The Board of Selectmen (BOS) took actions to award a contract to demolish buildings on the Sciongay property and to accept a grant from a foundation to pay for the work, and also approved a job description and posting for the position for town planner, left open after former town planner Meg Parulis left to take another position.

Sciongay Open Space

The 5.95 acre Sciongay property at 183 Chapman Mill Pond Road was purchased by the state Department of Energy & Environmental Protection (DEEP) in 2016. It is located at the southern end of Chapman Mill Pond.

Unlike other town open space properties, this one was purchased by the state with structures still standing on it. To return the land to undeveloped open space, the Town of Westbrook agreed to oversee the demolition of these structures and the restoration to open space condition.

On July 17, the BOS voted to award a structure demolition contract to low-bidder Christopher J. Hallahan, Inc., for $62,960. The BOS also voted to accept a grant from the C. Richard and Olive J. Brose Foundation for $68,000 given to offset the cost of this project. The grant was designated to pay both for hazardous material abatement and for removal of the structures still standing on the Sciongay land.

Resident Tom Elliott asked the Board of Selectmen if he could remove and keep two granite slabs associated with Sciongay property structures. The BOS voted to allow him to keep them.

The Sciongay demolition request for $62,960 and action to accept the $68,000 grant that will offset the demo costs now go to a Town Meeting that the BOS set for Monday, Aug. 20.

Town Planner Opening

When former town planner Meg Parulis left to take another position, the BOS decided to assess the nature of that position’s current duties before posting it with the previously written job description.

Planning Commission members Bill Bassett and Marilyn Ozols had appealed to the selectmen to hire another full-time town planner, but First Selectman Noel Bishop and Selectman John Hall at the July 17 BOS meeting and again at a July 24 BOS meeting were skeptical that the current work load for the town’s planner justified keeping it full-time.

Bishop moved to approve a part-time, not to exceed 24 hours a week position for a Westbrook town planner. Additional support for the position will be provided by engineering and outside consultants as needed.

In the discussion that followed, Hall suggested posting the position at 24 hours per week and re-visiting the hours associated with the position in six months. Bishop agreed to amend his motion to include that point. The motion was approved.

The town planner opening was posted and given a closing date for receipt of applications of Monday, Aug. 13.