First Selectman's Report - June 22, 2015
First Selectman’s Report
June 22, 2015
Simsbury, Neighboring Towns Receive CRCOG Inter-town Cooperation Award for Purchase of Shared Equipment
I am pleased to report that the Town of Simsbury received an “Inter-town Cooperation Award” from the Capitol Region Council of Governments for working with several other Towns to make a joint capital equipment purchase for the benefit of all of the participants. Avon, Bloomfield, Canton, East Granby, Farmington and Granby also participated in the joint effort, which included the purchase of a trailer mounted paving hot boxes, a tracked paver and a slope mower. Tom Roy deserves a lot of credit for this – not only did he represent Simsbury’s interests in this, but he was key to coordinating the effort with the other Towns involved. Tom was at the awards ceremony last week and I would like to thank him for his part in working to minimize costs and maximize benefit for the residents of Simsbury.
Simsbury Retains Aaa Rating from Moody’s Investors Service
The Town of Simsbury has maintained its Aaa rating from Moody's Investors Service in connection with its issuance $9.1 million General Obligation Bonds. Moody's has also affirmed the Aaa rating on $41.1 million of outstanding parity debt. According to Moody’s, “[t]he Aaa rating further factors the town’s professional management team which has maintained historically stable financial operations and healthy reserve levels which are supported by a formal policy. Further, the rating incorporates modest long-term liabilities for debt service, pension, and OPEB.” The Aaa rating is a credit to this Board, to the Board of Finance, the Board of Education and to the administrative team that has worked so hard to keep Simsbury in a strong financial position. I would like to thank our Finance Director Joe Mancini and everybody involved in what has truly been a team effort to ensure that Simsbury can obtain excellent rates on bond issues.
Town of Simsbury, Simsbury Main Street Partnership and Simsbury Chamber of Commerce Sponsor a Business Community Meeting, Tuesday, June 23, 2016 at 7:30 a.m.
Please join me at the Business Community Meeting tomorrow morning, 7:30 a.m. at the Simsbury Inn which is being jointly sponsored by the Town of Simsbury, Simsbury Main Street Partnership and the Simsbury Chamber of Commerce. The meeting will give local businesses and those interested in doing business in Town with the opportunity to learn about signage and zoning regulations which will soon be addressed by the Town’s Zoning Commission. Hiram Peck, our Town Planner and Sheila Hummel from DECD will address the attendees and there will be ample opportunity for questions and answers on these and other topics. This is another example of Town organizations working together to make sure that our residents and businesses have access to the information they need – and the opportunity to express their concerns and suggestions – in a process designed to make sure that we’re doing the right things here in Simsbury. My thanks to Sarah Nielsen, Lisa Gray and the many others who have worked to set up this important event.
Hazardous Waste Collection a Success
Since our last meeting, Simsbury and the towns of Avon, Granby and Canton held a hazardous waste collection event on June 13th which allowed 373 Farmington Valley residents to safely dispose of their household hazardous waste. I wanted to acknowledge the success of this regional initiative and to thank Tom Roy and our Public Works Department for their part in making this annual collection a reality.
Town of Simsbury Receives Certificate of Achievement for Excellence in Financial Reporting
It has become a regular tradition to congratulate our finance team for the excellent job they do in preparing the comprehensive annual financial report. Once again, the Town of Simsbury has received a Certificate of Achievement for Excellence in Financial Reporting from the Government Finance Officers Association. My congratulations to Joe Mancini, Deb Sweeney and Sean Kimball for their respective roles in preparing our annual financial report.
Take Advantage of Simsbury’s Farmers’ Market on Thursdays Throughout the Summer!
The Simsbury Farmers' Market launched its eighth year last Thursday, June 18th on the green at Simsmore Square. If it is summer, and it is a Thursday, then you should be at Simsmore Square between 3 and 6 p.m. to take advantage of this wonderful collection of vendors, offering some of the
best locally grown and raised farm fresh products. Our Farmers’ Market is known statewide as one of the best of its kind, and I strongly urge you to take advantage of everything it has to offer!