Selectmen Set Aug. 20 Charter Revision Hearing

Board of Selectmen · Meeting of August 3, 2026

GUILFORD — The Guilford Board of Selectmen voted 3-0 to hold its Charter Revision Commission public hearing on August 20, racing a September 1 deadline to get proposed charter changes on the November ballot. First Selectman Matthew Hoey said the board could add a special meeting the week of August 24 to vote afterward. Selectwoman Susan Renner, who argued an earlier August 13 date left too little time for public notice, also flagged a tabled Park and Recreation trailer lease over an unlocated original contract and an "about $92" insurance rider, saying "there should never be something like this on the Selectmen agenda." The board also voted 3-0 to begin reviewing Guilford's first-ever application under its 2021 tax abatement program, a 50-unit, 30-percent-affordable project at 90 and 100 Hubbard Road, and heard that GCTV has lost 20 percent of its Comcast revenue and 50 percent of its Frontier revenue, prompting a request to lease space at Town Hall North for an estimated $15,000 in annual savings.

In the full story:

• Who Was There
• Organizations And Documents Referenced
• The complete report — 2,942 words

Source: the Board of Selectmen meeting of August 3, 2026, reported from the official video recording and transcript.

Checked against the record: before publication this article was automatically compared with the meeting transcript.

The Full Article

Call to Order and Minutes

First Selectman Matthew Hoey opened the August 3 meeting short two members: Jonathan Trotta was traveling for work and Louis Federici was returning from vacation. Sandra Ruoff joined by phone after initial technical delays. Susan Renner led the Pledge of Allegiance. The board approved the July 20, 2026 minutes 3-0 with no discussion, the only purely procedural item of the day.

Fire Department Equipment Purchases

Two fire department staff identified only as Clint and Jim brought three routine capital items. The board approved, 3-0 each, the $18,055.69 purchase of a replacement cellular repeater for the Emergency Operations Center at Fire Headquarters (the low bid among three quotes, the other two near $24,400); disposal of a 2003 mass-decontamination trailer, a post-9/11 Department of Homeland Security asset the town held as custodial agent and has since replaced with newer technology, which will be routed through the town's disposition process to a staffer named Dave Castro; and purchase of a Lucas automated CPR compression device using opioid-settlement funds administered through Guilford Youth and Family Services. Renner asked whether the opioid funds were confirmed available before the purchase; staff said the funds remain "pretty well... plentiful." Hoey asked the board to extend thanks to Youth and Family Services' Lynn for making the settlement money available.

Park and Recreation Trailer Lease — Tabled

The board considered renewing a lease with Wilcott for a trailer behind the Public Works garage that doubles as Parks and Recreation office space, including an office for Public Works foreman Tony Anaselli. Ruoff recalled the trailer was originally meant to give Park and Rec staff shelter during storms, a need since addressed by granting them access to the Public Works bunk room, leaving the trailer serving mainly as office space. Renner flagged that the lease includes a property-damage waiver and general-liability insurance rider, plus a separate $122 monthly charge she described as rental for steps, and asked whether the town's own insurance already covers the risk. Staff member Pete, participating remotely, said the town has been unable to locate the original lease despite at least one prior renewal, and could not confirm he had reviewed its terms. The board voted 3-0 to table the item. Renner added a process objection: "I just don't think we should operate that way," referring to approving amendments to agreements no one in town hall could produce. Staff were directed to track down the original lease before the item returns.

Memorial Estates Tax Abatement Application

Background and stakes: Guilford adopted an economic-development tax incentive policy on April 5, 2021, allowing the Board of Selectmen to defer a portion of property tax increases for qualifying projects, including affordable housing, for up to seven years if a development raises the town's grand list by at least $175,000. The Memorial Estates application at 90 and 100 Hubbard Road, filed under an 8-30g affordable-housing process with a 30 percent set-aside, is the first application the town has received under the program since it was created roughly seven years ago.

The question before the board: whether to move the application through the multi-agency review process the 2021 policy establishes, not whether to approve the abatement itself.

