WILTON — The Wilton Selectboard approved the recreational department’s proposed increase to non-resident admittance fees to Kineowatha Park on Tuesday, June 23. The new rates will be $5 per person, $10 per car or $50 for a season pass that will be valid through Labor Day.
The park is still free for anyone under the age of 13 and for Wilton residents.
“Wilton residents can come up to where the person is taking the money and if they just show a dump sticker, driver’s license, tax bill, something that proves they’re from Wilton, they’ll get a pass to get in at no cost,” recreational department director Frank Donald said during the Zoom meeting.
The increase reflects Wilton residents’ complaints that Kineowatha park is often too crowded with non-residents that do not pay entrance fees using the honor system. The park will have an attendant to collect entrance fees this season.
Donald also announced that the Kineowatha lodge, which rents out day-use kayaks, paddle boards and park facilities for events, will open July 1. The lodge will be open daily from 12 to 4 p.m. with a limit of no more than eight people in the building at a time.
The Wilton recreational department will go ahead with some sport programming this summer. Softball for girls aged eight to 13-years-old will start July 1, and run on Mondays and Wednesdays from 5 to 6:30 p.m. Boys’ baseball for ages seven to ten-years-old will start July 2, and run Tuesdays and Thursdays from 5 to 6:30 p.m.
The enrollment cost is $25. The department is urging participants to bring their own equipment as a preventive measure for the spread of COVID-19.
Dates for field hockey, soccer and basketball are yet to be determined and will be announced on the department’s Facebook page.
Donald told the Board that the department is still considering whether or not to hold summer concerts at Bass Park. The Board gave Donald permission to make the final decision.
There is yet to be a date announced for a town meeting, but town manager Rhonda Irish did provide alternative possibilities.
“The latest governor’s orders and so forth are still the 50 person, but it does now allow for having an outside meeting with 50 people with additional people in a vehicle,” Irish said. “And it also does allow for having a meeting in two separate rooms, but we don’t have a meeting place like that that we could do that. And it also does allow for if there are no places to hold a meeting with 50 people in your town, that you can look into going to another town.”
The town office will still hold elections on July 14, during which the office will be closed for all other business.
“Everybody will need to work at elections to help with moving people through and with social distancing,” Irish said.
The town office will also be closed for four hours on June 30 to conduct end of year financials.
The Board approved Ambition Brewery’s application for an on-premises license which would allow the business to offer indoor service. The brewery will have to ensure that food makes up 10% of their total sales for this license. Co-owner Jeff Chaisson plans on contracting catered food either through a food truck or local restaurant.
“This has been something that’s in our back pocket anyways; something that we want to do. We want to start bringing food into the area, into the brewery,” Chaisson said. “This was kind of on our agenda, but the need has been fast-tracked with the latest closure from the governor.”
Gov. Mills had initially announced that bars and tasting rooms could open for indoor service on July 1, but she has since postponed this date until further notice. The retraction is in response to other states experiencing spikes in COVID-19 cases after bars were permitted to open for indoor service.
“This is going to cost us another $500, but we think we can recoup that pretty quick by simply being open,” Chaisson said.
The Board approved water and sewer department superintendent Heinz Gossman’s request to hire an additional water and wastewater employee. The new appointment of animal control officer Trisha Davis was also approved.
The Franklin County Unorganized Territory Service Contract was approved by the Board. The contract outlines Wilton’s commitment to offering transfer station and recycling services to the Perkins and Washington plantations. It also renews Wilton’s fire services to the Washington Plantation.
The Board will hold a meeting next week for ratifying union contracts so that members have time to review recent union changes to the contracts.
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