Democracy in action

SALISBURY — It was a busy year for Salisbury.Selectman Mark Lauretano, a Republican, kept a high profile during his first year on the Board of Selectmen. The retired state trooper brought a number of issues, often controversial, to the board and clashed repeatedly with Selectman Jim Dresser and First Selectman Curtis Rand, both Democrats.Lauretano was critical of Dresser’s handling of payments to tradespeople during the rehabilitation of a town-owned house on Academy Street; he spoke out on several occasions about what he believed to be a suspect real estate transaction involving an apartment house in Lakeville, the Women’s Institute for Housing and Economic Development, the Affordable Housing Commission and the involvement of commission chairman Bob Riva. Lauretano called for Riva’s resignation, which Rand, after his own investigation, refused to do. Lauretano then criticized Rand’s investigation.Lauretano also kept the heat on for the adoption of a code of ethics for town employees and officials (elected and appointed). A draft code (available on the town website) went through several revisions as the selectmen met with town employees and received feedback and suggestions. At a Dec. 15 meeting, Lauretano’s proposed code of ethics — and the ethics commission to provide enforcement — was met with considerable skepticism, with strong opposition expressed by Don Mayland (a Board of Finance member) and Roger Rawlings (a longtime member of the Board of Education), among others.Lauretano proposed that meetings of the Board of Selectmen begin with a moment of silence for American military personnel and the recitation of the Pledge of Allegiance. Rand and Dresser voted against the pledge, and voted for a compromise on the moment of silence, to be held during the May and November meetings (to coincide with the Memorial and Veterans Day holidays).Rand read a statement explaining his reasons for voting against the pledge, and Lauretano then published a letter to The Lakeville Journal (one of several during the year) taking Rand to task on a number of issues.In addition to letters to newspapers, Lauretano also maintained a blog on the Republican Town Committee website and posted a video describing the events of the November selectmen’s meeting (which was not videotaped by CATV-6).Dresser pushed back over the course of the year, objecting to both the content and length of Lauretano’s remarks, and Rand did what he could to keep the meetings moving forward.The former firehouseThe fate of the old firehouse on Sharon Road was not resolved in 2012. Members of the Planning and Zoning Commission and Board of Finance joined the selectmen at a special meeting Oct. 1, after a second offer from Frank Gallogly to buy the two buildings at 9 and 9A Sharon Road (for $475,000) was made and then withdrawn during the summer. (Gallogly made a similar offer last year.)Suggestions from that meeting included lowering the price, and the general mood was one of frustration.Amesville bridgeSpeaking of frustration, the one-lane bridge over the Housatonic River from the Amesville section of Salisbury to Falls Village was closed indefinitely April 26, after the state Department of Transportation (DOT) inspected the bridge and recommended it be closed until full repairs can be made. The two towns, with Salisbury taking the lead, applied for and received federal grant money to repair or replace the bridge. Sentiment in both towns was strong that the bridge should remain one lane and stay where it is. Updated POCDThe Planning and Zoning Commission wrote a new Town Plan of Conservation and Development (POCD), after several meetings with residents and a great deal of work. The P&Z also took on the task of revising the town’s zoning regulations; the POCD forms the basis of those regulations.News from Salisbury youthThe Board of Finance raised the mill rate from 10 to 10.2 for the 2012-13 fiscal year, largely to offset the expected hike in the town’s Region One School District assessment as Salisbury sends a larger than usual number of students to Housatonic Valley Regional High School.Two alumni of Salisbury Central School, Don Mitchell and Keith Boynton, brought a camera crew to town in July. Boynton was making a music video for “Terrible Things,” a song by Mitchell’s band, Darlingside (which plays at Infinity Hall in Norfolk on Jan. 12), and they shot scenes in LaBonne’s, with Salisbury residents as extras.For the second year, Camp Sloane YMCA hosted children of Connecticut military personnel for a two-week stay at the camp. The campers have a parent in the deployment stage — going into action, in action or returning from action. Lisa Carter, a social studies teacher at the regional high school, took over as interim principal at Salisbury Central School after Chris Butwill resigned in August to take a job closer to home. The village centerFriends of Robert Willis, chef and owner of Cafe Giulia, who died June 28, established a large table and chairs in the courtyard between LaBonne’s, Salisbury Bank and the pharmacy/coffee shop in honor of their friend.And in the same neighborhood, work on Academy Street — improved drainage, new sidewalks and repaving the street — began in the fall. An unexpected bonus came when representatives of Connecticut Light & Power told Rand that it would be easier and cheaper to bury the utility lines on that part of Academy Street than to replace the utility poles. The selectmen voted to include that and new lighting at the Route 44 crosswalks in Salisbury and at Bicentennial Park in Lakeville as part of a state grant package.MilestonesThe 2011-12 town report was dedicated to Rusty Chandler, who led the fundraising effort for the new firehouse on Brook Street.Noble Horizons celebrated its 40th anniversary.The war memorial at Town Hall received a new plaque honoring Salisbury men who died in the Revolutionary War.A stone marker, reading “Charlotte Remington, 1891-1968,” was noticed on a hiking trail in Dark Hollow. Who put it there, and why, remains a mystery.Salisbury lost two giants with the deaths of John Fitch Oct. 31 and Carl Williams Jan. 13.