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Resident urges more documentation on DPW relocation; mayor says public will decide
Summary
A New Milford resident told council the town lacks documentation supporting a decades‑old decision to relocate the DPW to the Century Brass site and urged a POCD‑compliant planning process; Mayor Pete Bass disputed the claim that the move was settled and said the public and council must approve expenditure decisions.
A New Milford resident told the Town Council on April 27 that minutes from a recent council meeting are incomplete and that the administration has not provided adequate documentation to support a proposed relocation of the Department of Public Works (DPW) to the former Century Brass site.
"The minutes do not include any mention of the extended discussion that took place regarding an enhanced facility for the DPW," said Tom Kapsia, who identified himself and gave his address to the council, arguing that the record should include the engineering firm TRC’s letter the mayor read at a previous meeting. Kapsia cited the town’s 2020 Plan of Conservation and Development (POCD) and two WestCOG hazard mitigation plans that, he said, show the Scoville Road site is likely to flood during significant storms and that the aquifer beneath the site has been polluted by past uses.
Kapsia questioned the TRC letter’s conclusion that the aquifer is protected by site geology and pressed the council for more supporting documentation before the town proceeds. "The claim that future pollution would not occur needs to be supported with further information," he said, urging a planning process that conforms to the POCD and includes a cost‑benefit analysis.
Mayor Pete Bass responded during the mayor’s comments section, saying the relocation is not "a done deal" and that any move would require public approval and funding decisions by the council and voters. He said he would place the DPW topic on the next agenda so departments can present additional information and that the TRC letter referenced at the prior meeting has been posted for public access. "The only way a public works facility can move... is going to cost money. Who do you think approves the money? Oh, that'd be us, the public," Bass said.
The exchange highlighted competing emphases: the commenter pressed for historical records, environmental risk analyses and a POCD‑compliant planning process before policy moves forward; the mayor emphasized completed town projects and said the administration would provide more documentation and revisit the issue publicly. No formal motion or vote on DPW relocation occurred during the meeting.
Why it matters: the DPW site selection affects flood risk, contamination vulnerability, and long‑term public spending; the public comment asked the council to document past decisions and follow the town’s planning process before advancing a costly relocation. The council’s next meeting will include the mayor’s promised agenda item to revisit the topic with departmental input.
Next steps: the mayor said he will place the DPW matter on the next council agenda and that posts (including the TRC letter) are available; the council did not take formal action on the DPW location at this meeting.
