All about people, the environment

SHARON — For Sharon, it was a year of great debates, economic woes, tragedy and change.

During the year, the town’s municipal and educational budgets were passionately debated by taxpayers. Residents had to contend with doing their grocery shopping outside of the town, after Trotta’s Market shut down in late December 2008. The death of young Kaelan Paton, who drowned in the Housatonic River in June, sent shock waves throughout the town and the Northwest Corner. And voters elected a new first selectman in November.

This was the year that was for the town of Sharon:

 

January: The year began with Sharon Hospital announcing the elimination of nine non-clinical positions. Positions eliminated were: medical records clerk, accounting clerk, materials management staff, case manager, athletic trainer, housekeeper, food service staff, manager and secretary.

In response to the newly vacant grocery, a group of residents began an e-mail campaign to get Trader Joe’s into the Sharon Plaza space vacated by the closing of Trotta’s Market.  Hopes were dashed by Alison Mochizuki, director of national publicity for the company, who said there was no possibility for the company to open in Sharon anytime soon.

Meanwhile, despite the hopes of many who wished that another business would open up in the vacant space, it continued to lie dormant through the year. And for the first time in over 25 years, town residents had to go outside of town (or even out of state) to do their grocery shopping.

At a town meeting on Jan. 30, 55 people voted unanimously to pass an ordinance allowing the creation of a shared transfer station authority with Salisbury.

At the meeting, voters also authorized town officials to raise  $700,000 to purchase property on Route 44 in Salisbury where the new transfer station will be built.

 

February:

On Feb. 10, an early-morning fire totally destroyed a three-story house and garage at 423 Route 4. The fire started in the garage connected to the house and totally engulfed the house by noon. No one was in the house or garage at the time of the fire.

By the end of the month, the economic woes for the town continued with two more stores closing up or leaving town.  Byzance, a clothing store at 81 Main St., relocated to Salisbury; Caffe Tazza on West Main just shut its doors. However, later in the year, both locations would reopen with new tenants.

Jam, a small market  serving fine foods, sandwiches and soups opened at 9 Calkinstown Road at the beginning of the month.

The month ended with the Sharon Woman’s Club holding its sixth annual chili dinner on Feb. 28 at the firehouse. More than 200 people attended the dinner, which featured gourmet chili and a selection of rich desserts.

 

March: During a budget workshop on March 3, the Board of Selectmen decided not to approve a request from Geer for an increase in the town’s annual contribution for the adult day program. Geer had requested a total donation of $8,500 from the town for fiscal 2009-10, $500 more than the town contributed the previous fiscal year.

“We gave them $1,000 more last year,†Selectman John Mathews said at the time. “We’ve raised them $1,000 each of the last two years.†It was only one of many tough choices town officials faced, their difficulty increased by the prospect of shrinking state aid.

Throughout the month, the Town Hall Art Gallery displayed art by students from Sharon Center School in kindergarten to fourth grade.

On March 15, the fourth annual Environmental Legislative Forum was held in  Sharon. Attended by state Rep. Roberta Willis (D-64), state Sen. Andrew Roraback (R-30) and Congressman Chris Murphy (D-5), it turned out to be more about the economy than anything else.

“This [legislative] session has been the most difficult I’ve ever been a part of,†Willis said at the forum. “Many of the initiatives that I have worked on in the past, including farmland preservation and open space preservation, honestly, there isn’t money this year [in the state’s budget] to do those kinds of things.â€

Despite residents continuing to contend with the loss of a grocery store, a new option for groceries came thanks to an Angel Food Ministries distribution center opening at the Congregational Church.

“I was looking for a way to provide some kind of food assistance to people in the area,†said the Rev. Jody Guerrera of the weekly deliveries. “When Trotta’s closed in December, it was catastrophic. I am a treasurer for the Northwest Community Food Bank and I had nowhere to send people who use food vouchers.â€

On March 21, despite the cold chill of winter still surrounding the area, the Sharon Audubon Center held its annual MapleFest. The event included a walk along an Audubon trail lined with maple trees and a demonstration of how clear, watery maple sap turns into dark, sweet maple syrup.

