All the inhabitants dwelling within the territorial limits of the Town of Durham, as heretofore constituted, shall continue to be a body politic and corporate under the name of "The Town of Durham," hereinafter in this Charter called "the town," and as such shall have perpetual succession and may hold and exercise all powers and privileges heretofore exercised by the town and not inconsistent with the privileges herein conferred, and all powers and privileges conferred upon towns under the General Statutes of the State of Connecticut as amended, hereinafter called the "General Statutes."
All property, both real and personal, all rights of action and rights of every description and all securities and liens vested or inchoate in the town as of the date when this Charter shall take effect are continued in the town, and the town shall continue to be liable for all debts and obligations of every kind for which the town shall be liable on said date, whether accrued or not. Nothing herein shall be construed to affect the right of the town to collect any assessment, charge, debt, or lien. If any contract has been entered into by the town prior to the effective date of this Charter, or any bond or undertaking has been given by or in favor of the town which contains provisions that the same may be enforced by any office or agency therein named, which is hereby abolished, such contracts, bonds, or undertakings shall in no manner be impaired but shall continue in full force and effect, and the powers conferred and the duties imposed with reference to this same upon any such office or agency shall, except as otherwise provided in the Charter, thereafter be exercised and discharged by the Board of Selectmen of the town.
In addition to all powers granted to towns under the Constitution and General Statutes, the town shall have all powers specifically granted by this Charter and all powers fairly implied in or incident to the powers expressly granted herein and all other powers incident to the management of the property, government and affairs of the town, including the powers to enter into contracts with the United States, any federal agency, the State of Connecticut or any political subdivision thereof for services and the use of facilities, the exercise of which is not expressly forbidden by the federal and state constitutions and General Statutes of the State of Connecticut. In the event that the functions of existing offices and/or agencies are transferred under such contract or agreement, such offices and/or agencies may, by ordinance, be abolished.
All officers, boards, commissions, and other agencies of the town shall have the authority to engage, and may remove, clerical, professional, technical, or other staff as may be required. Expenditures for such staff may not exceed the limits of their individual appropriations. Except as specifically provided herein no office, board, agency or commission member shall receive compensation directly or indirectly for goods or services furnished to that office, board, agency or commission.