NewHartfordPlus.com

By: Maria Moore

The Mallory Brook Plaza in Barkhamsted was open for business as usual yesterday, Saturday, February 12, after having been closed from this past Wednesday afternoon through Friday afternoon due to concerns from the snow accumulated on the roof.

The plaza was closed when employees at various businesses reported hearing creaking and cracking sounds from the roof. The Barkhamsted Building Inspector ordered the building to be evacuated until the snow was removed from the flat roof. On Friday afternoon, the snow removal had been completed and the shopping center was allowed to reopen.

On Saturday all the stores were open again for business. The NewHartfordPlus crew went to the plaza on a regular shopping trip and found the parking lot full and the businesses filled with customers, with only the large piles of snow at the building’s corners as reminders of the last several days of unusual activity.

Our reporter called Dr. Leon Reich, the New York-based owner of the plaza and left a message on his home telephone. Any additional information we may obtain in the next several days will be added to this report.

News about the closing of Mallory Brook Plaza and its reopening was first reported by the Republican American. To read Saturday’s Republican American report, see Barkhamsted shopping plaza, movies reopened after snow scare.

Mallory Brook Plaza open for business again on Saturday, February 12. Photo: Maria Moore

Another view of Mallory Brook Plaza looking towards the Tractor Supply store. Photo: Maria

Update on Town Buildings From Barkhamsted First Selectman

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Following is information we received this past Monday, February 7, from Don Stein, First Selectman of Barkhamsted, giving an update on the status of his town’s buildings:

Many of you may have heard that the Town’s salt storage building collapsed Friday afternoon. The building, which is a Quonset hut design, was constructed over 16 years ago and was nearing the end of its useful life. Quonset huts were originally developed by the U.S. Navy for storage in remote locations and have the capability to withstand harsh environments. Despite careful monitoring of the snow depth on the Town’s buildings, the snow on this aluminum structure was apparently beyond its limit. The collapse was likely due to the fact that it was corroded from its years of service.

Most importantly, no one was inside the building at the time and no one was injured. After the collapse, we immediately demolished the building for safety reasons. Regional Refuse Disposal District #1 will sell the scrap metal on behalf of the Town. The building was insured, as is all town property, and we are working with our insurance carrier to determine the replacement value. Fortunately, we were able to relocate the salt in the building to the other Quonset hut.

School Superintendent Jeff Linton and I worked together throughout the weekend to review the other buildings in town. Even though we did not believe there was any additional danger, we are using town employees and a hired contractor to remove ice and snow from the Barkhamsted School, the Town Hall, the Town Garage, the old Town Garage, the second Quonset hut, and the Senior Center.

We felt that we needed to move quickly, rather than risk any other problems with town-owned buildings.

Jeff Linton sent a note to the school community regarding the Barkhamsted School. That note, as well as this one, is posted on the Barkhamsted town website.

Please call me if you have any questions,

Don Stein,
First Selectman, Barkhamsted

By: Maria Moore

Bullying is an age-old problem, and the effects that bullies have on their victims can be devastating as they live under the threat of psychological and sometimes physical abuse. A difficult cycle of behavior to break, but one which the Rec Department is eager to take on. “You see bullying behavior even in young kids at camp.” Rec Director Dennis Minor told our reporter. And so he has developed a two-step program for children from Kindergarten through 6th grade to take on this difficult topic.

The first step, a discussion panel, “A Conversation About Bullying,” is scheduled for 6:00 p.m. this coming Thursday, February 10 in Berkshire Hall at Brodie Park. The panel, moderated by Rec Director Dennis Minor, brings together community members with a wide range of expertise on the topic including Christine Sloman, School Nurse, New Hartford Elementary, Jen Zenuh, New Hartford Board of Education, Roger Pearl, Hartford Police Officer, Sam Hartzell, Canton High School Student, and Recreational Therapist Lee Ann Taylor. Panel members will discuss bullying – how it occurs, why it occurs and how to effectively deal with it. They will also answer questions and consider input from the members of the public present. The panel discussion is free and all are welcome to attend.

