North Branford is beginning the new year with progress on items covering several fronts in town.

Among actions taken and reports received at the January 3 Town Council meeting, the council met North Branford’s new Town Planner on his first day on the job, received welcome updates on the high school and police department projects, and approved town buildings and sites which will now begin to receive an equal share of approximately $100,000 in annual energy cost savings generated by the newly online Citrine solar installation on Forest Road.

A New Town Planner

Following executive session on Dec. 14, the council appointed David Perkins as Planning and Zoning Administrator/Town Planner with an annual salary of $88,000 and a start date of January 3. On January 3, Town Manager Michael Downes introduced Perkins to the council.

Perkins told the council he’d worked for the Town of Stafford for the past 5 and ½ years and was looking forward to the much shorter commute to North Branford from his home in Short Beach, Branford. He described Stafford as a town similar to North Branford in its size, distances and agricultural features. Perkins said he was looking forward to working with Town commissions, boards and agencies related to his work, and to “...helping the future of North Branford.”

Mayor Jeffrey Macmillen and the council welcomed Perkins to his new role.

“We’ve heard a lot of great things about you,” said Macmillen. “We’re excited to have you come aboard, and look forward to working together.”

NBHS Project Update

In his Jan. 3 Town Manager’s report, Downes noted to the council the North Branford High School (NBHS) academic wing/Phase 1 construction project remained on track for a mid-February move-in. He said rooftop units are coming in, Phase 1 punch list items are being worked through, and furniture is being delivered and placed in the new building.

January Start for Police Department/EOC Project

Following the completion of a required Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) Tribal Review process, the Police Department and Emergency Operations Center (EOC) project is now anticipated to have construction get underway in January.

The Tribal Review process was conducted in conjunction FEMA in the fall, at the Town-owned project site at 305 Forest Road. Following the review, none of the tribes expressed any interest in the location, according to information received by the Town in a letter from FEMA on Dec. 13, 2022.

The letter also stated FEMA found the Town to be in environmental historical compliance. It also outlined several special conditions to be followed for construction to get underway at the site; however, as Downes noted, the conditions are not expected to impact the project as they are not in the footprint of the proposed facility or other planned development areas.

The conditions include: providing photo documentation showing a 50-foot buffer around the study’s northwestern test site, where some early American pottery and dishware remnants were found; a deed restriction on the property near that test site, with any further development subject to review by the State Historic Preservation office; and stopping work if archaeological deposits or human remains are discovered.

On January 3, the Town Council also authorized Downes to sign for and provide any needed documentation to FEMA for acceptance of a $1 million FEMA grant for the police department/EOC project.

Citrine Solar Array Online, Energy Benefits Headed to the Town

Downes also reported to the council on January 3 that Citrine Power's 2.6-megawatt solar array is now operational at its Forest Road location, allowing the Town to begin benefiting from an anticipated approximate $100,000 annual virtual net metering agreement with energy provider United Illuminating (UI).

Construction began in January 2022 on the ground-based rack and panel solar array, which fills about 10 acres among 27 acres on farm land that is being leased by Citrine from Robert Page Farm property owner Mark DiLongo for a period of 25 years. Both the landlord and the Town will benefit from virtual net metering agreements with UI for a 25-year period.

On January 3, the council voted unanimously to have the Town’s energy benefit, which will appear monthly on utility bills, spread evenly across several UI Town accounts tied to the following buildings and sites: Jerome Harrison Elementary School, NBHS, North Branford Auditorium, an account for Town street lights, North Branford Intermediate School (NBIS), NBIS exterior lights, Atwater Library and parking, Town Hall.

Due to weather conditions, an official ribbon-cutting ceremony at the solar array previously planned for December, 2022 is now set to take place March 16.

The January 3 Town Council meeting was live streamed and can be viewed in its entirety at Totoket TV on Facebook.