Ridgway promotes regional cooperation in first meeting

LITCHFIELD – Cornwall First Selectman Gordon Ridgway presided over his first meeting Thursday, July 9, as chairman of the Northwest Hills Council of Governments (COG), a regional organization representing 21 Northwest Connecticut communities. He opened the meeting by reviving a roundtable discussion among local leaders, prompting updates on storm recovery, speed cameras and infrastructure projects.

Ridgway, who was elected chairman last month and has served 35 years as a first selectman, said his goal is to strengthen coordination among member towns and ensure the organization focuses on issues that matter most to local officials.

The roundtable, discontinued several years ago because it often ran long, gives each first selectman and mayor one minute to share challenges, accomplishments and other news from their communities. Ridgway said he believes the discussion helps officials learn from one another and serves as a mentoring opportunity for newer municipal leaders.

The goal is to “make sure the COG is mutually supportive and relevant and is dealing with issues that are important to the town leaders,” he said.

During the roundtable, many of the first selectmen pointed to the value of mutual aid from neighboring towns following the July 4 storm, which carved a narrow path of destruction from Salisbury southeast into Hartford County.

Curtis Rand, first selectman of Salisbury, which was among the hardest hit communities, said he appreciated the support from fellow leaders. “Within hours, many of you sent me texts and emails,” he said.

Falls Village First Selectman Dave Barger said his town was similarly impacted, and also extended his gratitude to those who reached out with aid. “This is what the COG is all about,” he said – “the ability to share those resources.”

However, Barger added, “We’re not quite as happy with the Connecticut [Department of Transportation],” noting slow response times to state roads that were blocked by many downed trees following the storm. Several other community leaders echoed his dissatisfaction.

Torrington, Burlington and Harwinton were also heavily impacted by the storm, and several selectmen reported aid they had provided, especially to Harwinton, which included response crews from New Hartford and Starlink trailers for cell service from Burlington.

Aside from emergency storm updates, speed cameras were also discussed at length among the group.

Litchfield’s Denise Raap and Warren’s Gregory LaCava reported ongoing projects and investigations regarding the traffic enforcement measure, which has proved controversial in area towns.

Winchester Town Manager Paul Harrington said that the town was 30 to 45 days away from installing its own cameras, but that the process had been arduous. He offered his support and advice for any community considering implementing them – “It is a tremendous lift to get it over the finish line.”

Otherwise, several towns outlined ongoing capital projects, many of them related to downtown improvements and infrastructure updates.

Norfolk’s First Selectman Henry Tirrell said his main focus is a long-term ongoing construction of a retaining wall alongside Route 44 and several other bridge projects.

Warren’s LaCava spoke to a town center revitalization project in Warren, while Rand updated the group on two initiatives ongoing at Hotchkiss School, where sidewalks connecting campus to downtown Lakeville are in development, and Salisbury School, where a pedestrian tunnel is currently under construction. Both projects aremeant to get students off of busy state highways.

Kent First Selectman Eric Epstein announced that the second phase of a long term project to replace downtown sidewalks is moving forward, and that he hopes construction will begin later this summer. Phase one, completed in 2023, replaced sidewalks on both sides of North Main Street between the intersections with Route 341 and the railroad tracks. Phase two will focus on South Main Street and Maple Street.

He also reported that he had ordered access to a popular swimming hole on the Housatonic River to be closed the weekend of July 11 to 13 in response to overcrowding and litter during the Fourth of July holiday. “There were piles and piles of garbage,” he said.“It’s become unmanageable.”