Substantive content: Economic Development Commission liaison John (referenced by first name in the discussion) told the board his commission has already recommended revising the policy to raise the qualifying threshold to $500,000 and shorten the abatement period to five years, but the Board of Selectmen has not acted on that revision, so the Memorial Estates filing proceeds under the original 2021 terms. Under the policy, a 100-percent-affordable project would have the entire assessed increase deferred; because Memorial Estates is only 30 percent affordable, the board will need to determine, with input from the Board of Finance, Finance Director and Economic Development Commission, what portion of the increase to defer and for how long. Staff also flagged incomplete paperwork: an owner's signature was missing on one of the two application forms, and one form described the project as age-restricted ("55 and over") while the other omitted that language, a discrepancy Renner asked staff to clarify with applicant Jim McMahon, whose wife Amy Bloom participated in the meeting by phone.

The deliberation: Renner initially balked at approving what she thought was being asked. "I'm not confident approving it at this point, which seems to be what we're being asked to do here," she said, prompting Hoey to clarify the motion only sends the application for interagency review, not final approval. Renner then agreed: "I'm great with the concept of it, 100 percent on board, but I guess we made a motion and I seconded it and I don't really understand what the motion was." The board resolved the confusion by restating the motion as forwarding the application for review and recommendations.

Procedural steps and outcome: The board voted 3-0 (Hoey, Renner, Ruoff; Trotta and Federici absent) to move the Memorial Estates application through the review process defined in the 2021 policy documentation. No abatement amount or term was set.

Implications and what is next: The application now goes to the Board of Finance, Economic Development Commission, Finance Director and Town Assessor for comment before returning to selectmen with recommended abatement parameters. The outcome could shape how the town treats future affordable-housing abatement requests, and intersects with the unresolved question of whether selectmen will adopt the Economic Development Commission's proposed stricter threshold.

Lake Quonnipaug Management Contract

The town solicited proposals from roughly six firms to serve as consulting lake manager for Lake Quonnipaug and received one response, from Wilcox and Barton, whose limnologist previously worked for the town's prior lake-management contractor and helped build the lake's existing treatment and monitoring plan. Staff member Kevin told the board the firm's $25,000 proposal is a not-to-exceed figure already budgeted in the operating budget; the town did not spend the full amount in the prior year. The board voted 3-0 to approve Wilcox and Barton for a one-year term, renewable at the board's discretion.

LOCIP Road Funds Reallocation

Public works staff member Janice told the board that $130,364 in state Local Capital Improvement Program (LOCIP) funds originally earmarked for bridge and culvert repairs cannot be used as planned because the affected structures sit within a flood plain, triggering a state permitting process that would delay the work. Rather than lose the funding as the state LOCIP grant program winds down, the town will redirect the LOCIP money into the already-approved Long Hill Road and State Street paving program, freeing up an equivalent amount of capital funds for the bridge and culvert work instead. The board voted 3-0 to approve the reallocation.

Veterans Property Tax Exemption Amendment

The board previously expanded a veterans' property-tax exemption to cover up to two acres surrounding a residence and made the change retroactive to capture spouses of deceased veterans, but one applicant's circumstance fell just outside the retroactive date selected, which staff recalled as 2014 or earlier. A staffer referred to as Pete told the board there is no statutory limit on how far back the retroactive date can be set; the board's original intent was to choose a date covering everyone eligible. Ruoff pressed on the arbitrariness of any cutoff date, asking whether a far earlier date would simply resolve the issue for good. Staff agreed that is an option, and noted research is needed on when the underlying statute covering spouses and the two-acre exemption actually took effect, and whether a corrected exemption could apply to the 2025 grand list in time for the July 1, 2026 tax bill. The board voted 3-0 to set a public hearing for September 8 to consider the ordinance amendment.

GCTV Lease Discussion at 55 Park Street

Background and stakes: GCTV, Guilford's nonprofit public-access broadcaster, traces its roots to 1977, when it operated out of a small room at the Guilford Free Library under an earlier name before moving to its current Community Center studio. Cord-cutting has cut its cable-subscriber-fee revenue by 20 percent from Comcast and 50 percent from Frontier, the funding model that has historically supported community television statewide.

The question before the board: whether to authorize staff to negotiate a lease for GCTV to occupy office and studio space at Town Hall North, 55 Park Street, alongside existing nonprofit tenants Chloe's Closet and the Guilford Land Conservation Trust.

