Author: kathrynwboughton@gmail.com

The intercom blared out Justin Timberlake’s “Can’t Stop the Feeling,” mascot Spark the Eagle flapped his wings in welcome and Principal Lauren Valentino smiled broadly as she greeted students Monday, the first day of school at Botelle Elementary.

“I am so excited for this year,” Valentino said as the students disappeared into their classrooms.

Moments later, she was on the office intercom, asking the children how they felt—anxious, excited, happy, worried? “All emotions matter,” she told them, and invited them all to close their eyes, pause and take a deep breath.

“We do a lot of breathing around here,” she said, turning away from the microphone. “We use the RULER (Recognizing, Understanding, Labeling, Expressing and Regulating emotions) approach to social/emotional learning.” 

Social/emotional learning is a major emphasis in regional schools, helping children to understand themselves and to empathize with others. 

Valentino said there are few changes this year. “We are very consistent in our student body and our staff,” she said, explaining that the school lost four students to graduation last spring and admitted a kindergarten with five members this fall. “We have 59 students, up from 56 last year,” she said. Three of the students recently moved to town.

The school solves the problem of small cohorts—this year’s fifth grade has only four—by combining grades into multi-age classrooms. As one group of students moves up to a higher grade, they are replaced by younger ones. “They have the same teacher for two years, but each year they have a new group of peers,” Valentino said.

Class sizes range from 13 to 17 students.

There are four classroom teachers, supplemented by paraprofessionals, specialists and teachers who come to the school on different days for programs such as art, music and physical education. There were no staffing changes this year.

Cellphones in the classroom are of increasing concern to educators and on August 21, Governor Ned Lamont offered new recommendations for school districts, suggesting that schools collect the phones at the beginning of the day and return them when school is over. The state Board of Education approved the guidelines last week. Valentino said Botelle is ahead of the curve on this issue and already has a strict school policy: use is not allowed in school or on the bus. 

“They can have their phones in their backpacks, but if they are seen using them, they are confiscated and the parents have to come pick up the phones,” she said. 

It is a rule not easy to enforce and some parents are not wholly in favor of it. “Some parents feel a certain sense of security in being able to reach their children,” she explained. “But they can always call the office.”

The kids are now back in the classroom, but the PTO will give them one last, lingering look at summer fun tonight (Friday) when it hosts its annual ice cream social on the Botelle playground from 5:00 to 6:00 p.m.

To keep abreast of happenings at Botelle, be sure to visit our dedicated webpage on norfolkct.org.

—Norfolk Editor

Boxes and bags in hand, bibliophiles lined the sidewalk leading to the Norfolk Library last Saturday morning, eagerly anticipating the annual used book sale that draws shoppers and dealers from throughout New England and as far away as New York and New Jersey. 

Awaiting them were thousands of books donated from private Norfolk libraries. Within days, all would be gone, either purchased, given away or recycled to Bay State Books, which redistributes them to support literacy efforts. Books were also selected for Books Through Bars, an organization that provides books to prisoners.

The Library Associates are still tallying the results, but were happy to report it was a record year and some 24,000 books were “rehomed.”

It is not easy to stage a book sale as complex as the Norfolk Library’s. Sponsored by the Library Associates, it requires the help of some 90 volunteers under the direction of chairman Bridget Taylor.

Trish Deans and her team check all donations for books of better value, which are sold separately, and sale co-chair Liz Hilpman recruits volunteers for the many different tasks.

As a prelude to the sale, the Library Associates held a gala 50th Anniversary Cocktail Party under the tent Friday night. No sooner were the festivities over and the remains cleared away, than an army of volunteers began moving books from the basement to the tent in preparation for the sale. 

By 10:30 a.m. the next morning, all were in place, with Mike Halloran putting the finishing touches on the display as he taped the corners of one last, over-burdened box. The aisles were opened, and buyers rushed through, lining tables shoulder to shoulder as they perused the titles.

Three days later it was over and all that remained was breaking down boxes, loading the Bay State Books truck and cleaning the tent area. Proceeds from the sale help underwrite the library’s many free special events, films, concerts, book discussions, children’s programs and more.

The book sale is never quite over, however. With the end of the 2024 sale begins preparations for 2025. The library basement is now empty but donors will soon be filling it again, promising another splendid sale next year.

—Newsletter Editor

The Economic Development Commission will see a change of leadership at the end the year. Co-chair Michael Selleck has announced he will leave the commission December 31. Elizabeth Borden, who shares the chairman’s role with Selleck, also wants to step down.

Replacements will be needed to fill the vacancies and will be appointed by the Board of Selectmen.

