OPENPUBLICA · PUBLIC MEETING RECORD
Record of Proceedings

Clinton Town Council Meeting - March 4, 2026

Town Council — Wednesday, March 4, 2026
BodyClinton, Connecticut
SessionTown Council
DateWednesday, March 4, 2026
StatusFILED
Video Record
0:00 / 1:13:47

Transcript — Verbatim
0:40

March 4th, 2026.

0:43

It's 8 a.m.

0:45

And we are beginning our regular town hall, town council meetings.

0:50

Town council meetings in a town hall in town hall.

0:52

Uh let's do the Pledge of Allegiance.

0:55

That is for you in mind leading us.

1:07

Individual liberty and justice for all.

1:10

Thank you.

1:21

All right.

1:21

First item of business on the agenda is as everyone has it is visitors.

1:26

Do we have any visitors that would like to speak?

1:31

Hearing none, moving on to item number three, approval of minutes.

1:36

Would somebody on the town council like that make a motion to approve the minutes?

1:40

So moved.

1:41

Carry on is moved, second.

1:43

Second.

1:43

Second, Dennis.

1:45

Discussion.

1:47

All in favor?

1:48

Aye.

1:49

Opposed.

1:51

Abstain.

1:53

Motion carries unanimously.

1:56

Appointments and reappointments.

1:58

I see none this morning, Mary.

1:59

Is that right?

2:00

All right.

2:06

Item five.

2:07

Town manager's report moving.

2:10

Oh no, transfers.

2:12

Oh, sorry, I skipped it.

2:13

Yeah, I didn't number it.

2:14

Yeah, I always do that.

2:16

Line item transfers.

2:20

Okay.

2:21

So we have the first one is a transfer of 28,000 with regard to this is the disposal of a what it's called, a trackless multi-purpose tractor.

2:34

You want to tell us a little more about it?

2:36

Um Todd's here.

2:37

Todd?

2:37

Sure.

2:37

Back in 2016, we bought a trackless machine.

2:40

It's a multi-purpose tractor that we can do different things with.

2:47

Um when we can over the rail mower, under the guardrail mower.

2:52

The whole goal was always to buy a snowblower for it.

2:55

Um it's always falling off the radar.

2:57

We've always had other priorities, but this winter is definitely put that back on the priority, and we auctioned off some surplus equipment, some old generators, that truck that blew the motor.

3:08

We did a team municipal and it raised 28,000.

3:12

And I'm asking if we can use the 20,500 of that to purchase the snowblower for the machine.

3:18

Try to use find money that doesn't affect the tax rate and stop so I'm coming to ask if we can transfer that money.

3:26

Great.

3:26

Thanks for the explanation.

3:27

Any questions?

3:29

We're all good.

3:30

Well, there's a point I'd like to make with uh the proceeds of the Capitol is that uh we're depositing that in the general fund.

3:36

I looked in the charter to see what we're supposed to do with that money, and and I also talked with Michelle.

3:41

It looks like section 10-4B says that we in order to disperse it out of the general fund, there needs to be appropriation or line to item transfer by the the council.

3:50

But to deposit in the fund is is appropriate.

3:52

So we're it's part of the purchasing policy.

3:54

So we're your and our purchasing policy as well supports that.

3:57

So is so the proposal of where it would go is is appropriate.

Discussion Breakdown — Share of Meeting
Public Safety█████████████████████████████29%
Parks and Recreation████████████████16%
Economic Development███████████11%
Transportation Safety█████████9%
Budget Equity Analysis████████8%
Technology and Innovation████████8%
Engineering And Infrastructure███████7%
Procedural████4%
Personnel Matters████4%
Summary of Proceedings

Clinton Town Council Meeting - March 4, 2026

The Clinton Town Council held its regular meeting on March 4, 2026, at 8:00 a.m. The meeting covered three line item transfers, a grant authorization, the town manager's report, and extensive discussions on flock camera data management and economic development roles. The council unanimously approved all transfers and the grant application.

Consent Calendar

  • Approval of Minutes: The council unanimously approved the minutes from the previous meeting.

