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NECCOG reviews parcel/CAMA priorities, transit tech and regional revaluations
Summary
At its March 28 meeting, the Northeastern Connecticut Council of Governments reviewed parcel/CAMA matching priorities, a Safe Streets timeline, a CT Active Transportation site-visit request, the Community Connectivity grant program, and Director reports on animal control, transit maintenance technology and upcoming regional revaluations.
The Northeastern Connecticut Council of Governments reviewed several regional programs and technical priorities at its March 28, 2025 meeting in Canterbury.
The council’s Director told members that municipalities with parcel-to-CAMA match rates under 98–99% should be prioritized for funding to bring parcel data into alignment with the Connecticut State Parcel Layer and populate the 37 required attributes. The goal is to ensure every CAMA entry corresponds to a parcel in the GIS and that exemptions such as rights-of-way and public lands are correctly identified.
NECCOG also outlined milestones for the Safe Streets for ALL effort, with a draft due Dec. 31, 2025, a final plan by March 31, 2026, and adoption by NECCOG targeted for May 30, 2026. The council was asked to identify a full day between April 28 and May 9, 2025 to host CTDOT and consultants for regional site visits as part of the CT Active Transportation Plan.
The Director reported that the State Bond Commission approved $12 million for 2025 Community Connectivity projects, with construction grants ranging from $100,000 to $800,000 and an application deadline of 4:00 p.m. on Wednesday, May 21, 2025.
On operations, the Director said the animal-control office recently won a favorable court ruling in a Woodstock case that awarded custody of animals and monetary relief for expenses related to nearly 100 animals; the defendant has appealed and the matter remains before the courts. The office is operating with roughly 12 employees while caring for nearly 140 animals, and the Director said staff are preparing to purchase body cameras and vests for animal-control officers and have added cameras in Norwich.
On transit, the regional transit district demonstrated ZONAR, a maintenance-inspection platform under evaluation to automate fleet tracking, scheduling and maintenance and to provide a rider-facing bus location tool. The Director said CT Transit facilities assessment work is expected to begin imminently.
Finally, NECCOG confirmed that all towns have signed contracts for regional property revaluations, with work starting in Woodstock and a five-payment schedule; the first payment is due July 1, 2025. Outreach efforts include resumed monthly appearances on WINY radio and presentations to towns about POCD updates.
The council’s budget discussion noted frustration with the governor’s proposed budget and mentioned a $250,000 annual allocation to each COG from the Regional Incentive Fund for climate-resiliency work.