Substantive content: GCTV executive director David Weinberg and board member Shannon Gale, joined by town employee and GCTV board member Todd Rake, told selectmen the organization is seeking two adjoining rooms on the building's second floor. Weinberg estimated the move would save GCTV about $15,000 a year and would let the organization build a small interview studio while deploying staff and equipment throughout town for coverage, rather than running a full studio operation that Gale said no longer matches how most residents produce content now that smartphone cameras are ubiquitous. Gale said GCTV surveyed the town and found residents wanted their stories told on GCTV but were less interested in learning the technical production work themselves, prompting a shift in service model. Hoey noted the town already provides GCTV equipment space at the Community Center, which houses the "front end" of the cable system that feeds Comcast and Frontier, and recalled that GCTV's studio was originally intended for the Faulkner Room, which remains available for larger productions. Hoey also disclosed a related, preliminary conversation: Goodwill Industries, which is consolidating operations after closing its Safety Zone facility, is in early talks with Guilford Interfaith Volunteers about potentially hosting Charlie's Closet, the adult-equipment counterpart to Chloe's Closet, and is separately eyeing a retail location on the Boston Post Road. Goodwill's CEO, Rich Borer, previously served as a chief elected official in West Haven.

The deliberation: Renner voiced support, saying she wanted to make sure any equipment GCTV moves into town space is actively used and not simply relocated storage, given existing townwide equipment-storage problems. Gale said GCTV is actively donating equipment it no longer needs rather than carrying it to the new space.

Procedural steps and outcome: No formal motion was made. Hoey said he will work with staff attorney Pete and GCTV representatives to draft a lease agreement, modeled on the structure used with the Land Conservation Trust and Chloe's Closet, including nominal rent and a town-recall notice provision, for the full board to vote on at a future meeting.

Implications and what is next: The lease will return to the board for a formal vote before GCTV could relocate. The arrangement would be the town's third active nonprofit space-sharing lease at Town Hall North.

Charter Revision Commission Public Hearing

Background and stakes: The Charter Revision Commission's draft report proposes six changes to Guilford's charter, the town's first revision effort in 20 years. State law requires the Board of Selectmen to hold at least one public hearing before acting on the report, and the commission's own public hearing drew roughly six to ten speakers last week, which Hoey characterized as "a non-event, largely."

The question before the board: what date to set for its own required public hearing, balancing adequate public notice against a September 1 deadline to qualify any approved charter changes for the November election.

Substantive content: The board had circulated a legal notice listing August 20 as the hearing date but considered moving it to August 13 to leave time to vote at the regular August 17 meeting. Staff said the Charter Revision Commission was expected to vote out its final report Wednesday or Thursday of that week, with town staff receiving a description of the six proposed items and a redlined draft document the same week. Outside counsel from Shipman and Goodwin has been advising the board on timing.

The deliberation: Renner argued the August 13 option left too little time to publicize the hearing. "Does that leave us enough time to really thoroughly get the word out that this is happening, so everyone has a chance to attend and comment?" she asked. Hoey proposed using the town's mass-notification system as a compromise but ultimately agreed with Renner's concern about appearing to rush the process. Ruoff suggested the board could instead keep the August 20 hearing date and schedule a separate special meeting the following week, between August 24 and 28, to vote on the report in time for the September 1 deadline. Renner backed that approach over the compressed alternative. Staff confirmed no newspaper legal notice is required under Freedom of Information Act rules, only website and social-media posting, which staff member Brendan will handle.

Procedural steps and outcome: The board voted 3-0 to set the public hearing and a tentative special meeting window for Thursday, August 20, 2026, at 7 p.m. at the Guilford Community Center. Hoey said he would ask a reporter from the Guilford Courier to cover the hearing and that staff would distribute the commission's draft description and redlined document to the board the same day it becomes available.

Implications and what is next: If selectmen approve the commission's recommendations after the August 20 hearing, the proposed charter changes would go to voters on the November ballot; missing the September 1 deadline would push any changes to a future election cycle.

