Killingworth barn paintings by artists Sandra Smith and the late Jay Folger will once again be exhibited at the Killingworth Library for the month of December. Smith has dedicated the exhibit to the memory of Jay Folger. "Jay was my artist friend who tirelessly encouraged me and countless other artists to keep on painting. Jay's paintings are filled with great joy and expressive fluidity. Enjoy!"

The exhibit may be viewed anytime during the library's open hours (Monday, Wednesday, Friday, and Saturday from 10am-4:30pm; Tuesday and Thursday 10am-8pm).

HK Sports: The 2008 season came to a disappointing end for the HK Varsity Football team on Thanksgiving with a, 35-8, loss to the Valley Regional Warriors.

The Cougars looked good early, but a steady drive ended with a punt in Warrior territory. However, Sal Zichichi's punt pinned Valley on their own nine yard line. Any good feelings would soon be erased as the Warriors first play from scrimmage was a 91-yard TD run to make the score 6-0.

An interception set up another Warrior touchdown to make it 12-0 in the blink of an eye. HK regrouped and pounded out a 70-yard touchdown drive that ended with a Ted Kanaras 13 yard TD run. Zichichi's conversion run put HK right back in the game at 12-8.

Late in the second quarter, the Cougars seemed primed to take the lead until a fumble at the Valley nine yard line squashed any hopes of getting more points. Valley tacked on another touchdown before the half to make it 20-8.

The third quarter saw HK give a much more stout defensive effort that held the Warriors at bay and allowed the offense to try to get the Cougars back into the game. It appeared just that would happen when Rob Flynn connected with Tyler Wilcox on a 30-yard completion down to the Valley two yard line. The play stood, but HK was given a 15-yard excessive celebration penalty that ultimately choked the drive.

The Warriors tacked on another score and then took advantage of three consecutive HK turnovers, two of which came in Valley's red zone. The story of the game was turnovers, as HK racked up 300 yards of offense, only to be denied points due to the costly mistakes. Zichichi ended his career with 95 yards on 23 carries, while Wilcox had a nice day in his final contest with 21 yards rushing and 52 yards receiving. Kanaras accounted for HK's only score and finished with four carriers and 22 yards rushing. Mike DiGregorio chipped in with 12 carriers for 70 yards.

The Killingworth Library will open registration for its winter programs on Monday, December 1. Sign-up by phone or in person. Residents will be given priority. Any questions, please call Gayle at 663-2000.

TERRIFIC TWOS: Especially for children between the ages of 24 and 36 months. Parents and caregivers are invited to enjoy some rhyme time fun with their child every THURSDAY morning 10:00-10:30 during the month of January. (Jan. 8,15,22, 29)
STORYTIME: Especially for all children ages 3 + 4; every THURSDAY morning 10:00 - 10:30 during the month of February. (Feb 5,12,19,26)
MUSIC WITH MARGIE: For 2½ year olds and older. TUESDAYS 10:30 - 11:00 a.m. December 2 through February 24.
LOVE 2 SIGN with JAYE: For children 6 months to 6 years. Thursdays 11:00am -11:30 am. January 8-February 12. Sign language for children.

To the Editor:
In response to Ms. Schultz's Letter to the Editor on Detroit, America's Waterloo, I would like to add two things.

1) Ms. Schultz is apparently a very smart person (and eloquent writer) that is expressing what I am sure many of us feels, but does not know much about relative to the history.

2) I personally hope Ms. Schultz could be part of the Financial committee overseeing the remaining bailout funds when the "Big 3" go back to them in early 2009 (this time likely wearing jeans and sweaters, after getting off a bus)

Kudos to Ms. Schultz!

Bob Bavolacco

---

To the Editor:
By David Gumbart
With the formation of the new Venuti Property Planning Subcommittee to fully explore Town purchase of the Venuti property, I would like to provide some perspective on the recent history of this project. I am Chairman of the Town's Open Space Committee, the group that recommended bringing acquisition of the property to our Boards of Selectmen and Finance, with the intent of bringing the opportunity to a referendum.

The basis of this recommendation came from the Open Space Committee's Charter: to further the goals and objectives of the Town Plan of Conservation and Development by actively working toward the preservation or restoration of undeveloped, natural landscape within the town of Killingworth. To accomplish this goal, our committee established a list of criteria by which undeveloped parcels in town could be objectively analyzed. Read More

Several residents have reported seeing a suspicious Budget rental van in the area. One resident reported that the van had Georgia plates, but could not get the plate numbers. Another reportedly saw the van coming out of their driveway. There were people home at the time and no contact was made. This van may be connected to the recent burglaries in the area. If you have any information on this van or have any other information to report, please contact Troop F in Westbrook at 860-399-2100 or call 911.

The recent burglaries have all occurred between 10:30 am and 4:00pm. Please lock your houses and your cars and report any suspicious activity.

