BOOZE APPROVED AT SMITH-HARRIS HOUSE
Saying there’s a need for more fundraising opportunities, the East Lyme Board of Selectmen will allow alcohol to be served a few times a year at functions on the property of the historic Smith-Harris House. They say that people have backed out of holding events on the property because of the no-alcohol policy on the town owned land. The board voted in favor of allowing special permits for alcohol to be served at the Smith-Harris House property for up to three events per calendar year. The selectmen said they will review the policy annually, which begins May 1st.
ANTI-GRAFFITI PROGRAM LAUNCHED
The New London police department has kicked off a new program aimed at eliminating graffiti in the city. Captain Brian Wright says residents are encouraged to call the PD to let them know about buildings with graffiti. He says a list of vandalized properties will be compiled, and volunteers will paint-over the graffiti on specified dates. He says the presence of graffiti in a neighborhood gives the impression that nobody cares, which may lead to additional criminal activity in those areas.
BOOSTING SUB PRODUCTION
The U.S. Navy says it’s attack submarine fleet is expected to shrink by 20 percent over the next ten years. There are 52 attack submarines today and by 2028, that number is expected to dip to 42. The Navy says it needs a fleet of 66 attack submarines. They’ll have to wait till 2048 for that to happen under current plans. The boats had taken 84 months to build. The Navy reduced that timeline to 74 months, and now the goal is to build them in 66 months. It’s putting pressure on Electric Boat and hundreds of submarine suppliers in Connecticut to keep on schedule.
FAIR REDUCES MEAL DEBT
Groton schools food service workers have come up with an innovative way to help school children who can’t afford breakfast or lunch at the schools. Students who had meal accounts that were delinquent resulted in thousands of dollars in lost revenue for the school system. The Food Service Department recently raised $2,900 through its first-ever vendor fair, held at Fitch High School. The money will be distributed among delinquent accounts, and the fundraising will continue. They call the new initiative “Feed Their Bodies. Fuel Their Minds.”
ENVIRONMENTAL ASSESSMENTS SOUGHT
The Norwich Redevelopment Agency is seeking input from residents, business owners and owners of potentially contaminated properties, who may be interested in having studies done that could clear the way for future development. Loaded with a $384,000 environmental assessment grant, the Redevelopment Agency will hold a public forum at six tonight. The Environmental Protection Agency grant includes $185,000 to study sites with potential petroleum contamination and $199,000 to study sites with potentially hazardous substances.
ONE-ROOMERS REUNITE
Dozens of residents, including more than 20 former students, gathered at the Ledyard Senior Center Sunday for a presentation and reunion celebrating Ledyard’s one-room schoolhouses. Residents revisited the town’s old schools like Long Cove and Geer Hill. Many of the schoolhouses have been converted for other uses. The event marked the first one-room schoolhouse reunion in more than six years. Alumni of the one-room schools offered firsthand accounts of their time as students including wartime bomb drills or arriving early to start fires for heating.
