The Board of Education has agreed to increase the reward leading to an arrest of the arsonists responsible for last month’s fire at Jennings School.
Superintendent of Schools Christopher Clouet said the school board voted to add $500 to the City Council’s $2,500 reward for information in the Oct. 13 fire that caused $1 million in damage to the school.
Also last week, the City Council voted to provide $10,000 toward the deductible on the insurance claim for the fire damage at the school.
Clouet said much of the damage was sustained by the school’s kitchen.
“Insurance will cover all the damage,” he said.
The school is insured by Great American Insurance Company, a Cincinnati-based firm.
The 75,000-square-foot Jennings School is in its first year of operation and is home to the city’s Dual Language Academy.
Information regarding the fire may be left anonymously on the Connecticut Arson hot line at 800-84-ARSON (27766) or with the New London Police Department at 447-5269.
In Other News
Last week demolition commenced on the concrete pedestrian bridge connecting the Water Street parking structure to the Parade. Also, in the past two weeks, crews have removed the granite stones from the berm and removed all of the trees and shrubs from the area. Stop signs have replaced the traffic lights at the intersection of State and Bank streets, and left turns onto State Street from Bank Street have been suspended for this stage of the project.
The New London Police Department’s narcotics unit received an $11,000 donation from The Connection, Inc., a Middletown-based non-profit. The NLPD also formally accepted the federal COPS hiring grant secured in September. The department was awarded $225,000. Last year the Congress resuscitated the Clinton-era program that provides federal money to hire police officers.
By Stephen Chupaska
Senior Staff Writer