City Council

JOURNAL OF THE COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF NORWICH October 6, 2025 The regular meeting of the Council of the City of Norwich was held October 6, 2025 at 7:30 PM in Council Chambers. Present: Mayor Nystrom, President Pro Tem DeLucia, Ald. Singh, Ald. Gould, Ald. Bettencourt, and Ald. Hayes. Absent was Ald. Nash. City Manager John Salomone, Corporation Counsel Michael Driscoll were also in attendance. Mayor Nystrom presided. Please be advised that meetings of the Norwich City Council can be viewed in their entirety on the City of Norwich website “norwichct.org”. Ald. Gould, read the opening prayer and Ald. Singh, led the members in the Pledge of Allegiance. Upon motion Ald. Hayes, seconded by Ald. Bettencourt, on a roll call vote it was unanimously voted to suspend the rules. Upon motion Ald. Hayes, seconded by Ald. Gould, on a roll call vote it was unanimously voted to to refer the following communication to Public Safety Committee. JOURNAL OF THE COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF NORWICH October 6, 2025 Upon a motion of Ald. Gould, seconded by Ald. Singh, on a roll call vote it was unanimously voted to add resolution number 8 to this agenda. Upon a motion of Ald. Hayes, seconded by Ald. Gould, on a roll call vote it was unanimously voted to return to the regular agenda. Upon a motion of Ald. Gould, seconded by Ald. Hayes, on a roll call vote it was unanimously voted to accept the following petition and communication. JOURNAL OF THE COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF NORWICH October 6, 2025 JOURNAL OF THE COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF NORWICH October 6, 2025 Upon a motion of Ald. Hayes, seconded by Ald. Gould, on a roll call vote it was unanimously voted to accept the minutes of September 2, September 12, and September 15, 2025. City Managers Report JOURNAL OF THE COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF NORWICH October 6, 2025 JOURNAL OF THE COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF NORWICH October 6, 2025 JOURNAL OF THE COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF NORWICH October 6, 2025 Please be advised that meetings of the Norwich City Council can be viewed in their entirety on the City of Norwich website “norwichct.org”. Mayor Nystrom called for citizen comments on new business resolutions. Elanah Sherman, 65 Cedar St., spoke in support of resolution #6. She was grateful for the offer to Avalonia Land Conservancy Inc. and is hopeful of a positive outcome to that offer. There being no further speakers, Mayor Nystrom declared citizen comment closed. Upon a motion of Ald. Gould, seconded by Ald. Hayes, on a roll call vote it was unanimously voted to adopt the following resolution introduced by City Manager Salomone WHEREAS, the City Manager John L. Salomone has appointed with Councils approval as an alternate member to the Zoning Board of Appeals for a term to expire on 2/28/26 or until a successor is appointed; Paul Butcher (D) NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED that the Council of the City of Norwich hereby acknowledges the appointments of the above named to the Zoning Board of Appeals. Upon a motion of Ald. Hayes, seconded by Ald. Bettencourt, on a roll call vote it was unanimously voted to adopt the following resolution introduced by Mayor Nystrom, Ald. Gould, and Ald. Singh. WHEREAS, the Council of the City of Norwich from time to time and in recognition of specific needs or requirements, establishes boards, commissions, and committees, some of which exercise continuing powers and some of which are intended to be time limited or to deal with specific issues until resolution; and WHEREAS, the Council of the City of Norwich has determined that several such entities have completed the project or purpose for which they were established or have been inactivate for a substantial period of time due to lack of a quorum; and WHEREAS, the Council of the City of Norwich finds it to be in the best interest of the City of Norwich to discontinue such; NOW THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED BY THE COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF NORWICH that the following committees be and hereby are discontinued effective, October 15, 2025: 1) 60 Sixth Street Committee of Sale established by resolution adopted 09/06/2016; 2) Census Complete Count Committee established with respect to the 2020 Census; 3) The Disc Golf Subcommittee established by council resolution of 12/03/2018; 4) The Poet Laureate Selection Committee established by resolution adopted 12/05/2017; 5) The Public Appearance and Beautification Committee established by resolution of 01/07/2019 but which presently has no committee members; 6) A School Building Committee (John B. Stanton School), established by a resolution adopted June 5, 2017 relative to the replacement of a portion of the roof of the then existing John B. Stanton School, and JOURNAL OF THE COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF NORWICH October 6, 2025 consisting of the superintendent of schools and the city manager, as the need for this committee no longer exists; and BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED BY THE COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF NORWICH that it expresses its thanks to the many individuals who have served on the committees now being discontinued for their service on behalf of the city. Upon a motion of Ald. Singh, seconded by Ald. Hayes, on a roll call vote it was unanimously voted to put the following resolution on the floor. Upon a motion of Ald. Hayes, seconded by Ald. Gould, on a roll call vote it was unanimously voted to amend the following resolution’s in paragraphs 3 and 4 to include the sales price of “$95,000” and the name and town of the buyer as “Carlos A. Macri of West Hartford”. Upon a motion of Ald. Singh, seconded by Ald. Hayes, on a roll call vote it was unanimously voted to adopt the following amended resolution introduced by Mayor Nystrom, Ald. Gould, and Ald. Singh. WHEREAS, the City of Norwich is utilizing the services of Signature Properties as a realtor, which has listed the property at 35 Elizabeth Street and received an offer to purchase. WHEREAS, the Council has resolved that upon receipt of a Purchase and Sales Agreement containing an offer to purchase on such terms and conditions as are satisfactory to the City Manager, he was to notify the Council of the proposed Purchase and Sales Agreement for its consideration and possible approval; and WHEREAS, City Manager John Salomone has received a Purchase and Sales Agreement from Signature Properties containing an offer to purchase 35 Elizabeth Street, the offer being the sum of $95,000 with property to be conveyed in “as is” condition. NOW THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED BY THE COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF NORWICH, that City Manager John Salomone be and hereby is authorized and directed to enter into a Purchase and Sales Agreement on behalf of the City of Norwich to sell said property at a price of $95,000 to Carlos A. Macri of West Hartford, Connecticut pursuant to the terms of said Purchase and Sales Agreement and, upon timely tender of the purchase price subject to standard adjustments, to execute and deliver a deed of conveyance to Carlos A. Macri of West Hartford, Connecticut or his/her designee for the property known as 35 Elizabeth Street and to execute, deliver, and receive such other documents as are necessary to complete the transfer of title in keeping with the terms and conditions of the Purchase and Sales Agreement. Upon a motion of Ald. Gould, seconded by Ald. Hayes, on a roll call vote it was unanimously voted to adopt the following resolution introduced by Mayor Nystrom, Ald. Gould, and Ald. Singh. Relative to authorizing the Tax Collector to offer properties to abutting property owners. WHEREAS, City departments reviewed the parcels owned by the City of Norwich in maps 1 through 55 of its land records during August and September and forwarded recommendations for disposal to the Public Works & Capital Improvements Committee; and JOURNAL OF THE COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF NORWICH October 6, 2025 WHEREAS, at its September 15, 2025 meeting, the Public Works & Capital Improvements Committee recommended to the Council of the City of Norwich to attempt to dispose of the following properties by offering to sell them to abutting property owners: Date City How Approx. Minimum Location M/B/L Book/Page Zoning Conditions on Sale Acquired Acquired Acres Bid Merge with purchaser’s Baltic Rd 2/1/11 402/14 4/2/1974 Quit claim 0.70 R80 $2,500 property 16 White Plains Merge with purchaser’s 9/1/13 1255/223 4/2/1996 Quit claim 1.38 R80 $4,000 Rd property Merge with purchaser’s property with 24-26 Railroad 13/1/13 3347/212 6/8/2022 Quit claim 0.19 MF $2,500 easements for parking Ave and access for neighbors Merge with purchaser’s 5 Bridge St 13/1/26 883/1 10/5/1988 Foreclosure 0.16 NC $2,500 property Merge with purchaser’s 8-9 Bridge St 13/1/22 1348/278 12/16/1997 Foreclosure 0.18 NC $3,500 property Deed in lieu 537 Canterbury Merge with purchaser’s 13/1/55 3340/264 5/9/2022 of 0.26 R40 $4,000 Tpke property foreclosure Merge with purchaser’s 29 Sunrise St 31/1/21 2429/268 10/9/2007 Quit claim 0.12 R40 $3,000 property Merge with purchaser’s 60 Sunrise St 31/1/38 1343/222 11/12/1997 Quit claim 0.09 R40 $2,500 property Tax Merge with purchaser’s 5 Belval St 32/1/29 2863/75 6/30/2014 collector’s 0.18 R40 $4,000 property deed Merge with purchaser’s Scotland Rd 36/1/12 3045/301 11/29/2017 Quit claim 1.92 R80 $3,500 property Merge with purchaser’s Warranty Wayne St 53/1/55 1062/147 5/29/1992 0.13 R40 $3,500 property with drainage deed easement Tax 29 Hunters Rd Merge with purchaser’s 53/2/79 2863/66 6/30/2014 collector’s 0.45 R40 $4,000 Ext property deed Tax Merge 21 Shiller St and 21 Schiller St 55/1/45 1794/203 6/24/2003 collector’s 0.53 R20 Laporte Dr and then deed $5,000 offer to abutters to be merged into Laporte Dr 55/1/78 979/19 6/15/1990 Purchase 0.29 R20 purchaser’s property NOW THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED BY THE COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF NORWICH, that the Tax Collector of the City of Norwich be and hereby is authorized and