Committee of the Whole

COMMITTEE OF THE WHOLE - MINUTES City Municipal Building | Council Chambers 295 Meridian Street, Groton, CT 06340 Monday, January 27, 2025 | 6:00 PM COMMITTEE OF THE WHOLE – ACTION MINUTES Mayor Keith Hedrick, Deputy Mayor Gweneviere Depot, Councilor Erin Artale, Councilor Paul Norris, Councilor Tony Patterson, Councilor Christine Piazza and Councilor Stephen Sheffield and City Clerk Dani Baycura The following minutes meet all requirements under CT FOIA for public meetings and is not a transcript of the meeting. Please visit Groton Municipal Television on YouTube to view the meeting in further detail. Mayor Hedrick called the meeting to order at 6:02pm. I. ROLL CALL Present: Mayor Hedrick, Deputy Mayor Depot, Councilor Piazza, Councilor Artale, Councilor Sheffield, and Councilor Norris. Councilor Patterson at 6:05pm. II. NEW BUSINESS OR REFERRALS A. Parks & Recreation 1. Asset Management Plan Director Hill provided the asset management checklists for Washington Park and Eastern Point Beach. The plan, currently in Excel format, details the assets, their conditions, and maintenance schedules. The department plans to eventually integrate this information into the City Works software system, which has a module for parks and recreation. The basketball courts at Washington Park are scheduled for completion in spring, with no major complications reported. Some concerns about water runoff and flooding were discussed, but it was clarified that the new courts are slightly elevated and should not experience flooding issues different from the previous courts. Councilor Sheffield inquired how often the spreadsheet would be updated; Director Hill responded it is a working document with updates made consistently but would be happy to forward the progress quarterly or every 6 months if the Council wishes. 2. Lake George Soil Testing A potential comprehensive soil and sediment sampling program was presented. Director Hill passed around a mockup of an intended paved walking path around Lake George, whilst explaining this or any other future project for Lake George, will not be approved if the soil testing plan requested by CTDEEP is not performed. This project will give all the information required by DEEP as well as plans forward pending which future use project is chosen for the area. Motion to move to Mayor and Council meeting of 2/3/25: Deputy Mayor Depot. Second: Councilor Piazza. Motion carried, 6-0-0. 1  COMMITTEE OF THE WHOLE - MINUTES City Municipal Building | Council Chambers 295 Meridian Street, Groton, CT 06340 3. City Park Rules General city park rules and conditions of use for various facilities was presented. Deputy Mayor Depot brought up the language “no overnight parking” at Washington Park asking how that impacts vehicles using the electrical vehicle chargers. It was agreed to consider adding language to the parking rules to distinguish between charging and overnight parking. Motion to move to Mayor and Council meeting 2/3/25: Deputy Mayor Depot. Second: Councilor Piazza. Motion carried, 6-0-0. B. Highway Budget Review Councilors reviewed fiscal year 2026 highway budget, noting a 5.7% increase in operations due to salaries, and a 2.4% overall budget. The addition of a new vehicle to the fleet and the need for a new forklift due to the age of the current one, were items noted. Contractual Services include the assessment of the City’s compliance with the ADA standards for sidewalks, streets and crosswalks. The assessment is an estimated $90,000 not including any corrective actions. Deputy Mayor Depot asked if the assessment was something City workers could perform, to which Director Sedlmeier stated, that would be at the detriment to regular City business schedules and costs if task this large was directed to staff. Software maintenance expense is increasing due to the program City Works. When questioned, Director Sedlmeier emphasized the importance of training, program support, proper usage to ensure benefits of the program are fully utilized. Director Sedlmeier addressed the upcoming State's project for the bridge and exits, stating that most of the heavy traffic wouldn't be diverted off during the day, and the work would be done at night. Motion to move to Mayor and Council meeting 2/3/25: Deputy Mayor Depot. Second: Councilor Piazza. Motion carried, 6-0-0. C. Police Budget Review Chief Burton presented the Police Department fiscal year 2026 budget, requesting an overall increase of 5.81%. Motion to move to Mayor and Council meeting 2/3/25: Deputy Mayor Depot. Second: Councilor Piazza. Motion carried, 6-0-0. 2  COMMITTEE OF THE WHOLE - MINUTES City Municipal Building | Council Chambers 295 Meridian Street, Groton, CT 06340 D. Parking Survey Results E. Police Department 1. Permit Parking Process 2. Parking Ordinance Change Motion to move to Mayor and Council meeting 2/3/25: Deputy Mayor Depot. Second: Councilor Piazza. Motion carried, 6-0-0. 3. Resident Parking Streets Motion to move to Mayor and Council meeting 2/3/25: Deputy Mayor Depot. Second: Councilor Piazza. Motion carried, 6-0-0. F. Group Council Meetings Discussion III. ADJOURNMENT Motion to adjourn: Councilor Piazza. Second: Deputy Mayor Depot. Motion carried, 6-0-0. Meeting adjourned at 8:04pm. ATTEST: APPROVED: Dani Baycura City Clerk 3