“The amount of syrup we get each year is dependent on the weather,†said Wendy Miller, Audubon’s education program manager, as she showed visitors the process. “An average year for Audubon is 50 gallons of syrup. Last year we were able to make 100 gallons, but the year before we only had 20 gallons. So far we’ve had a good year, with 40 gallons of syrup.â€

At the end of the month, on March 24, Sharon Center School students performed “Once Upon a Mattress.†The musical comedy, which opened off-Broadway in 1959 and then moved to Broadway, is an adaptation of the tale “The Princess and the Pea,†by Hans Christian Andersen.

“It’s really amazing performing,†said Jose Salazar, 14, who played the king in the production. “It sure feels good to be king.â€

The Lakeville Journal’s Facebook page helped to reunite a lost cat with its owner.

Anne and Charlie Hepner rescued the aged cat, who was literally lying in the middle of Jewett Hill Road. Cars swerved around it before he was picked up and brought home by the Hepners. After photos of the lost feline were posted on The Lakeville Journal’s Facebook page, Rob Peters, owner of The Woodland restaurant in Lakeville, claimed his pet.

“It’s my cat! He wandered off the other day! I thought he died!†Peters posted on Facebook. The cat was in fact elderly and ill but was able to spend its last days at home.

 

April: On April 4, Boy Scout Troop 24 members Robert Butts and twin brothers Garrett and Mark Selino all officially made the rank of Eagle. According to the Boy Scouts of America official Web site at scouting.org, only about 5 percent of all scouts ever make Eagle Scout, the highest rank a boy can attain in the organization. At the ceremony, which was held at the Episcopal church, Scoutmaster Peter Selino (father of the Selino brothers) was overjoyed.

“Proud does not even begin to describe how I feel,†he said.

Robert Butts said he just couldn’t believe that he received the rank.

“I’m just like, wow,†Butts said.

During the first week of the month, First Selectman Malcolm Brown announced he would not run for a third term.

Brown was first elected in November 2005 and was re-elected in 2007.

“Does this mean that I’m unhappy with working at Town Hall? No,†Brown said in an interview with The Lakeville Journal. “I’m about to pass my 66th birthday on June 19. I have three grown kids, two grandchildren and a wife. I don’t want to work this hard for too much longer and I want some time for relaxation. I had a good time here and I made many good friends.â€

On April 17, at the second of what seemed like an endless stream of town meetings this year, approximately 25 Sharon residents approved the financing plan that will allow the town to proceed with plans for the new transfer station.

Taxpayers approved a financing plan that included taking out a bond anticipation note in the amount of $760,000.

On April 25, Sharon Center School was transformed from an ordinary school building to a chic Parisian-style venue for April in Paris, a Sharon Fire Department fundraising gala.

“The school will truly be transformed into Paris during the night of the dance,†Jamie Casey, a gala organizer, said. “When you go to one of these events, you might say, ‘Oh, it’s just another dance.’ But this one is truly special. We had a model of the Eiffel Tower along with lit walkways, and different sections of the gym named after different streets in Paris.â€

May: On May 2, with a gray overcast sky and temperatures in the 50-degree range, the Sharon Classic road race was held. The annual run/walk is a fundraiser for the day-care center. In addition to 124 adult participants in the 24th annual race, more than 30 children took part in the Fun Run. The proceeds from the race help to pay for tuition for local families who need it and to maintain the facility.

“If I can do it, everyone can do it,†Jenny Hansell of Sharon said about the race course. “The course has some tough hills, but it is not a killer.â€

At a contentious town meeting on May 8 at Town Hall, taxpayers shot down the proposed budget for fiscal 2009-10 at the end of two and a half hours.

