Author: kathrynwboughton@gmail.com

A kind motorist, who recently had a close encounter of a scary kind with a dark-clothed pedestrian on a dark road, has asked us to remind walkers that drivers do not always see them in the shadows. 

As the days shorten, she suggests walkers wear something reflective—even an arm band—or carry a flashlight to alert drivers to their presence. 

Even after we set back our clocks to Eastern Standard Time next Sunday, November 3, we can soon expect darkness to descend in late afternoon, making vigilance even more critical.

—Newsletter Editor

This is the first of a three-part series on renewed discussions about consolidating the Norfolk and Colebrook elementary schools.

Since August, Norfolk and Colebrook’s first selectmen have renewed talks about consolidating the two communities’ elementary schools. Colebrook now services just 64 students and Norfolk’s Botelle Elementary, 59

When Colebrook First Selectman Brad Bremer served on the Board of Education 15 years ago, Colebrook had 125 students and Norfolk had 175, he reported. That would have created a combined enrollment of about 300 students. Now it would be 120. “That makes conversations imperative,” Bremer said.

Norfolk’s first selectman, Matt Riiska, who kicked off the current round of discussion with his August column in Norfolk Now, sees the situation as urgent, and not just financially. “We are doing a huge disservice to Norfolk kids,” he said. “We are doing the minimum we can educationally. The Board of Education doesn’t raise its budget, which is fine financially, but that’s not good enough. We need to think out of the box to see what we can do to provide the best education, socialization and diversity for the kids. Something has to be done.”

It is not the first time that some kind of cooperative arrangement has been discussed by the towns and, indeed, there are some mutual agreements already in place. But regionalization has been a hot-button issue through the years.

In the 1990s Region 7 member towns studied, developed and rejected a plan to combine grades pre-K to 12. The plan would have reduced layers of administration and have provided a coordinated curriculum program. In 2011, another study was developed and rejected; it would have combined grades K through six in the region. 

The issue resurfaced in 2013 when a committee was formed to discuss regionalization or consolidation of the Colebrook and Norfolk elementary schools. Considerations covered what a consolidated board would look like, which school building would be used, what the administration would look like and how a budget would be developed for both daily operations and long-term capital improvements. That consolidation effort was voted down in 2015. 

The situation has only worsened in the decade since with actual enrollments falling significantly short of theprojected 2024 enrollments of 84 students in Norfolk and 78 students in Colebrook.

“I felt even when there were 125 students that, socially, the students would have benefitted from larger class sizes,” said Bremer. 

For his part, Riiska sees three possibilities: 

First, that the two boards of education could reach a cooperative agreement that would not require a public vote, which he said state statute allows. Second, that the towns vote to regionalize or consolidate. And third, that grades pre-k through 12 be folded into Regional School District # 7, with the Region 7 Board of Education as the governing body for the high school, middle school and elementary schools.

The two selectmen have committed to talk and explore possibilities but, as Bremer said, “It will take hard work and open minds.”

Next week, we will look at educators’ responses to the renewed discussion.

—Newsletter Editor

First Selectman Matt Riiska is perplexed. Why, he asks, if the firm designing the permanent replacement of Smith Road bridge for the state DOT has given him the data he has used to apply for DEEP and Army Corps of Engineers approval of a temporary structure, can’t the DOT use the same information to get approval for its bridge? 

The DOT has suggested that permanent bridge construction may not start until spring 2026, but Riiska said once he sends in a more detailed plan for the temporary bridge— which he expects to do by November 1—the Army Corps has just 60 days to approve or disapprove the plan. 

If the Corps demands a hydrology report, that would extend the timeline.

Riiska will continue to work toward building a temporary bridge but will simultaneously contact the DOT to see why work on the permanent span cannot begin next spring. 

“I want to move this along to the point where they can put shovels in the ground,” he said. “They already have a design, they did the test borings months ago, so they know what the ground is like underneath. What are they waiting for? They should be able to complete the design and get it out for bid soon.”

If the permanent work can be done by next spring or summer, Riiska said he will won’t spend $150,000 of the town’s money on a temporary bridge.

