Unexpected bounty: State offers STEAP funds

FALLS VILLAGE — The Board of Selectmen gave its tentative blessing at a meeting May 9 to three organizations that wish to apply for state grants.First Selectman Pat Mechare said the state of Connecticut had released $20 million for Small Town Economic Assistance Program (STEAP) grants — to her surprise.“I think the reason they released the money is it was already budgeted,” she said, adding she wasn’t optimistic about the program continuing, at least not at the same level of funding.The town can apply for up to $500,000. The three organizations seeking funds are the Falls Village-Canaan Historical Society, the D.M. Hunt Library, and the Northwestern Connecticut Regional Planning Collaborative.Mechare said she is waiting for concrete proposals from the first two. Selectman Chuck Lewis said the Historical Society wishes to restore the steeple at the South Canaan Meeting House.The outside is fine, he said, but the interior has been repaired in a somewhat haphazard manner over the years, and while structurally sound, does need to be rebuilt.The library is already the recipient of a STEAP grant, but one big ticket item on the wish list is an elevator.The planning group’s request is already in, for $50,000. The money would be used to continue work that is already going on, with the Village Vitality effort and other projects.Mechare asked the selectmen to give conditional approval to $200,000 apiece for the Historical Society and the library.The STEAP grant applications go through the first selectman’s office, and Mechare has become skilled at shepherding the applications through the often cumbersome process. Falls Village has been fortunate in recent years, receiving multiple STEAP grants for the volunteer fire department, the library and the Falls Village Community and Cultural Center at 103 Main St.Other businessIt being spring, several matters popped up on the fertile soil of the selectmen’s agenda. Alison Orr-Andrawes resigned from the Planning and Zoning Commission; there was a request from John Matthews (referred to the Recreation Commission) to start a community garden on the Town Farm property, near the town pool; Mark Burdick volunteered to mow another section of the Town Farm property in exchange for the hay (also referred on to the Recreation Commission).The selectmen approved the use of the town Green for the fire department’s Farms and Crafts market on the first Saturday of every month, from June to October; the use of the Green for the second installment of a car show, scheduled for July 24, was also approved.The selectmen agreed to a request from the Historical Society to waive the fees for disposing of debris from the collapsed roof in the rear of the building, and authorized the opening of the transfer station on Sunday, June 5, to accomodate the leftover items from the Friends of the Lee H. Kellogg School-Falls Village Day Care tag sale that weekend, and to waive any fees.Mechare said she would call a special meeting for next week to discuss the options for financing the new firehouse, and the selectmen authorized her to sign a contract for $36,000 with the YMCA for lifeguards at the pool this summer.