Selectman John Mathews, who voted against the budget at a selectman’s meeting in March, made a motion at the meeting for the budget vote to be split, with one vote for the municipal budget and another for the education budget. He also made a motion for the budget to be voted on in the paper vote form known as an Australian ballot.

There was a debate over the salary increases proposed for Sharon Center School faculty and staff, including a proposed 4-percent raise for the principal and a 3.5-percent raise for non-certified staff members (that is, for non-teaching positions at the school). Certified staff members received an average 5.8-percent raise; these salary increases, however, are contractual and were negotiated and agreed to last spring. They can not be changed.

The town government budget passed by a vote of 80 to 36 and the school budget failing by a vote of 45 to 75. Town Attorney Judith Dixon said because one budget failed to pass, the budget failed as a whole. A re-vote was scheduled for June.

Later in the month, at a special Board of Education meeting on May 20 at Sharon Center School, the board decided to cut proposed raises to non-certified staff members and Principal Karen Manning.

Non-certified staff members such as administrative assistants, teacher aides and custodians who were originally slated to receive 3.5-percent raises, were cut back to 2.75-percent. Manning, who was slated to receive a 4-percent raise, was cut back to a 2.25-percent raise.

At the end of the month, on May 28, Sharon’s Taghhannuck Grange named Nancy Scofield its Citizen of the Year.

Scofield moved to Warren with her husband, David, in 1961, and was a math teacher in the Region 6 School District from 1974 to 1993.

“I do it all out of love,†Scofield said at the celebration. “I think it’s important that you volunteer in any town. I am very proud of my service.â€

 

June: On June 1, the Zoning Board of Appeals held a well-attended public hearing at Town Hall, where residents spoke both for and against plans for the Hotchkiss Library of Sharon to expand.

The question on the table was whether or not the board should give the library a zoning variance in order to  begin a renovation to the historic building, which was built in 1893.  As part of the renovation, the library intended to add on to the existing building.  And while the plans were approved by the Historic District Commission in January, they still needed approval from the Zoning Board of Appeals for a variance to allow the library to build on more land than is allowed by zoning regulations. The zoning variance request was based on hardship.

Attorney William Manasse of the law firm Manasse, Slaiby and Leard of Kent, who represented the library at the meeting, told the board that “... the library is a unique building and you can’t just hang an addition anywhere that you choose. That’s our hardship.â€

However, later in June, the board voted down the library’s request.

Despite this, several members of the library board said they would present the plans once again to the board.

Also in the beginning of June, Darren Winston opened up a shop in the Main Street space formerly occupied by Byzance. It offers rare and vintage books.

At a special town meeting on June 9, the town and school budgets for fiscal 2009-10 passed by a vote of 84 to 61. The meeting was at Sharon Center School instead of Town Hall because Fire Marshall Stan MacMillan was concerned about overcrowding. The meeting lasted about an hour, and although it was not a short meeting, it was shorter (by about two hours) than the first town meeting.

The town budget was set at $2,685,622, a $54,951 or 2.1-percent increase from 2008-09, and the school budget was set at $3,580,826, a $4,626 reduction from the previously proposed budget.

On June 16, Kaelan Paton, 15, drowned in the Housatonic River.  He had just completed his freshman year at Housatonic Valley Regional High School, and went to the river along with some friends to celebrate the last day of the school year. Kaelan tried to save one of his friends from being pulled by a current into an underwater cave along the shore of the river. He saved his friend, but disappeared into the rushing water and did not resurface.

His body was found on June 23, after seven days of searching.

On June 17, the eighth grade class celebrated their years at Sharon Center School during commencement exercises. The ceremony began on a somber note with a moment of silence for Kaelan, who graduated from Sharon Center School in the class of 2008.

On June 20, the Litchfield Bank Corporation placed the only bid at the foreclosure auction for Robert and Margaret DePretis’ property on Jackson Hill Road. The auction was very quick, lasting only 90 seconds, and was held outside of one of the buildings on the property by attorney Steven Levy, who was appointed by Litchfield Superior Court to be the auctioneer. Levy announced that the bank placed the winning bid of $2,750,000 for the property.

