Dealing with Drones THE LEGISLATURE BEGINS TO CONSIDER NEW LAWS REGARDING THE USE OF AERIAL DRONES. This coming session, the Connecticut General Assembly will likely consider drone legislation with language that just a few years ago would have seemed ripped from a bad science fiction script. “The technology is moving faster than the law and our committee is trying to address that gap and get something in place to protect people’s privacy and safety to the extent that we can,” says Rep. Mary Mush-insky, D-Wallingford, who is co-chair of the Programs Review and Investigations Committee, which recently investigated possible drone legislation. As politicians scramble to legally address the increasingly popular unmanned flying devices, terms such as “drone voyeurism” and “drone surveillance,” have become a part of the state’s political vernacular and drones have become a more common sight in Connecticut skies. In 2014, sales of consumer drones rose dramatically across the country and they were a popular Christmas present. In December, Bloomberg.com reported Amazon was selling more than 10,000 drones a month on average. Drone enthusiast Peter Sachs of Branford says that some have called 2014 “The Year of The Drone” but “it’s a little premature to say that because 2015 is going to be ‘The Year of The Drone’ and the next decade is going to be ‘The Decade of The Drone.’ They’re just going to get more and more popular at this point.” That’s part of the reason why the current legislative session is expected to be an important one for laws regarding unmanned aircraft in Connecticut. What the state can do When it comes to drone regulations Connecticut, or any state, has a fairly limited scope of authority. The Federal Aviation Administration oversees air traffic and has jurisdiction that preempts state law when it comes to drones. “[However] we can regulate the state’s usage and local law enforcement usage,” explains Mushinsky. What that usage might look like is the focus of a recent report prepared by the staff of the Programs Review and Investigations Committee. The committee approved most of the suggestions in the report and some type of drone legislation based on its findings is expected to be written and voted on before June. The report examined criminal statutes in relation to drones, called for making it illegal to use weapons with a drone and laid out guidelines for police use of drone surveillance. The report, which will be used to craft proposed legislation, was mostly praised by both drone and privacy advocates, but there were some areas of concern. The report concluded existing criminal statutes would cover most crimes committed with drones, advice Sachs applauds. “I don’t think you need to add the word’s ‘with a drone’ into our existing voyeurism statutes,” he says. “[For instance] you’re either peeping or you’re not. It doesn’t really matter what you’re peeping with. If I were to fly my drone up to somebody’s window with the intent to peep inside to see somebody in a state of undress, for example, it would already be covered by existing voyeurism statute as long as my intent is to do it for sexual gratification and it meets all the other elements of that particular crime.” However, there is a possibility drone-specific wording will be added to some of Connecticut’s criminal statutes. “We can probably use existing statutes and just modify them a bit to say ‘harassment by use of drone,’ or ‘stalking by use of drone,’” Mushinsky says. “Personally, I would feel more comfortable if we specified and said ‘including by use of a drone.’” Drone Surveillance and Privacy Concerns David McGuire, staff attorney for the American Civil Liberties Union of Connecticut, says on the whole he is pleased with the recommendations made by the committee. “It’s a very thoughtful report, there is some really insightful elements to it and overall I think it’s a good start.” However, McGuire and the ACLU are worried about the suggestions made in the report with regards to law enforcement’s use of drone surveillance—an issue that has pitted law enforcement and some drone advocates against privacy advocates. The Programs Review and Investigations Committee report recommends that police be required to obtain a warrant to use drones for surveillance for an extended period of time in most cases. However, Police would also be able to use drones for up to 24 hours in a 30- day period if they have reasonable suspicion that someone has committed a crime. In legal terms “reasonable suspicion” is a standard of proof that is lower than probable cause and is used when there is not enough evidence to obtain a warrant. “We have a serious concern about that section,” McGuire says. “It will allow law enforcement to fly a drone upon a very low reasonable suspicion standard.” Law enforcement agencies do not need a warrant to conduct helicopter or other plain-view surveillance, but McGuire says drones have the capability for more stealth. “It’s not like a helicopter or an airplane where you know that there’s something above you,” he says. “Drones are much smaller, much cheaper and much more maneuverable.” In contrast, Sachs believes that a warrant should not be necessary for surveillance by drones because he says current drones do not have surveillance capabilities above and beyond traditional aircraft. “Drones are not the spying machines that people think they are,” he says, pointing out that most commercially available drones can only stay in flight for a short time (usually around 20 minutes to a half hour or so), and that the detail a camera mounted to a drone can pick up from a distance