First Selectman Matt Riiska said, “I know how busy they [Selleck and Borden] are because I keep running into them at meetings.” One person has expressed interest in serving, he noted. The Selectmen appoint new members.

—Newsletter Editor

Jeff Anderson, vice president of pre-construction for Downes Construction Company, assured the Fire House Committee Wednesday night that the company will provide soup-to-nuts service during construction of the new fire house on Shepard Road. 

Anderson said that First Selectman the town’s desire to go out to bid before the end of the year is “very doable.”

The town recently hired the firm as construction manager for the project. Downes has long specialized in working on public safety projects such as police stations and firehouses.  

“We’re public safety experts,” Anderson said, adding that the company has extensive experience in grant coordination, support and adherence to standards, making sure that all work complies with state grant requirements. The firm will even assist town officials in tapping into grant funding. 

The company works with all parties “to deliver on time, at or under budget, and to your expectations,” he asserted. It is already developing a preliminary budget. “Once that’s done we pull the documents apart for each trade and build the project on paper,” he said. 

The company has worked extensively with Silver Petrucelli, the architects for the Norfolk fire house. “We’re on a first-name basis with them, which will pay dividends, because we know their expectations,” Anderson said. 

The firm works cooperatively with Silver Petrucelli to craft the Requests for Proposals, and when the contractors return their bids, they review them with the low bidders to make sure they understand the schedule and phasing. Downes then returns to the town with a guaranteed maximum price.

Anderson said the firm has a “very good understanding of the capabilities of different contractors” allowing it to provide the Fire House Committee with insights. A full-time superintendent will be assigned during construction, and the committee will be updated weekly to “inform you of where we are and what we see daily.”

First Selectman Matt Riiska asked about timing of the project. Anderson said the first estimate should be ready around Labor Day and, after a review with Silver Petrucelli, a second estimate will be generated for the town.

Saying that Downes attempts to communicate completely with the communities it serves, Nicole DeMaio, vice president of business development, said the company could share information on the town’s website and provide a time-lapse recording of construction.

—Newsletter Editor

A shadow of doubt was cast this week over the possibility of quickly constructing a temporary bridge on Smith Road to replace a span swept away in a 2023 flash flood. 

Ironically, it was more flash flooding—this time in southern Connecticut—that put Norfolk’s plan in limbo. First Selectman Matt Riiska hoped that DEEP and the Army Corps of Engineers would give speedy approval for the town to construct a temporary bridge to provide South Norfolk residents with direct access to Route 272. But state and federal agencies were consumed this week with the disastrous flooding in Monroe, Seymour, Southbury, Newtown and Naugatuck.

“I have had a discussion with DEEP and the Army Corps of Engineers,” he said. “I had hoped they would just let me put in the same kind of bridge that was there before. One of the guys, who lives in Newtown, said there is a lot of work to do there. They have whole areas where people can’t get out. I sympathize, but it’s also important to put in a temporary bridge in South Norfolk.” 

—Newsletter Editor

The Planning and Zoning Commission Tuesday night continued discussion about a proposed dog park text amendment until September 10. The Friends of the Norfolk Community Dog Park, Inc., have petitioned to have the required acreage for dog parks reduced from 20 to two acres.

A dog park was approved for Westside Road in March 2023 following a long public hearing that elicited hours of testimony and more than 60 letters supporting and opposing the park. Plans for the park fell through, however, and the Friends are now seeking a new location. They argue that it will be easier to identify a new location if only two acres are required.

P&Z Chairman Tom Fahsbender explained that in 2023 the zoning regulations did not mention dog parks. The commission treated the proposal as an unspecified recreational facility, which requires a 20-acre parcel. 

Friends’ attorney Timothy Furey said no new site has yet been identified. The reduction of acreage and a dog park definition proposed by the Friends at the request of the P&Z would be “tools in the toolbox” for the commission to use when another site is located, he said.

Commission members mulled over the proposal for about two hours and heard only support for the text amendment from persons attending the meeting. Eleven letters supporting a park were read into the record.

It was noted that, while 20 acres were required, the actual facility proposed in 2023 would have used only 1.86 acres. Areas of concern for commission members were setback requirements, noise levels and possible exclusionary language that member Jordan Stern argued would prevent visitors with no dogs from coming onsite.

Furey argued that because a special permit is needed for the facility, the commission would have the power to set standards and conditions. Stern disagreed, saying the regulations for the underlying zone would prevail but Fahsbender noted that the special permit regulations give the commission just such powers.

Unable to reach a conclusion about the issues at hand, the commission members agreed to take a month to consider the matter.  

—Newsletter Editor

Interim Zoning Enforcement Officer Troy Lamere told the Planning and Zoning Commission Tuesday night that all zoning permits have been withdrawn for new facilities at the Manor House on Maple Avenue. The large inn operates under a special exception in a residential zone.

