OLSBA 2022 Fall Meeting
Saturday 9/24/2022
Old Lyme Middle School Auditorium
53 Lyme Street
Old Lyme, CT
Board of Governors and Association officers in attendance: Bryan Even (BE), JoanneGilland(JG), MaryKate Reynolds(MKR), Tom Annulli(TA), Al Roy(AR),Lou Ricelli(LR)
Absent:John Mandracchia, Norm Yester, Kathi Stickley
Member Guests: Approx. 52 including board
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Meeting Call to Order : 10:03 AM
Welcome – Introductions and Remarks- BEIntroduction of present board members
Approval of Minutes of Spring Meeting- 6/18/2022-TA/MKR
FinancialsTA-YTD Budget Review- slight mill rate increase to cover minimum wage for guard rates, inflationary factors but the balance sheet is strong.
Safety, Security, Guards– Some issues have been raised by residents regarding guards’ duties and actions. Issues include the enforcing of rules and regulations. Guards should be able to call Old Lyme Police as back up for any criminal activity.
Underage drinking early in the morning on the beach – may be visitors coming from the direction of Miami or Old Colony Beach.
Vandalism occurred this summer to some residents’ homes including the destruction of sections of hedges of one property owner as well as roofing nails thrown on lawn of another resident. The same owner experienced objects thrown through window. Police recommended motion sensor lights as well as security cameras for homeowners. Police will step up their presence with more frequent patrols.
Speeding on the roads has been at an all time high; next summer guards will be reminding visitors to keep rate at 15 mph.
Stop signs are for anyone on wheels including cars, carts, bikes, scooters
The 3 new radar signs have finally arrived and will be installed.
Other safety concerns include residents riding bikes and scooters on the sea walls which some may be privately owned.
Julia Nixon- Saltaire Rd-wants a job description for the guards, would like to see them wearing shoes and standing up while talking with guests. She does not believe that a raise should be in store.
Jill Morahan- Sea Lane– believes that the 2 points of egress (the open street and path to Old Colony Beach) should have a stationed guard.
Wendy Zito- Saltaire Rd- commented about the residents having a tag or resident identifier bracelet for the beach; also commented on the necessity of cleaning the sand on the ends of the streets at the beach and also would like to see a sign on all entrances to the beach with the rules/customs.
Old Lyme Rangers could be a source of employment on weekends. They have a direct contact with the police department.
Beach– George Finley- satisfied with the beach cleaning this past season; raft and line should be taken in the next week; water quality was tested weekly this summer and had all good reports.
WPCA Update –AR-presented current options regarding the OLS infrastructure project.
Option 1- Stay the Course- Pursue substantial grant funding; CWF Loan repayment deferred to January 2024 (per recent agreement with CT Treasury); Possibly execute the construction phase in Q4 2023?; Stay in compliance with the consent order. This option is supported by DEEP.
Option 2- Pause the Project- use the time to possibly reconfigure the project; explore the advantages of possibly having the town take the lead; DEEP’s posture is unknown.
Option 3- Abort the Project- secure required legal representation/retainers; strategic approach to limit financial exposures; DEEP’s posture would be unknown.
(WPCA presentation will be posted on the website oldlymeshores.orgincluding all links to summary timeline, project scope, bond resolution etc)
Organizational summary and cost sharing relationship structure between the three beaches and Old Lyme with the State of CT DEEP, Town of East Lyme and the City of New London presented.
Project Status: On hold; no new expenditures authorized (will incur legal expense for CWF loan closing in January 2023.) Loan repayment obligations deferred to January 2024. Loan will continue to accrue interest. Recent meeting with DEEP and CT Treasury. DEEP acknowledged our good-faith efforts and due diligence to date to comply with the consent order.
Next Steps-Continue collaboration with the Shared Municipal Sewer Alliance; Formulate a resolution(s) for vote by residents- may need to cancel existing current resolution and create a new one or resolution to abort (association would need to develop a new resolution to address road repair/improvement and stormwater remediation). Tentative vote Spring Meeting 2023.
