Council Considers Options For A New District 2 Polling Place

By Jan Howard

The Legislative Council on June 18 voted to table a request by the registrars of voters for relocation of the voting place for District 2 from Newtown High School to Reed Intermediate School.

The request, which was presented by Registrar Karin Aurelia, was tabled pending an investigation of the possible use of Canaan House as a polling place instead of the Reed School.

Legislative Council Chairman Don Studley asked Ms Aurelia to research the possible use of Canaan House and to prepare a specific proposal for consideration at the council’s July 2 meeting. Timing is key because the registrars would need time in which to notify District 2 voters of a change in voting place prior to the primary that is expected to take place in September.

This week, following a visit to Canaan House, the registrars voiced concerns about parking and handicapped accessibility at the site, and it is expected they would again recommend the use of the Reed School. A member of the Legislative Council has also looked at Canaan House as an option and has also raised concerns about its use as a location for voting.

Ms Aurelia told Legislative Council members last week that the Reed School was chosen because no other building was considered large enough. She said they would request that the front parking lot be allocated for voter parking. Election workers would park across the street and be bused to the school.

Following the suggestion of Canaan House as an alternative site, First Selectman Herb Rosenthal noted there is a large room there that would be suitable as a polling place.

Ms Aurelia and Registrar Lereine Frampton this week explained that the decision to move District 2’s polling place from the high school was because of concerns for parking and the use of the school’s cafeteria by students, who have no other alternative place to eat lunch. In other schools used as polling places students eat in their classrooms on the day of the election.

“The law requires that a primary be held in a regular polling place,” Ms Frampton said.

Ms Frampton said District 2 is growing. Two years ago when voting was at the Sandy Hook Fire House, an additional voting machine was required. With redistricting, the number of voters in the district grew, but the Reed School had not as yet been constructed and the firehouse was too small.

Though the registrars chose to move the polling place at that time to the high school, Ms Frampton said, “We knew we would have to move it again. It was the only place large enough, but it was only a stopgap. We couldn’t do anything else at the time.”

The registrars said this week they have investigated the use of the room at Canaan House, and it is large enough for voting purposes. “Legally we could use it as it is,” Ms Frampton said.

There is handicapped accessibility from a sidewalk in front of the building that slopes down to the basement where there is an elevator. Repairs, however, would need to be made to the sidewalk prior to the September primary.

The registrars also voiced concern about the distance voters would have to walk from parking areas around the building, in addition to stairs at the entrance and inside the building.

“District 2 has the highest percentage of seniors,” Ms Frampton said. Reed School would be closer for the handicapped to walk, she said.

The proposal to use the Reed School would not cost the town any money, Ms Aurelia said. “It seems the right move. We can make recommendations, but it is a Legislative Council decision.”

 Legislative Council member Peggy Baiad said this week that after visiting Canaan House to see if it would be appropriate to have voting there, she has decided it is not suitable.

“It’s my feeling it’s no good,” she said. “People would have to park on the road and go up steps, which would be hard for the elderly.”

While she expressed some concern about increased traffic at the Reed School, especially coming from Queen Street, she saw no problem with traffic entering with the traffic light from South Main Street.

Ms Baiad also looked at the room suggested for use at Canaan House, calling it “chopped up” because of columns on each side of the room.