The Congregational Church in Killingworth will host its annual Harvest Dinner on Friday, November 4, at the church on Route 81, just north of the traffic circle. The meal is a home cooked turkey dinner with all the traditional trimmings, including homemade pie for dessert. Dinner will served in two seatings, at 5:00 and 6:30 p.m. Takeout dinners will also be available. Tickets are $10 for adults and $5 for children under 12, and will be available in advance at the church office, or at the door. All proceeds from the Harvest Dinner will benefit the Pastor's Scholarship Fund, which provides college tuition assistance to graduating high school seniors. For advance reservations, please call the church office at 663-1789.

The HK High School Boys Soccer team defeated Old Lyme, 1-0, on Monday. The Girls Soccer team defeated Westbrook, 6-0. Allie Rand, Ali Thomson (2), Jessica Fox, Nichelle Gode and Amy Chamberlain all scored for the Cougars.

On Tuesday, the HK Volleyball team defeated Valley Regional 3 games to 1. Game scores were: 25-13, 22-25, 25-12 and 25-14. Chelsea Anderson had 12 digs and 8 aces; Sawyer Kimball had 12 assists and Stephanie Wiese had 7 kills. The Girls Swimming team defeated Berlin 102.5-84.5.

On Thursday, Girls Soccer played to a 1-1 tie with No. Branford in double overtime. Amy Chamberlain scored the Cougar goal on an assist from Ali Thomson. Goalkeeper Katie Anderson made seven saves. Field Hockey defeated Westbrook, 1-0. Jess Hill scored off a Meghan O'Leary assist. Volleyball defeated Hale Ray, 3 games to 1. The Cougars are undefeated in league play at 17-0. Game scores were: 25-15, 20-25, 25-19 and 25-9. Stephanie Wiese had 25 kills and Sawyer Kimball had 23 assists. Pictured below: Field Hockey in action, Thursday against Westbrook. For more Field Hockey and Girls Soccer photos please visit the Online Gallery.

The Shoreline League of Democratic Women announced it will host a public program entitled "Long Island Sound in Jeopardy: The Threat of Industrialization" on Wednesday, November 2, at 7:00 p.m., at the Andrews Memorial Town Hall, Route 1, Clinton, Conn. A "meet and greet" is planned from 6:30 p.m. - 7:00 p.m.

The program will feature Guest Speakers Attorney General Richard Blumenthal and Leah Lopez Schmalz, the Director of Legislative and Legal Affairs for Save the Sound, a program of Connecticut Fund for the Environment. The Public is invited to learn about Broadwater Energy's Proposal to build a liquid natural gas terminal in Long Island Sound.

Tom Callinan will join the gathering and kick off the event with his inspirational song, "It's Our Water, Not Broadwater". A special treat for the audience will be a short staged reading from a new play-in-progress entitled "Starlight" by playwright G.R. Tracy, featuring Sue Barnett, Chris Tracy, and Jim Nolan, who are members of the Connecticut Playwrights Theatre.

This educational program will provide Shoreline Citizens and their families vital information about Broadwater Energy's Proposal to build and anchor a massive floating liquid natural gas terminal in the middle of Long Island Sound. There are 8.1 million people that live, work and play on both sides of Long Island Sound. The speakers will cover four key areas that are being debated by thousands of private citizens and politicians from Connecticut and New York: public safety/terrorist attacks, economics/taxes, aesthetics and tourism, and the environmental impact on Long Island Sound. SLDW will acknowledge elected officials who are leading the fight against the Broadwater proposal, and recognize Connecticut towns that have passed resolutions opposing Broadwater.

The new Energy Bill recently signed into law gives the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission the power to overrule state and local government objections to placements of liquid natural gas platforms, like the proposed $700 million proposed Broadwater facility that would be anchored offshore about 18 miles from Hammonasset Beach State Park. The proposed Broadwater terminal, a floating industrial park, would be from 8 to 10 stories high, 4 football fields long, and brightly illuminated to permit 24 hr. per day use. The 120 ft. long platform could turn 360 degrees on its mooring system and would be the first LNG terminal in the world to be located offshore. It would be more than twice as large as any existing LNG terminal in the United States. The largest LNG holding facility on Long Island has a capacity of nearly 20 million gallons. The proposed Broadwater terminal would have a capacity of nearly 92.5 million gallons of liquid natural gas (LNG).