Previous ZEO Karl Nilsen had issued permits for construction of a “residential garage” and a “hot tub,” much to the consternation of neighboring property owners who believed that the permits expanded a non-conforming use. Nilsen argued at the July P&Z meeting that the garage permit was for domestic use and not a business expansion and that the hot tub fit within the definition of permitted recreational uses.

Nilsen did not bring the application for the permits to the July meeting, but later reviews by neighbors revealed that the “hot tub” would have encompassed a large outdoor spa complex with a hot tub, sauna, cold plunge pool, sitting area and changing facilities.

Nilsen resigned at the end of July and Lamere, Norfolk’s public works foreman and formerly Harwinton ZEO, filled the position until Stacey Sefcik was appointed to the post. Sefcik will begin regular hours in the last week of August. 

Lamere said the permits were withdrawn by the Manor House owners, but that they may reapply in the future. “Right now, there is nothing in front of the board,” he said.

—Newsletter Editor

First Selectman Matt Riiska predicted this week that construction of a temporary bridge at Smith Road could start in two or three weeks if his plan to replace a washed-out span is not delayed by the state Department of Energy and Environmental Protection.

He told the Board of Finance Tuesday that he is working with the Department of Transportation to prioritize permanent replacement of the Old Goshen Road bridge over the one at Smith Road. A temporary structure can then be constructed on Smith Road to bring relief to South Norfolk residents. Both bridges were swept away by a flash flood in July 2023.

Because both bridges are federal bridges, the state has assumed all costs for the permanent replacements but there is a long lag time before construction. “Permitting won’t be complete until early next summer. It won’t go out to bid until late summer and won’t start until spring of 2026,” Riiska said, adding that the state will not participate in creating a temporary span.

He conferred with a local contractor and Public Works foreman Troy Lamere and concluded that the town can build a temporary bridge for between $55,000 and $65,000. To pay for it, he would delay some scheduled projects to cover $15,000 for culvert pipes, and tap $47,000 in state LoCIP [Local Capital Improvement Program] funding.

The cost for the permanent replacement of the Smith Road bridge has risen from $2.4 million to $4 million.

Costs for other bridges have increased as well. Between a redesign and increased construction costs, the price for replacing the River Place bridge has skyrocketed from about $3 million to $4,105,980. The town’s portion was to have been $600,600 and would now be $821,000. “The good news is that the DOT will pick up 100 percent of the overage,” Riiska said. The town took out a loan for its portion of the work in 2022 and may face increased interest rates now, however. 

Finally, he told finance members he hopes to recoup $752,827 in remediation costs for Maple Avenue following a massive gas spill in November 2022. He is working with the town’s attorneys to submit bills to the insurance company representing the trucking firm responsible for the spill. “I believe we will get a pretty good portion of it, but I don’t know when,” he said. 

Board of Finance Chairman Michael Sconyers praised the temporary bridge solution.

—Newsletter Editor

As summer heat begins to fade, it is time to think about popular events planned each fall. Sign-up has already begun for this year’s Norfolk Land Trust 11th annual Haystack Mountain Challenge planned for Sunday, October 6.

The day features a challenging half-marathon, with two runs up Haystack Mountain, a 10K race that includes a summit of Haystack, and a 5K race traversing Barbour Woods. 

Register at RunSignup.

Another sporting opportunity, the Rails to Trails Tour de Forest bike event, will take place Saturday, October 19. The Icebox Gravel route is a 29-mile ride along mostly gravel roads, while the Tour-de-Forest is a 13-mile ride with an even mix of gravel and paved roads. 

Register here. All proceeds support Norfolk Rails to Trails and Great Mountain Forest.

—Newsletter Editor

The Norfolk Library will continue celebrating its Library Associates’ 50th year with a Golden Jubilee cocktail party and auction under a tent at the library, Friday, Aug. 23, from 5:00 to 7:00 p.m. Hors d’oeuvres, signature cocktails and wine will be served. 

An auctioneer will take the stage for a live auction. Up for the bidding are getaways to Prince Edward Island, Great Exuma in the Bahamas, Coastal Maine, Ireland and Provence. Funds raised support the Norfolk Library’s many free cultural events.

Tickets are $35 at the door.

The event will kick off the massive annual summer book sale, which opens Saturday, Aug. 24, from 10:30 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. The sale will continue Sunday, Aug. 25, from 10:30 a.m. until dark. From 3:00 to 9:00 p.m. on Sunday and again on Monday, 7:00 a.m. to 7:00 p.m., all books are free.

—Newsletter Editor