Vote on new Grove building will be held Oct. 14

SALISBURY — The Board of Selectmen announced an upcoming special town meeting and a special selectmen’s meeting and provided updates on ongoing projects during the regular monthly meeting Monday, Oct. 5.

Moving forward at Grove

The special town meeting is Wednesday, Oct. 14, 7:30 p.m. at Town Hall, to vote on a resolution to approve expenditures of up to $250,000 from three different accounts for partial funding of the new building at the Town Grove.

First Selectman Curtis Rand said the bids for the Grove building “came in a little high,� so the building committee asked the architect and construction manager for some cost savings.

The most significant change to the plan is to abandon the post-and-beam interior.

Rand said the modified plan will have the same large main room, the fireplace — and perhaps a beam or two for aesthetic purposes.

The bulk of the money for the Grove project was donated from private sources. The town meeting’s agenda includes up to $20,000 from the town’s Capital Building Fund — money Rand said had been set aside for the Grove in previous years.

“If we can do the entire project with $20,000 of town money, that’s remarkable,� Rand said.

The building committee will be at the town meeting to answer questions.

New curbs on village streets

The special selectmen’s meeting is the following Wednesday, Oct. 21, 6 p.m. at Town Hall, to provide the public with information about the new curbing project in Salisbury.

Rand said that the town’s share of federal stimulus money is up (from $244,000 to about $296,000) as the result of one of the member towns in the Northwestern Connecticut Council of Governments dropping out of the process of sharing the $1.1 million received.

The curbing was to be part of the 2003 effort to fix up Lakeville’s sidewalks, but the sidewalks themselves used up all of the state grant.

Rand said the engineer, Jim Ford, has redesigned the curb specifications to comply with state Department of Transportation regulations. The preliminary plans are available in the Town Hall lobby.

Town report available

Also on Oct. 21, the annual town meeting and dedication of the town report is scheduled for 7:30 p.m.

Selectman Bob Riva gave an update on the new firehouse. Interior demolition has begun; most of the contracts are ready to be finalized, he said.

In other business

Rand said he had received an e-mail from the state Department of Economic and Community Development that they had accepted a bid from the firm of Leggette, Brashears and Grahame, Inc., to conduct the Phase 1 Environmental Site Assessment at the former Decker’s Laundry  at 17 Perry St.

The selectmen noted the resignation of Lou Burgess from the Historic District Commission (HDC) and expressed their thanks for her long service to the town.

They also appointed Elvia Gignoux, Arthur Taylor and Leon McLain to the HDC.

And the board, again with regret and thanks, accepted the resignation of Ann Cuddy from the Scenic Roads Committee. Rand said Cuddy is planning to live in Oregon at least part of the year and thought someone else should have a chance to serve.

The selectmen appointed Margie Vail to the committee, and asked for clarification as to whether Len Stewart is already a member. If he isn’t, they plan to appoint him too.