy, landowner, traffic disruption, etc. A motion was made by Member Day, and was seconded by Member Iadarola, to accept the meeting minutes from the last meeting. The motion carried unanimously. 3. Public Speaking Tom Perkins, First Selectman, Town of New Fairfield identified Sec 2.2 of a WestCOG report discussing wildlife concerns. He noted road run-off and reservoir concerns that he feels have not been adequately addressed. He also spoke on the lack of committed funds from New Fairfield to continue this initiative due to budget constraints. He noted that bonds will not be taken for this project and that a non-profit 501c3 should be created for funding. Kelly (inaudible) spoke on the need to continue addressing wildlife concerns. Sherri (inaudible) spoke as a homeowner whose property is adjacent to the potential trail path. Coleen Gregory asked about initiatives being taken to protect the reservoir. 4. Start of Work/Timeline (Wetlands Specialist & Surveyor) Mr. Iadarola provided an over view of the work being done by the Wetlands Specialist. He noted that they are onsite, actively flagging and taking inventory of key points of interest and this work should be done in June. He noted that the surveyor will then have to go back to survey the flags. He asked for a 40 scale of the presentation maps. 5. Status of RFP (Full Design Services) Mr. Iadarola identified two responses to the RFP and provided a summary of the proposed evaluation process. A motion was made by Member Hearn, and was seconded by Member Main, to accept the evaluation form provided by Mr. Iadarola. Motion carried unanimously. Chair Robinson noted the option of submitting the forms electronically. Mr. Iadarola confirmed that the Committee’s recommendation will ultimately need to be provided to the New Fairfield Purchasing Agent. A motion was made by Member Hearn, and was seconded by Member Main, to accept the evaluation form provided by Mr. Iadarola. Motion carried unanimously. Mr. Iadarola spoke on the proposal provided by Barton & Loguidice, LLC. He spoke on the benefits of this company using experienced in-house staff. He noted M& J Engineering, PC’s Contractor is not an Engineer and expressed concern with the coordination of staffing from multiple consultants. He also noted a $20,000 cost difference. Mr. Hearn asked about the opportunity to discuss questions and concerns with the consultants. Ms. Robinson and Mr. Iadarola suggested they invite both groups to provide a presentation at the next meeting. Mr. Hearn discussed the need to have them address emergency egress options along the trail, utility pole locations and relocation costs, and the evaluation of trees along the path to address removal needs. Mr. Mortelleti and Mr. Iadarola discussed the presentation expectations including a 30 minute presentation each with time to answer questions that will be emailed in advance to the contractors. The Committee agreed to provide their evaluations via email with each member’s preference and comments. Mr. Day asked about the line items in the bids and commented on the need to discuss discrepancies, ie: EIE Services. 6. Review of DEEP Status Report #2 Mr. Hearn noted the need to submit a progress report every 6 months. Ms. Robinson read the report for the record. A motion was made by Member Iadarola, and was seconded by Member Hearn, to approve the summary for communication with the DEEP. Motion carried unanimously. Mr. Iadarola asked about the $313 identified as Funds expended; Mr. Hearn confirmed that he believed it was used for advertising in the newspaper. 7. Next Meeting Date The Committee confirmed that the next meeting will be on Tuesday, June 25th, 2024, at 6pm, at Senior Center in New Fairfield. 8. FOI Request A motion was made by Member Iadarola, and seconded by Member Main, to add the most recent FOI request that was submitted to the Town of New Fairfield as Agenda Item 8. The motion carried unanimously. Mr. Iadarola discussed the details of the FOI request from Jennifer Pappas which included documents referencing the grant, proposals, liability, safety enforcement, and zoning regulations. Mr. Mortelliti suggested that the Town of New Fairfield ask the requester to narrow the scope of their request. A motion was made by Chair Robinson, and seconded by Member Iadarola, to accept the responses provided and approved by the committee, in response to the FOI request. The motion carried unanimously. Ms. Robinson asked that any questions noted in the FOI request and not already addressed in the RFP proposals, be added to the list of items to be addressed at the presentations. A motion was made by Chair Robinson, and seconded by Member Iadarola, to email the contractors with a list of items that need to be address and clarified in their presentations. The motion carried unanimously. 9. Adjournment A motion was made by Member Iadarola, and seconded by Member Hearn, to adjourn. The motion carried unanimously. The meeting adjourned at 7:07 p.m. Respectfully submitted; Holly Robinson, Chair Antonio Iadarola, David Day, Peter Hearn, Jeff Main