The Shoreline League of Democratic Women will commence their November meeting immediately after the conclusion of the presentation. The Shoreline League of Democratic Women is the newest chapter of the Connecticut Federation of Democratic Women (CFDW), which is a chapter of the National Federation of Democratic Women. The Shoreline League of Democratic Women continues to seek membership from women who live in Clinton, Madison, Guilford, Killingworth, Old Saybrook, Essex, Westbrook, Chester, Deep River, Haddam, East Haddam, Old Lyme, and Lyme. SLDW Meetings will be held the first Wednesday of the month from September through May, with no meeting in December.

Dear Editor:
Killingworth has an opportunity on Election Day. It is an opportunity for all of us as voters to get involved in our local town government. We are electing our so-called "executives," who will run town business for the next few years. As "stockholders," we as voters, have a need to set the direction of where we are going in this business that we also call home. The direction we select depends upon the people we select to lead. Let's choose the direction by first choosing experience on the Board of Selectmen. By returning current selectman Fred Dudek to the board, Killingworth benefits from an enthusiastic and tireless public servant who listens, understands, and takes action. Complete letter

"More than a building, the barn is a witness to centuries of changes," say Jay Folger and Sandy Smith in the display of their paintings now being shown at the Killingworth Library.

"In the past, rural Killingworth's barns were as essential as the houses the farmers lived in. As these structures gradually disappear from our landscape, they remain a strong symbol of farming, tradition, hard work, and independence."

Each of the 15 paintings on display in the library depicts a barn in Killingworth. "It was Jay's idea," claims Smith. The two artists were concerned about the historical nature of the town and wanted to start recording the local buildings before they began to vanish. Their plan is to continue the project, painting the barns in town in a variety of seasons.

Smith asks townspeople for their help. "If you know of some 'neat' barns in town," she says, "let us know." She and Folger are searching for structures with "character," she adds.

The Killingworth Library has a display case and a limited amount of shelf space where local artists, craftspeople, and collectors are invited to show their work. Anyone may do so by seeing a librarian to reserve a time for showcasing his or her work.

The barn paintings will be on display at the library through the end of October and are for sale. Anyone interested in contacting one of the artists can see the librarian for a phone number. Article and Photos Submitted by Helen Mahoney

The Regional School District No. 17 is pleased to announce that they will be hosting a series of Focus Groups designed to provide parents of students being served by the Region 17 schools and residents of Haddam and Killingworth with opportunities to provide input into the Strategic Planning currently underway in school district.

The following is a list of the dates for these sessions. All sessions begin at 6:30 p.m. at the identified locations and are intended to be informal brain-storming sessions regarding what the public believes should be the school district's priorities over the next five years in six major area (program / personnel, facilities, funding, communication, technology, district / school procedures).

Strategic Planning Focus Schedule (As of 10/26/05) 2005-2006
November 1, Killingworth Elementary 6:30 p.m., Parents, Residents
November 2, Haddam Elementary, 6:30 p.m., Parents, Residents
November 7, Killingworth Elementary, 6:30 p.m., Parents, Residents
November 10, HKMS, 6:30 p.m., Parents, Residents
November 15, HKHS, 6:30 p.m., Parents, Residents
November 28, HKHS, 6:30 p.m., Parents, Residents

Any questions may be directed to the Central Office of the District at 345-4534.

State Senator Edward Meyer, in an address on October 24 to the American Constitution Society of the Quinnipiac Law School, called for a "major revision in those Connecticut laws that permit the government's taking of private property for virtually any business or economic development purpose." He cited the recent U.S. Supreme Court decision in Kelo vs. City of New London as proof that reasonable conditions on the seizure of private property must be set in our state.

In his address to the law students, Sen. Meyer made specific reference to the dissenting opinion of Justice Sandra Day O'Connor who stated: "All private property is now vulnerable to being taken and transferred to another private owner, as long as it might be upgraded." The senator said that Connecticut must now enact legislation that will avoid the dire result projected by Justice O'Connor.

"If fifteen property owners can be evicted from their homes in New London, including an 87 year old woman who was born in her home, then it is time to protect the sanctity of private property," Sen. Meyer explained. He called for a new law that would return Connecticut to its former tradition of the seizure of private property only for indisputable public purposes and benefits - highways, railroads and airports, schools, sewers, and the like. He would permit a further category of seizure of private property that is proven to be abandoned or uninhabitable or indisputably blighted. He would require a town vote on the exercise of eminent domain.

