Kent monument move awaits further detail

KENT – For a second time, the Board of Selectmen tabled a proposal to move the Kent Veterans Monument from its current position next to the Swift House to Town Hall during a June 16 meeting, citing a need for more information.

Marty Lindenmayer, former first selectman and a member of the Kent Veterans Memorial Advisory Committee, outlined the plans to the BOS, explaining that the move is intended to place the commemorative plaza in what he described as a more convenient and serene location.

“Every event, every celebration and every recognition we do there is interrupted with Route 341 traffic,” he said, noting that tree growth and a lack of parking have also caused issues.

Currently located just east of the historic Swift House building on Route 341, the proposal would reposition the monument to a grassy area between the western facade of Town Hall and Kent Green Boulevard. The plan was approved by the Veterans Memorial Advisory Committee on May 15, but must receive the selectmen’s endorsement before it can move forward.

The monument was installed at its current site in 2009, and contains five plaques honoring soldiers who served in World War II, the Korean War, the Vietnam War, as well as additional military operations in Lebanon, Grenada, Panama, Operation Desert Storm and the broader Gulf War era. Lindenmayer said that it was the only option presented to the Committee at that point and that the time has come to rehome the monument in a location “more available to the townspeople and more presentable than where it is now.”

In an initial letter to the BOS on May 22, Lindenmayer noted that moving the monument would also disentangle it from the Swift House, which faces an uncertain future as a municipally-owned property.

The selectmen’s reactions to the proposal have been lukewarm. First Selectman Eric Epstein noted at both the June 16 meeting and a May 28 special meeting that residents had reached out with several concerns, including a lack of public input on the plans.

Selectman Lynn Worthington put her thoughts more bluntly: “I fear that it is just a few people that are against the Swift House and are using this as another opportunity to have another reason why we shouldn’t have the Swift House,” she said during the May 28 meeting.

“The reasons that they’re giving for moving it just don’t make a lot of sense to me,” she added, noting her skepticism that the Town Hall location would draw more pedestrians than on “one of the two major roads of our town.” Worthington also advocated for a public forum on the issue.

At the June 16 meeting, Epstein asked Lindenmayer to return with elevation and layout drawings for the proposed site before the Board could issue any decision.

Lindenmayer reported that the project price was estimated between $7,500 and $8,000 dollars with some volunteer prep work on the site, and that the Veterans Memorial Committee and American Legion Post were fundraising to offset costs.

He said a new monument for 44 veterans of the Revolutionary War from town, confirmed by both the Historical Society and Daughters of the American Revolution, had already been commissioned by the Legion, and is intended to be ready for viewing in time for July 4 celebrations. Ultimately, it is intended to join the five other plaques at the Veterans Monument.

“In conjunction with the 250th, I think it’s a great way to go forward,” he said.