O’Sullivan’s Island in Derby to get fishing pier

 

By Jean Falbo-Sosnovich
Register Correspondent

DERBY >> The city has secured a $325,000 grant to build a fishing pier at O’Sullivan’s Island.

The grant was awarded by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service on behalf of the Connecticut Housatonic Natural Resource Trustee Council, according to a press release from Mayor Anita Dugatto.

Dugatto said although the pier was previously planned, the project was unable to be approved due to ongoing environmental issues at the site.

The Naugatuck Valley Council of Governments (NVCOG), however, was able to secure the funding after conducting extensive analysis of the soils and groundwater. Based on those studies, NVCOG requested a report on potential public health risk from the Connecticut Department of Public Health (CTDPH). Meg Harvey, epidemiologist with the CTDPH and author of the June 2015 Health Consultation for the site, concluded that, “the available site information indicates that the intended construction and engineering work can proceed as planned in a safe manner.”
Read more here.

Further testing to begin at O’Sullivan’s Island in Derby

By Jean Falbo-Sosnovich
Register Correspondent
DERBY >> The environmental firm that tested suspected contaminated soil on O’Sullivan’s Island will begin a new round of sampling, but this time on the groundwater to check for possible contamination, prompting the site to remain closed well into spring.
That’s according to Environmental Planner Arthur Bogen, who, along with Rick Dunne, executive director of the Naugatuck Valley Council of Governments, and attorney Gary O’Connor, gave the Board of Aldermen and the O’Sullivan’s Island Advisory Committee an update Thursday of what’s been happening with investigation of the site over the past several months.

Read more here. 

Feds sue Derby to recoup O’Sullivan’s Island cleanup costs

By Michelle Tuccitto Sullo

The federal government Tuesday filed a civil action against the city of Derby as part of its ongoing effort to recoup expenses related to the environmental cleanup at O’Sullivan’s Island.
The litigation was filed in U.S. District Court, along with a consent decree which calls for Derby to pay the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency $675,000 by Dec. 31. If the payment is late, a $400-per-day penalty would apply, under the terms of the 24-page decree.
Emily Zimmerman, a spokesperson for the EPA, said the action formalizes an agreement reached between the government and city over the summer.

Read more here. 

Derby officials close O'Sullivan's Island

DERBY - This was the scene Thursday afternoon on O'Sullivan's Island, where caution tape has been placed along the perimeter of the site. City officials have closed the recreational area in the interest of public health and safety.
The land is at the confluence of the Housatonic and Naugatuck Rivers.

Mayor Anita Dugatto learned soon after taking office the city was under threat of litigation from the federal Environmental Protection Agency concerning about $4 million in costs related to cleanup of the site several years ago.

Dugatto and Corporation Counsel Kevin Blake met Thursday with Department of Energy and Environmental Protection Commissioner Daniel Etsy and state Rep. Linda M. Gentile, D-Ansonia, to discuss the situation.
Gentile chairs the Environment Committee.

Dugatto said Etsy and Gentile "were sympathetic to our plight." Resolving the situation is a high priority for her administration, she said.

Derby dedicates park to lifelong resident

DERBY - This morning I covered a ceremony at Storm Engine Company firehouse to dedicate a recreational park on O'Sullivan's Island in memory of the one and only Eddie Cotter.
The ceremony was forced inside because of rain.

I'm sure the message on the cake at the reception sums up the thoughts of many of the family and friends who were in attendance.

Below is a photo of the monument that was projected on the wall of the firehouse during the ceremony.

Stay tuned for a story in tomorrow's New Haven Register.

Report: Valley legend has park named after him

The Valley Independent Sentinel is reporting the city of Derby has named a park after the legendary Edward J. Cotter Jr. The park is called "Edward J. Cotter Jr. Memorial Park at O'Sullivan's Park."