Margaret DePretis’ parents used to own the property and operated a retirement home there from 1978 to 1994. Robert DePretis tried to get permits from the town to build a retirement community for older adults there. He met with opposition from town commission and boards, and from his neighbors.

July: The Sharon Historical Society held its annual Attic Classic Tag Sale and Silent Auction on the first weekend of the month. The event was declared a great success by Historical Society Executive Director Liz Shapiro.

“We sold almost 50 percent of our inventory on Friday,†Shapiro said. “And I think it was the best weather we’ve had in years.â€

Also in the beginning of the month, When Pigs Fly opened up on 29 West Main Street where Caffe Tazza had been briefly in operation. The restaurant offers ribs, pulled pork sandwiches and barbecued chicken dishes.

On July 25, the Sharon Fire Department held a No Guts, No Glory adult soapbox derby. More than 25 soapbox racers were entered in the event. Some were classic styles. Many were made of wood and metal. One was designed to look like the new fire engine recently purchased by the Amenia Fire Department; another was  constructed from a large plastic children’s playhouse.

Organizer Eugene Aakjar said he was very pleased with the way the event went.

“The crowd was great, we had around 800 people here,†he said. “Some of them didn’t know what to expect, but they all fell in love with the whole thing. We’ve had so many rainstorms this summer, but the weather was just right that day. We totally sold out of food and ice cream. We even went through 300 pounds of potatoes!â€

In late July, in the midst of a series of heavy thunderstorms, a lightning bolt hit the studios of WHDD-FM 91.9 at 67 Main St. Marshall Miles, who heads the nonprofit National Public Radio station’s parent organization, Tri-State Public Communications, came in the morning after the storm to find approximately $23,000 worth of equipment destroyed.

“When you get a direct strike or a strike that close, there’s nothing you can do to stop what’s going to happen,†he said. “Lightning rods at radio stations don’t work. You’d need the world’s biggest lightning rod.â€

Despite the damage, Miles had the station back on air within a few hours.  By the end of the year, he and station co-owner Jill Goodman had raised approximately 40 percent of the funds to pay for the new gear that replaced the destroyed equipment. Fundraising efforts are ongoing.

August: On Aug 1, approximately 105 vendors took part in the 50th annual Sharon on the Green Arts and Crafts Fair. Crafters from Sharon and as far away as Tennessee sold their wares at the fair, including birdhouses, jewelry, pottery, paintings, baked goods and artisanal foods.

On Aug. 8 and 9, the Sharon Audubon Center on Route 4 held its 42nd annual summer festival. Sharon Audubon Director Scott Heth said the event is the longest-running environmental festival in America.

“The idea behind the festival is to get people to come out and experience nature,†Heth said. “And we want them to learn about better tools to protect the environment in everyday situations.â€

Workshops led by Audubon volunteers included: using native plants for landscaping, finding fungi, introduction to letterboxing, and identifying birds and other wildlife. Children’s activities were also a big part of the festival and included constructing rainsticks and birdhouses, and performances by the Grumbling Gryphons Traveling Children’s Theater of Cornwall and Annie and the Natural Wonder Band.

TriArts Sharon Playhouse held its first-ever Playhouse Stomp on Aug. 11. The “stomp†included three area “college†bands performing on the theater’s stage.

On Aug. 28, at a special town meeting, taxpayers voted 34 to 19 in favor of electing, not appointing, the town’s representative to the Region One Board of Education. Before the meeting, Sharon was one of three towns in the six-town school district to appoint its representative to the regional board. However, the meeting was too late for the change to impact the November 2009 municipal elections; it was too late for the town to change the ballot.

September: The Economic Study Group presented a report on the town’s economic health at the Board of Selectmen’s meeting on Sept. 8, and it did not portray a pretty picture.

