Cheshire Town Council Eyes Land Sale, Police Cruisers, Fire Truck, and Expiring Federal Energy Incentives
Town Council · Meeting of July 23, 2025
CT CHESHIRE — Cheshire Town Council unanimously calls a public hearing to consider selling 58 acres of former state land off Route 10. The council approved Resolution 072325-1 at its July 23 joint special session with the Budget Committee, scheduling the hearing for August 12, 2025 at 7 p.m. in Council Chambers, with a potential same-night vote on the sale to Three Squared LLC. The session also covered a town manager recommendation to fund two rather than four police cruisers at $118,000, down from a $236,000 departmental request, with Police Chief Jortner noting extra-duty vehicle fees brought in $258,905 this year.
Fire Chief Kasner pressed a $1.1 million capital request to replace the 2001 Engine 1 pumper, which recently failed pump certification and faces a $35,000 to $50,000 repair bill. Separately, a Johnson Controls and Energia team told the council that a finalized energy performance contract covering fuel cells and solar installations must clear council approval on August 12 to capture roughly $5 million in expiring Inflation Reduction Act incentives.
In the full story:
- The complete report — 1,155 words
Source: the Town Council meeting of July 23, 2025, reported from the official video recording and transcript.
CHESHIRE — July 23, 2025 — The Cheshire Town Council met in a joint special session Wednesday with the Budget Committee to schedule a public hearing on the potential sale of roughly 58 acres of town-held former state land and to work through proposed fiscal year 2025-26 capital budget items including police cruisers, a fire pumper, community pool repairs, and an energy performance contract racing against an expiring federal incentive deadline.
Council Chair Peter Talbot presided over the meeting, which addressed a broad range of capital requests and heard an update from Johnson Controls and the town's owner's representative on a renewable energy project that must reach contract approval by the August 12 council meeting to capture approximately $5 million in Inflation Reduction Act incentives before they expire.
The Full Story
The council unanimously approved a resolution calling for a public hearing on August 12, 2025 at 7 p.m. in Council Chambers, 84 South Main Street, to consider the potential sale of 58 plus-or-minus acres of former state of Connecticut property adjacent to Interstate 691 with frontage on Route 10 to an entity identified in the resolution as Three Squared LLC. Town Manager Sean — whose surname was not stated on the record — confirmed the council would likely vote on the matter the same night as the hearing. Council member Talbot asked that materials including any draft contract terms be distributed to members before packets are finalized, and the town manager agreed to move on that timeline.
A separate, smaller parcel connected to the same area will not be part of the proposed sale. Town officials explained that the prospective buyer would have the first option to work with the state to acquire that additional acreage, with the conveyance ultimately flowing through the town. At least one additional public hearing would be required for that transaction if it proceeds.
On police vehicles, Town Manager Sean told the council he had reduced the department's capital request from four cruisers to two, recommending a $118,000 appropriation against the department's ask of $236,000. Police Chief Jortner and traffic officer Zaskiewicz presented fleet utilization data showing the department's extra-duty vehicle fee program has generated rising revenue — $226,425 last fiscal year and $258,905 the current year — well above the $190,000 previously estimated. Chief Jortner said the department could absorb the two-vehicle reduction this year without requesting six vehicles next year to make up the difference, though he and Zaskiewicz cautioned that the fleet includes vehicles carrying the equivalent of hundreds of thousands of miles when idle hours are factored in.
"We're willing and able to absorb the cut to the five-year return capital budget, at least in the interim." — Chief Jortner, Cheshire Police Department
Fire Chief Kasner presented a $1.1 million request to replace the department's 2001 fire pumper, Engine 1, which he said recently failed a mandatory pump certification and faces a repair estimate of $35,000 to $50,000 to fix a catastrophically failed impeller — a repair that may not be cost-effective on a vehicle worth roughly $20,000. Kasner noted the department also has two engines already on order, expected in 2027 and 2028. He said if the new pumper is approved and a contract signed in September, delivery could be roughly four years out, around 2029 or 2030. A separate $200,000 request covers firefighting equipment and clothing on the department's standard two-year replacement cycle.
"If one goes down, we're gonna compromise fire protection in that section of town. And that's just reality. That's not a threat. That's just how it works." — Chief Kasner, Cheshire Fire Department
Community pool manager Sheila — surname not stated on the record — outlined three capital needs totaling $115,000: replacement of 22-year-old filter laterals showing signs of sand infiltration, replacement of heat exchangers also 22 years old, and new deck tables to replace rotting 18-year-old wooden furniture. She also flagged a separate, unbudgeted need to replace the pool's Daktronics timing and scoreboard system, estimated at $60,000, after the manufacturer discontinued the product line, leaving no replacement parts available. The council asked staff to research alternative vendors and return with firm pricing before any decision. On the community pool roof — which has been leaking into the lobby and locker rooms — the council expressed frustration that a previously discussed plan to repair it this season had not yet produced a firm bid number. The $120,000 currently in the capital plan was acknowledged as likely insufficient; members agreed to raise the appropriation to a safe number once the Public Building Commission returns with design details, with a goal of acting before the end of August.
On the energy performance contract, Johnson Controls representative Aaron Aligio and Energia owner's representative Justin Benoit told the council that finalized scope and pricing documents would be delivered to Energia by Friday, July 25, with the goal of having a reviewed contract to town attorney D'Onofrio by August 1. The project encompasses fuel cell installations at Cheshire High School and the Water Pollution Control Plant, photovoltaic solar at the high school, Dodd Middle School, Highland Elementary, and the two new elementary schools under construction, and a solar carport at Highland. The combined package is designed to capture roughly $5 million in IRA incentives, including a 30 percent investment tax credit, before federal program expirations. Talbot asked that the full package be shared with council members as early as possible — ahead of final contract review — to maximize review time before the August 12 vote.
"We were in the process of making sure that we've finalized the locations of the proposed renewable scopes of work that we want to move forward." [No timestamp index provided] — Aaron Aligio, Johnson Controls
Why It Matters
The August 12 meeting is shaping up as one of the most consequential single nights on the Cheshire Town Council calendar this year. Members will be asked to vote on the sale of 58 acres of Route 10 frontage property to Three Squared LLC immediately after a public hearing on the same item, and separately to approve an energy performance contract that must be executed quickly to lock in roughly $5 million in federal Inflation Reduction Act incentives the council was told are expiring. Missing either deadline has real costs: the land sale process resets, and the IRA incentives — including the 30 percent ITC and an 18.86-cent-per-kilowatt-hour net metering rate on roof-mounted systems — would be lost. On capital projects, the fire department's out-of-service Engine 1 and the leaking community pool roof represent deferred maintenance already affecting daily operations.
Key Motions & Votes
- Vote: Resolution 072325-1 — approve call for public hearing on August 12, 2025 to consider potential sale of 58 plus-or-minus acres adjacent to I-691 with Route 10 frontage to Three Squared LLC Tally: Approved unanimously
- Vote: Motion to enter executive session Tally: Approved unanimously
Source Cheshire's community access TV: Town Council meeting, July 23, 2025