Dear Fairfielders,

It’s officially summer!

School is out – our beaches, parks, and Town are bustling with activity. As we head into the last week of the fiscal year, our Town government is as busy as ever. I've included in this week’s newsletter updates from Town Hall, including the Town of Fairfield was again awarded a AAA bond rating from the rating agencies. The Board of Selectmen will also be holding special meetings next week to review the recommendations from the Charter Revision Commission. The Park & Recreation Department has planned and organized countless summer activities for all ages – concerts, comedy nights, camps, and much more. 
 
I also launched a new 8-30g Q&A on our website that I believe will be helpful in answering residents' questions about overdevelopment. I hope you will take a few minutes to read below the Town Government News, Community News, Community Events, and Business News sections of the newsletter.
 
It is a top priority for me to share information with our residents. I acknowledge, at times, my newsletter updates can be long. However, your feedback through email lets me know that many in our community appreciate the information. You can always browse and find the most meaningful topics for you and your family. 

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I want to give a special shout-out and congratulate Fairfield Warde High School's baseball team for earning the title of Class LL State Champions. Their hard work and determination makes all of Fairfield proud!

 

CHARTER REVISION COMMISSION
I acknowledge the Town Charter isn’t a topic most residents would consider exciting, it is however Fairfield’s governing document. A final revision will be on the ballot for you to vote on in November. I hope that my updates since the Commission began its work, and the information provided below, will give you the tools to make a fully informed decision when voting on the Charter Revision in November.

Why did the Town create a Charter Revision Commission? 
There are several reasons why it was necessary:

1. It has been 15 years since the Town's last charter revision, and the recommended window to reopen a charter is every 10 years.
2. The Strategic Planning Committee, commissioned under the former administration, released its report that reflected residents' favor for Town governance re-examined.

In an effort to ensure a fair and transparent Charter Revision process, I began by hiring special counsel Steve Mednick, who has conducted over 30 municipal Charter Revisions, to assist the bipartisan Commission with their work. Every meeting held by the CRC since last fall has been shown live on FairTV and online. All recordings of the meetings have been posted to the Commission's website. The CRC held multiple public hearings and an opportunity for public comment during meetings and through email. Attorney Mednick brought in expert panelists on different forms of government and officials from other CT municipalities joined the meetings to relay their experiences. The Commission spent a considerable amount of time listening to all points of view from members of our community and those outside experts who provided alternative points of view.

One of the many items that were identified and explored with the guest panelists was that Fairfield is one of only two municipalities with our population size (62,000) that still has a BOS and RTM form of government. Early on, the CRC had endorsed substantial changes to our town governance model, however, in the end, their recommended changes do not alter our current system of government. 

The final recommendations by the CRC are not as substantive as I thought they could be, but after many months of work, the CRC, a volunteer group of residents, produced a document they believe is in the best interest of the Town through honest, transparent dialogue and a lot of consensus-building. This was not an easy job and I thank them for their work on behalf of our community.

I do believe the final draft organizes the document in a more understandable manner (especially for those of us who are not attorneys) and provides for an efficient and productive budget process that is more transparent and easier for the public to follow. The final recommended governance changes are a culmination of best practices that retain the Town's current form of government, while also establishing a framework that allows future government officials to build upon those changes.

I have encouraged residents and elected officials throughout this process to watch the meetings in order to have a full understanding of everything the Commission heard, and the reasoning for their suggested changes. Learning directly from a source is always better than relying on social media posts or personal observations through letters to the editor. 

The quickest and most objective way to digest the work of the Commission is to read the summary from legal counsel and the full revision of the charter. 

My hope at the end of this process is that our community will have a modernized and more efficient Town Charter to assist our elected leaders as they govern on behalf of Fairfield residents.
 

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BOS SPECIAL MEETING DATES ON CHARTER REVISION
The Board of Selectmen (BOS) will hold special meetings next week to hear a presentation from the Charter Revision Commission and will hold a public hearing before voting on changes. 

The first special meeting will be held on Monday, June 27^th at 4 PM to hear a presentation from the Commission and Attorney Mednick.
 
