Cheshire Town Council Approves Teacher Contract, $750,000 Adaptive Field Grant, and Pool Boiler Hearing

Town Council · Meeting of January 14, 2025

CT CHESHIRE — Cheshire Town Council unanimously approved a four-year teachers contract and accepted a $750,000 state grant for an adaptive use athletic field at its January 14 meeting. Superintendent Dr. Jeff Sollen told the council the 2025-2029 agreement between the Cheshire Board of Education and the Education Association of Cheshire landed at a 17.76 percent four-year wage increase, essentially matching the New Haven County average of 17.72 percent, and includes a 2.9 percent annual general wage increase for all teaching staff; the Board of Education had approved the contract 6-0 on November 7.

The $750,000 grant, administered through the Connecticut Department of Energy and Environmental Protection, was originally restricted to Bartlem Park improvements but will now fund an adaptive turf field at a location to be chosen by a new steering committee, giving the town three years to design, bid, and build the facility. The council also called a February 10 public hearing on a proposal to raise the Community Pool boiler repair appropriation from $225,000 to $325,000 after the lowest qualified bid came in roughly $87,000 over budget, and awarded a sewer inflow and infiltration study contract to Wright Pierce at a cost not to exceed $528,251, with 55 percent reimbursable through the state Clean Water Fund. More than a dozen residents addressed the council during an extended public comment session demanding accountability for conditions at the town animal control facility, where Town Attorney Jeff D'Onofrio confirmed a consent order with the Connecticut Department of Agriculture has been in effect since December 24, 2024.

In the full story:

• The complete report — 1,248 words

Source: the Town Council meeting of January 14, 2025, reported from the official video recording and transcript.

CHESHIRE — January 14, 2025 — The Cheshire Town Council approved a four-year teachers contract, accepted a $750,000 state grant for an adaptive use athletic field, and called for a public hearing on a pool boiler funding increase at its January 14 meeting, while a crowd of animal advocates pressed the council for accountability over conditions at the town's animal control facility.

The council moved through more than a dozen items at the lengthy meeting, passing each resolution unanimously except for one stipulated tax agreement that drew a single abstention on a 7-0-1 vote.

The Full Story

The most consequential action of the evening was the unanimous approval of a 2025-2029 collective bargaining agreement between the Cheshire Board of Education and the Education Association of Cheshire. Superintendent Dr. Jeff Sollen presented the contract, which the Board of Education had voted 6-0 to approve on November 7, 2024. The agreement covers a four-year term from July 1, 2025, through June 30, 2029, and includes a 2.9 percent general wage increase each year. Dr. Sollen noted that the New Haven County average settlement for a four-year contract was 17.72 percent; Cheshire's settlement came in at 17.76 percent, essentially matching the county average. The contract also phases out PPO and HMO health plan options while gradually increasing the employee share of HSA premiums from 18 percent to 20.25 percent over the contract's life. A new tuition benefit allows teachers who do not live in Cheshire to enroll their children in Cheshire Public Schools at 50 percent of the town's set tuition rate.

"I think, you know, the mediator who also is an arbitrator came walking out with, this is a good deal. This is a fair deal for both sides." [No timestamp index supplied] — Dr. Jeff Sollen, Cheshire Schools Superintendent

The council also unanimously accepted a $750,000 grant from the Connecticut Department of Energy and Environmental Protection for an adaptive use athletic field. Town staff member Andrew Martelli explained that the State Bond Commission had originally approved the funding in June 2024 for improvements specifically at Bartlem Park, but the town successfully requested that the bond language be broadened to allow flexibility in choosing the field's location. The grant gives the town three years to expend the funds, and a steering committee will be formed to determine the best site.

"I know Representative Liz Linehan has worked tremendously for this, in support of this, bringing this miracle field or now this adaptive use field to Cheshire." [No timestamp index supplied] — A. Fiona Pearson, Town Council Member

The council called a public hearing for 7 p.m. on Tuesday, February 10, 2025, on a proposal to increase the appropriation for the Cheshire Community Pool boiler and roof repair project by $100,000, bringing the total authorization to $325,000. Town Manager Sean M. Kimball explained that eight bids were received and the lowest qualified bid came in roughly $87,000 above the original $225,000 appropriation once contingency was included. The proposal is to redirect $100,000 previously set aside for pool decking work, which Kimball described as a lower priority.

