The Ridgefield Board of Selectmen is elected every four years, and are not on the ballot tomorrow. There are elections Tuesday for the Boards of Finance, Education and Assessment Appeals as well as Planning, Zoning, Police Commission and Inland Wetlands.
Once the new boards are seated, First Selectman Rudy Marconi says they'll continue discussion about how to allocate the federal American Rescue Plan Act funding. Ridgefield is receiving abnout $7.4 million. He says that money can be put to good use, while planting the seed for future growth. There are restrictions on what is allowed, but includes sewer, broadband and infrastructure. The Board of Finance allocated some of the funds to help in the current year's budget. A town meeting held earlier this month approved using $2.9 million to subsidize the sewer plant upgrades.
Marconi says the most important thing on the drawing board in the near term is a new police department and new fire department. In 2009-2010, a budget referendum question asked residents to allocated money for a new police station, but it was voted down because it was the beginning of the recession. The plan is to locate a combined police and fire headquarters on Old Quarry Road at the former Schlumberger property. Marconi notes that the town owns the property and it's in a centralized location. He estimates it would cost $3 million to $4 million to buy a property. A town meeting may be held soon to formalize the selection.
Marconi sees a need to better address mental health problems. He says there's a grey area where police enforcement can't go any further and the medical community can't disclose information to police. Marconi says there are a number of organizations trying to operate in that grey area. Marconi says social media has also fueled some of these issues, spilling out into the community. He added that there are some people who no longer walk in certain areas of town because they're afraid of individuals exhibiting anger issues. Marconi says the feeling of the community is in jeopardy right now.
The Branchville Transit Oriented Development project is moving forward. Sidewalks will start in the area next Spring. TAP, Transit Alternative Program, will bring a sidewalk from the Wilton line on Route 7 north beyond the intersection with 102 and along 102 up to Florida Road. Street lamps, cross walks and pedestrian bridges will also be installed. The intersection of Route 102 and Route 7 will be redesigned in the near future. Marconi says this will make it safer and greener. In 2024, the Depot Road bridge will be redone. The bridge is closed at Branchville Road and Route 7. That will be opened up with a sidewalk so the cross walk will allow pedestrians to go from Route 7 over the Norwalk River to the train station. The Portland Avenue bridge will be addressed next. The intersection of Portland Avenue and the railroad tracks will be reconfigured to allow truck traffic to make a left onto West Branchville Road.
The National Resource Conservation Service, under the Department of Agriculture, recently informed the state that it had two options when it comes to the dam at Fox Hill. One is that it be removed, the other that it be rebuilt to current standards with a concrete wall to envelop the Fox Hill condos. Residents were concerned about what would happen to the abutting properties along the Norwalk River if the dam is removed. The formulas that were used were for the worst case scenario. Marconi says it planned for 33 inches of rain in 24 hours. If that were to happen, he says the dam would be breached, Route 35 would be flooded and lives could be lost. Marconi says the dam has performed well in the last couple of large storms. An investigation of the structural integrity of the dam was found to be in top condition. Ridgefield is asking the NRCS to take no action, but the decision will ultimately be with the state Department of Energy and Environmental Protection.
