WILTON — The Town of Wilton has hired a new code enforcement officer to replace Charlie Lavin, who retired from the position this summer.

Gary Judkins, a Wilton resident began working as the town’s new CEO Tuesday, July 12, Town Manager Rhonda Irish announced at the Select Board meeting that evening.

Irish said that he’ll be working every weekday following approval of full-time hours at the 2022 Town Meeting.

Voters at annual town meeting approved an $82,201 budget, up from $24,500, to offer the town’s code enforcement officer full time work and benefits.

The Select Board had proposed $49,200 that would offer a 30-hour work week without benefits.

At that meeting, Planning Board member Michael Parker advocated for the higher recommendation explaining he had “seen the complexity of this job, it cannot be done very well, over time, in a half-time position.”

Irish said that Judkin’s specific schedule is still to be determined, it will have to take into account the time spent preparing for and attending Planning Board meetings. But, Irish said, he’ll be in every day of the week.

Judkins also works for a few hours a week as the code enforcement officer in New Vineyard.

In an interview, Judkins said he is looking forward to working in his town of residence and hopes to acquire more code enforcement certificates in the coming months.

In other business, the Select Board also approved a motion to establish an oversight committee for the veterans memorial at Lakeview Cemetery.

The idea of a cemetery memorial was first proposed in October 2020 to honor service members. In April, former Selectperson Tom Saviello encouraged an article be put on the 2022 town warrant to get voter approval for the memorial since the cost estimate was beyond what he had anticipated.

Voters at the town meeting approved up to $175,000 be spent on the memorial, coming from the town’s Cemetery Trust Account.

During the Tuesday meeting Irish told the board a resident had come forth asking that a committee “oversee the remaining part of the design and construction so that it’s not just one or two people doing it.”

The committee will consist of the town manager, two selectpersons and two members of the public.

Beyond design the committee will also be tasked with figuring out a new location within the cemetery.

Irish said she’s gotten requests to move the memorial to an area that gets more foot traffic, is more easily accessible and does not interfere with the work done in the cemetery.

The current site is used as an area for grave digging and is “tucked away in a part that people don’t go to often.”

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