Eye on Town Government

By Ruth Melville

With the beginning of the fiscal year on July 1, the town website is now under the supervision of Town Hall, with an annual budget of $15,000. At their July 6 meeting, the Board of Selectmen voted to appoint to the new town Website Committee Sue Frisch, Kathryn Boughton, Susan Caughman, Andrew Thompson and Deb Nelson, all serving four-year terms, with alternates Libby Borden and Jim Jasper serving two-year terms.

Richard Byrne, Norfolk’s emergency management director, joined the meeting to discuss the preparation of a new five-year Natural Hazardous Mitigation Plan. The purpose of the plan is to encourage the assessment of natural hazards, such as storms, extreme temperatures and flooding.

Byrne noted that that although originally such plans were drawn up by single towns, then by multiple towns, this is now a regional town plan—which is what the Federal Emergency Management Agency prefers—prepared under the direction of the Northwest Hills Council of Governments. 

Byrne explained that towns must have a mitigation plan to quality for certain state grants. For example, when the town received $168,000 from FEMA after storm Isaias in August 2020, it was with the stipulation that Norfolk have a hazardous mitigation plan in place.

The Board of Selectman voted to approve a resolution to adopt the Hazardous Natural Mitigation Plan for 2022-27.

In his monthly report, First Selectman Matt Riiska talked about the tree removal going on behind Town Hall. The goal is to open up the view from Station Place and improve access between Town Hall and the center of town—as recommended by the Plan of Conservation and Development approved in 2020. Riiska said that not only is the area more attractive, but drivers can see that there is additional parking nearby. The next steps are to clean up and reseed the lawn and to improve the pathway to Station Place.

In addition, Riiska said, roadside tree cutting is now taking place along Doolittle Drive, in order to open up the canopy over the road, remove dead or compromised trees, and improve roadside drainage. Many of the trees being taken down are ash, which are under threat from the emerald ash borer, and old maples that are coming to the end of their lifespan. In a follow-up conversation, Riiska added that the estimated cost of the tree clearing is $50,000, which is included in the 2022-23 road maintenance budget.