of 200 feet or more is minimal. As drone technology improves, Sachs says this issue might have to be revisited, but “I don’t think it is necessary to pass a preemptive statute at this time.” Even if a law were to pass requiring the use of a warrant for drone surveillance, there would still be emergency exceptions where drones could be used, such as to children, the quick tracking of an escaped felon, to assist in an assessment of a fire, or other similar situations. The committee is also looking at ways to word possible legislation to allow for drone surveillance of large crowds without reasonable suspicion. Rapid Technology Growth “We have only seen the tip of the iceberg with the popularity and capabilities of drones,” says Alfred Gates, a Central Connecticut State University engineering professor, licensed helicopter pilot and drone builder. “Right now drones are like the big clunky car phone in the early ‘80s. This technology will rapidly change in the next 5 to 20 years.” He says the technology has advanced at an astonishing rate since he became involved with the community in 2006. He believes this is due to the community of drone builders that has emerged on the Internet. “In the ‘80s and ‘90s, the PC evolved at a snail’s pace since the hobbyist community did not have a worldwide means of communication and organization,” he says. “The Internet provides a means of communication for UAS [Unmanned Aircraft Systems] hobbyists all over the world through chat rooms, blogs, forums and user groups. The hobbyist communities have developed open source autopilot software that will outperform software from the major aerospace companies. Many people worldwide are developing and improving autopilot and sensor algorithms because they enjoy it, which has resulted in some amazing capabilities. This has also happened on the hardware side.” While there are concerns with some of the ways drones can be used to break the law, there is also excitement about the new technology. McGuire says that he and the ACLU are on the side of drone advocates in general and support the new technology. “We’re not calling for a moratorium or trying to prevent this technology from taking hold, we just want to make sure police use it responsibly and don’t change the nature of our society,” he says. “We’re very protective of the public’s first amendment right to take photographs and that is essentially what drones are doing.” History The Rebirth of the Mayflower II THE HISTORIC SHIP HAS ARRIVED AT MYSTIC SEAPORT TO UNDERGO A MUCH-NEEDED RESTORATION. I’m inside the belly of the boat on the Mayflower II and the first thing that strikes me is just how cramped it is. I’m 5’10”, but here on the mid deck, below the main deck and above the cargo hold, I have to crouch. As the ship’s captain Whit Perry shows me around, I bump my head several times. The mid deck is only a few feet below the sunshine, air and open water views found on the top deck, but it may as well be miles away. Even though it’s lit by electric lights, it is still a subterranean lair of wood and shadow that helps peel back the layers of time. Standing in the space, it’s hard to imagine an extended stay down here. It’s even harder to imagine spending months here, in rough seas, when the deck is filled beyond capacity with 102 passengers. However, that’s what happened when the original Mayflower set sail from England in 1620 on a harrowing, 66-day voyage. Built in the 1950s, the Mayflower II is a modern recreation of that vessel and a powerful symbol of the American immigrant dream. In late December it arrived in Mystic Seaport, from its home port in Plymouth—where it is operated by the Plimoth Plantation—for the first step in a multiphase restoration project that will begin this winter and continue off and on for the next four years until 2020 and the 400th anniversary of the Mayflower voyage. In Mystic, the public will be able to see the ship at various stages during its restoration with the plan for guests at the Seaport to be able to board it later this month. The Henry B. duPont Preservation Shipyard at Mystic Seaport will oversee the ship’s restoration. The process is part of a major collaboration between Mystic Seaport and Plimoth Plantation, which for the seaport is something of a sequel to the historic voyage of the Charles W. Morgan, which took place last summer and saw the last wooden whale-ship return to sea for the first time in decades on a tour of New England ports. The Mayflower II last sailed in March when documentary filmmaker Ric Burns shot footage of the vessel under sail for his upcoming PBS documentary, “The Pilgrims,” which is scheduled to be broadcast in November 2015. But it has been clear since 2013 that the “new” Mayflower was getting old. Inspections that year revealed that the 57-year-old ship was in need of a major refit. Though the boat is generally dry-docked for minor repairs every other winter, for this major restoration, Plimoth Plantation has turned to Mystic Seaport’s shipyard, one of the country’s most respected. “New England has many wonderful wooden shipyards, but at Mystic Seaport you have that corps of craftspeople who are not only very fine wooden boatyard people but they’re unrivaled for their knowledge of historic boats,” says Richard Pickering, executive director of Plimoth Plantation. Pickering is no stranger to the seaport; it was there that Pickering worked while getting his Master’s degree at University of Connecticut before beginning his 30-year-plus career at Plimoth Plantation. The Mayflower II’s captain, Perry, is also intimately familiar with the seaport. A native of