Before the formal business began, public comment ran for an extended period as more than a dozen residents, animal rescue workers, and advocates addressed the council about conditions at the Cheshire animal control facility, where 28 dogs were seized from a private owner and housed for more than two years. Several speakers displayed photographs they said documented filthy conditions, dogs in poor health, and inadequate care. Town Attorney Jeff D'Onofrio updated the council on two parallel legal proceedings — a Connecticut Superior Court action and a Chapter 13 bankruptcy case filed by the former dog owner — and described a consent order signed December 24, 2024, by the Connecticut Department of Agriculture commissioner following an August inspection that found multiple violations. D'Onofrio said the town had filed its first monthly status report under the consent order on December 30 and was working cooperatively with state officials to address the cited deficiencies.

"We are not going away. We will not be ignored like those dogs that were in the pound for two years." [No timestamp index supplied] — Jean Melendez, public comment

School Building Committee Chair Richard Gusenberg reported that groundbreaking ceremonies had been held at both the Norton School and North End school construction sites, and that concrete pours were expected to begin in early February at the Norton site. Council members discussed installing viewing windows in construction fencing and potentially placing permanent live cameras at both sites for public viewing.

Why It Matters

The newly approved teachers contract locks in salary and benefit terms for Cheshire's teaching staff through June 2030 and will shape a major line item in school budgets during a period when the town is simultaneously carrying significant debt for two school construction projects. Council member Don Walsh noted the new school debt will begin hitting the tax levy and asked that the elderly and disabled tax relief program be revisited during the upcoming budget cycle; the program provided approximately $517,000 in relief in the current fiscal year, up from $460,591 the prior year. The adaptive field grant, meanwhile, starts a three-year clock for the town to select a site, complete a design, bid, and build a fully accessible turf facility — a timeline council member Lou Todisco described as challenging. The animal control matter remains active in both Superior Court and federal bankruptcy court, with the next status conference in Superior Court scheduled for January 28.

Key Motions & Votes

- Vote: Approval of minutes from the December 11 and December 23, 2024 meetings Tally: Approved unanimously

- Vote: Consent calendar for January 14, 2025 (Resolution 011425-1) Tally: Approved unanimously

- Vote: Approval of bidding requirements — $25,000 sealed bid limit for construction and non-construction services through January 31, 2026 (Resolution 011425-2) Tally: Approved unanimously

- Vote: Annual adoption of fair housing policy (Resolution 011425-3) Tally: Approved unanimously

- Vote: Acceptance of East Mitchell Avenue extension as a town road, conditional on maintenance bond and recorded warranty deed (Resolution 011425-4) Tally: Approved unanimously

- Vote: Approval of income levels for the 2025 local elderly tax credit program (Resolution 011425-5) Tally: Approved unanimously

- Vote: Approval of public gathering permit (Resolution 011425-6) Tally: Approved unanimously

- Vote: Acceptance and appropriation of $750,000 DEEP grant for adaptive use field (Resolution 011425-7) Tally: Approved unanimously

- Vote: Approval of 2025-2029 agreement between Cheshire Board of Education and the Education Association of Cheshire (Resolution 011425-8) Tally: Approved unanimously

- Vote: Establishment of special revenue auction proceed fund for Water Pollution Control Division (Resolution 011425-9) Tally: Approved unanimously

- Vote: Amendment to FOG ordinance Section 16-61 to reduce annual maintenance inspection fee to $75 (Resolution 011425-10) Tally: Approved unanimously

- Vote: Contract award to Wright Pierce for inflow and infiltration, plant capacity, and force main evaluation, not to exceed $528,251 (Resolution 011425-11) Tally: Approved unanimously

- Vote: Call for public hearing on February 10, 2025 to consider increasing pool boiler and roof repair appropriation by $100,000 to an aggregate of $325,000 (Resolution 011425-12) Tally: Approved unanimously

• Action: Approval of volunteer firefighter pension plan amendment — Tabled

- Vote: Stipulated tax agreement with Strathmore Holdings, LLC, for 677 South Main Street, Unit 2 (Resolution 011425-14A) Tally: Approved unanimously

- Vote: Stipulated tax agreement with James and Patricia McKinney for 272 Beacon Hill Drive (Resolution 011425-14B) Tally: For: 7, Against: 0, Abstain: 1, Total: 8

Source

Cheshire's community access TV: Town Council meeting, January 14, 2025