On Wednesday, June 29^th at 5:30 PM, the BOS will convene in a special meeting for a public hearing on the Charter.

The BOS could vote on this item on July 29^th, but I have reserved July 5^th if additional deliberation is needed before a final vote.

If the BOS makes any changes to the Commission's recommendations, those changes would have to go back to the CRC before the BOS could take final action.

The final recommendations voted on by the BOS will be placed on the ballot this November for all citizens to vote on.

AFFORDABLE HOUSING IN FAIRFIELD | 8-30G STATE STATUTE
What is 8-30g, and why are there so many large developments being proposed in Fairfield?

BACKGROUND:
The CT State Statute 8-30g has caused great concern for our residents over the last few years. While I support increasing affordable housing options for young people, working families, and our seniors, I have also seen the unintended consequences of this law, as some developers use it to subvert local land-use regulations. The 8-30g State Statute is flawed and in serious need of reform.

I spent many years in the State Legislature as Ranking Member of the Housing Committee, working to make meaningful amendments to this Statute. Even the smallest change such as allowing senior housing points to count the same as family housing, was extremely difficult to get passed because the majority in Hartford was, and remains, adamantly opposed to any substantive changes to 8-30g. You can read more about proposed changes in my submitted testimony from this legislative session here. 

WHY NOW:
To provide some perspective, from the time the 8-30g Statute was enacted in 1989 until 2019, a period of 30 years, Fairfield’s TP&Z reviewed 12 8-30g applications. In contrast, from 2020-2022, 11 proposals have been submitted.

The pandemic created a surge in demand for housing in Connecticut suburbs like Fairfield. Housing inventory has been low, creating a demand for additional housing. This is supported by the fact that newly constructed rental developments lease up quickly.

WHAT IS THE TOWN DOING:
I have been working with our Director of Community and Economic Development, Mark Barnhart, and the Affordable Housing Committee to increase the Town's own affordable housing stock. To that end, the Town recently acquired a small, privately owned lot abutting Town property utilizing the Housing Trust Fund and will build two duplexes in concert with a non-profit. The Town is working to acquire additional properties to assist in the effort to reach a moratorium, which would provide a four-year reprieve from having to approve new 8-30g applications. While these efforts will not be a quick fix, the Town is committed to doing everything we can to protect our local zoning laws. 

I want to thank Mark for working with me to create a Q&A for the Town website to help answer resident questions about 8-30g. 
 
I hope you find this information helpful.

PROPERTY TAX BILLS | A MESSAGE FROM THE TAX COLLECTOR
Property Tax Bills will be mailed out today, June 24^th. The 2021 Grand List Property Tax Bills that become due on July 1, 2022, will be mailed out today, Friday, June 24^th. The Tax Office is open to the public, and no appointment is necessary. Once the bills are mailed, you may also look up your bill and pay online by visiting fairfieldct.org/taxpayment. Payments with an original bill coupon can also be made at any People's United Bank location beginning Friday, July 1^st. You do not need to be a customer.

Please note that according to State Statute, tax payments are due July 1^st with a 30-day grace period until Monday, August 1^st. Interest begins to accrue on Tuesday, August 2^nd at a rate of 1 1/2% per month, dating back to July 1, 2022.

Click here to read Frequently Asked Questions regarding tax payments.

The Town of Fairfield has begun a detailed study to analyze the drainage of the downtown area along the Post Road between Reef Road and Thorpe Street. SLR International, Inc. has been retained by the Town of Fairfield to perform this study and evaluate measures to reduce flooding in this area. This survey will occur in June and July 2022.

In order to collect data relevant to the study, SLR, Inc. personnel may need to access private property to obtain field information related to drainage only. They will be carrying appropriate identification and will present identification upon request. They will not need to enter your residence, building or require anything from you as part of this survey work.

Please share any information you may have regarding non-coastal flooding in your area. This information can include dates, photographs, or measurements to share that may benefit the study. We request that you contact James Murac, P.E. at SLR, Inc. using the email address jmurac@slrconsulting.com. Should you have any questions, observations, comments, or concerns, you may contact William Hurley, P.E. Town Engineering of Fairfield at (203) 256-3015.

