OPENPUBLICA · PUBLIC MEETING RECORD
Record of Proceedings

Windsor Town Council Meeting – September 8, 2026

Town Council & Planning and ZoningTuesday, September 8, 2026
BodyWindsor, Connecticut
SessionTown Council & Planning and Zoning
DateTuesday, September 8, 2026
StatusNEW · FILED
Video Record
0:00 / 1:01:35

Transcript — Verbatim
5:00

I'm gonna open up the Windsor Town Council meeting.

5:01

It is 7 30, and uh we have all our counselors present except for the mayor.

5:07

I mean Mayor Nishette Black Burke sends her regrets she will not be here this evening.

5:12

And so I will call on Councillor Pelkey for the prayer or reflection and the pledge of allegiance.

5:16

Thank you, Madam Deputy Mayor.

5:18

Um dear Lord, thank you for this gathering.

5:21

We ask for your wisdom, your guidance, and above all, your mercy in keeping this meeting fruitful and as short as possible.

5:30

Thank you.

5:34

That's unfortunate.

5:36

I pledge of the United States of America and public for which it stands, one nation, other uh indivisible.

5:53

Thank you.

5:53

We have no proclamations or awards, so now we will go into public communications.

5:59

The town council welcomes and values public comment.

6:02

We ask that all speakers conduct themselves with civility and respect.

6:05

Please do not refer to any other speakers by name or use derogatory, inflammatory, or disrespectful language when expressing your views.

6:13

Please note that this portion of the meeting is for the council to listen to the public's input.

6:18

The council does not respond to questions or engage in discussion during public comment.

6:23

Your comments will be received and considered as part of the public record.

6:27

Thank you for your participation and for helping to maintain a respectful and productive meeting environment.

6:33

So we are now on to public communications.

6:35

If anyone from the public would like to address the council, you'll be given three minutes to speak.

6:40

Please state your name and address.

6:51

And I will now turn this over to the moderator, Scott Colby, Assistant Town Manager.

6:56

Thank you, Madam Deputy Mayor.

6:58

Uh, if there's anyone from the public who would like to address the council, you may do so by raising your hand on your computer by selecting the participants icon in the zoom menu bar and then clicking raise hand or by dialing star nine on your phone.

7:08

You'll be given three minutes to speak.

7:10

Please state your name and address when you were called on.

7:12

You'd be prompted that you are now unmuted.

7:14

For those dialing in by phone, once prompted, you will then press star six to unmute.

7:18

For clear communication, we ask that you do not place the call on speaker phone.

7:25

We do have one individual with their hand raised.

7:34

To our first caller, you were now on muted.

7:39

Hello, this is James Shabbat Weingart 20 Tiffany Drive.

7:43

I am asking the town council to uh direct the Department of Public Works to cover uh or otherwise disable the ALPR cameras that we have ended the contract of uh until they are removed, uh disabled, covered, obscured in some way.

8:03

Uh we my family and my neighbors uh won't be able to feel safe traveling the streets.

8:11

Um we don't have any confidence in uh Flock in particular's ability to uh to keep the cameras off.

8:22

They've shown that they are willing to lie to other towns and cities uh across the U.S.

8:29

And uh we also don't want uh any of this kind of surveillance, uh any ALPRs or anything like that, regardless of what company they're from.

8:40

Thank you very much.

8:40

Have a good day.

8:42

Thank you.

8:45

This time we have no other other virtual attendees with their hand raised.

8:48

All right, anybody from the public in the room, please come up, state your name and address, and you'll have three minutes.

8:59

Good evening.

9:00

Good evening.

9:00

Michelle Vinelli, 1152 Pequanic Avenue.

9:04

Regarding the proposed waterside apartment conversion, my thinking is this too much too fast without time to do just the ramifications of such an apartment explosion once fully occupied.

9:17

My taxpayer concern are we creating a financial headache for ourselves by approving the waterside?

9:24

Currently, we've got founders and selective apartments under construction and can't even figure out the impact on the traffic flow.

