Town Hall Freedom of Information training

Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) workshops have been scheduled for Tuesday October 24^th.  One late afternoon and one evening session will be offered to accommodate as many staff liaisons and commissioners as possible. The FOIA 101 workshop is approximately one hour long and caters to audiences with varying levels of understanding of the laws.  The program covers both basic, technical and some advanced issues. Information will be distributed to all Boards and Commissions and town departments with a request for individuals interested in attending to register with the Town Clerk's Office.  If anyone has any questions please contact Agnes Pier 285-1901.

Bus Shelters

New bus shelters and adjoining sidewalks at Lamberton Road were installed to accommodate pedestrians near the hotels, and at Kennedy Road near the new Target store.  Also, two deteriorated wooden shelters were replaced: one on Windsor Avenue near Laurel Avenue, the second on Windsor Avenue near Scarborough Road.  Total costs were $55,522, of which $44,418 was reimbursed by the Greater Hartford Transit District.

Implementation of Help America Vote Act Technologies

The Secretary of the State recently announced which voting technologies should be implemented throughout the State to make Connecticut compliant with the Help America Vote Act (HAVA) by the end of 2007.

The Help America Vote Act requires that municipalities enable people with disabilities to vote independently and privately by the end of 2006. Therefore, the Secretary of the State has approved a vote-by-phone system that Windsor and other communities will implement for the November 2006 election.

In addition, Windsor will implement another Help America Vote Act requirement in time for the spring 2007 election. All of the existing lever machines will be replaced by a voting system that uses optical scan technology, where completed ballots are read by a scanner. Voter education and poll worker training on how to use these machines will be conducted prior to the election.

The Secretary of the State is requiring municipalities to pass resolutions to accept ownership of the voting machines, prior to receiving and using the machines. As such, Town Council will be asked to approve two resolutions for the two types of machines during its October 3 regular meeting.

Northwest Park Country Fair

The Friends of Northwest Park have announced that the 24^th annual Northwest Park Country Fair will be held on Saturday, September 30, 2006, from, 10:00 AM to 4:00 PM at Northwest Park.  A rain date of Sunday, October 1^st has also been set.  

This year’s Fair continues the great traditions of past Country Fairs, with the addition of exciting new activities, including a 5K Run through the Park, a “Pumpkin Chuckin” contest, special recipe competitions, nature walks, antique tractor exhibition, letterboxing, and a nature art exhibition.  Of course the best of past Fairs will be featured as well, including the Fun & Games area, hay rides, scarecrow displays, live entertainment and more.   Refreshments will be available at low cost.

Admission to the Fair is free for those under 5 and over 65; otherwise entry is only $1.00 for children up to age 18 and $2 for adults. Volunteers are needed for the day; those interested should contact Mickey Mattei at 688-2439.

River Clean-up Day

Windsor area residents are invited to wade into the Farmington and Connecticut Rivers on September 30, 2006 as part of the 10^th annual Connecticut River Watershed Source to Sea Cleanup, a one-day community cleanup of the Connecticut River and its tributaries.  The four-state event is coordinated by the Connecticut River Watershed Council, a non-profit advocacy organization working to conserve and protect water quality and quantity, habitat, and recreational access within the entire Connecticut River watershed.

A cleanup crew will be working in Windsor.  Volunteers will stage the cleanup at 8:45AM on Saturday, September 30, 2006 at the Town Hall rear parking lot.  If you would like to participate as a volunteer or to be a sponsor or make a donation, contact Cyd Groff, at 285-1987.

Police Explorer Open House

The Windsor Police Explorers will host an Open House on October 11^th from 7:00 PM to 9:00 PM at the Windsor Safety Complex located at 340 Bloomfield Avenue.  If you are between the ages 11-20 and interested in learning more about the Police Explorer program you are invited to attend.