TORRINGTON – The Torrington City Council met on December 3 at 5:30 p.m. for its regularly scheduled meeting. In attendance were mayor Herb Doby and council members Wayne Deahl, Dennis Kelly, Dr. Richard Patterson and Shane Viktorin. Mayor Doby called the meeting to order, and Patterson led the group in the Pledge of Allegiance.

For his informational items, Doby noted the Christmas season has arrived, bringing with it a time of joy, fellowship and family. He thanked those responsible for decorating the downtown area and those participating in the parade. He admonished the community to support local businesses, to remember those less fortunate, to drive sober, to avoid cell phone use while driving, and to watch for pedestrians. The mayor addressed the controversy regarding sanitation fee increases, saying the city council passes ordinances which will benefit the citizens of Torrington and utilities, like trash service, are necessary to live a civilized life.

The consent agenda was then approved following a motion from Deahl and a second from Kelly. Patterson made a motion to approve the agenda for the current meeting, Viktorin seconded, and the agenda was approved. 

During the public forum, Alvin Syrovatka requested the council consider state statutes, which, to his reading, prohibited the city from creating an island of county property surrounded by city property, as would occur should the annexation ordinance on the agenda pass. While the current annexation does not include Syrovatka’s property, it does set up the city to be able to annex his property without approval from him or the other landowners neighboring the property. As the city limits are now, the city would need approval to annex the additional properties. If the city annexes the neighboring properties in the future, it will raise the landowners’ taxes and limit their use of their properties.

Following the public forum, the council conducted the third and final reading of the annexation ordinance Syrovatka had addressed. For an ordinance to pass, it must receive council approval at three separate readings. City attorney Jim Eddington read the ordinance, which would annex city-owned property. Mayor Doby expressed concerns, as it stands, the Torrington Police Department must work with the county sheriff’s office regarding jurisdiction of the property. There is a memorandum of understanding (MOU) between the two groups, but the MOU has worked to limit the Torrington Police Department in the past. The mayor stated he is concerned with jurisdiction because the department of homeland security has issued national bulletins which utility services, particularly water services, may be targeted by terrorist groups. DHS has been issuing warnings about the vulnerabilities of water utilities since at least 2007, and Torrington has not been a focus of concern. Police chief Matt Johnson stated most of the crime on the site is property crime, like the theft of copper, and the property is currently patrolled by the police department, though if annexed, he anticipates increased police presence. City staff was asked about Syrovatka’s concern regarding creating an island, and Eddington responded he believes it is legal to annex the city-owned property. Buildings and grounds superintendent, Dennis Estes, clarified the boundaries of the property. When asked about a future annexation of the neighboring properties, Estes stated he had been advised not to make a comment. He stated though the city has owned the property since 1957, the annexation had been in process for more than two years and had been delayed due to the cost of the survey. With no additional questions from the council, Patterson made a motion to approve the ordinance on the third and final reading. Deahl seconded the motion, and the motion passed unilaterally.

Next, the sanitation fee ordinance was considered on its second reading. One change had been made since the first reading, reducing the annual license fee required of third-party trash collection vendors in order for them to provide roll-off containers within city limits from $600 to $200. Eddington read the ordinance, and there was a brief discussion about the current services provided. Deahl made a motion to approve the ordinance on second reading. Patterson seconded the motion, and the motion passed four to one, with Viktorin voting “nay.” 

Later during the public comment time, Kurt Sittner of TDS thanked the council for their work and consideration of business concerns during the process of amending the ordinance. Marie Flanigan spoke against the ordinance, stating she was concerned there had been no discussion regarding reducing the large increases in the fees. She informed the council there have been fewer new businesses year over year for at least three years, and Torrington businesses are struggling with increased costs in many areas, and with fewer customers. She said she understood a new baler facility would be great, but there had been no discussion of lowering expenses or otherwise engaging in long-term planning to pay for the baler other than raising rates. In the last council meeting, she had expressed concerns regarding the tiers of business fees which seem randomly assigned, and though the council acknowledged it was a concern, she had not been successful in addressing the issue for her business since the last meeting. She closed by stating the city must “dwindle things we want for things we need” and the baler facility project needs to be evaluated again with the intent of limiting costs while meeting the minimum requirements. The ordinance has one more reading before it can be finally approved and enacted on January 1, 2025.

The council then conducted the second readings on the three ordinances required for consistency with the southeast annexation and sanitation ordinance. The ordinances include a restriction on the city to provide new water, sewer, or solid waste services outside of the city limits; a requirement of the city to collect solid waste; and an amendment of the burn prohibition to exclude the burning of the brush/tree pile at the baler facility. On the last of the three, sanitation superintendent, Ed Hawley, requested the verbiage be changed from “brush/tree piles” to “slash pile” for consistency with permitting and regulatory language. A question was asked to clarify, county residents currently receiving city services could continue to do so, and Eddington responded they would. All three ordinances were approved on second reading.

Following the readings of the ordinances, the council considered a request for a special event permit from Go Goshen for the 2024 Christmas Parade. Chief Johnson informed the council the request is for Main Street from 19th Avenue through 25th Avenue to be closed from 5 p.m. until 7 p.m. on December 6 for the parade. The parade begins at 6 p.m., but there are other holiday activities planned around the 21st and Main building starting at 5 p.m. Leann Mattis, representing Go Goshen, thanked the community partners, including city staff, for their help in executing a great holiday parade. Deahl made a motion to approve the permit and to waive the permit fees and associated costs. Kelly seconded the motion, and the permit was approved.

Bills received since the prior council meeting were then approved. Kelly made a motion to approve the bills, Viktorin seconded, and the bills were approved. The council then moved on to the public comment time. Comments regarding the sanitation fee ordinance have been included above. Torrington Volunteer Fire Department Chief, Luis Correa, also informed the council there had been an increase in the number of calls over the past two weeks, mostly due to residents turning on their furnaces and having issues with carbon monoxide levels and sensors. He stated most carbon monoxide issues are at natural gas appliances such as furnaces, water heaters and ranges. There had also been calls regarding water sensors in dry pipes and two grass fires. The fire department also plans on participating in the Torrington Christmas Parade as the first and last truck in the parade.

The next city council meeting will be on December 17 at 5:30 p.m. in the council chambers, at which time the council will vote on the third and final reading of the sanitation ordinance and related new ordinances.