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Council approves volunteer pizza payment, denies plaque reimbursement; approves tax refunds and several appointments
Summary
Southington council split a reimbursement request for plaques and a volunteer thank‑you, approving payment for the pizza party (with a roll call majority) while denying reimbursement for library‑committee plaques amid concerns about procedure; the council also approved tax refunds and reappointed several cable advisory members while tabling one reappointment.
The Southington Town Council divided a request for reimbursements and delivered several recorded votes on older business items, including a contentious decision not to reimburse plaques tied to a library building committee.
Council members first moved to separate two related reimbursement requests — one to reimburse plaques and the other to reimburse a volunteer "thank you" pizza party — after the town manager said he had verbally authorized the pizza from his own budget but the plaques lacked prior authorization. A motion to separate the two items carried on a roll call vote.
The council then voted to approve payment for the volunteer pizza party. The motion’s supporters said they would back the pizza because the town manager had said he would cover it; opponents argued informal authorization conflicted with town policy. The motion passed on a roll call; the tally recorded in the meeting minutes packet was 4 yes, 2 no, 1 abstain.
On the plaque reimbursement request for the library building committee (submitted for reimbursement to James Morelli), several council members objected to the invoice and documentation. Councilors noted the invoice was made out to the "Southern and Republican Town Committee," there were no multiple quotes provided and the council had no record of an actual vendor payment or a copy of a check. After discussion, the council approved a motion to deny reimbursement; the roll call result in the packet was recorded as 6 yes, 2 no, 1 abstain.
The council also instructed staff to include the entire meeting packet in the minutes, then approved tax refunds as presented in the packet (a unanimous vote). The council considered reappointments to the Cable Advisory Committee (four members to two‑year terms); one reappointment (Miss Bernoli) was tabled pending confirmation. The council approved an appointment moving Mike Goodrich from Planning and Zoning to an Open Space seat.
The meeting record shows recusals: Chair Chaplinski and Councilperson James Morelli recused themselves from the reimbursement matter; the council proceeded to consider the requests with the remaining members. Several members voiced concerns about following formal procedures and avoiding exceptions for elected officials. Where documentation was missing, members voted against reimbursement. The council adjourned after approving appointments and refunds.
Formal outcomes noted in the meeting record: the pizza payment motion passed (recorded tally 4–2–1), the plaque reimbursement motion to deny passed (recorded tally 6–2–1), tax refunds passed unanimously and multiple reappointments were approved or tabled as recorded.