9:33

Combine that with other constructions such as Pequani Commons, plus is Great Pond Village even done with their behemoth um apartment phases?

9:45

Lord knows what else I'm unaware of.

9:47

I'm thinking until all these bills are completed and occupied, we're dealing with too many unknown variables regarding new tenants.

9:55

We can estimate the number of occupants, but we can't estimate ages.

10:01

Are they the majority children or senior citizens?

10:05

We can't know until leases are assigned.

10:08

That will be an indication what will strain our schools, our state mandated special ed needs, our senior services plus our police, fire and ambulance services.

10:20

It also raises the very important question.

10:24

At what point does it become necessary to have a paid fire and ambulance company?

10:29

Funding those comes at enormous expense.

10:32

Also, another consideration.

Discussion Breakdown — Share of Meeting
Youth Programs████████████████████████24%
Education and Youth███████████████████████23%
Procedural████████████████16%
Personnel Matters███████7%
Affordable Housing██████6%
Public Engagement█████5%
Public Safety████4%
Special Events████4%
Public Building Commission████4%
Summary of Proceedings

Windsor Town Council Meeting – September 8, 2026

Deputy Mayor presided over the regular Town Council meeting on September 8, 2026, at 7:30 PM (local time). The meeting included public comment, reports from the Board of Education and Town Manager, and votes on three action items.

Public Comments & Testimony

  • James Shabbat Weingart (20 Tiffany Drive) asked the council to direct the Department of Public Works to cover, disable, or obscure the ALPR cameras from Flock (the contract for which has been ended). He expressed lack of confidence in Flock's ability to keep cameras off and general opposition to such surveillance.
  • Michelle Vinelli (1152 Pequanic Avenue) opposed the proposed waterside apartment conversion, arguing the town is approving too much development too quickly without understanding the cumulative impacts on traffic, schools, emergency services, and town finances. She urged the council to wait until current projects (Founders, Selective, Pequani Commons, Great Pond Village) are completed and occupied before approving additional large apartment complexes.

Discussion Items

  • Council Member Communications: Councillors shared back-to-school safety reminders, congratulations to students, and highlighted upcoming community events (Chili Fest, MSGO bike ride, Rotary food packaging). Councillor Naeem noted an economic development workshop held the prior week and encouraged residents to view the recording.
  • Board of Education Report (Secretary Zodder): The school year began September 1 with a successful convocation and block party. Enrollment stands at 3,098 students, with a slight decline due to a renewed residency verification effort. A new district-wide personal electronics policy ("away for the day") was implemented, requiring most student devices to be stored in lockers all day. The high school offers 25 AP and 30 early college courses. The Pequanic Elementary playground rebuild is expected to be complete by mid-November. Pay-to-play revenues are projected at $70,425, with additional cost-saving measures adopted.
  • Town Manager's Report (Mr. Sousa): Announced the 25th anniversary 9/11 remembrance (Friday evening), upcoming events (Freedom Trail run, e-cycle event, Lions tag sale, Fife & Drum muster, Monarch Festival). Bridge replacement projects at Custer Park, Wilson Gateway Park, and Stro Park will begin in October. The Town Manager addressed recent library conditions (HVAC and groundwater issues) and reported that engineering assessments are underway. He also recognized the retirement of Paul Goldberg, who contributed to emergency communications, radio systems, and cost-saving contracts.
  • Action Item: Job Descriptions for Library Director & Lending Services Manager – Presented by HR Manager Sophia Costellanis: updates to reflect current responsibilities with no pay grade changes. Approved 8–0.
  • Action Item: Youth Violence Prevention Grant – Presented by Recreation Director Paul Norris: authorize town manager to apply for and expend $15,000 from DECD to fund free teen center access and youth swim passes. Approved 8–0.
  • Action Item: Juvenile Review Board Grant – Presented by Paul Norris: authorize acceptance and expenditure of $13,000 from DCF to support youth diversion teams, purchase case management software, and fund program activities (e.g., cupcake chat, anger management training). Approved 8–0.
  • Resignations Accepted: Rachel Cusano from Fair Rent Commission, and Noel (last name not stated) from Fair Rent Commission. Approved 8–0.
  • Minutes Approval: Minutes of August 3, 2026 regular meeting approved 8–0.