directed to sell the properties listed herein, being limited to receiving bids from the owners or agents of those properties immediately abutting the properties listed herein, subject to the requirements established for such sales, the offer to take place in such manner and under such terms and at a time and place to be set by the Tax Collector, including the acceptance of bids by mail to the Tax Collector by a specified date. It shall be a specific requirement as a term of the offer that any successful bidder must agree to combine the property with that of the bidder’s existing abutting property and do so within 90 days of the date of offer. BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED BY THE COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF NORWICH, that City Manager John Salomone be and hereby is authorized to accept no less than the minimum bid for each property from the successful bidder and upon timely tender of the purchase price subject to standard adjustments, to execute and deliver a deed of conveyance to the winning bidder or their designee for each property and to execute, deliver, and receive such other documents as are necessary to complete JOURNAL OF THE COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF NORWICH October 6, 2025 the transfer of title and to facilitate the merger of each property into the property of the winning bidder. Upon a motion of Ald. Hayes, seconded by Ald. Singh, on a roll call vote it was unanimously voted to adopt the following resolution introduced by Mayor Nystrom, Ald. Gould, and Ald. Singh. Relative to authorizing the City Manager to enter into a real estate listing agreements for 10 East Pratte Ave. WHEREAS, City departments reviewed the parcels owned by the City of Norwich in maps 1 through 55 of its land records during August and September and forwarded recommendations for disposal to the Public Works & Capital Improvements Committee; and WHEREAS, at its September 15, 2025 meeting, the Public Works & Capital Improvements Committee recommended to the Council of the City of Norwich to attempt to sell the following properties through realtor Date City How Approx. Location M/B/L Book/Page Zoning Acquired Acquired Acres 10 East 47/2/68 1571/121 6/21/2001 Quit claim 0.35 R20 Pratte Ave ; and WHEREAS, Signature Properties of New England was selected by the City of Norwich to serve as the real estate agent through RFP 20-27. NOW THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED BY THE COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF NORWICH, that City Manager John Salomone be and hereby is authorized and directed on behalf of the City of Norwich to enter into an individual real estate listing agreement satisfactory to him with Signature Properties of New England offering to sell the properties listed herein at a proposed sale price recommended by Signature Properties of New England. BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED BY THE COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF NORWICH, that City Manager John Salomone be and hereby is authorized and directed to enter into a Purchase and Sales Agreement on behalf of the City of Norwich to sell said property at a price satisfactory to him pursuant to the terms of said Purchase and Sales Agreement and, upon timely tender of the purchase price subject to standard adjustments, to execute and deliver a deed of conveyance to the purchaser or his/her designee for the property and to execute, deliver, and receive such other documents as are necessary to complete the transfer of title in keeping with the terms and conditions of the Purchase and Sales Agreement. Upon a motion of Ald. Singh, seconded by Ald. Hayes, on a roll call vote it was unanimously voted to adopt the following resolution introduced by Mayor Nystrom, Ald. Gould, and Ald. Singh. Relative to offering property to Avalonia Land Conservancy, Inc. and, if not interested, allowing Tax Collector to offer property to abutting property owners. JOURNAL OF THE COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF NORWICH October 6, 2025 WHEREAS, City departments reviewed the parcels owned by the City of Norwich in maps 1 through 55 of its land records during August and September and forwarded recommendations for disposal to the Public Works & Capital Improvements Committee; and WHEREAS, at its September 15, 2025 meeting, the Public Works & Capital Improvements Committee recommended to the Council of the City of Norwich to attempt to dispose of the following property by offering the parcel first to the Avalonia Land Conservancy and then to abutting property owners: Date City How Approx. Location M/B/L Book/Page Zoning Acquired Acquired Acres 18 Tax Tetreault 54/1/70 2300/234 9/15/2006 collector’s 0.34 R40 Ave deed NOW THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED BY THE COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF NORWICH, that the property listed herein be offered to the Avalonia Land Conservancy, Inc.to be merged into its 12.81 acre lot on Hunters Road. BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED BY THE COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF NORWICH, that, should the