Huge Turnout At Special Town Meeting

The four items on the agenda for the March 30 were all approved (one was sent to a referendum vote) by a large gathering of registered voters, property owners, electors and others qualified to vote at a Clinton Town Meeting.

First up on the agenda was a list of potential for an April 6 referendum vote. The bonding items, which total $9,380,000 were discussed, but not voted upon at the town meeting.

As First Selectman Willie Fritz explained, bonding items for referendum vote must first be presented for discussion at a town meeting according to state statutes.

"We have not pushed these items through as some have said," he noted. "The committees for the bonding projects have been working on them for one and a half years."

include $2 million for restoration and renovations to the town hall; $985,000 for an artificial turf playing field at Indian River Recreational Complex; $120,000 for a building that will contain restrooms and a concession stand at the town beach, and other items.

The second agenda item was to vote on the appropriation of $47,000 from the contingency line item to the Department of Public Works equipment repairs and maintenance account. That was approved by a unanimous approval of "yea's" from the crowd.

The third agenda item asked voters to reallocate $40,000 of the $126,789 (remaining from four municipal building committee projects) to the Pleasant Valley bridge project. Again, there was near unanimous approval with one "ney."

The last agenda item drove the most amount of discussion from the audience. It concerned the appropriation of $19,000 for architectural services to prepare the conceptual drawings for the Morgan School building study from the town's contingency fund.

Resident Philip Sengle said he was originally skeptical about building a new high school, but now supports the idea.

"The future of our nation and our property values can be improved by a new school building," he said.

Martin Shapiro asked why an additional $19,000 wasn't being spent on looking at renovations to the building.

"We're talking a $35 million bond here," said Shapiro. "We need to carefully analyze whether a repair and rehabilitation would be a better alternative."

In the end, the final agenda item passed by a resounding "yea" to "ney" and a show of hands of 21 who voted against the appropriation.

According to Registrar of Voters June Hansen, a total of 241 voters and electors signed in upon entrance to the town meeting. Thus, the final vote on the $19,000 appropriation was 220 "yea" to 21 "ney."