Key Outcomes

  • Job descriptions for library director and lending services manager approved (8–0).
  • Application for Youth Violence Prevention Grant ($15,000) authorized and funds accepted (8–0).
  • Juvenile Review Board Grant ($13,000) accepted and expenditure authorized (8–0).
  • Resignations of two Fair Rent Commission members accepted (8–0).
  • Minutes of August 3, 2026 meeting approved (8–0).

Meeting Transcript

I'm gonna open up the Windsor Town Council meeting. It is 7 30, and uh we have all our counselors present except for the mayor. I mean Mayor Nishette Black Burke sends her regrets she will not be here this evening. And so I will call on Councillor Pelkey for the prayer or reflection and the pledge of allegiance. Thank you, Madam Deputy Mayor. Um dear Lord, thank you for this gathering. We ask for your wisdom, your guidance, and above all, your mercy in keeping this meeting fruitful and as short as possible. Thank you. That's unfortunate. I pledge of the United States of America and public for which it stands, one nation, other uh indivisible. Thank you. We have no proclamations or awards, so now we will go into public communications. The town council welcomes and values public comment. We ask that all speakers conduct themselves with civility and respect. Please do not refer to any other speakers by name or use derogatory, inflammatory, or disrespectful language when expressing your views. Please note that this portion of the meeting is for the council to listen to the public's input. The council does not respond to questions or engage in discussion during public comment. Your comments will be received and considered as part of the public record. Thank you for your participation and for helping to maintain a respectful and productive meeting environment. So we are now on to public communications. If anyone from the public would like to address the council, you'll be given three minutes to speak. Please state your name and address. And I will now turn this over to the moderator, Scott Colby, Assistant Town Manager. Thank you, Madam Deputy Mayor. Uh, if there's anyone from the public who would like to address the council, you may do so by raising your hand on your computer by selecting the participants icon in the zoom menu bar and then clicking raise hand or by dialing star nine on your phone. You'll be given three minutes to speak. Please state your name and address when you were called on. You'd be prompted that you are now unmuted. For those dialing in by phone, once prompted, you will then press star six to unmute. For clear communication, we ask that you do not place the call on speaker phone. We do have one individual with their hand raised. To our first caller, you were now on muted. Hello, this is James Shabbat Weingart 20 Tiffany Drive. I am asking the town council to uh direct the Department of Public Works to cover uh or otherwise disable the ALPR cameras that we have ended the contract of uh until they are removed, uh disabled, covered, obscured in some way. Uh we my family and my neighbors uh won't be able to feel safe traveling the streets. Um we don't have any confidence in uh Flock in particular's ability to uh to keep the cameras off. They've shown that they are willing to lie to other towns and cities uh across the U.S. And uh we also don't want uh any of this kind of surveillance, uh any ALPRs or anything like that, regardless of what company they're from. Thank you very much. Have a good day. Thank you. This time we have no other other virtual attendees with their hand raised. All right, anybody from the public in the room, please come up, state your name and address, and you'll have three minutes. Good evening. Good evening. Michelle Vinelli, 1152 Pequanic Avenue. Regarding the proposed waterside apartment conversion, my thinking is this too much too fast without time to do just the ramifications of such an apartment explosion once fully occupied. My taxpayer concern are we creating a financial headache for ourselves by approving the waterside? Currently, we've got founders and selective apartments under construction and can't even figure out the impact on the traffic flow. Combine that with other constructions such as Pequani Commons, plus is Great Pond Village even done with their behemoth um apartment phases?

SUMMARIZED BY OPENPUBLICA AI
TRANSCRIPT VIA PUBLIC VIDEO
openpublica.com