Danbury, Perry was inspired by visiting Mystic Seaport as a kid. When he moved to Massachusetts, he would still stop at the Seaport often while passing through Connecticut. “This is like the holy grail for boat lovers,” he says. After arriving in Mystic Seaport in early December, the ship was hauled out of the water for the beginning of an intensive assessment period. Some repairs were immediately clear—framing and planking below the waterline and several stern posts need to be replaced. Other needs are expected to be identified in the coming days and weeks. Approximately 100 tons of ballast in the ship’s hold was scheduled to be unloaded for the first time since the ship’s maiden voyage in 1957. No one was sure what to expect under the ballast. “There is always a process of discovery that goes on in the course of the work,” says Quentin Snediker, Mystic Seaport’s shipyard director. “From experience you can make certain assumptions about what you’ll find and sometimes you’re surprised in a positive way and sometimes you’re surprised in a negative way but you don’t know until you open the package.” In this case “the package” is a 17th-centurystyle vessel, where the collection at Mystic Seaport focuses on vessels from the late 19th to early 20th century. However, Snediker says the restoration approach does not change. “While the form of the vessel is somewhat different than most of the ships that we focus on in our collection, the techniques of construction are the same, and the materials are essentially the same.” The “voyage” of the ship’s restoration will be a slow and careful one. This year the focus will be on assessment and planning. The ship will return to Plymouth in the spring and come back to Mystic Seaport each winter for continued work until 2020. The Mayflower II’s accessibility to the public is another reason Mystic Seaport was selected to handle the restoration. During its repairs people will be able to experience its beauty and learn about its history and the history of the vessel that it recreates. “The ship, unlike any other ship in American history, is symbolic of that first immigrant in every American’s life, unless you are an indigenous American,” Pickering says. “The ship is an important part of our national discussion on immigration.” Politics The Education Agenda Among topics noted by Gov. Dannel P. Malloy in his inauguration and State of the State speeches in January was education. The subject made an appearance in both speeches—both as an accomplishment and an area where Connecticut can lead. “We’ve built better schools, raised test scores, made college more affordable, and put Connecticut on a path toward universal pre-kindergarten,” Malloy said, addressing the General Assembly for the first time in the 2015 session. Suggesting there is still more to be done, Malloy’s earlier, shorter speech after he took the oath of office, focused on the need to educate Connecticut’s children with quality “public schools.” “We all want a better future for our children— strong schools and a great education that takes our kids from pre-kindergarten all the way through college and beyond,” he said. Malloy focused on transportation policy at his State of the State address, whereas in his 2014 speech he went through a list of topics, including education. In that speech, Malloy called for the need to “achieve universal pre-kindergarten.” The governor aims to have more than 4,000 new early childhood slots open by 2019. Last year, Malloy continued to build on the initiative begun in 2013 when he signed an executive order creating the Office of Early Childhood. Malloy specifically mentioned pre-kindergarten several times during his speeches. It has been a policy initiative proposed first by President Barack Obama, which, like healthcare and raising the minimum wage, Malloy has sought to implement. In December, Connecticut was awarded nearly $12.5 million in federal funding to expand pre-kindergarten across the state. The state has been increasing the number of slots available for low-income children to attend school readiness or public preschool programs each year. This year, the governor starts out on different footing in education as he will appoint a new education commissioner. Several slots on the State Board of Education are also up for reappointment. The state also likely will grapple with policies about charter schools and further rollout of the Common Core standards. “Make no mistake, Connecticut is in the midst of an education crisis but one that is solvable,” says Jennifer Alexander, CEO of Connecticut Coalition for Achievement Now (ConnCAN) and spokesperson for a coalition of education organizations with ties to charter schools, called “For Every Child.” The coalition, made up of ConnCAN, Achievement First charter schools, the Northeast Charter School Network and Families for Excellent Schools, a pro-charter lobbying organization, has a mission of urging leaders to provide a “quality education for every child” in the state. The coalition believes charter schools could be one of a group of solutions to fix schools they deem as “failing.” The coalition’s suggestions for the state—which include appointing a new education commissioner who has skills, experience and “urgency” to fix the state’s schools—also feature growing “new and existing charter schools,” fixing the state’s “broken” education funding formula and funding every child “equitably” no matter what school they attend. The Rev. Eldren Morrison of Varick Memorial AME Zion Church, who founded the Booker T. Washington charter school in New Haven, says the state has a “grueling” process