Detroit, America's Waterloo
by Romy C. Schultz
Ever since Henry Ford gave us the 'Model T' Detroit has dictated what America should drive. The tsarist attitude of Motown remained unchallenged for decades while the Big Three reigned supreme.

In their assembly-line fortresses pregnant with delusory arrogance, erratic leadership ignored sound business practices and substituted gimmickry guaranteed to snaffle success. Any break-through system technology was haughtily dismissed. The rigorous discipline of William Edwards Deming's statistical quality control, eagerly embraced by Toyota, was reluctantly recognized only because quality imports were flooding U.S. highways, not because Detroit was concerned about building quality cars with greater fuel efficiency. Read More

State Senator Ed Meyer voted recently for a series of fiscal measures which he says - taken as a whole - will provide substantive monetary relief for the six towns, including Killingworth, in his Senate district and for other cities and towns facing spiraling property taxes, stagnating state revenues, and a darkening state and national economy.

"The stated purpose of the special session was to cut responsibly hundreds of millions of dollars from the 2009 state budget. We did that, and we are on course to cut billions more in the legislative session next year," Sen. Meyer said. "But what we could not overlook, and what we did not overlook, are the financial pressures that cities and towns all across Connecticut are confronting on a daily basis. To that end I was pleased to vote for a package of measures that should provide some measure of financial relief to taxpayers and Boards of Selectmen who are looking for substantive and creative ways to save money and raise new revenue."

The bill:
1. Allows the commissioner of the state Department of Administrative Services to act as 'contracting agent' for three or more municipalities seeking to make group purchases, thereby allowing small towns to join together and take advantage of the state's enormous purchasing power. "Towns desperately need this option in order to reduce their costs of doing business," Sen. Meyer said.

2. Allows cities and towns to establish - by December 31, 2009 - a one-time tax amnesty program for persons owing taxes, assessments, fees, fines, or other payments to the municipality. "It's a win-win," Sen. Meyer said. "Residents can avoid the high cost of interests and fees, which often exceeds the cost of their tax delinquency. And towns have a heretofore uncollectible revenue stream of unpaid back property taxes."

3. Extends the maximum time from 8 to 10 years for which a town or a regional school district can issue or renew temporary, short-term notes.

4. The bill also provides certain protections for tenants residing in foreclosed properties: It increases the length of time certain tenants may continue residing in foreclosed property. Specifically, the bill stays a tenant's ejection after a foreclosure judgment is entered and prohibits the commencement of any eviction action against him or her on the grounds that he or she no longer has the right or privilege to occupy the dwelling because of the foreclosure judgment. The length of the stay and eviction prohibition depends on when the tenant entered the lease and whether it was written. Still, under the bill, tenants living in foreclosed property may be evicted for nonpayment of rent, breach of lease or rental agreement, nuisance or serious nuisance, breach of statutory duties, occupying the dwelling when he or she never had a right or privilege to do so, or using the premises for an illegal activity for which the tenant was convicted.

5. Extends the existing state foreclosure mediation program from 60 days to up to 90 days in certain circumstances.

Resident Trooper Matthew Ward reports that Killingworth has had four residential burglaries in the last week. No one was home and entry was gained with force by smashing out a basement window or prying a slider open. The burglaries occurred on Pine Orchard, Emmanuel Church Road, Owl Hollow Lane and most recently yesterday on Heft Brook Lane. Trooper Ward asks that all residents to be on the look out for suspicious vehicles or people in their neighborhoods. They have no suspects or vehicle descriptions at this time but believe there are more than one burglar working together. The houses burglarized were set off the road with long driveways.

The items being stolen are guns, jewelry, TVs, computers and video games (Nintendo Wii/Playstation). All the burglaries occurred between 10:30 am and 4:00pm. Please lock your houses and your cars and report any suspicious activity by calling 911 or 860-399-2100 Troop F Westbrook

The library is pleased to announce that its website, www.killingworthlibrary.org, is back up and running. Be sure to visit the site for upcoming events, children's programs, helpful reference resources, downloadable videos, the card catalog, and more! Thanks to everyone for their patience."
- Tammy Eustis, Head Librarian

Join the Arts Center at Killingworth for this holiday Fashion Still Life Workshop. On Sunday, December 7th 1:30-4:30pm, combine your fashion flair while honing in on the use of charcoal. This is the one you don't want to miss! Bring holiday accessories and make this a "still life" for someone special on your list. Learn the basics of preliminary quick sketching using vine charcoal and conquer several simple fashion set-ups, concentrating on form, volume, proportion and structure. By the end of this workshop you will no longer feel overwhelmed by a still life and you will enjoy sketching with speed and accuracy. For teens and adults only. $30 per session. Material list available. Pre-registration required. Call the Arts Center at Killingworth at (860) 663-5593 or email artscenterkillingworth@gmail.com. Check out our upcoming events online at www.artscenterkillingworth.org.

