Community News

The Norfolk Historical Society will have a special exhibit this winter to kick off the town’s observance of the nation’s 250th anniversary.

On February 14, it will unveil “The Romance of Worth: The Eldridge Sisters and the Centennial,” which focuses on two stunning bespoke gowns probably worn by Isabella and Alice Eldridge during their visit to the 1876 Centennial Exhibition in Philadelphia.

“One is a ballgown and the other would have been worn to a dinner,” museum director Barry Webber said. “It’s quite amazing to think these two ladies from Norfolk were out buying the latest fashions from Paris.”

Webber said the Eldridges toured Europe in 1875 and their dresses came from the renowned Paris atelier of Charles Frederick Worth, who many fashion historians consider to be the father of haute couture. The two gowns are being exhibited for the first time.

“What I find fascinating is that we have textiles from that family spanning 200 years,” he said, adding that, although other items will be shown, the Worth dresses will be the stars.

The exhibition opens with a member’s reception on February 14 at 4:30 p.m. and will be on view February 15 and on Weekend in Norfolk, February 21 and 22.

Webber will also give a gallery talk on Sunday, February 22, describing how he restored the Worth dresses so they could go on display. 

A snowy, cold winter is wearing on the town crew and the town’s reserves of sand and salt.

“The road crew was out every single day last weekend rather than having a three-day holiday,” First Selectman Henry Tirrell reported. “Now we are gearing up for a big storm Sunday and Monday. Right now, the weather reports are calling for 12 to 18 inches of snow.”

The road crews have been out almost continuously to maintain roads as a series of small storms have passed through and the town has been conserving its salt. Some towns in the state are reporting shortages and delays in getting new shipments. Bigger towns like North Haven are laying in extra supplies, a practice that led to a significant shortage in Norfolk last February.

Even residents and private contractors could find it difficult to purchase salt for drives and walks. At least one store in the region has been told it cannot reorder regular salt until February (salt that is safe for pets is available).

“We’ve heard about it, and that is another reason to conserve,” Tirrell said. “We’ve been cutting our salt with sand when feasible. We do have salt at the garage, and we’re anticipating that the big storm this weekend won’t require a lot of material.”

He explained that the rapid snow accumulation expected with the coming storm will not require plowing until it is over and then salt will be applied to prevent freezing. 

He is doing what he can to allow the crew to rest despite storms arriving back-to-back. “Of course they’re paid for the hours, but they also have to be safe,” he observed.

The best solution this weekend is for everyone to stay home unless travel is absolutely necessary, Tirrell pointed out, “It helps everything if people will stay off the roads.”

Intermediate students at Botelle School were surprised last week by a visit from Bob Maxon, NBC 30 meteorologist. 

The children are studying extreme weather—an apt subject in a winter that has brought weeks of snow and frigid temperatures and promises still more for this weekend. 

Maxon came to the school at the invitation of teacher Nicole Partyka, where he spent more than an hour explaining weather concepts, answering students’ questions and showing them how meteorologists observe and interpret weather data. 

He shared stories from his childhood in Oswego, N.Y., including memories of historic snowstorms, and even ventured a prediction of whether the children would have school on Friday. (They did.)

The children were familiar with Maxon because each morning they watch and discuss his daily weather forecast, a routine that Partyka began two years ago for her unit on weather. She said the students are noticeably disappointed when Maxon has a day off.

Partyka uses the weather unit to blend reading, writing and science studies for her combined third- and fourth-grade class. Throughout the unit, students research questions about weather by reading grade-level texts, identifying main ideas, key details and vocabulary. They then use their notes to write short compositions. At the end of the unit, each student publishes a “book” focused on a specific weather phenomenon, bringing together everything they have learned. 

Following the visit, the students were featured in a segment on Maxon’s morning forecast. He termed his time in Norfolk “awesome” and commented, “Norfolk is small, you know, and the school is the center of warmth for the community.”

All children born on or before September 1, 2022, are eligible for enrollment in Botelle School’s pre-kindergarten program for the 2026 -2027 school year.

Norfolk parents should contact the school office to make sure their child is included on the school’s roster for that school year. Invitations to screening and registration forms will be mailed out in April.

Contact the school at 860-542-5286, ext. 200, or email laskom@botelleschool.org for more information.

Corner Club resumes on Wednesday, January 28, at the Norfolk Library when special effects artist Tyler Green offers his Dinosaur Activity Kit workshop, allowing attendees to mold their own dinosaur claw.

Green, a renowned special effects makeup artist, maintains a studio in Winsted.

Every student will get a free kit to work on at the library. This workshop is limited to 12 students and registration with the library is required by calling the circulation desk at 860-542-5075, ext. 2.

The monthly Corner Club programs are free and open to all area children.  All students going from school for this program will need a permission slip to get on the school bus.

Contractors installed a modular house at 7 Haystack Woods Road last Friday, one of 10 affordable homes being constructed under the auspices of the Litchfield County Center for Housing Opportunity at locations throughout the county. 

The house is located near the ten-unit Haystack Woods affordable housing complex being developed by the Foundation for Norfolk Living but is being funded by a separate agency and is not one of the highly energy efficient homes in that complex.

The three-bedroom Cape-style house is being developed in collaboration with the Foundation for Norfolk Living, however. 

