2020 May 30 JDH draft OLS BOG Meeting Minutes 53020v1
Old Lyme Shores Beach Association
BOG Meeting Minutes
Saturday, May 30, 2020
Via RingCentral Videoconference and Telephone
BOG in attendance:
Matt Merritt (MM), Pat Burns (PB), Bryan Even (BE), Frank Meaney (FM), Mary Kate Reynolds (MKR), Tom Annulli (TA), Joe Halloran (JH), Joanne Gilland (JG)
Absent: Cliff Winkel (CW), Norm Yester (NY)
Guests: Several OLSBA Members
MM called the meeting to order at 10:14 AM.
Minutes from 05/02/20 were approved (BE/TA)
- COVID-19: Impact and Control Measures
Guards are performing their duties which do not include enforcing beach goers to maintain social distancing. Signs were installed at various points along the beach and people must self govern.
- 2020 Taxes- Reduced Interest vs 90-Day
Governor Lamont signed Executive Order 7-S, which established two programs aimed at providing temporary tax relief to taxpayers. Municipalities are required to enact one or both of the following programs: Tax Deferment Program and the Interest Rate Reduction Program
OLS chose the same as the town of Old Lyme (low interest rate option). We will send out explanation in the tax bill which will be sent out for July 1. Board members expressed interest in sending out form with tax bill to determine of payment may be late. This will alert board if income or cash flow will be reduced or slower. Municipalities such as West Hartford are sending out application forms to alert them that payments will be late. Mill rate will be set in June and voted on.
- Private Funding
Since the state of CT will not pay for certain things in our project, OLS will have to look for private funding for these things (including some fees and drains on road project, etc). WPCA gave TA the authority to seek funding and he is talking with some local banks for favorable rates and relationships. We have to only borrow for the first year (1/20th of the fee) 1.1 million dollars.
- WPCA/CWC
CWC contractor VMS has resumed construction on Brightwater. CWC is connecting all existing customers to their water service. Still no ruling from Department of Public Health (DPH) on the 76 wells that are between 25 feet and 75 feet separation from the sewer line. OLS will be installing heavy duty sewer pipe to meet the 75’ separation requirement. It is anticipated that the homeowners with wells within 25 feet of sewer and lateral piping will have to abandon their wells. We have applied for a grant from DPH to assist well owners in connecting to CWC and abandoning their wells. DPH requires that we wait a period of time after CWC has completed their work and OLS bids in accordance with CT State bidding requirements. We anticipate receiving this grant. Each well owner that participates in the grant will assume their costs of connection and abandonment with a 25% subsidy and a 75% loan paid over time. Goal is to have as many well owners connect to CWC to minimize tearing up our new road in the future.
Storm Water Management/Drainage number- PB and JH met with F&O engineers and 95 percent of system design is completed. Primary outflow will be a larger pipe (24” vs existing 12”) at the crabbing rocks with a Sheffield Brook outflow as an overflow or backup. Goal is to minimize flooding by channeling the waterflow into catch basins and out to the sound. Requires increased review by DEEP Coastal Area Management with an 6 month review process. We have asked DEEP to allow us to bid our sewer project and have the CAM review done in parallel to minimize the delay.
JH wants to ensure information on minutes and updated costs are on website (oldlymeshores.org) for members.
TA voiced his concern that with the extra strain on state of Connecticut’s finances, are the bonds still in good standing? MM said he will discuss with Glen Santoro.
- Beach Cleaning for 2020
Beach cleaning was discussed in previous meeting to possibly being reduced but it was decided that cleaning would continue as usual. It is important to remove the seaweed from the beach so that the bacteria count would be reduced. Testing by the DPH would still be continued this summer and any seaweed buildup could contribute to the bacteria count and could contribute to a beach closing.
- Guard Update
FM gave update on guards’ roles and schedule. Collective decision by board to have guards start earlier to man the gates and jetty of the beach. This was due to closure of Old Lyme beaches and potential spillover of beach goers into OLS. MM said this was the procedure at other private beaches in Old Lyme. It was mentioned that this should be allowed to be a variable process adjustable when needed. Monday-Wednesday one guard is scheduled at the gate and Thursday -Sunday, two guards are scheduled at the gate. There are two guards on the beach during the week and on the weekends, a third guard is scheduled to cover lunches and breaks from 12-3.
Guards are responsible for putting social distancing signs out and collecting and locking them up on stairs between Sea Spray and Saltaire [as well as their other duties.]
FM also wanted the board to discuss the wording on our beach signs regarding dates and things such as dogs being allowed on the beach.
While Old Lyme beaches are closed or under half capacity, OLS streets will be closed during the week- the alternating street and the street which is under construction. The street under construction will never be the “open” street.
When Old Lyme beaches open, OLS will go back to the usual process of all streets open during the week.
Miscellaneous:
- 2020 Directory
MKR sent out questionnaire to members via email and will be making the changes and modifications. Directory would be sent out as an electronic pdf initially and then hard copies would be printed. It was discussed if hard copies are even necessary. A decision was not made on how many hard copies would be made.
- 2020 Rentals
Per governor, rentals under 32 days are still not permitted.
- 4th of July Update, MCM Band, Movies on The Beach
None of the above activities will be occurring during the 2020 summer due to the requirements of social distancing. The raft also will not be put out and the Lobster Bake will not be held.
- Spring Meeting Discussion
Discussion on the spring meeting and how to make it available for members to vote on budget. Governor gave governing boards the ability to vote on budgets.
TA made the motion to hold a virtual Spring Meeting on June 20th to pass the budget and elect BOG members. MKR seconded the motion.
- Website Pay Button for Association Dues
Website (oldlymeshores.org) now has a pay button for taxes. When selected, member can pay tax and through PayPal, have their taxes paid online. The board is looking at how the 2.2% convenience fee can be paid by the tax payer and not OLS.
- Gate Schedule (see above in Guard Update)
- June 13- Beach Rental
OLS Member reserving use of the beach for short private wedding ceremony.
- Buy-A-Brick Program
Announcements will be going out to public regarding the Buy a Brick Program. We have one year to raise the funds so we would like the OLS community to embrace the program. Please look on the website (oldlymeshores.org) for the cost and the design of the bricks.
- Other
Drinking fountain at the end of Brightwater will be closed the whole season due to health concerns due to COVID-19.
Member requesting to store jetskis on Billow Beach near the kayak racks and also wants to transport them from the storage site to the water using an ATV. Discussion ensued on the liability of motor vehicle on the beach as well as powerboats.
Public Comment:
Beach cleaning, virtual meetings, clarification on CWC and future full time occupants of OLS;
Concern with owner who requested storage of jetskis on the beach. She said that it was against the ordinances of Old Lyme Shores. Either the ordinance has to be repealed or the owner should be told to store the jetskis at the member’s house. Ordinance Section 1 states that there are no motor vehicles allowed on the beach and section 6 mentions the storage of non-motorized vessels at the end of Billow Road beach/sea wall area. BOG agreed that storage of jetskis and use of an ATV would not be allowed.
Meeting was adjourned at 11:46 AM (TA/FM))
Minutes respectfully submitted by Joanne Gilland, Secretary Old Lyme Shores Beach Association