"We must clearly limit eminent domain authority for public use and benefit and not for a developer's private economic gain. The current law in Connecticut is like a Full Employment For Developer's Act," Sen. Meyer said.

Sen. Meyer told the law students that most of the pending bills in Hartford dealing with eminent domain are superficial, placating private property owners with more paperwork and more hearings. The senator stated that these bills, though sometimes helpful, deal more with the process of eminent domain than the substance.

The 5th graders at Killingworth Elementary School recently organized a costume and candy drive, with all collections to benefit the children who were victims of Hurricane Katrina.

Through the generosity of our KES community, they collected over 230 costumes and 90 lbs. of candy! The Killingworth Little League generously donated 60 lbs. of their fundraiser candy bars! Costume donations were also received from Eileen Petrillo, owner of Characters & Costumes in Guilford, and Petrillo paid for the shipping charges. Raf Graham, a Killingworth resident, who spent weeks in the Gulf region as a relief worker, was kind enough to put us in contact with two shelters in Louisiana.

The costumes were individually packaged, labeled and together with the candy, were packed into 11 boxes totaling 255 lbs., and shipped out by FedEx Ground on Monday, 10/24. Expected delivery to the shelters is by Thursday, 10/27. The hope is to bring a smile to the faces a few hundred children whose lives have been seriously altered by recent natural disasters or by other circumstances. While sorting and packaging the costumes, 30 of the heavier-weight costumes were segregated and donated to a local shelter in New Haven.

It ended up being more difficult than expected to locate shelters in the Gulf Coast are. As a result the costumes were shipped later than expected, but FedEx assured them that the packages would arrive in 3-4 days.

The KES students and parents would like to publicly thank all the people that made this drive a huge success!
UPDATE: All of the boxes were received at the shelters at about noon Thursday, Oct. 27.

This week, Killingworth Democratic Town Committee member Patricia Smulders offers her views on the Board of education and her support for Democratic BOE candidate Mary Withington.

The qualifications for Board of Education members are that you be a resident of Killingworth and a registered voter. You don't have to have children in the school system. A third requirement might be listed as "a caring and concern for the education of the children of Regional District 17." full story.

Over one hundred children and their families gathered at the Library, Sunday for the Library Association/Killingworth Women's Organization Halloween Festival. The event featured pumpkin carving, scary stories in the Library's foyer, a Haunted Candy Hunt and a Scary Viewing Room. Photos courtesy N. Bradley

The Board of Selectmen voted unanimously, last night, to approve moving forward with the local and state permitting for the Town Centre project. Representatives from the Land Use Committee, Richard Pleines and Hilary Kumnick, reported that the Committee needed to have the permits in place in order to get the project back on track.

Pleines said the local permits would not take long to acquire, but the state permits are likely to take a year to be processed. Kumnick said the permits would be good for 3-5 years depending on the permit and could be renewed. Permitting now would protect the project from any future regulation changes in the wetland buffers. Kumnick said if there was an increase in the buffers, the Town "wouldn't be able to put anything on the site".

The project is currently engineered for Phase I of the three-phase plan. Phase I would install the main access road between the Town Offices and Griswold's Garage, move the transfer station to the rear of the parcel and other infra-structure site work. The Land Use Committee would need Town Meeting approval for funding to begin any actual construction and plan approval from the Inland Wetlands Commission.

Neither the Board of Selectmen, nor the Land Use members gave any indication when the project might commence. Considering the The Pay As You Throw Committee estimated the current Transfer Station could be manageable for another ten years, the Land Use Committee is just protecting the Town's future interests.

Tuesday October 25 is the last day to register to vote. The Registrar of Voters Office will be open 9:00 a.m. - 8:00 p.m. Tuesday. Mailed registration cards must be post marked October 25. If a voter is turning 18 by November 8, or if a voter moves into town after October 25, they may register to vote any time before November 7, 12:00 noon.

Haddam-Killingworth Youth and Family Services will hold its 12th Annual Pumpkin Run on Sunday, October 30, in Higganum at 1:00 p.m. Registration begins at 11:30 a.m.

