Nicole proposes central absentee count and consolidation of New London polling places; committee approves

Nicole proposed consolidating New London's five polling places into three and establishing a public central count for absentee ballots at the municipal building, saying the changes would improve efficiency, accessibility and election security.

"So what we're proposing is combining those two Washingtons that are polling places, into that facility and to stop using Trinity, just because that's not maintained by the city," Nicole said, arguing the Washington Center North Band Room offers better flow, ground-level parking and an ADA-compliant entrance. She also proposed processing absentee ballots at City Hall in a public central-count process "so instead of taking our absentee ballots to the polling places, we would just process them" and avoid tying up polling-place lines.

The committee approved two motions by voice vote: to locate the central count for absentee ballots at the Municipal Building (lobby conference room) and to consolidate specified precincts to three polling sites—the Municipal Building, Washington Center Bandroom (North Band Room) and the American Legion. The chair called for and recorded the votes as "ayes" with no recorded opposition.

Nicole said the city has expanded its poll-worker pool (18 returning poll workers plus six new recruits this term) and has used half-day shifts to improve staffing flexibility. She also noted contingency planning for weather and snow removal: using a city-owned facility would allow street crews to plow and ensure access during adverse conditions.

Nicole flagged a possible constraint from a recent referendum that may restrict use of some nonpublic facilities; she recommended prioritizing city-owned, maintained properties to avoid future access problems. The committee and staff discussed parking and accessibility; Nicole said she had completed an accessibility review and believed the band room provided enough parking and better circulation that would speed voter throughput.

Next steps: staff will place the ordinances that set up the central count and the revised polling-place map on the council agenda for formal adoption and carry out public notice and outreach ahead of November.