Following up on the discussion panel, the Rec Department will offer a 6-week site based Mentoring program at Berkshire Hall. The program will provide students with an individual mentor/mentee match as well as group activities. Both adult and peer mentoring opportunities will be available. Matches will spend time playing board games or computer games, playing in the playground, working on homework, or just talking. The mentoring program is not a tutoring program; research has shown that children matched with a mentor in a site based setting show academic improvement over time, as well as exhibiting higher levels of self-confidence and a better attitude towards school. These are all factors that are important in nurturing resilience and reducing the risk and impact of bullying. The on site mentoring program costs $50 for the 6-week session (on going until end of school) and includes snacks. The sessions will be on Wednesday afternoons, from 3:30 p.m. to 5:15 p.m. A limited number of scholarships are available – please ask for details.

For more information about either the “Conversation About Bullying” discussion panel or the 6-week on site mentoring program, please call the Rec Office at 860-379-3877. Or better still, plan to attend the discussion panel at 6:00 p.m. this Thursday, February 10 and speak with the Rec staff directly. There will also be information available about the mentoring program.

Take the first step to end bullying: Attend the discussion panel and learn about this important topic.

Definitions of bullying: A bully (noun) = A person who is habitually cruel or overbearing, especially to smaller or weaker people. To bully (verb) = to treat abusively, to affect by means of force or coercion.

Kate Rieger, Principal at Ann Antolini School will be retiring at the end of this school year, 2010-2011. Kate’s decision to retire was communicated to the New Hartford Public Schools community by Dr. Philip O’Reilly, Superintendent of New Hartford Public Schools in a letter dated December 17 which was distributed via the schools’ ALERTNOW system. Following is a copy of that letter:

Congratulations to Kate Rieger on her upcoming retirement. It will be difficult to think of Antolini without Kate’s steady presence there.

John Rathgeber

The CBIA (Connecticut Business & Industry Association), the largest business association in Connecticut issued an open letter to Governor-Elect Malloy yesterday, Monday, January 3, just two days before he officially takes over as our new governor.

The CBIA said about its letter: “As Dan Malloy becomes Connecticut’s new governor this week, we are congratulating him in an Open Letter and wishing him success in tackling the big challenges he and the state now face. We believe Gov.-elect Malloy’s leadership will be crucial to driving renewed economic growth and job creation in the state, as well as in transforming state government. He deserves the help and encouragement of all of us in this difficult time.”  Following is the Open Letter:

Dear Governor-Elect Malloy:

On behalf of our 10,000 members, I want to congratulate you on becoming Connecticut’s 88th Governor and wish you success in addressing the serious economic and policy issues facing our state.

As it was in Stamford, your leadership is critical in convincing leaders of businesses, small and large, to grow their companies in Connecticut, to invest in new products and services, and to create and keep jobs here.

Connecticut’s economic renewal is not just important to the men and women working in our state, the young people seeking employment here, and the 100,000 who have lost their jobs in this recession. It also is critical to our ability to solve our budget problems and provide essential public services.

We applaud your commitment to honest, transparent budgeting. We urge you to take this opportunity to transform state government and encourage municipalities to work together in finding efficiencies and reducing the costs of delivering important public services.

Your commitment to public education is very encouraging, and we ask that you establish goals to close the achievement gap and make Connecticut schools the best in the nation. The Connecticut Commission on Educational Achievement provides a detailed blueprint for action.

And, we urge you to make Connecticut’s economic recovery your administration’s overall priority. Working with employers to solve problems and accomplish regulatory goals will unlock good ideas and improve business confidence in our state.

As you know, when the national recovery strengthens – and it will – Connecticut cannot afford to be passed by. We look forward to working with you, your administration, and Democratic and Republican legislators in making Connecticut a leader again in economic growth and job creation.

Respectfully,

John R. Rathgeber
President and CEO
Connecticut Business & Industry Association

Editor’s Note: As a small business in New Hartford and a member of the Board of Directors of the New Hartford Business Council, NewHartfordPlus fully supports the sentiments expressed by Mr. Rathgeber.  We also urge our local government to adhere to the same principles as outlined in the letter in order to deliver essential services in town in the most cost-effective way by streamlining them and cooperating with our neighboring towns as much as possible, and to actively pursue the economic development which our new wastewater treatment plant has made possible.  With fiscal prudency on one hand and an assertive push for economic development on the other, New Hartford can again position itself as one of the most desirable locations in the state to do business in as well as to live in.