East Lyme residents approve funding for roads, docks, basketball courts, police cars
East Lyme — About 50 residents at a town meeting Wednesday approved, by majority vote, funding for basketball courts, town roads, rowing docks, police cars and a dust-collection system at the high school, among other items.
They approved bonding $130,000 to replace the basketball courts with a new surface and new hoops; $20,000 to replace the aging rowing docks by Pattagansett Lake; and $990,000 for town roads and projects that include a sidewalk between East Lyme Middle School and Lillie B. Haynes Elementary School and a crossing light by East Lyme High School.
They further voted in favor of appropriating $34,405 for a dust-collection system at the high school. Superintendent Jeffrey Newton said that as students work on metal and wood projects during shop classes, the dust-collection system would improve indoor air quality and prevent dust from getting into digital equipment.
Residents also approved appropriating about $110,000 from money left over from the 2016-17 vehicle acquisition plan and budget transfers to replace two police cars from 2007 and 2005.
They further approved appropriating a total of $163,389 for various items, from HVAC replacement to sidewalk repair, for projects in the town's Capital Improvement Plan. First Selectman Mark Nickerson said the town sets aside funding each year in "mini savings accounts," so if, for example, a roof leaks, town officials don't have to schedule a town meeting to get approval to spend money to repair it.
Residents voiced their opinions Wednesday on whether or not the town should spend money on the items.
Ron Rando, who spoke about several items, said the state is in financial straits and the town has to "take a hard look" at what it is spending money on. He questioned why the basketball courts couldn't be patched up, rather than replaced.
Daniel Price, the chairman of the Police Commission, spoke in favor of replacing the two police cars. He said he is opposed to wasteful spending, but if the town doesn't use the funds now to replace these cars, it would end up spending more next year.
A $50,000 federal grant through the Connecticut Institute for Resilience and Climate Adaptation to study flood plans and shoreline resiliency also was approved at Wednesday's meeting.
Comment threads are monitored for 48 hours after publication and then closed.
