By Susan MacEachron

The status of town infrastructure projects was the primary topic at the Board of Finance meeting on Sept. 10.  First Selectman Matt Riiska reported on the reconstruction of Maple Avenue and the River Place bridge project.  It was noted that Norfolk’s Tax Collector, Sarah Bruso, had intended for her last day to be Sept. 5 but will stay through the end of October.

The Maple Avenue project is complete except for some minor landscaping according to Riiska, and he is working with the contractor to finish up. He was pleased to report that the check is in the mail for the $500,000 grant from the Small Town Economic Assistance Program (STEAP), to cover a portion of the cost of the project.

Riiska said he has provided support to the town’s attorneys for the reimbursement of $752,827 from Federated Insurance for reconstruction of the section of Maple Avenue impacted by the gas spill. Federated has paid four of the five claims the town has submitted for a total of $371,470. The outstanding fifth claim, for $23,000, is primarily for attorneys’ fees.  Riiska estimated that Federated Insurance has paid up to $22 million to cover the costs of remediation.

The River Place bridge project has recently restarted and Riiska said he is waiting for a written commitment from the Connecticut Department of Transportation (DOT) that it will cover the approximately $1.0 million cost increase from the original estimate. Work on the bridge has been halted for almost two years because it was discovered that the abutments needed repair. The abutment deterioration was not identified by engineers during the design phase and only noticed when the work first began in the spring of 2022. 

The town is obligated to pay 20 percent of the cost of the bridge repair, now estimated to cost $4.1 million.  Early in 2022 the town had secured a 10-year loan from NBT Bank (formerly Salisbury Bank) at 2.25 percent to cover this obligation.  NBT has informed Riiska that due to the delayed start the bank needs to close out the original loan and refinance the balance owed.  He anticipates the new loan rate will be around 4.75 percent, however, he first needs a contract from the State of Connecticut approving the additional expenditure and the timeline for completion of the project.  The new loan will require approval by the Board of Selectmen and then approval by town residents at a town meeting.  

Treasurer Chelsea DeWitt reported the town has received $52,000 from the solar panel company since Jan. 1.  She also noted that 55 percent of the full year of property taxes has been collected.  

In response to a question asking for an update on the plans for a temporary bridge for better access to Route 272 in south Norfolk, Riiska said he was continuing to work on it.  DOT will design, build and pay the full cost of replacing the Smith Road and Old Goshen Road bridges that were washed out in the July 2023 storm.  Riiska has been hoping to get the Army Corps of Engineers and the Connecticut Department of Energy and Environmental Protection (DEEP) to approve the installation of three culverts with a temporary road surface similar to what was in place before the storm damage.  With an estimated cost of at least $100,000 this would be the least expensive solution. There are no state or federal funds to pay for a temporary bridge.  

On a final note, Riiska said at the end of October DOT would be installing a traffic light to manage the one lane of traffic on Route 44 during the construction of the new retaining wall.