Trail committee accepts feasibility materials, authorizes chair to transmit them to Danbury and New Fairfield

The Marjorie Reservoir Trail Committee voted unanimously at its meeting No. 17 to receive and accept the consultant's conceptual feasibility materials and to authorize Chair Holly Robinson to transmit the materials and the committee's recommendation memorandum to the City of Danbury and the Town of New Fairfield.

Chair Holly Robinson opened the meeting by saying, "The purpose of tonight's meeting is limited and administrative," and noted that "there is no public comment on tonight's agenda" because the session was strictly to receive and forward the consultant materials. Robinson said the materials include the proposed trail alignment, environmental constraints, engineering analysis, public input and "preliminary conceptual cost estimates."

Robinson said the committee had circulated a draft recommendation memo earlier in the process and that members would have an opportunity to review and submit edits prior to transmittal. She told members the memo would need to be submitted to the city executive administration by June 25 so it could be included in the City of Danbury packet for the July 7 council meeting. "We'll make a motion tonight to finalize that memo," Robinson said.

Committee members pressed for schedule clarity and the cost detail that will accompany the memo. Members asked whether the consultant (referred to in the record as "B&L" or "BNL") will deliver total construction and operations-and-maintenance cost figures before the memo is circulated; Robinson said she expects those numbers and will push the consultant for timeliness under the consulting agreement. Robinson added that if the consultant cannot provide final cost figures before the transmittal, "the municipality" could proceed using its own estimates or issue an RFP to obtain firm bids.

On the formal actions, the committee approved the minutes from the prior meeting, rescinded a prior motion that had suspended future meetings so this properly noticed meeting could proceed, voted to receive and accept the consultant's conceptual feasibility materials, and voted to authorize the chair to transmit the accepted materials and the committee's recommendation memorandum to the City of Danbury and the Town of New Fairfield. At the close of the meeting the chair entertained and the committee approved a motion to adjourn.

The committee said it expects to finalize the memo with member comments by June 25 and to submit it to municipal officials for their review and any subsequent RFP or budgeting steps; no formal municipal decisions were made at this meeting and public comment was not taken.