A dozen hardy volunteers from several Town committees and organizations gathered at the Parmelee Farm on Saturday to clear the view to the 17th century farmhouse located on the town-owned property on Route 81. Workers, who ranged in age from 15 to 82, spent the frigid morning removing the underbrush and small trees so the house could be clearly seen from the road. Tree Warden Bruce Fagan volunteered his time and equipment to chip and remove the debris. This is one of several small projects planned by the Municipal Land Use Committee to maintain the property, highlight its assets and encourage its preservation.

The Town was recently awarded a Historic Preservation Technical Assistance Grant from the Connecticut Trust for Historic Preservation to conduct a feasibility study of the house and main barn. Plans for the property and buildings will be overseen by the Town's newly formed Parmelee Steering Committee composed of representatives from interested community organizations. The Historical Society has shown strong interest in using the farmhouse to store and exhibit its collection, the community gardens just completed its first season and the Land Conservation Trust has marked several hiking trails.

Documents indicate that the farmhouse was built in 1847 and occupied by Eunice Parmelee, and then also Horace L. Parmelee. The house was occupied by William Kathotka in 1904; several members of the Pavelka family from 1906 to 1948; Edward and Martha McGrath from 1948-1956 and then by members of the Bosco family until the town purchased the house and acreage in 2000. The 133-acre property formerly known as the Bosco property was renamed to better reflect its historic past.

Sunday: November 16:
• 08:18:51 Fire Alarm, Dudley Towne Road.
Tuesday: November 18:
• 00:33:09 Fire Alarm, Green Hill Road.
• 03:45:03 Fire Alarm, Green Hill Road.
• 16:52:16 Medical Call, Route 148.
Thursday: November 20:
• 19:00:41 Fire Alarm, Route 81.
Friday: November 21:
• 00:48:16 Medical Call, Hemlock Drive.
• 16:19:02 CO Alarm, Bridle Path Trail.
• 20:00:47 Brush Fire, Town Clerk Lane.

HK Sports: The Haddam-Killingworth Varsity Football team celebrated senior day by thrashing the Wolcott Tech Wildcats, 50-12, on Friday night. The night marked the last home game for the Cougar seniors, and they did not disappoint as several of them found their way into the endzone.

The game started off great for HK when Tyler Wilcox (senior) recovered the opening kickoff at the Wolcott 11-yard line. Sal Zichichi (senior) quickly made the score 6-0 with an 11-yard TD run on the next play. HK got right back into the endzone when a Greg Zak (senior) interception led to a Zichichi 14-yard TD run to make it 12-0. Mike DiGregorio slashed his way for a TD from 12 yards out on HK's next drive to make it 20-0.

It was not long until the defense got on the scoreboard as Russ Spaeth (senior) intercepted a pass and returned it 49 yards for a TD. Rob Flynn connected with Wilcox on the two point conversion pass to make it 26-0 and HK was cruising.

Things started to get out of hand when Tim Shine (senior) scooped up a fumbled and wandered his way 42 yards to the endzone to make it 32-0 at the end of the first quarter. The Cougars quickly scored again on their next possession when Zak scrambled his way for a 46 yard TD run to make it 38-0, which was soon followed by a Zichichi 13 yard TD run that pushed the score to 44-0 at halftime. Randall Reynolds scored on a 42-yard TD run in the second half to give the Cougars an even 50 for the night.

The win puts HK at 6-4 on the season, with only the Thanksgiving day showdown with Valley Regional. The Cougars are looking to win their third Principal's Cup in a row, something that they have never done before.

1st row: Sal Zichichi, Brendan Hawley, Greg Zak, Stephen Palumbo, Ted Kanaras,Kyle Delldonna; 2nd row: Bryan Chernauskas, James Juaire, Nick DeGioia, Russ Spaeth, Tyler Wilcox, Tim Shine, Gary Gurecki

Russ Spaeth (#29) after his touchdown. Photos courtesy C. Kostek

Agenda
Regular Meeting of the Board of Selectmen
Monday, November 24, 2008 at 9:00 a.m.
Town Office Building

1. Call to Order
2. Pledge Of Allegiance
3. Approval of Minutes of Meeting held November 10, 2008
4. Visitors: Concerning Items on the Agenda
5. Tax Abatements & Refunds:
6. Vacancies:
    (A) IWWC - 1, (B) OEM - 1, (C) Public Health. - 5 (D) Housing Partnership - 4 (E) Library Board - 1, (F) Estuary Council of Seniors -2
7. Appointments:
8. Old Business:
    A. Hours of Town Hall
    B. Lovers Lane - Fred Dudek
    C. Venuti Property Planning Subcommittee Appointees
    D. Historic Preservation Committee Appointments
    E. Parmelee Steering Committee Appointments
    F. ATV Ordinance: Discussion and Possible Vote
9. New Business:
    A. Approval of Call of Town Meetings
    B. Grant for Parmelee House - Hilary Kumnick
    C. Youth & Family Services - Cheryl Chandler
10. RJC Announcements
11. Selectmen's Concerns
12. Visitor Comments: General
13. Adjournment
Printable version