By JEFF MORRIS
The town board took care of multiple business items, including more committee and board appointments, on Jan. 21 in a meeting that lasted less than an hour.
THRIVE consultant
One action taken by the board was approval of an agreement with Isabella Pectol for consulting services related to THRIVE, formerly known as the Bedford-Lewisboro-Pound Ridge Drug Abuse Prevention Council.
Sally Corbett-Turco, acting chair of THRIVE, said the town had been awarded a federal Drug-Free Communities Grant that made hiring Pectol possible. She thanked supervisor Ellen Calves and town board member Andrés Castillo for their early involvement, with the town board designating some of the COVID-19 monies for a grant writer who had helped get the grant. She also thanked comptroller Brian Kenneally for a great deal of assistance.
According to a memo from Kenneally, town officials worked closely with THRIVE and Student Assistance Services to secure a $125,000 federal grant, renewable for four additional years, totaling $625,000, for the program. The funding, secured through the Drug-Free Communities Grant, is specifically designated to support THRIVE’s mission of reducing youth substance abuse and promoting mental health across Bedford, Lewisboro, and Pound Ridge.
The scope of Pectol’s work, in conjunction with Nicole Malgarinos, coordinator of Community Based Programs and Training at SAS, will include program coordination and implementation; community outreach, engagement, and communications to support substance abuse prevention and mental health initiatives; and administrative and reporting duties to ensure compliance with grant requirements.
Corbett-Turco said the organization has been “doing a lot of new things” and will be doing more new things under Pectol, who she noted has a bachelor’s degree in public health with many honors from Plymouth State University and graduated John Jay High School, where she was a health education intern, and had also worked for the town.
Pectol said she had “grown up here, and have a fond place in my heart for this place.” She said her role was more than just a job; it is “a chance to make an impact on the community by spreading knowledge, raising awareness, and creating meaningful change regarding substance use and mental health.” Together, she said, we can “break down stigmas, build stronger connections, and empower individuals and families to find hope and healing.”
Corbett-Turco urged those interested to visit thrive-alliance.net for updates.
Appointments
Appointed to the Town Housing Committee for a three-year term were Rose Goldfine and Stephanie Bush, who were reappointed, and William F. O’Neill, a new appointment.
Reappointed to the Tree Advisory Board for a two-year term were Jeff Carpenter, Amy Greenstein, George Fernandez, Marilyn Pellini, and Heather Langham, with a new appointment for Michael Blum.
Board member Tom Catoliato commented that he really appreciates the new town policy of having committee and advisory board members come in and meet for interviews before reappointment. He said he learns a lot from hearing about what they want to keep, what they want to change, and what they want to achieve. Board member Bobbi Bittker agreed that they’ve gotten some really good feedback.
Battery storage moratorium
The board scheduled a public hearing for Tuesday, Feb. 18, at 6 p.m., on a law extending a moratorium on battery storage energy systems for another six months.
Calves said the initial six-month moratorium was passed last August, when they had hints that an application might be coming for a large-scale battery storage system, and they decided to take action before permits were issued.
In the interim, she said, they formed a committee, involved the fire department, had a number of meetings with experts, attended a county conference, and had a lot of information coming in. They also have more meetings upcoming, including with firefighters, but had difficulty scheduling some of them during the holidays.
“We’d like to do a public forum on this, then draft a law, talk about what might be allowed or not in our town,” said Calves. “So we need more time.”