Avalonia Land Conservancy, Inc. not be interested in accepting the property, the Tax Collector of the City of Norwich be and hereby is authorized and directed to sell the property listed herein, being limited to receiving bids from the owners or agents of those properties immediately abutting the property listed herein, subject to a minimum bid of $4,000 and any requirements established for such sales, the offer to take place in such manner and under such terms and at a time and place to be set by the Tax Collector, including the acceptance of bids by mail to the Tax Collector by a specified date. It shall be a specific requirement as a term of the offer that any successful bidder must agree to combine the property with that of the bidder’s existing abutting property and do so within 90 days of the date of offer. BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED BY THE COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF NORWICH, that City Manager John Salomone be and hereby is authorized to execute and deliver a deed of conveyance to Avalonia Land Conservancy, Inc. or should Avalonia Land Conservancy, Inc. not be interested in accepting the property, City Manager John Salmone be and hereby is authorized to accept no less than the minimum bid for each property from the successful bidder and upon timely tender of the purchase price subject to standard adjustments, to execute and deliver a deed of conveyance to the winning bidder or their designee for each property and to execute, deliver, and receive such other documents as are necessary to complete the transfer of title and to facilitate the merger of each property into the property of the winning bidder. Upon a motion of Ald. Hayes, seconded by Ald. Gould, on a roll call vote it was unanimously voted to adopt the following resolution introduced by Mayor Nystrom, Ald. Gould, and Ald. Singh. Relative to the replacement of Eastern Savings Bank and Comerica Bank with Ascend Bank and First State Trust, respectively, on the approved list of banks and trust companies into which the City Treasurer may deposit funds. WHEREAS, Chapter IX, Section 19 of the Charter of the City of Norwich states, “The city treasurer shall have custody of and disburse all funds belonging to the city and shall deposit the same in such banks and trust companies as may be designated by the council on recommendation of the chief executive officer by this charter;” and JOURNAL OF THE COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF NORWICH October 6, 2025 WHEREAS, the term “financial institution” is defined in Connecticut General Statutes Sections 36a- 330(4) as “a bank, Connecticut credit union, federal credit union or an out-of-state bank that maintains in this state a branch as defined in section 36a-410”; and WHEREAS, Guilford Savings Bank and Eastern Savings Bank recently merged and changed the name of the merged entity to Ascend Bank, and by this merger has branches in the State of Connecticut; and WHEREAS, Comerica Bank has been replaced by First State Trust as the trustee and custodian of the funds of the Employees’ Retirement Plan and Other Postemployment Benefits Plan; and WHEREAS, at the request of City Treasurer Robert Buckley and City Manager John Salomone, as Chief Executive Officer of the City of Norwich, recommend the replacement of Eastern Savings Bank and Comerica Bank with Ascend Bank and First State Trust, respectively, on the list of banks and trust companies into which the City Treasurer may deposit funds. NOW THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED BY THE COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF NORWICH, that Eastern Savings Bank and Comerica Bank be and hereby are replaced by Ascend Bank and First State Trust, respectively, on the approved list of banks and trust companies into which the City Treasurer may deposit funds. Exhibit 1 Complete list of banks and trust companies into which the City Treasurer may deposit funds: • American Freedom US • State Street Corporation Government Money • TD Bank, N.A. Market Fund • UBS AG • Ascend Bank • US Bank • Bank of America • Webster Bank Corporation • Bank of New York • Berkshire Bank • Broadridge Financial Solutions, Inc. • Charles Schwab Trust Company • Charter Oak Credit Union • Chelsea Groton Bank • Centreville Bank • Citizens' Bank of Connecticut • Connecticut State Treasurer's Short Term Investment Fund • Dime Savings Bank • First State Trust • HSBC USA, Inc. • ING Bank N.V. • Liberty Bank • M&T Bank Corporation • MBIA, Inc. JOURNAL OF THE COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF NORWICH October 6, 2025 Upon a motion of Ald. Hayes, seconded by Ald. Gould, on a roll call vote it was unanimously voted to put the following resolution number 8 introduced under suspension on the floor. City Clerk Muscarella, read the following resolution for the record. Following the full reading below. Upon motion Ald. Hayes, seconded by Ald. Gould, on a roll call vote it was unanimously voted to adopt the following resolution introduced by Mayor Nystrom, Ald. Gould and Ald. Bettencourt. WHEREAS, the Council of the City of Norwich, by resolution adopted April 21, 2025, entitled: “Relative