Congratulations to this year’s Fairfield Police Union Scholarship recipients! It was an honor to attend the award ceremony and present each student with their award.

You can click here to learn more about the Fairfield Police Union Scholarship fund and view photos from this year's award ceremony.

TICK PRESENCE IN FAIRFIELD BEACH AREA
Last week, researchers from Western Connecticut State University’s (WCSU) Tickborne Disease Prevention Laboratory identified several Asian long-horned ticks (ALTs) from a dog of a Fairfield beach area resident. Due to this finding, the WCSU research team conducted surveillance sampling of the overflow grass parking areas of Penfield Beach and various areas at Jennings Beach and found a significant number of these ticks in these areas. While ALTs are known to transmit diseases in other countries, they are not known to transmit any diseases to humans or pets in the US at this time. These ticks can be a concern to livestock. The Town is working with the WCSU research team to implement recommended mitigation strategies and the Town has already begun the process of trimming back bushes, grasses, and other plants from beach area sidewalks and other walking areas to reduce the risk of ticks attaching to people and pets. 

The Health Department is urging residents to take precautions to prevent tick bites anywhere in Town, including the beach area, when one might come in contact with grassy, brushy, or wooded areas where ticks typically live.  For more information on tick prevention visit the CDC website here. For more information on the Asian Long-horned Tick, click here. 

I would like to also recognize three of our residents who serve on the Conservancy’s Board of Directors – Jeremy Frost (Vice-Chair), David Parker (Vice-Chair), and Alloe Stokes – and thank them for their commitment to preserving and protecting the aesthetic and ecological aspects of the historic Merritt Parkway. Visit merrittparkway.org to learn about the Parkway’s history, which was named after a former Congressman.   

PRIDE CELEBRATION
I want to thank Fairfield Ludlowe High School Student Gillian Applebaum, Reverend Sarah Smith and State Rep. Cristin McCarthy Vahey for offering remarks before the Town's annual Pride flag-raising.

I want to offer my sincere appreciation to Anthony Calabrese, Director of Parks & Recreation and the Parks Department for creating a new fun Pride celebration for Fairfield.

Thank you to our Department of Public Works employees, Antonio Sardinha and Al Kaczegowicz, for assisting us in raising the Pride Flag.
 

SOUTHPORT STREET PARADE | BLESSING OF THE FLEET
I had a wonderful time at the Southport Street Parade & Blessing of the Fleet with Grand Marshal of the parade Dr. Ben Powers, Head of Southport School. Special thanks to the Southport Conservancy for hosting this popular event. I also want to recognize the Conservancy’s Parade Subcommittee Chair, Tim Russell, and Vice-Chairs Hugh Smith and Harbormaster Bryan LeClerc.

Blessing of the Fleet ceremonies are an annual tradition that began centuries ago in Mediterranean fishing communities. Past Commodore of the Pequot Yacht Club, Steve Galpin, initiated the local Blessing of the Fleet in Southport Harbor almost 25 years ago.

With mastheads festooned with decorative signal flags, sailboats, motorboats, and sometimes kayaks and canoes pass under a giant arc of water pumped across Southport Harbor by our Fire Department and blessed by local clergy.

MAKE MUSIC DAY FAIRFIELD
Thank you to all of the musicians, artists, venues, and those who attended Make Music Fairfield 2022! What a wonderful way to bring the community together.

For more information on this yearly event, please visit www.makemusicday.org/fairfield and follow them on Instagram and Facebook.  

Each year, the Pequot Yacht club hosts a safety drill that exercises their emergency procedures and their coordination with Fire, EMS, Police, and the U.S. Coast Guard. The motto these emergency response professionals live by during these procedures is, "one team, one goal". The Pequot Yacht Club and Fairfield's Fire Department worked together this year with successful communication during the drill.

Fairfield Fire Assistant Chief George Gomola spoke encouraging words at the pre and post-drill briefings. Fairfield Fire LT. Scott Trembley followed Assistant Chief Gomola with additional briefing points to boost team morale. Every team member present performed efficiently and successfully.