Line Item Transfers

  • Trackless Snowblower Attachment: The council unanimously approved a $20,500 transfer from surplus equipment auction proceeds ($28,000 total) to purchase a snowblower for a trackless multi-purpose tractor. The transfer complied with the town charter and purchasing policy.
  • Trolley Service Funding: The council unanimously approved a $15,000 transfer from economic development part-time salaries to the marketing line item to fund the seasonal trolley service (Memorial Day through Labor Day, Fridays through Mondays). The town manager reported a 277% increase in ridership in 2025 after a promotional push. The funds will support River Valley Transit's operation and allow time to secure advertising revenue.
  • Petersfield Field Assessment: The council unanimously approved a $7,500 transfer from the turf field replacement line item to fund an engineering assessment of a sinking area at Petersfield field (caused by settling over an old landfill). The assessment will determine the cause, depth, and remediation options. $37,000 remained in the turf account. The discussion also touched on unresolved speaker issues at Indian River field, but no action was taken.

Grant Application

  • Connecticut Underage Nicotine Prevention Program Mini Grant: The council unanimously authorized the human services director to apply for a $6,745.55 grant to fund prevention education kits, parent workshops, and nicotine-free community events for middle and high school students.

Town Manager's Report

  • Snow Totals: The town received 19 inches of snow; public works crews worked up to 40-hour shifts.
  • New Hires: A full-time custodian, Tucker Gometes, will start March 16. A certified town clerk, Lisa Balter, will start March 23.
  • Parks & Rec Director: Bo is retiring after 42 years; the position is posted with a timeline for selection by early May.
  • Budget Workshops: Upcoming workshops on March 5 and March 12 at 6:00 p.m. are recorded and posted online.
  • Fire Incident: On March 2, a town resident, Glenn Hale, 61, died in a fire at Lafayette Careen Complex; the fire is under investigation and appears accidental.

Chairman's Report

  • Technical School Success: Six of seven students who applied for jobs at Electric Boat were hired, highlighting the high school's CNC program.
  • Flock Camera Data Management: A council member raised concerns about data governance, while the police chief defended the system's crime reduction results (car thefts down 81%, thefts from vehicles down 80%, shoplifting down 50%) and noted the state's recent policy updates. After a heated exchange, the chairman stated the council will seek a legal opinion on whether the town council has jurisdiction to set policy on this matter.
  • Economic Development Coordination: The chairman presented a draft matrix outlining roles among the town manager, economic development coordinator, and commissions; a future agenda item will address the need for an EDC coordinator amid budget constraints.

Council Discussion & Liaison Reports

  • Committee Updates: The Planning & Zoning Commission had not met. The Parks & Recreation Commission reported ongoing speaker issues at Indian River field. The Police Commission and Economic Development Commission were mentioned briefly.
  • Adjournment: The meeting was adjourned unanimously.

Meeting Transcript

March 4th, 2026. It's 8 a.m. And we are beginning our regular town hall, town council meetings. Town council meetings in a town hall in town hall. Uh let's do the Pledge of Allegiance. That is for you in mind leading us. Individual liberty and justice for all. Thank you. All right. First item of business on the agenda is as everyone has it is visitors. Do we have any visitors that would like to speak? Hearing none, moving on to item number three, approval of minutes. Would somebody on the town council like that make a motion to approve the minutes? So moved. Carry on is moved, second. Second. Second, Dennis. Discussion. All in favor? Aye. Opposed. Abstain. Motion carries unanimously. Appointments and reappointments. I see none this morning, Mary. Is that right? All right. Item five. Town manager's report moving. Oh no, transfers. Oh, sorry, I skipped it. Yeah, I didn't number it. Yeah, I always do that. Line item transfers. Okay. So we have the first one is a transfer of 28,000 with regard to this is the disposal of a what it's called, a trackless multi-purpose tractor. You want to tell us a little more about it? Um Todd's here. Todd? Sure. Back in 2016, we bought a trackless machine. It's a multi-purpose tractor that we can do different things with. Um when we can over the rail mower, under the guardrail mower. The whole goal was always to buy a snowblower for it. Um it's always falling off the radar. We've always had other priorities, but this winter is definitely put that back on the priority, and we auctioned off some surplus equipment, some old generators, that truck that blew the motor. We did a team municipal and it raised 28,000. And I'm asking if we can use the 20,500 of that to purchase the snowblower for the machine. Try to use find money that doesn't affect the tax rate and stop so I'm coming to ask if we can transfer that money. Great.

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