OBSERVER Photo by M.J. Stafford Pomfret town officials are photographed by Town Clerk Samantha Kellogg after they were sworn into office. Town board member Adam Rak at right asked if he needed to get out of the photo, and was told he did not.

Pomfret Town Supervisor Dan Pacos is anxious to get moving on construction at the new town hall. He tried but failed to get “preapproval” of the floor plan at the January town board meeting.

“We haven’t seen it. We should see it,” said board member EvaDawn Bashaw. Pacos said a town committee had approved the plan. Bashaw retorted that moving forward, committees should not be allowed to preapprove items of such magnitude.

Spurred by her objection, the town board eventually agreed to hold a special meeting to consider the floor plan. The meeting will be Wednesday, Jan. 28 at 5:30 p.m. in the current town hall on Day Street.

Pacos said he would ask a representative from town engineers CPL to attend; the firm worked on the floor plans for the new hall.

The new hall is located on Chestnut Road in a former church. Pomfret bought the property late last year. It intends to move the town hall there sometime in August, after a renovation project is completed.

Until construction begins, the building is sitting unused. Pacos said he offered it to local K-9 police units for training. He said SWAT teams will use it too, after they also expressed an interest.

In other town business:

— A number of officials were sworn in at a reorganization meeting, held before the regular meeting began. Dennison took her oath of office as a new board member; the re-elected Adam Rak also took his oath.

Highway Superintendent Jude Gardner, Deputy Highway Superintendent Jeff O’Brien, and Deputy Clerk Alicia Green were also sworn in. Lillian Pacos was appointed town historian and Jeanne Ebersole was named the town assessor.

Rak was appointed as deputy town supervisor.

— Gardner showed a lengthy list of equipment he wants to get rid of as surplus. One machine is from 1986, another is “an old oil and stone box we can’t even use anymore because it’s illegal.” Pacos said he would post the equipment online under Auctions International.

Bashaw wondered about selling off surplus equipment from the current town hall, with a move upcoming. Pacos said that is in the works.

Gardner plans to buy two mowers for a cost of $8,247 after a trade-in. He noted the town has seven cemeteries and two playgrounds to cover.

The highway superintendent also intends to get a Bobcat mini excavator for $38,767 after another trade-in.

— The board hired ENPM Inc., Tim Magyar Appraisers to appraise property intended to host a water tank in Phase 3 of the town water project.

— Drescher and Malecki were retained as auditors for 2026 and 2027.