TORRINGTON – The Torrington City Council voted unanimously to waive a special event permit fee for The Class Act’s Cut-a-thon, resolved to use block grant funds to fund a sewer line rehabilitation project and approved a retail liquor license for the Cobblestone Hotel during its regular meeting Tuesday night. 

The first action item on the council’s agenda was an update from Lauren Nordeen, Executive Director of Wyoming Child and Family Development. She updated the council on the organization’s activities and requested a $2,000 donation from the city to aid in its efforts. 

“We’re right in the middle of a budget process, and we’ll be making those decisions in the next month,” Mayor Randy Adams told Nordeen. “We’ll certainly let you know.”

The council voted unanimously to waive the fee for a special event permit for The Class Act’s Cut-a-thon. This year, the proceeds will go to the proposed Candy Thompson Memorial Dog Park, a project that was tabled by the planning and zoning commission earlier this year while the founders gather more information and work with the city to find the best location for the park.

The Council voted unanimously to apply for an Economic Development Infrastructure Community Development Block Grant to replace several sewer lines in the city. The grant request will not exceed $500,000. 

The council then heard from Cactus Covello, who was there to lobby for an on-premises retail liquor license for the Cobblestone Hotel, which is expected to open in June. Covello said the hotel is only looking to serve a small selection of wine and beer. 

“It is not our intention to serve any hard alcohol at this time,” he said. “We’re just looking at wine and beer.”

The license was approved with no debate amongst the public nor the council. 

The council passed ordinances relating to gas franchises and sanitation fees on first reading. If the sanitation fee ordinance were to pass all three readings, it would raise residential fees by 30 percent, from $23 a month to $29.99 a month. The motion passed unanimously on its first reading. 

“I don’t like paying it any more than any of you do,” Councilwoman Deanna Hill, who seconded the motion to approve the fee hike, said. “But I understand the budget and I understand what it costs to run something. We have to get a little bit more to make sure we’re able to do that for our customers.”

The council voted unanimously to annex a small piece of land near the airport to bring the facility to FAA compliance. 

The council passed an ordinance to prohibit engine noise from tractor trailers on second reading 4-0. It also voted 4-0 on third reading to bring the city’s driver’s license codes current with state statute.