The sale price ranges between $250,000 and $280,000, including a forgivable downpayment assistance loan of approximately $25,000. Persons making up to 100 percent of Litchfield County’s median income are eligible to apply for ownership. For information about the house and the application process click here.

On Tuesday night the Planning and Zoning Commission opened and ultimately continued a hearing on an application to modify a special permit at 330 Greenwoods Road East until February

The application seeks permission to construct an additional 50-foot-by-80-foot storage building in which to temporarily house vehicles towed to the premises, to provide outside parking for 10 vehicles and to permit the lease of a newly created parking space for a third-party tractor trailer.

Michael Halloran represented the applicant, George Auclair, owner of George’s Norfolk Garage. 

Halloran said the additional uses would be in keeping with orderly development of the commercial zone and cited the lack of places for commercial activity in the town.  

P&Z Chairman Christopher Schaut wanted to ensure that the uses proposed for the site are precisely defined. “I want to make sure this application is fully understood,” he stated. “I don’t want any gray areas.”

He particularly questioned how leasing a parking space for a tractor trailer fits in the town’s zoning regulations as an accessory or incidental use for the automotive garage across the street. “The applicant has to make a case that it’s within the regulations,” he said.

Halloran said there are vehicles parked in violation of the regulations in other parts of town because of the dearth of commercial zoning. “This is nothing new,” he asserted. “We’re hoping the concept of one vehicle in a commercial zone can go forward.”

“I get that there could be other violations, but we are just talking about the application in front of us,” said Schaut, adding that the town could change its regulations to allow the use if needed.

P&Z members debated how to define the use for the lot—whether it would be a primary or accessory use, whether the use of the new building should be designated “cold storage” (which could be interpreted as refrigerated by a future owner) or “unheated storage”, what kinds of vehicles could be stored in the building and the like.

Halloran was asked to come back in February with a written list of precisely what is being proposed. “I’m not saying yea or nay, I just want it one hundred percent clear,” said Schaut.

Struggling with the cost of food and strong demand, the Norfolk Food Pantry has come up with a new way for donors to give by choosing items directly from its online wish list. Once selected and paid for, the items are delivered directly to the Pantry.

The Pantry, which is housed on the lower level of Battell Chapel, still welcomes donations of actual foodstuffs as well as money. Non-perishable food donations can be brought to the chapel when the pantry is open or placed in the collection boxes at the Berkshire Country Store, library, Immaculate Conception Church or in the blue bin outside the Food Pantry entrance. Checks can be mailed to the church office, PO Box 582, Norfolk CT 06058.

Hours are from 10:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m. Tuesday through Thursday, serving residents of Norfolk, Winsted, Winchester, Canaan, Falls Village and Colebrook.

Norfolk residents can also receive food through Fishes & Loaves in Canaan.

The South Norfolk residents who have been waiting for three years for the bridge at the end of Old Goshen Road where it meets Route 272 to be replaced may see some progress in 2027—or maybe not.

First Selectman Henry Tirrell told his board Wednesday afternoon that the state hopes to start construction of the replacement next year, but that the timetable depends on how the state categorizes the replacement.

“As they briefly described it to me, there are two versions,” said Tirrell. “One of them would require more permitting. Even the guys from the state didn’t know when it would happen.”

The previous bridge was washed out by a flash flood in July 2023, along with a bridge on Smith Road now temporarily replaced by the town. 

There is more immediate action on the replacement of a bridge on Mountain Road. “They hope to start construction in April,” Tirrell reported.

In other business, the Selectmen appointed Martina Gago Ageitos to fill a vacancy on the City Meadow Committee, formerly known as the Friends of the Meadow Committee. 

The Norfolk Pub, a local gathering place for the past half century, is closing its doors January 31 in the wake of the sale of the historic Royal Arcanum Building on Station Place. 

The building, which had been owned by the Norfolk Hub since 2021, was sold last September to American Folk & Heritage, LLC, a non-profit focused on preserving American craft and handwork, for $1.4 million. The buyers reportedly plan to use the space to support their mission of preserving American crafts.

Proceeds of the sale will be used by the Norfolk Hub, formerly the Norfolk Foundation, to benefit local initiatives such as affordable housing and the new firehouse.

In a Facebook posting, Norfolk Pub bartender Lindsey Prevuznak said that as the restaurant works toward its closing date only cash payments will be accepted. She noted that there is an ATM nearby at the National Iron Bank.

None of the principals for this story could be reached at press time although members of the Economic Development Commission expressed dismay Thursday night about the loss of the restaurant.

“it’s imminent and it’s happening,” said EDC Chairman Brett Robbins, adding that he had reached out to one of the new owners, Dev Aujla. “I would really love to find ways to cooperate with them but the feedback that I got was they are still in the midst of renovation, permitting and all those steps.”

He expects there will be no further movement about a pub until the renovation is completed. “Losing the pub feels like a really big hit when we think about supporting businesses downtown,” he said. “We need to think of how we can make sure that a pub shows back up, but there is no action for now.”

A landmark designed in 1904 by architect Alfredo Taylor, the building originally served Royal Arcanum Insurance and the local fire department and has since seen a variety of commercial tenants within its walls. Five apartments were on the second floor.