Committee offers Ruickoldt Scholarship
The city’s Breast Cancer Awareness Committee is accepting applications for a scholarship fund it founded in memory of a third-grade Savin Rock Community School teacher who died of breast cancer.
The 16th annual Susan A. Ruickoldt Scholarship Fund will award $2,000 to a female high school senior from West Haven who plans to continue her education.
Candidates must submit an application form, an official transcript and a class rank, as well as a 250-word essay on achievements and goals and a 250-word essay on the importance of breast cancer screening and education.
Applicants must also submit a letter of acceptance from a postsecondary school and a letter of intent to attend the school.
Applications are available in the guidance office and physical education department at West Haven High School, 1 McDonough Plaza. They are also available from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. weekdays in the Department of Human Resources at City Hall, 355 Main St.
Applications are due by 5 p.m. May 24.
Applications available for summer youth jobs
Applications for the Summer Youth Employment Program are available through May 31 in the athletic director’s office at West Haven High School and the main office at Bailey Middle School.
The summer program, which runs July 9-Aug. 3, is aimed at funding positions for low-income residents ages 14-21.
Students must pick up and drop off applications at their school office.
Drop off applications with all required documents from 9-11 a.m. Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays at the high school and from 9-11 a.m. Tuesdays and Thursdays at Bailey. No applications will be processed after 3 p.m. May 31.
Students who attend other schools must pick up applications in the Department of Human Resources on the second floor of City Hall, 355 Main St., where the completed forms must be returned between 9 a.m. and 4 p.m. weekdays.
Students must also include copies of information, such as a birth certificate and Social Security card, as well as documentation of household income.
Family income is based on the number of people per household and is required to be within 185 percent of state poverty income levels.
Applicants will be notified by mail or phone if more information is needed.
Ferraro lauds vets’ tax relief
State Rep. Charles Ferraro, the Ranking Member of the Committee on Veterans’ Affairs, applauded the bipartisan passage of legislation that will give municipalities the ability to give more veterans tax relief.
The bill, H.B. 5239, allows municipalities that provide certain additional optional veteran property tax exemptions to increase the income thresholds for eligibility.
Under current law, municipalities may offer tax exemptions to veterans whose incomes are below the state’s income limit for other veterans’ property tax exemptions, set annually by the Office of Policy and Management (OPM), for 2018, $35,300 for individuals and $43,000 for married couples or an amount the municipality sets, up to $25,000 more than the state limit. This bill instead allows municipalities to set the income limit, with the minimum being the amount OPM sets.
“Towns and cities should be able to offer veterans greater tax relief,” said Rep. Ferraro. “I am glad to see us expand the income thresholds and make this tax relief available for more veterans.”
H.B. 5239 applies the new income thresholds to the additional optional municipal property tax exemptions for: Wartime veterans, Disabled veterans, The surviving spouse of a service member or veteran, Veterans who are not entitled to state-mandated property tax exemptions for wartime, disabled, or service-related severely disabled veteran
The legislation now awaits action by the Senate.
Hazard plan up for review
The South Central Regional Council of Governments (SCRCOG) invites the public to review and comment on the Draft South Central Region Multi-Jurisdiction Hazard Mitigation Plan.
The plan is aimed at identifying and assessing natural hazard risks, such as flooding, hurricanes and winter storms, and determining how to best minimize or manage those risks.
The draft plan is available for public review April 30-May 14, on the project webpage at http://scrcog.org/regional-planning/regional-hazard-mitigation/.
For more information and to comment on the plan, contact City Engineer Abdul Quadir at (203) 937-3577 or [email protected].
University PD up for assessment
The University of New Haven Police Department is scheduled for an on-site assessment on May 8 as part of a program to achieve Tier II accreditation by verifying it meets professional standards.
As part of the on-site assessment, agency employees and members of the community are invited to offer comments. Comments can be mailed to William E. Tanner, III, Police Officers Standards and Training Council, Accreditation Division at 285 Preston Ave. Meriden, Connecticut 06450, by telephone at (203) 427-2602, by fax at (203) 238-6643 or by email at [email protected]. Please enter the name of the agency in the subject line of the email.
Last year, the police department was the first private university police department in the State of Connecticut to achieve Tier I accreditation. Accredited law enforcement agencies demonstrate excellence in management and service delivery.
Copies of the standards are available at the police department on campus. For more information, contact Marina Davila, (203) 932-7014.
Bulk trash pickup, e-waste drop-off schedule announced
The 2018 bulk trash pickup schedule is March 5-9, June 4-8, Aug. 6-10 and Oct. 8-12.
Residents are reminded that bulk pickup is on their scheduled curbside collection days in the second calendar week of the four designated months. They are also reminded to separate metals and recyclables from regular trash and to put out trash no more than 24 hours before pickup.
Violations carry a $100 fine per daily offense.
Bulk items include couches, chairs, mattresses, tables, carpeting, padding, fencing and small amounts of bundled lumber, which may not exceed 6 feet in length.
The amount of bulk trash per collection is limited to 6 cubic yards, which is equal to a pile of trash 6 feet long, 6 feet wide and 4.5 feet high.
Along with tires, the city also picks up such white goods as refrigerators, washing machines and stoves on residents’ weekly collection days.
To prevent a potential fine, property owners should familiarize themselves with the city’s trash guidelines, which are posted on the Department of Public Works page at www.cityofwesthaven.com.
To report a complaint, call the department at 203-937-3585. Complaints are kept confidential.
Also, the 2018 e-waste drop-off days are March 10, June 9, Aug. 11 and Oct. 13.
Residents can drop off electronic recyclables — typically anything that contains a circuit board or needs a battery — from 8 a.m.-noon at the highway maintenance garage, 1 Collis St.
Anything that has refrigerant, including air conditioners and dehumidifiers, is not accepted. Those items are considered white goods, and residents are asked to put them out for pickup on their curbside collection days.
The city is partnering with Take 2 Inc. of Waterbury, a recycler and collector of universal e-waste devices, to collect residential electronic items on a quarterly basis.
The collection is free for residents who have such items as TVs, hand-held video games, computers, monitors, copiers, scanners, microwaves, toaster ovens and other small appliances.
Reminders about Christmas trees, holiday trash pickup
The city reminds residents not to put Christmas trees in plastic bags or stands for curbside pickup.
Plastic bags and other items can become tangled in the machine that grinds the trees into compost.
Also, residents are reminded that five holidays during the year delay curbside pickup one day.
All American Waste of New Haven, the city’s private rubbish contractor, will not pick up rubbish, recyclables, metals or tires Memorial Day, Independence Day, Labor Day, Thanksgiving and Christmas.
If a holiday falls on a weekday, pickup for that week will move ahead one day.
But when a holiday, such as Thanksgiving, falls on a Thursday, only Thursday and Friday’s collections will move up a day.
Thanksgiving is also the only holiday that excludes metal and tire pickups in those affected districts.
Separate metals and recyclables from regular trash.
For details, call the Department of Public Works at (203) 937-3585.
WHEAT open third Saturday
The West Haven Emergency Assistance Taskforce Food Pantry (674 Washington Ave.) is now open the third Saturday of each month from 9-noon. The next date is Saturday, May 19. Volunteers also accept donations during this time.
To get food requests must be from West Haven residents. They must bring a valid photo ID, two pieces of current mail, and proof of household income. Call (203) 931-9877 or email [email protected] with questions.