to the school construction grant application for the renovation to “as new” of the existing Teachers Memorial Middle School or the construction of a new middle school on the site of the existing Teachers Memorial Middle School” which provided: WHEREAS, the voters of the City of Norwich approved the $385,000,000 School Construction Program bond ordinance #1820 by referendum on November 8, 2022”; and WHEREAS, one of the items authorized by ordinance #1820 is the renovation to “as new” of the existing Teachers Memorial Middle School or the construction of a new middle school on the site of the existing Teachers Memorial Middle School (“Project”); and WHEREAS, the City intends to apply for a School Construction Grant for the Project; and WHEREAS, the State of Connecticut Department of Administrative Services Office of Grant Administration requires the legislative body of the City take the following actions prior to submitting a School Construction Grant Application for the Project: 1. Authorize its Board of Education to apply to the Commissioner of Administrative Services and to accept or reject a grant for the proposed Project, 2. Establish a building committee for the Project, and 3. Authorize at least the preparation of schematic drawings and outline specifications for the Project. NOW THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED BY THE COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF NORWICH that the Norwich Board of Education be and hereby is authorized to apply to the Commissioner of Administrative Services and to accept or reject a grant to be used for the construction of a new middle school on the site of the existing Teachers Memorial Middle School; and WHEREAS, the Council of the City of Norwich, upon recommendation of the School Building Committee, has determined that the construction of a new middle school on the site of the existing Teachers Memorial Middle School is preferable to a renovation to “as new” of the existing school and that the resolution adopted April 21, 2025 needs to be amended to reflect this. 13 JOURNAL OF THE COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF NORWICH October 6, 2025 NOW THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED BY THE COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF NORWICH that the resolution of the Council adopted April 21, 2025 entitled as stated herein be and hereby is amended to read as follows: WHEREAS, the voters of the City of Norwich approved the $385,000,000 School Construction Program bond ordinance #1820 by referendum on November 8, 2022; and WHEREAS, one of the items authorized by ordinance #1820 is the construction of a new middle school on the site of the existing Teachers Memorial Middle School (“Project”); and WHEREAS, the City intends to apply for a School Construction Grant for the Project; and WHEREAS, the State of Connecticut Department of Administrative Services Office of Grant Administration requires the legislative body of the City take the following actions prior to submitting a School Construction Grant Application for the Project: 1. Authorize its Board of Education to apply to the Commissioner of Administrative Services and to accept or reject a grant for the proposed Project, 2. Establish a building committee for the Project, and 3. Authorize at least the preparation of schematic drawings and outline specifications for the Project. NOW THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED BY THE COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF NORWICH that the Norwich Board of Education be and hereby is authorized to apply to the Commissioner of Administrative Services and to accept or reject a grant to be used for the construction of a new middle school on the site of the existing Teachers Memorial Middle School. Upon a motion of Ald. Gould, seconded by Ald. Hayes, on a roll call vote it was unanimously voted, pursuant to Connecticut General Statutes § 1-200 (6) and 1-210(b)(5)(B), that the members of the Norwich City Council go into Executive Session for the purpose of discussing the acquisition or disposition of real estate or interests in real estate when publicity regarding the proposed acquisition or disposition would cause a likelihood of an increased price to acquire and diminished price to dispose of the property, and to review feasibility evaluations and reports made for the City of Norwich regarding such property, and to review commercial and financial information given the city in confidence not required to be disclosed by law. City Manager John Salomone, Comptroller Joshua Pothier, President of the Norwich Community Development Corporation Kevin Brown, Director of Public Works Brian Long and Corporation Counsel Michael Driscoll shall be asked to participate during all or portions of this Executive Session at the request of the City Council. The Council was in Executive Session from 7:59pm to 9:07pm. Upon motion of Ald. Gould, seconded by Ald. Hayes, the Council returned to regular session at which time Mayor Nystrom, stated no votes were taken. Upon a motion of Ald. Gould, seconded by Ald. Hayes, on a roll call vote it was unanimously voted to adjourn at 9:08 pm. City Clerk 14