First Selectman's Report - Feburary 27, 2026

Blizzard Clean Up

This week was one for the history books, kicking off with the Blizzard of ‘26 which dropped between 18 and 24 inches or more of snow throughout town between Sunday night and Monday afternoon.

The storm’s seriousness developed quickly and our emergency management team got to work right away late last week and over the weekend to prepare as the likelihood of a true blizzard grew.

Plow drivers started prepping their routes Sunday afternoon and worked straight through to Monday evening. On Sunday night, I joined the public works crew to get a first-hand look at our snow plowing operations during a major event. The route we were on takes about two hours to complete. Snow started to pick-up around 8:00 PM and by 10:00 PM, as we were on our second pass, you could barely tell we had been through with a plow truck at all because the snow was filling in so quickly.

The experience gave me a much greater appreciation for the complexity and challenges our crews face. The snow was heavy and slippery. That made for challenging conditions even for our heavy plows in some spots. Between the wind and the snow, visibility was very poor at times. Plowing town roads with winding curves, hills, tight corners, and cul de sacs involves some pretty technical plowing skills. 

This is not easy work and it's not done quickly. This is the second time in less than a month that our crews were out plowing for more than 24-hours straight.

Thank you to Keegan at Public Works for letting me join him on his plow route Sunday night!

Crews worked until after dark Monday evening, cleaning up throughout the day before returning early Tuesday morning. Clean up operations have also continued throughout the week as crews have battled additional snow combined with melting snow during the day followed by freezing temperatures at night, producing icy conditions.

Since the storm, Colchester Fire & EMS has also been out clearing snow from around fire hydrants. Clearing of hydrants is the responsibility of abutting property owners, but due to the extreme amounts of snow and build up from plows, Fire/EMS have been out proactively making sure hydrants are fully accessible. Since Tuesday, they have cleared over 100 hydrants.

And thank you to all of our entire team of public works drivers, contractors, and first responders involved in managing the blizzard and helping to get roads and buildings open afterwards.

Referendum Results - Athletic Complex Project and Bacon Academy Roof Replacement Approved

On Tuesday, voters approved both ballot questions regarding the athletic complex renovations and replacement of the Bacon Academy roof.

The approved Athletic Complex Project includes renovations at both Bacon Academy (611 Norwich Ave) and the Town Parks & Recreation Complex (215 Old Hebron Road).

At Bacon Academy, the project will see the renovation of the entire athletic complex with improvements to the main stadium field, track, baseball/multipurpose field, softball field, and tennis courts, with new drainage and lighting.

At the Recreation Complex, the project will see new tennis courts, new and expanded pickleball courts, renovations to the SplashPad, and a new, more centrally located concession stand building.

The Athletic Complex Project is the result of more than two years of work by multiple committees and community advocates. These included the Board of Education’s Pride and Purpose working group, the Board of Selectmen’s Recreation Needs and Coordination Committee, and the Athletic Complex Building Committee. This process included community surveys, meetings with user groups, citizens comments at public meetings, public hearings, and more. I want to thank all of the volunteers who put their time and effort into developing this project to enhance our community and give people new places and opportunities to come together.

From the beginning, our goal on the Board of Selectmen was to bring forward an investment in outdoor recreation that would benefit residents of all ages. I am excited that we will be able to improve facilities at both Bacon Academy and the Town RecPlex. I believe these projects will enhance quality of life and help support our business community keeping people in Colchester. Improved facilities will allow us to host more games, keeping parents and players in town, and drawing players, spectators, and more from other towns.

The Building Committee will resume meeting on Wednesday to start planning next steps for the construction phase of this project. Congratulations to the Building Committee for their successful efforts to bring a project to referendum!

The replacement of the Bacon Academy roof was also approved at referendum. This is a critical, necessary maintenance project. The roof is over 30 years old and spot repairs are not enough to protect the building which has multiple leaks. The Board of Selectmen will move quickly to appoint a small Building Committee to manage this project which will enable us to apply for state financing to help offset some of the costs.

Thank you to all who came out to vote on a snowy February day. Turnout was in line with Colchester's average for recent referenda despite Sunday night’s blizzard. I want to thank our Registrars of Voters, election workers and volunteers, and public works crews for ensuring Town Hall was able to open safely on-time as a polling location to ensure access and to our senior center drivers for providing rides to the polls.

Referendum results are available here: https://www.colchesterct.gov/home/news/referendum-results-athletic-compl...

Get Outside - Youth Services

Colchester Youth Services' Get Outside program returns this spring! We have two spring sessions coming up for Get Outside, please make sure to only register for one and to select the correct registration for the day of the week.

Norton Park Update

The environmental clean-up at the future Norton Park has continued this month despite the snowy weather. Cisco continues to excavate on the site to remove contaminated soils from the former paper mill as part of our grants with DEEP and DECD. Removing the contaminated soils is not only necessary for future park development, it will protect the Jeremy River which intersects with Pine Brook at the site of the former mill.

Youth Center Update 

Progress continues to renovate the Youth Center as funded as part of the Town’s interagency ARPA agreement. This week, structural beams were installed on the first floor which helped level the sagging second floor by raising it nearly an inch! The building, known as Wheeler Block, was built in 1873 and is listed on the National Historic Register.

Bacon Academy Scholarship Fundraiser at Mel’s - Rescheduled

Due to the blizzard, the scholarship fundraiser at Mel's has been rescheduled. On Tuesday, March 24th please join me at Mel's Downtown Creamery Colchester for a special fundraiser for the Bacon Academy Scholarship Fund. 20% of proceeds that night will benefit scholarships for graduating seniors.

My first job was as an ice cream scooper as a Bacon senior. That job helped me save money I needed for college, so now I am picking up the ice cream scoop again to help support our upcoming BA graduates! So come down to Mel's on March 24th where I'll be putting my old ice cream scooping skills back to work for this great cause.

Hope to see you there!

Sincerely,

Bernie Dennler

First Selectman