The committee conducted interviews with commercial-property landlords and business owners in town for the report and they they found that there are three prevailing perceptions among the two groups: That the town was not business friendly, the town is dying and that many believe the town will never attract another supermarket to replace Trotta’s.

“Perceptions, positive and negative, generally stem from at least some small basis in fact,†committee chairman Lynn Humeston said at the beginning of the report, which she presented to the board. “However, a very wise man once said that truth is nothing, perception is everything.â€

By mid-month, a bridge on Mitcheltown Road was closed to traffic due to two cracks in the bridge. Problems for the bridge began after a heavy rainstorm in late August, when a vertical crack was noticed on a wall on the eastern side.

In September, a second crack was noticed in the middle of a bridge wall.

At a special town meeting held at Town Hall on Sept. 25, residents voted 47-16 to reject a proposed settlement between the town and resident Pilar Conde that would have forced the town to give up a recreational easement on Joray Road.

Conde and her husband, Alfonso Lledo Conde, who bought property at 124 West Woods Road in 2003, filed a lawsuit against the town in July 2008 after the town made her take down a gate located on her property. The gate blocked off a recreational easement on her property over Joray Road.  The case is scheduled to be heard in federal court in February.

 

October: The Foundation for Community Health officially celebrated its move to a bigger office at 155 Sharon Valley Road with an open house on Oct. 7. For six years, the organization had operated in a two-room space on Upper Main Street in Sharon. Its new home is a spacious circa-1800s two-floor building. The space allows the organization to hold seminars and educational programs, as well as give free office space to nonprofit organizations.

Singing, dancing and comedy were all part of the Sharon Center School Talent Show on Oct. 28,

Students from first to sixth grade performed in the show, which was a fundraiser for the Kaelan Paton Memorial Fund.

“I remember how he used to be at the talent show and he would jump over big lunch tables with his skateboard,†Principal Karen Manning said. “This is the kind of event that Kaelan always loved. It’s like magic, how the show comes together.â€

Fifty students performed in the event, which included music, dancing and skits.

 

November: Republican Bob Loucks defeated Democrat Tom Bartram in the municipal election held on Nov. 3 for first selectman. Loucks received 552 votes while Bartram received 513.

“I feel that a lot of people have put their confidence in me; this is a big responsibility,†Loucks said after the ballots were counted. “I hope we can all forget party lines now and get together, to get Sharon back on the road and out of the ditches.â€

The only other contested race in town was for the Zoning Board of Appeals alternate; Democrat Ian Hochstetter (540 votes) won over Republican Howard Randall (438). Of the 1,898 voters registered for the election, there were 636 Democrats, 578 Republicans and 684 unaffiliated voters.

Meanwhile, selectmen candidates Democrat Meg Szalewicz and Republican incumbent John Mathews were unopposed and automatically won their seats.

In mid-November, Linda Peck opened L’s Hair Studio, at 81 Main St. The studio offers perms, as well as coloring, haircuts, trimming and facial waxing.

 

December: Even though the expansion plan was not approved, members and volunteers of The Hotchkiss Library did a little  sprucing up and rearranging of offices throughout the library.

“We opened up a wonderful new space on the second floor,†board member Dotty Smith said. “We now have two rooms upstairs, including a new children’s room and a computer room. Opening up more space allows us to offer not just art shows, but also new programs throughout the year for the community.â€

Thanks to the Sharon Historical Society, signs were installed next to the historic lime kiln on Sharon Station Road, between Sharon Ridge and the ball fields. The kiln was built around 1875, when Sharon Valley was an industrial center.

For years, motorists have been passing by the stone structure and wondering what the heck it is. Longtime residents and history buffs might know that it’s a historic lime kiln, a relic of the town’s industrial past. But for many passersby, it was nothing more or less than a mystery made of stone.

The new signs were paid for with a state Small Town Economic Assistance Program (STEAP) grant of $73,000, a large private donation of $25,000 and several smaller donations.

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