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Ellington First Selectman outlines emergency preparedness, police accreditation and new park amenities
Summary
Laurie Spielman, Ellington’s first selectman, recapped recent town activities including a preparedness exercise with the state, police accreditation, plans for a library reading garden, installation of blue emergency call boxes in parks and a business‑town partnership.
Laurie Spielman, first selectman for the Town of Ellington, used the Town of Ellington show to summarize recent municipal and community initiatives, including an emergency preparedness exercise with state officials, accreditation for the police department and planned park and library amenities.
Spielman said the town recently held an “aware planning exercise” coordinated with the state to prepare for potential disasters, bringing staff and volunteers together with the town CERT team and staging at the Ambulance Building. “We brought in our staff and had different examples come through, and we had to coordinate them with the state,” she said, describing drills and the town’s capacity to open shelters if needed.
She said the police department received accreditation from the Connecticut Police Academy. “We got accreditation for our police department,” Spielman said, describing it as recognition of the department’s standards.
Spielman also discussed community improvements funded by grants: the town plans to install a reading garden at the library with new tables and benches and a concrete area near the cemetery; she said the head librarian used grant funds to purchase furnishings. She announced plans to install blue emergency call boxes in parks including Arbor Park, Tedford Park and Penny Street Field so people without working phones have a way to summon help.
On local commerce and events, Spielman described a new business partnership that brings town merchants together each quarter and mentioned the return of the Ellington Farmers Market with seasonal programming. She promoted an upcoming scarecrow contest and encouraged residents and visitors to take part.
First Selectman Spielman credited local businesses and organizations, including Oak Ridge Dairy, for community engagement through events such as Touch a Tractor and movie nights. “The town has been super supportive in everything that we do,” Seth Baylor said of the relationship between his farm and the town during the same interview.
The updates are a mix of completed items (police accreditation, the preparedness exercise) and planned installations (reading garden, emergency call boxes) with implementation timing dependent on project scheduling and grant administration.
Spielman closed by inviting residents to attend town events and support local businesses and volunteers who staff preparedness and community programs.