Appointments, Resignations and Town Green Requests

The board accepted, with appreciation and regret, the resignation of Jennifer Page from the Guilford Lakes Golf Course Commission; a signed letter recommending her replacement came from Cheryl Hicks, which briefly confused Hoey about who was actually resigning. The board also appointed Marty Carlson to the Board of Police Commissioners, filling the seat of Bob Welsh, who served two full terms including roughly seven years as chair and is now term-limited. Both votes passed 3-0. The board then approved, 3-0 each, nine routine requests to use the Guilford Green or post signage for events including the North Guilford Country Fair, National Night Out (October 9, with signage and a self-granted noise variance), the Parks and Recreation Halloween Spooktacular, an early-dismissal-day youth event, a Bluegrass Festival at St. John's Episcopal Church, and two Vista Life "Tour de Shore" requests.

Committee Reports: Affordable Housing

Ruoff, reporting on the Affordable Housing Commission, said a "very positive" meeting last Tuesday showed progress on the Woodruff property with several state agencies, and that she is scheduling a meeting with the Guilford Center for Children to reconnect after a long gap.

"I think things are finally actually moving forward with the Woodruff property." [01:29:18] — Selectwoman Sandra Ruoff

Hoey added that the state Commissioner of Housing, Celia Bruno, who began her affordable-housing career in Guilford working with Ed Seibert on the Apple Tree development roughly 30 years ago, was scheduled to visit Guilford the next day to meet with Seibert and Peter Coburn of the Affordable Housing Commission. Hoey also said the state Department of Housing has announced $2 million in pre-development Community Development Block Grant funding that may be split between the Sawmill property project and completing the Woodruff property, and that deputy Miguel Rivera's team is currently reviewing the town's draft request-for-proposals for a Sawmill developer.

WHO WAS THERE

Matthew T. Hoey III, First Selectman, chair, present. Susan Renner, member, present. Sandra Ruoff, member, present by phone, joined after the meeting's start due to technical issues. Jonathan Trotta, member, absent, traveling for work. Louis Federici, member, absent, returning from vacation. Pete, town legal staff (title not confirmed in sources), participated remotely on multiple agenda items. Brendan, town staff (title not confirmed in sources), handled charter revision public-notice logistics. Pam, Parks and Recreation staff (title not confirmed in sources), discussed trailer lease, logged in late. Janice, Public Works staff (title not confirmed in sources), presented LOCIP road-funds item. Kevin, town staff (title not confirmed in sources), presented Lake Quonnipaug lake-manager item. Clint and Jim, Fire Department staff (titles not confirmed in sources), presented three fire-department purchase items. David Weinberg, GCTV, executive director, presented GCTV lease request. Shannon Gale, GCTV board, presented GCTV lease request. Todd Rake, town employee and GCTV board member, participated in GCTV lease discussion. Amy Bloom and Jim McMahon, applicants for Memorial Estates tax abatement, participated by phone. Rebecca ("Becky"), town staff referenced regarding the Veterans Property Tax Exemption, not present.

ORGANIZATIONS AND DOCUMENTS REFERENCED

Shipman and Goodwin — outside legal counsel advising the board on Charter Revision Commission timing and process. Charter Revision Commission — town body that produced the six-point draft charter report under discussion. GCTV (Guilford Community Television) — nonprofit cable-access broadcaster seeking a lease at Town Hall North, 55 Park Street. Comcast and Frontier — cable providers whose declining subscriber-fee payments (down 20 percent and 50 percent, respectively) underlie GCTV's funding crisis. Economic Development Commission — recommended a revised tax-incentive policy (raising the qualifying threshold to $500,000, shortening the abatement term to five years) not yet adopted by the board. 2021 tax incentive policy, adopted April 5, 2021 — governs the Memorial Estates tax abatement review process. Connecticut General Statutes 8-30g — cited regarding Memorial Estates' 30 percent affordable-housing set-aside. LOCIP (Local Capital Improvement Program) — Connecticut state grant program funding the $130,364 reallocated to road paving. Connecticut Department of Housing — announced $2 million in CDBG pre-development funding for the Sawmill and Woodruff properties; Commissioner Celia Bruno and deputy Miguel Rivera cited. Goodwill Industries — closing its Safety Zone facility; CEO Rich Borer in early talks about possible nonprofit space-sharing and a Boston Post Road retail site. Guilford Land Conservation Trust and Chloe's Closet — existing Town Hall North tenants cited as precedent for a GCTV lease structure. Wilcox and Barton — environmental consulting firm approved as lake manager for Lake Quonnipaug.