New London council approves police contracts, mill-rate stabilization fund and three brownfield grants

At its March 3 meeting the New London City Council approved a five-year contract renewal with Axon for body-worn cameras and related equipment, authorized the purchase of a grant-funded police vehicle equipped with license plate readers, adopted a mill-rate stabilization resolution to set aside surplus funds, and authorized three separate brownfield grant applications. The council also adopted a letter in support of special-education funding.

The votes matter because the Axon contract and vehicle upgrade affect police equipment and data storage; the mill-rate stabilization resolution is a new fiscal tool the mayor said would let the city designate surplus funds to blunt projected state aid cuts; and the brownfield grants are intended to support large redevelopment projects that together will add hundreds of housing units.

Police equipment and Axon contract: Council voted to approve a five-year renewal with Axon in the amount of $2,018,307.94 for body-worn cameras and ancillary equipment, with funding from account 36420102-57350AX025. The motion was seconded by Councilor Nassar and passed unanimously by vocal roll call (6-0). Police Chief Wright told the council the department had not experienced major problems with the prior contract and highlighted cloud storage as a benefit: “One of the benefits of Axon is it allows for cloud storage,” Wright said, explaining the department lacks server infrastructure to host lengthy video data.

Police vehicle: The council approved the purchase of a specialized police vehicle equipped with license-plate readers. Chief Wright said the vehicle was procured under a grant and thus at no cost to the city; councilors who spoke in favor said the vehicle will speed investigations and improve officer efficiency. The motion carried with vocal assent; the council was told the vehicle includes LPR systems and related electronics.

Mill-rate stabilization fund: The council adopted resolution 030325-01 to establish a mill-rate stabilization fund to which the city may divert confirmed surplus funds after the annual audit. Mayor Passaro and Director McBride said the designated fund balance would be used, if needed, to soften one-time revenue shortfalls when assembling the FY2026 budget. The measure passed 6-1 after questions about timing and whether creating such a reserve while school funds are drawn down.

Brownfield grants: The council authorized the mayor to apply for three separate Connecticut Department of Economic and Community Development Brownfield Round 21 grants to support remediation at 150 Howard Street, 162 Howard Street and 77 Hamilton Street, and 330 Bank Street. Each application requested up to $1,000,000 — the maximum amount developers will accept without triggering prevailing-wage provisions — to cover part of remediation costs for redevelopment projects that together the mayor said would total more than 400 units. The motions carried by voice vote.

Letter supporting special-education funding: Council members approved sending a letter to the governor in support of increased state funding for special education in the current fiscal year; councilors said they wanted the city to join bipartisan efforts at the state level.

Next steps: The Axon contract and vehicle purchases will be processed by city staff; the mill-rate stabilization fund will be populated only after the fiscal-year audit confirms surplus amounts; and brownfield grant applications will proceed through the state grant process.