for charter schools to open. He says while due diligence is needed in opening a school and that he appreciates the state’s efforts to provide quality education for students, he thinks the state should embrace the opening of more charter schools as they continue to succeed in helping students. “The problem is that there are not enough (charters). I think that smaller classroom sizes, maybe even smaller schools, might be one thing that keeps kids from falling through the cracks,” Morrison says. “I think that teachers are doing great jobs with where they are with what they have to work with. We just need to make sure that we’re putting resources where they’re best needed—back in the classrooms.” Alexander says it is still early in the legislative session to have very specific proposals, and that her groups look forward to working with legislators and Malloy to see what is proposed. JENNIFER SWIFT Business Going Off the Reservation WITH GAMBLING REVENUES AND VISITORS DECLINING, THE MOHEGAN TRIBE CONTINUES TO DIVERSIFY. Forget the roulette wheel, please pass the ketchup. The Mohegan Tribe, which operates Mohegan Sun Resort Casino, is adding some flavor to its business portfolio. In November, the tribe opened the first Connecticut location of the popular chain Smashburger in Waterford. It’s also the first restaurant the tribe has opened outside of the resort and casino, but it won’t be the last; the tribe is looking to open more restaurants—including 15 more Smashburger locations—in Connecticut, Massachusetts and Rhode Island. “The tribe is branching out into things that aren’t about gaming,” says Joseph Smith, manager of tribal communications. In addition to Smashburger, the tribe is opening another franchise restaurant business with Pennsylvania-based Arooga’s Grille and Sports Bar. A flagship location for New England is expected to open in March in Uncasville near Mohegan Sun. Outside of the restaurant business, the tribe has established Northeast Wood Products LLC for wood pellets, and K.ta, a partnership for office technology with Long Island-based Leslie Digital Imaging. “In its first few weeks of operation, Smashburger has gotten off to a great start, and it is shaping up to be a very valuable addition to our portfolio. We’re also excited about the projected opening of Arooga’s in mid-March,” says Tribal Council Chairman Kevin Brown “Red Eagle.” “All of these efforts are part of the tribe’s broader strategy to enter areas of non-gaming business and to maintain our reputation as one of the best employers and business owners in the state of Connecticut.” In 2014, Mohegan Sun faced the prospect of competing gaming resorts in New York and Massachusetts and made failed bids to open casinos in both states. Not coincidentally, it has been ramping up its non-gaming business ventures. Last December, the Hartford Courant reported the tribe was exploring the possibility of growing legal marijuana on tribal lands, and in January, the tribe brought a professional indoor lacrosse team to Connecticut, the New England Black Wolves. The Black Wolves play home games at Mohegan Sun Arena and are the second professional team the tribe has invested in—it has owned the WNBA’s Connecticut Sun since 2003. In the case of Smashburger, business diversity comes in the form of juicy, burger goodness. Smashburger was founded in Denver in 2007. The company’s founder, Tom Ryan, is a guru of mass food marketing and innovation. He’s got a Ph.D. in flavor and fragrance chemistry and was the creator of McDonald’s McGriddles and Pizza Hut’s stuff ed crust. The fast-casual restaurant seeks to offer competition for established giant burger chains such as McDonald’s and Burger King. “We want to become the Starbucks of burgers,” Ryan told USA Today in 2013. Connecticut’s Smashburger is located off the Waterford turnpike in Waterford Commons, a strip mall not too far from Mohegan Sun. When you walk in, it’s clear that you’re in a franchise, but the place has the feel of a modern chain, like Chipotle or Panera Bread. The burgers are made with certified Angus beef and served on artisan buns. David McBride, the fast-casual restaurant manager for Mohegan Tribe, explains that in addition to the quality of ingredients what makes the Smashburger burgers special is that each burger is “smashed” while being made—the burger starts off as a ball of chuck, which is thrown onto the grill and than smashed with a custom-made spatula that presses it onto the grill. The “smashing” process is supposed to sear the juices so that the burger cooks in its own juices. In addition to these and other burger options, each Smashburger location has its own local burger combination that is unique to the area. Ryan personally designs the local burger for each location. McBride explains that while thinking about the Waterford burger Ryan noticed “a strong Italian heritage in the area.” To honor that heritage, Ryan created the Constitution Smashburger, which features mayo, pesto, giardiniera, tomato slices and provolone, all served on a ciabatta bun. Beyond the Waterford location, Smashburger is considering a Middletown location and is looking at other areas in Connecticut as well. Outside of the state, the tribe is looking at locations in Rhode Island as well as Springfield and Worcester, Mass. As it looks toward its future in an increasingly crowded gaming market, the Mohegan Tribe seems to be making some good bets. The Mohegan Tribe has been expanding its business portfolio to include restaurants such as Waterford’s Smashburger and pro sports teams like the indoor lacrosse team, The New England Black Wolves.