To learn more about the harbor safety drill, you can read the story written by News12 here. You may also view the video Pequot Yacht Club General  Manager Jeffrey Engborg put together here. I want to thank Jeffrey Engborg for organizing this important safety drill every year, as well as Fairfield's Fire Department for taking their time to perform the drills in training for the safety of our residents.

But not everyone in Confederate territory would immediately be free. Even though the Emancipation Proclamation was made effective in 1863, it could not be implemented in places still under Confederate control. 

As a result, in the westernmost Confederate state of Texas, enslaved people would not be free until much later. Freedom finally came on June 19, 1865, when some 2,000 Union troops arrived in Galveston Bay, Texas. The army announced that the more than 250,000 enslaved black people in the state were free by executive decree.

For 245 years, Americans have celebrated the birth of our nation on July 4^th. The Declaration of Independence is a document I think every American should take the time to read at least once a year to remember the foundation of our country. You can read the document here. 

COVID-19 UPDATE
The CDC has changed from community transmission indicators to a “Community Level” indicator, which is focused more on the presence of severe illness as indicated by hospitalization-related data. Since seeing a peak of COVID-19 activity during the third week of May, cases, hospitalizations and deaths have been trending downward. Fairfield County is currently in the CDC’s “Low” Community level category with most counties in CT being in the "Medium” category. We recommend residents follow the CDC guidance which includes staying up to date with vaccination and getting tested if ill.

For vaccination locations, there are numerous sites available in Fairfield and nearby as well as daily walk-in clinics in many Towns. 
 
There are 10 COVID testing sites in Fairfield under contract to offer no-out-of-pocket cost testing to CT residents.

The Fairfield Farmer's Market has begun its season on the Sherman Green. The market will be open on Sundays from 10 AM – 2 PM until October 9^th. 
 

This year, the Tucker Fund will be raising funds to enhance and redesign the Jennings Beach Entryway. The goal of the project is to create an ecologically resilient and sustainable beachfront entryway that provides valuable coastal habitat.  

 

SOCIAL SERVICES
The hardest part of getting help is reaching out. We are here to help. Please call us at (203) 256-3170 Monday through Friday between 9:00 AM – 4:00 PM for more information or to schedule an appointment.

For more additional information and resources, social services offers a comprehensive newsletter with various programs addressing career development, service members, and housing here.

Both branches of Fairfield Public Library are open the following hours:  Monday – Thursday, 9:00 AM – 8:00 PM; Friday 9:00 AM – 5:00 PM, and Saturdays 1:00 – 5:00 PM. The Libraries will be closed on Sundays until after Labor Day.  Both locations will be closed on Monday, July 4^th, for Independence Day.

The Library is excited to announce “Press Reader,” a new database available through the Fairfield Public Library website.  With Press Reader, users can read online or via the Press Reader app more than 7,000 newspapers and magazines from around the globe, and in more than 60 languages. The best part is that all downloaded articles are yours to keep forever! Right click on any article in a foreign language and translate to English or 20 other world languages here.

FPL’s Summer Reading Challenge begins this month! From June 20^th to August 13^th, readers of ALL ages can log their reading minutes on our Beanstack app and participate in programs and events to win prizes! This summer’s theme: Fairfield! The Library encourages all Fairfielders to explore the joys of summer reading with this great program that includes board games, trivia nights, craft sessions and a Town-wide scavenger hunt!  Kick-off for the Children’s Summer Reading Challenge is Friday, June 24^th, from 10:00 AM to noon at Penfield Beach. (No registration necessary, but beach parking stickers are required.)  For more information, please see our website.

From June 11^th through August 6^th, 2022, the public can view “Sculptural Dimensions” at the Bruce S. Kershner Gallery at Main Library. “Sculptural Dimensions” features the work of local artists Louise Cadoux, Sooo-z Mastropietro, and Alan Neider; their work can be viewed during regular Library hours. The artists will speak at an opening reception on Thursday, June 16^th, from 5:30 – 7:30 PM. The public is invited to attend.