Woodstock CT Café

I. Sub-committee objective

At the July 2009 BOF meeting, Chairman David Hosmer appointed a three-person sub-committee consisting of BOF members Cass, Cabana and McCoy, charged with the responsibility of researching the past practices of both the Woodstock Town Treasurer’s office and the Board of Finance, when calculating the annual town budget under Prop. 46.

This action was taken in response to a citizen’s contention that the practice of incorporating emergency and “one time” expenditures into a budget, and the failure to subtract those items from the subsequent year’s budget, is a violation of Prop 46.

II. Research process

The subcommittee held eight meetings over a seven-month period, interviewing former
BOF chairpersons: S. Ahola, S. Boldry, E. Shepard, M. Alberts, S. Rapose and Town Attorney DeCrescenzo.

Each former chairperson received a standardized questionnaire with the following questions:

1. During which years did you serve on the board of finance?

2. What was the procedure used to calculate the annual budget?

3. Were “one time and/or emergency expenditures” which were included in the budget for any given year, then subtracted back out the following year?

4. Were there any unusual circumstances that occurred during your term of service on the BOF?

5. During your term, do you recall if the method of calculating the budget according to Prop.46 was consistently applied or did it change during any particular year?

6. In your opinion, was the level of service provided by the town impacted due to Prop 46?

Each of the answers that we received from the former chairpersons were consistent. This
Sub-committee is satisfied that the formula used to calculate the annual town budget was applied consistently from year to year and with close oversight by the BOF. In fact, Mrs. Ahola, Mr. Boldry and Mrs. Rapose each related that they would sit with the town treasurer and do the math together, so there was never a question as to the method or formula that was used. Each person also stated that to the best of their recollections, “one time or emergency” budget items, if they occurred, were never subtracted back out the following year.

Prop. 46 Subcommittee Report

E. Shepard stated that “by keeping those items within the budget, allowed for a small margin of growth, which helped to offset inflation and the increased cost of doing business as a town. As Prop. 46 is vague in this area, the BOF had to exercise its discretion in this matter”.

III. Recommendations Read the rest of this entry »

from John

There are four images below of the reclaimed asphalt pavement on Pulpit Rock Road taken today during my own site visit. Some may differ with my opinion about this issue. It’s not au naturel. I usually avoid Pulpit Rock Road because I am in a hurry and Pulpit Rock is not meant to be driven at 40 mph. Today I drove the road at between 15 and 20 mph and felt its ambiance which was enhanced when I actually got out of the car. I have no idea where the residents who have not spoken up stand on the issue dirt v. paving or dirt v. RAP but I personally like the natural setting sans RAP. I can see in my mind’s eye my Grandfather in his surrey on this road. Yes, there is hardship in enduring the bumps to get home; but the natural setting stays with you for life. I experienced this when I built my own home in an even more remote setting in Maryland described here. When others eventually moved in and started demanding a paved access road, I refused to cooperate. The reason I had moved there in the first place was to get as close to nature as possible – this was a time when I went back to urban reality each day by commuting to the intense environs of Johns Hopkins Medical Center and then the National Institutes of Health. It was always a relief to get back to my place no matter how much rain or snow.

As you can see, the RAP is less visible in the center of the road but clearly visible on the sides of the road. This is because the traffic carries dirt onto the viscoelastic RAP and it sticks. Some would say that the RAP will become less visible with time. This is also true of the trash deposited on the side of most of Woodstock’s roads which is readily visible if you take a walk. I noticed no trash on the sides of Pulpit Rock Road. Covering up is not my idea of aesthetics.

When I was taking these pictures, a commercial van tore by going at least 40 mph. A cloud of dust trailed the van like a sandstorm. This is the difference between the first and second picture – see the cloud of dust at the top of the hill. The third picture shows the 20 mph speed sign on this section of the road. The speed of that van was a crime.

The only issue I would like to understand better is the cost of maintaining this road versus other roads. Unfortunately The Selectmen have not conveyed this information when making their decision, although as a friend in town said to me, “I doubt the road material usage started as anything sinister, just bad planning and communication with the community. That doesn’t mean that certain groups in town are not waiting to take advantage of any controversy that arises.”
Read the rest of this entry »

From “Leaching Characteristics of Asphalt Road Waste“ – a study from the University of Florida

“The results of this research project indicated that reclaimed asphalt pavement of the nature examined in this study poses minimal risk to groundwater as a result of pollutant leaching under normal land disposal scenarios. The results of the leaching tests indicated that in most cases RAP would pose minimal environmental risk when used as fill in regard to the leaching of the pollutants.”