—Newsletter Editor

Residents lined up early to sign in for early voting Monday, the first day they could cast ballots in the upcoming presidential election.

Democratic Registrar of Voters Danese Perron said that she was struggling to get her computer ready at 8:00 a.m. Monday and looked up to find a line already forming. “Turn-out was pretty consistent all day,” she said. 

Monday brought the most voters—65 electors, followed by 38 on Tuesday, 22 on Wednesday and 17 by 2:00 p.m. on Thursday. Three persons availed themselves of same-day registration.

Early voting continues upstairs in Town Hall each day from 10:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. through Monday, October 28, including Saturday and Sunday. Polls are open Tuesday, October 29, 8:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m.; Wednesday, October 30, 10:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m.; Thursday, October 31, 8:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m., and Friday, Saturday and Sunday, November 1, 2 and 3, from 10:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m.

On Election Day, November 5, voting will be from 6:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m.

—Newsletter Editor

The Norfolk Conservation Commission will hold a community volunteer event Sunday, October 27th, at 11 a.m. 

Work will focus on eliminating the young buckthorn sprouting at the entrance to Barbour Woods and bordering the Land Trust’s newly acquired Borden Woods along Lovers Lane. There will be a brief orientation to buckthorn and control strategies. 

The Conservation Commission is looking for suggestions for upcoming events and hopes to recruit volunteers to help manage Norfolk’s many invasive plants. Keep track of events at its Facebook page and send suggestions to conservationcommission@norfolkct.org.

—Newsletter Editor

For more than a century, Great Mountain Forest has served as a laboratory for forest science. The focus has been on trees, but now a new element—the moose—is under its metaphorical microscope.

Moose, usually denizens of northern forests, were unexpectedly detected in the forest in 2002, even though Connecticut is on the southern fringe of moose habitat. Eight years later, research into the effects they were having on the forest was initiated and in 2020, a second study was begun to determine their population.

Deploying game cameras at known foraging spots, Great Mountain Forest has identified 21 animals: 11 mature bulls, two adolescent bulls, five cows and three calves. This accounts for about one-quarter of the moose in Connecticut, according to DEEP estimates.

Although moose are breeding in the forest, anecdotal reports suggest their population is decreasing. Climate change is one factor that allows ticks to remain active in winter, continuing to prey on and weaken the animals.

Another factor limiting population growth is less area that attracts moose. The animals are drawn to areas where trees have been cut down, allowing younger trees to grow. As moose prefer to browse at head height, they look for trees roughly four to eight inches in diameter. Moose can walk over these young trees, bending their trunks and browsing on the upper branches. 

While the moose population has been resident at GMF, scientists have taken the opportunity to compare their impact on forest development to that of white-tailed deer. In 2010, researchers Ed Faison, senior ecologist at Highstead Foundation, and Steve DeStefano, retired leader of the Massachusetts Cooperative Fish and Wildlife Research Unit, began collaborating with Great Mountain Forest to set up experimental moose and deer exclusion plots.

Each plot was fenced in different ways to dictate which species could access its vegetation. Comparing the trees, shrubs and other plants in the plots is allowing researchers to study how selective foraging patterns affect the forest.

According to Faison, the browsing effects of deer alone on the forest have been minor and often not much different from the plot where browsers have been completely excluded. The effects by moose and deer combined have been large and point to moose being the dominant browser in these harvested areas.

Here are some of the strongest patterns :

• Moose and deer together have reduced the number of trees less than 1 inch by about 30 percent.
• By creating a more open forest, moose and deer together have increased the number of trees that have grown larger than 5 inches in diameter. In the herbivore exclusion and deer browsing plots, none of the more densely packed trees have grown above 5 inches in diameter. This increase in large trees has resulted in a greater tree size diversity in the area browsed by both moose and deer relative to the other plots.
• By browsing deciduous tree species and avoiding white pine, moose plus deer have increased the abundance of pine. Pine comprises almost half the tree area in the moose and deer plot compared to only one-sixth to one-eighth of the tree area in the other plots where deciduous species are more abundant.
• Moose plus deer browsing has greatly reduced the abundance of early successional (aka pioneer) tree species such as pin cherry, gray birch and paper birch. These fast-growing tree species are particularly susceptible to browsing because they are shade intolerant and, once they are reduced in height by browsing, they tend to die out under the shade of other trees.

