Historic District Commission To Apply For Second Grant

Is appears that not all state money available to small towns has dried up, said Larry Ouellette, chairman of the town's Historic District Commission (HDC).

"There is still grant money available," noted Ouellette, who appeared before the Board of Selectmen at their meeting Oct. 19.

He asked the board's approval to apply for a second grant - this one for $30,000 to complete an inventory of historic structures in town.

The HDC received a $20,000 grant in the past that was used to conduct an inventory of about half of the 158 historic homes and structures in town.

"An inventory had never been done," said Ouellette. "It is important as we need to know what we have to ultimately protect these historic structures from possible destruction."

When utilizing the previous grant money for the historic survey, the HDC had to adhere to state regulations which included using the services of an architectural historian. The HDC also used the services of former town planner Jay Northrup, who is now an employee of the Connecticut River Estuary Planning Agency (CREPA).

Ouellette said the HDC would submit the application for the second grant in the next two weeks. They should receive word on whether or not the town received the grant by the end of this year.

Although the $30,000 grant is non-matching, meaning the town does not have to put forth a certain amount (usually half) of the funds to receive it, it will cost the town about $2,400, explained Ouellette.

How it would work is that the town will need to hire a consultant, such as Northrup, which would cost about $8,900 per CREPA's calculation.

"Mary Dunn from the state told us we could use grant money to pay for 50 percent of this service, or around $4,450," said Ouellette.

Of that $4,450, Ouellette said the HDC could complete $2,000 worth of work.

First Selectman Willie Fritz advised Ouellette and the HDC to apply for the grant first.

"After you are awarded the grant money, then you can go to the Board of Finance to request the $2,450," said Fritz.

Selectman Thomas Vicino pointed out that if all goes well, "it looks like it will cost the town $2,450 to get $30,000."