Resident- would like a lobbying effort to be in place to assist us with our mission; can put together a professional alliance.
AR responded that OLS had shared in the hiring services of a lobbyist.
Several residents had concerns including not wanting OLS to give up autonomy in exchange for associating with the town. One resident felt that doing so would violate the charter of our association and status of our private beach association.
AR responded the potential agreement with town would be approached with extreme caution and high level of legal input; many advantages to association but would come at a cost.
One resident seeked clarifications on if there were any beach closures, septic failures, proof of pollution by our association members. Would like homeowners to be more responsible in maintaining their septic systems and pumping out more regularly.
AR wanted misrepresentations regarding status of sewer project to be cleared up. AR’s effort is in place to navigate the course as a representative of the association and not personal wishes. Consent order was issued by DEEP. Conclusion based on our topography and other physical means was looked at and that brought about the consent order. Any contract signed is available on the OLS website. All easements, land acquisitions in place before DEEP gave authorization to go to bid.
Some residents requested more information on specific costs to the homeowner and to include real figures for items such as electricity and costs associated with staffing for the pumphouse. A resident requested information of what a current bid would bring; thinks homeowners’ responsibilities may be 20-25% higher due to inflationary values; wants contracts with East Lyme and New London to be examined.
A resident who previously estimated 85 k per house, is still seeking a transparent estimate per household. He has concerns about the road conditions and the timeline that they will be repaired; wants to know if we own the blueprints designed by the engineering firm.
BE– stated that the project may not be able to occur if the cost per household is 85 K as there are many variables on play but it is above what we voted on and would have to be brought forward for a new vote. Everything that has been discussed and anything that has been produced will be posted as minutes on the website. We have to comply to the consent order and DEEP has the obligation to enforce it.
AR– sent all documents to complete a resident’s FOI request and stated he has discharged his responsibilities.
Issues and Concerns:
BE discussed his and the boards’ plans. During the winter months, BOG members and committees will review beach rules, regulations, ordinances and customs.
Beach will need additional boat racks for the boats that reside at Sea Spray; boats will need to be registered via the website as well as having a sticker claiming the owner.
Guards will need to enforce the no eating and drinking on the beach to keep it clean and safe.
Trash and Recycling: BE would like to see if trash pickup can be moved back to Mondays.
Signage: Signs are missing, need to be repaired and are inconsistent with each other. This will be addressed but will require funds.
Safety: Speeding is an issue as well as hazards such as overgrown hedges; crosswalks are being looked into.
Finance: New tax form (M1 form) is required for the state.
Board would like the OLS website to be authenticated, password protected and just for OLS residents.
Insurance- Believes OLS is properly insured but would like to look for competitive pricing.
Property rentals- would like to see a rental agent focused on OLS properties and when rented, renters would be presented with a document package to familiarize them with OLS rules and expectations related to the use of the property and beach.
Guards: much discussion on the entry into OLS by people other than residents and their guests; location of guards on the beach and the jetty; schedule of the open gates during the week and the weekends.
July 4th, 2023
Julia Nixon – Fourth of July 2022, the ice cream social (counted 260 people) and carousel night were a success.
July 4th2023 events will consist of a beach wide wiffleball tournament on Friday June 30thand movie night.
Sat July 1, 2023 (Sunday July 2 rain date) celebration of July 4, parade, sandcastle contest, beach races and popsicles.
Sat night July 1, 2023-2 movies on the Brightwater beach- early movie with a patriotic theme for young children kids, and a later movie for the teenagers.
Sunday July 2, 2023 7:30 PM- Roger the DJ at Brightwater beach
Date tbd- Pizza truck and ice cream truck at Saltaire bench.
Sat Aug 12, 2023- Carousel night (before the regular opening of the Crousel at Soundview)
Julia requests if there can be a vote to determine if the cost of the pizza ($1250) and the ice cream ($1000) can be split with the association. (The other half is covered through fund raising.)
TA/ MKR adjourn 12:26 PM