This year features a new 5K course! Walkers are welcome. The race benefits Youth & Family Services of Haddam-Killingworth. For information or sponsorship call 860-345-7498 or visit the website at www.hkyfs.org or email: pumpkinrun@hkyfs.org

The HK High school Football team got back on track this week after last Saturday's trouncing by Hyde. The Cougars defeated Old Saybrook/Westbrook, 48-8, in Old Saybrook. Martin Ramsey rushed for 122 yards and two touchdowns; Eric Auer ran for a touchdown and also returned an interception for another. HK is now 5-1.

The HK Field Hockey team defeated Valley Regional, 3-1. Amy Pabst, Jess Hall and Leslie Zules scored for the Cougars. HK is 7-2-1.

On Friday, HK Volleyball defeated Hyde, three games to none. Games scores were 30-28, 25-19, 25-14. Stephanie Wiese had 22 kills, Sawyer Kimball had 23 assists and Megan Piscopiello had 24 digs. The Cougars have an unblemished mark of 14-0.

Agenda
Regular Meeting of the Board of Selectmen
Monday, October 24, 2005 at 7:00 p.m.
Town Office Building

1. Call to Order
2. Approval of Minutes of Meeting held October 11, 2005
3. Visitors: Judith Lentz/Probate, Land Use Committee
4. Tax Abatements & Refunds
5. Appointments/Vacancies:
6. Old Business:
7. New Business:
    1.Killingworth Probate Court -J. Lentz
    2.Town Centre/Land Use Committee
8. DLD Announcements:
9. Selectmen's Concerns
10. Executive Session: Labor Negotiation
11. Adjournment
Agenda as of 1:00 p.m., Friday, 10/21/05
Printable version

State Senator Edward Meyer has been chosen by the Connecticut Coalition to Stop Underage Drinking to receive its 2005 Outstanding Legislator Award. Sen. Meyer will receive this award on October 25 at the coalition's 9th annual conference entitled, "Kicking it Up a Notch": Energizing Communities to Stop Underage Drinking.

"I'm honored that an organization like this one has chosen me for their Outstanding Legislator award," Sen. Meyer said. "Unfortunately, too many young men and women under the legal drinking age of 21 are taking part in behavior that may put them at risk for any number of problems. I'm happy to support any measure that enforces the legal drinking age of 21."

Senator Meyer was chosen in part for his support and enthusiasm for H.B. 6901, a measure that would have held parents responsible for knowingly allowing minors to drink on their property. Although the measure never made it out of the House last year, Sen. Meyer continues to support the measure.

"Senator Meyer agreed early on to meet with coalition representatives when they first presented the concept for H.B. 6901," said Win Heimer, communications specialist for the coalition. "He championed the concept, and helped to shepherd it through the committee process."

Senator Meyer represents the communities of the 12th Senatorial District. He is the co-chair of the Select Committee on Children and a member of the Judiciary Committee, where the bill passed through the committee unanimously.

Town of Killingworth
Notice of Special Town Meeting

The Electors of the Town of Killingworth and all those qualified to vote in meetings of said Town are hereby notified and warned that a Special Town Meeting will be held in the All Purpose Room of the Killingworth Elementary School on Monday, October 24, 2005 at 8:00 p.m. to consider and act upon the following items of business:

1. To confirm the Selectmen's appointments of Michelle Cumpstone, John Machold and Dan Colonia as Killingworth's representatives on the Haddam-Killingworth Regional Recreation Authority; for a term to commence upon confirmation and to continue until June 30, 2006 or until successors are appointed.

2. To approve and accept the annual report of the Board of Finance for fiscal year 2003-2004.

3. To approve and adopt an ordinance appointing the Killingworth Inland Wetlands and Watercourses Commission as the Town's Municipal Aquifer Protection Agency. Copies of this ordinance are available at the town Clerk's Office.

4. To approve and accept as a Town Road the Road known as Rachel's Court, and the right of ways and fire protection areas so dedicated to the Town, all as shown on a map entitled "Record Subdivision Map, Rachel's Court, Killingworth - Haddam Turnpike, Connecticut, Route 81, Killingworth, Connecticut., DATE: October 8, 2002, revised thru 8-21-03, SCALE:1" = 50', by Thomas A. Stevens & Associates, Inc,. Civil Engineers and Land Surveyors, Madison, Connecticut."; and as described in a certain deed from Rachel's Court, LLC to the Town of Killingworth dated May 12, 2005, which deed may be inspected at the office of the Killingworth Town Clerk.