The Daily Five: PILOT Program, Flying Friendly Flags, And Nearly Time To Sit Outside

1. There's a 70 percent chance for rain today, starting with morning showers. Weather.com is predicting a high temperature of 56 degrees and an overnight low of 33 degrees. Tonight should be clear.  

2. East Lyme First Selectman Paul Formica is cautiously optimistic that the budget proposed by Gov. Dannel Malloy won't pass in the Legislature. Earlier this week, the Connecticut House voted to restore Payments in Lieu of Taxes, or PILOT, which the governor had proposed to eliminate.

The governor had proposed to make up the difference by increasing funding to Education Cost Sharing (ECS). The problem with that is ECS is earmarked for education spending, whereas PILOT funds go directly to the towns with no strings attached.
  
Formica is particularly concerned about the potential loss of revenue to East Lyme if the governor's proposals pass. East Lyme is harder hit than Old Lyme or Lyme by the loss of PILOT, as it is home to two Connecticut National Guard camps, two Connecticut prisons, and Rocky Neck State Park, both of which take up a large amount of town land that is not subject to property taxes.    

3. Old Lyme Board of Selectmen were leary about granting a request to raise the Greek flag at Old Lyme Town Hall on March 25 in honor of Greek Independence Day. East Lyme, not so much.

In his March report to the East Lyme Board of Selectmen on Wednesday, East Lyme First Selectman Paul Formica said East Lyme Town Hall flew the Greek flag in honor of the day. The town is flying the organ donor flag all this month, as April is National Organ Donor month.  

4. It's nearly time to sit outside again. East Lyme Zoning Commission heard another batch of requests for renewals of outdoor dining permits last night, this time from Family Pizza, Burke's Tavern, Village Pizza and Grill, and The Black Sheep in Niantic. I can't wait!

5. As you have probably noticed by now, the Lymes' Patch has a whole new look. The new site has been built from the ground up and, as with any new construction, we're now making the rounds to see if there's anything that needs fixing.

If you encounter any issues using the site, have difficulty receiving newsletters, or are looking for announcements, events, or articles that appear to be missing, let me know (jayne.keedle@patch.com). Not all the content from the original site has been moved yet but we have a whole team of people working through the "punch list."