—Newsletter Editor

Halloween will be a little different this year. Normally, the town closes off Maple Avenue and its feeder streets to vehicular traffic from 5 p.m. to 7:30 p.m. to allow little ghoulies and ghosties to roam safely as they trick or treat.

This year, however, Halloween coincides with early voting at town hall, so cars will be allowed to enter Maple Avenue and will be asked to proceed carefully to avoid the children until the polls close at 8:00 p.m., according to Norfolk Fire Chief Brian Hutchins. 

The firefighters, who donate their services every year, will be in their usual spots at the intersections of Maple Avenue, Greenwoods Road and Emerson Street from 5:00 p.m. until 7:30-ish, he said. Signs will be posted saying that early voting is available, but that drivers should proceed carefully.

Maple Avenue and its tributaries—Terrace View, Hillside, Emerson—have been designated exclusively for trick-or-treating for years now and each year candy is collected from Botelle families and other donors to offset the burden on homeowners along those streets. Janet Byrne is heading the drive this year and has announced that candy donations can be taken to the school, the post office or the Berkshire Country Store. 

Anyone on the streets who would like to receive some of the donated candy should email her.

The fun is not confined to October 31st, however. The PTO is again planning its free Boo-telle Spooktacular for Friday, October 25, 5:30 to 7:30 p.m., in the covered playground behind the school. There will be games, pizzas for purchase, treats, prizes and a costume parade.

—Newsletter Editor

The Norfolk Democratic Town Committee is offering rides to the polls for any Norfolk registered voter starting Oct. 21. Please contact 860-201-7498 to make arrangements. 

—Newsletter Editor

Botelle School is abuzz with fall activities. Wednesday, staff and students will celebrate Unity Day by wearing orange and pledging to make Botelle a bullying-free zone. October is Bullying Awareness Month, and the Student Council members and staff members are teaching students what bullying means and how they can help if someone is being bullied. 

Plans are being laid for this year’s PTO Spooktacular, a haunted Halloween scavenger hunt, and Veterans Day. The school always pauses to honor veterans with an assembly on Veteran’s Day, and vets and families who would like to be included in the event should notify Mary Beth Lasko in the main office, 860-824-5286.

—Newsletter Editor

At its Tuesday night meeting, the Planning and Zoning Commission scheduled three public hearings for November 12.

A hearing on a proposed ground-mounted solar array at 400 North Street originally slated for 6:45 p.m. was rescheduled because one member of the commission recused himself and the commission did not have a quorum without him. The property is listed as belonging to Bonnie Pritzker and Steve Landes.

With the recused member available to consider the next matter, P&Z members accepted a special permit application from Terry Anstett, 542 Greenwoods Road East, for construction of an accessory structure larger than the primary building. 

Anstett was present and said he needs more space to modernize his maple syrup operation. His plans have not been completed but he said the building will be no taller than 16 feet and probably 20 by 60 feet.

Asked if sewer or water would be connected to the building, Anstett said they would not. He reported that he had consulted the Torrington Area Health District and anticipates no problem with getting approval for the use.

Anstett makes about 300 gallons of syrup a year and sells out all his product. Member Edward Barron asked if a special permit is needed for production of syrup and P&Z Chairman Tom Fahsbender said there would be no change of an established use.

A public hearing was scheduled for November 12.   

The last issue on the agenda for action was a special permit application to change a non-conforming use for 16 Maple Avenue. If the application were to be approved it would not change exterior uses of the building but would alter the interior to provide an art studio, office and woodshop. The question before the commission is whether this would make the use more non-conforming.

Zoning Enforcement Officer Kelsey Sefcik requested a floor plan and the commission added that it wants business and site plans. 

The application will go to a public hearing November 12.

—Newsletter Editor