Excerpts from the Description of RAP
Asphalt is a natural component of nearly all types of petroleum found in nature. By refining crude petroleum, various components can be separated and recovered, including asphalt. Asphalt has physical and chemical properties that make it of great interest to many engineers. It is a strong cement, extremely durable, readily adhesive, highly waterproof, and considered to be chemically inert. Asphalt is highly resistant to the reaction of many acids, alkalis, and salts. Asphalt is a viscoelastic substance that imparts both controllable elasticity and viscous flow to mixtures of aggregates with which it is commonly combined. Asphalt for pavement construction is called asphalt cement.

Asphalt cement is often added to aggregate to make asphalt concrete for construction of asphalt pavements for highways and parking lots. When these asphalt pavements are removed from a road surface, the by-product is commonly called reclaimed asphalt pavement (RAP). RAP consists of ground up asphalt pavement. For this study, RAP is defined as all asphalt road waste, large chunks or milled material that has been size-reduced, making it reusable as part of a new asphalt mixture.

…Other uses for the unused RAP have included the following: roadbase material for stabilizing dirt roads, pothole/rut filler, and roadway shoulder material. A proposed alternative for the management of RAP is use as fill material, whether by disposal in asphalt-only monofills or in beneficial reuse applications as clean fill.

Excerpt from the End of the Summary
…In all of the batch tests, measurements of VOCs (volatile organic compound), PAHs (polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons), and selected heavy metals (Ba, Ca, Cr, Cu, Pb, Ni, and Zn) all were below detection limit (BDL) Read the rest of this entry »

A young man named John received a parrot as a gift. The parrot had a bad attitude and an even worse vocabulary. Every word out of the bird’s mouth was rude, obnoxious and laced with profanity. John tried and tried to… change the bird’s attitude by consistently saying only polite words, playing soft music and anything else he could think of to ‘clean up’ the bird’s vocabulary.

Finally, John was fed up and he yelled at the parrot. The parrot yelled back. John shook the parrot and the parrot got angrier and even more rude. John, in desperation, threw up his hand, grabbed the bird and put him in the freezer. For a few minutes the parrot squawked and kicked and screamed. Then suddenly there was total quiet. Not a peep was heard for over a minute.

Fearing that he’d hurt the parrot, John quickly opened the door to the freezer. The parrot calmly stepped out onto John’s outstretched arms and said “I believe I may have offended you with my rude language and actions. I’m sincerely remorseful for my inappropriate transgressions and I fully intend to do everything I can to correct my rude and unforgivable behavior.”

John was stunned at the change in the bird’s attitude. As he was about to ask the parrot what had made such a dramatic change in his behavior, the bird spoke-up, very softly, “May I ask what the turkey did?”

Happy Thanksgiving!!!

With many thanks to Nick McCoy for sharing this on FB

Happy T-day everyone!

For a blast back to the present, this is Governor Rell’s Thanksgiving day proclamation this year:

Now is the time that we, as Americans, surround ourselves with family, friends and those we care most deeply about, and for many of us, it is a time to give thanks to God for the blessings bestowed upon us throughout the year.

We, the people of Connecticut, are privileged to live in a nation where we are free to gather together to celebrate all of the gifts which we have been given, both great and small.

Yet, with all that we have to be thankful for, it is easy to forget and take for granted the fortunate lives we live. This harvest time of year is an opportunity to give thanks and to rejoice in the love, opportunities and freedoms we enjoy.

It is a time to honor the brave men and women who have dedicated their lives to protecting our country, and we must thank them and their families for their sacrifices, especially those who have courageously given their lives while serving our Nation.

Thanksgiving each year is celebrated in the spirit of our forefathers, the early settlers of America, as they sat down to feast together and give thanks for their safe arrival and for surviving the first harsh winter in the New World.

As they gathered to give thanks, they invited their native neighbors to share their ample blessings.

It is at this time that we should come together as our colonial ancestors did in order to enjoy a plentiful harvest and extend our generosity to others.

In this tradition, we should give of ourselves to those who have been given little, offer our blessings to those whose blessings are not as plentiful, and open our hearts and homes to neighbors.

It is a time to gather with family and friends, neighbors and colleagues, to give thanks for all that we have and all that was given us.

It is my hope that all of Connecticut’s citizens will give thanks as we celebrate today and throughout the year.

Therefore, in accordance with the laws of the State of Connecticut and in keeping with the traditions set forth by Governors of Connecticut since colonial times, I hereby proclaim November 25, 2010, to be a day of

PUBLIC THANKSGIVING.

I urge all our citizens to join me in expressing our deepest gratitude to those who touch our lives everyday and in extending a helping hand of hope to those who need it most.

Thank you governor Rell.

Kevin