It’s a state law that probably affects fewer people here than any other legislation. But it has the potential to impact millions of dollars in tax penalties.The 10 Mill Law is a relatively obscure one, because by its very nature it keeps large tracts of undeveloped land static, in terms of use and taxes. The goal in creating the law a half century ago was to offer property owners a monetary incentive to preserve forestland. Property owners could keep those large properties intact without bearing an increasing tax burden. Land could be passed down or sold undivided without a penalty. The classification remains with the land even if the owner changes.Properties in the program are taxed at 10 mills, no matter what rates apply to the rest of a municipality. As long as the use of the property does not change, the designation remains in place for 100 years, with a revaluation done at the 50-year mark.Two properties on Preston Mountain Road in Kent, totaling more than 1,082 acres, hit the 50-year mark this past February — the first in the state. The milestone prompted new legislation when it became apparent that none of the classified properties would be able to meet the legal requirements after revaluation.The problem is simple. In addition to a 25-acre minimum requirement, the land cannot have a value of more than $100 per acre. “None of the 10 mill properties in the state can be revalued for under $100 per acre,” said Barbara Bigos, the assessor for the towns of Salisbury and Cornwall.The technicality would take the development restriction off about 15,000 acres across the state. It could backfire by forcing some owners to sell to developers to recoup what could easily amount to hundreds of thousands of dollars in penalties on a single tract.The solution is just as simple. HB6263, An Act Concerning the Transition from the 10 Mill Program, passed unanimously in the House and Senate during the last legislative session. It offers two options. It allows 10 mill properties, as they hit the 50-year mark, to be revalued at the forestland rate, also known as the 490 program. Or, owners have the option of coming out of 10 mill without a penalty if they choose to put a permanent conservation easement on the land.Bigos called the approved legislation a compromise over an amnesty bill proposed last year and opposed by town officials across the state. The new law reflects input from property owners and town representatives seeking a workable solution.There are currently an estimated 137 10-mill properties in 37 Connecticut towns. They will all hit the 50-year mark between now and 2022. In the 1972-73 tax year, many landowners took advantage of an amnesty program and rolled property into the 490 program without penalty.Owners impacted by the change will now have to weigh conservation issues against financial ones. Bigos said taxes on the properties are not likely to rise by much. The state recommendation for taxing forest land is currently $130 per acre, well below the market value. But each town sets its own value. Cornwall, for instance, values forestland at $190 per acre. Properties in the 10 mill program have a statewide average assessment of $50 per acre.Bigos expects many landowners across the state will chose to stay in the 10 mill program — with the 490 value applied at the 50-year revaluation — because it will let them keep their options open. The same would not be true of conservation easements.Cornwall is second only to Ledyard with the highest number of 10 mill properties. The 17 properties include three state-owned parcels. The privately owned land totals about 1,450 acres. Figures calculated last year show accrued penalties that ranged from $13,781 to $429,199. The total is more than $1.6 million.“State statutes dictate a formula that takes into consideration that the property owners have been getting a big tax break over a long time,” Bigos explained.The penalty rises exponentially with the length of ownership. The formula subtracts the current fair market value from the 10 mill value. That is multiplied by the statutory rate of .005, which is then multiplied by the number of years the property was classified.While the penalties are steep, it is all relative. Its effectiveness in conserving undeveloped land depends on the owners.In Cornwall, a remaining 10 mill property was removed from the program during a recent sale. The new owner paid the $78,000 penalty. “It may seem like a lot, but when you’re talking about someone buying a $2 million property, it may not matter as much,” Bigos said. In 2007, a Cornwall landowner moved 250 acres from the 10 mill to the 490 program. The penalty was more than $260,000. The town collects $173,200 for each of five years.Another resident split off a lot to sell to a family member. The penalty nearly equaled the sale price, but profit was not likely a motivation in this case. More significantly, the 10 mill restriction is gone and the rest of the property is open for subdivision and/or development.Another property owner has been negotiating with the town on a five-year payment plan for a more-than-$91,000 penalty. His plan, Bigos said, was to rent a small portion of his property for a cell tower. “The rental income for five years would nearly cover that, he would continue to collect rent for the tower and then he could build on the rest of the land.”In this part of the state, towns with 10 mill property are Falls Village, with about 1,450 acres on three parcels; Colebrook, with two parcels and 463 acres; New Hartford with one 27-acre parcel; and Litchfield, with five parcels totaling 890 acres.
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Textile designer Justine Valla sits in her father’s chair, which she painted, alongside her husband, illustrator and muralist Victor Valla, in their Atelier Valla studio.
“I was always drawing as a child,” Justine recalled. Victor dreamed of illustrating magazine covers like those of the “Saturday Evening Post.”
Victor studied design and illustration at Rochester Institute of Technology, then received a fellowship to study painting and printmaking at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaigne. He graduated in 1967. The following year, he received a grant from the Tiffany Foundation to study printmaking in Paris at Atelier 17, an experimental graphic arts workshop founded in 1927.
“What a great experience that was!” he recalled.
Returning home after the Paris uprisings of 1968, he discovered that the magazine covers he’d hoped to paint had largely given way to photography. His agent suggested trying record covers, which he pursued along with illustration and graphic design.
He also began teaching at Kean University in New Jersey.
“Kean had a wonderful graphic design and illustration department. I loved teaching Graphic Design, even though I never thought I would.”
He later taught at Syracuse University and Pennsylvania College of Art and Design.
In the late 1980s, he decided to stop teaching and concentrate on his own art. He moved to Falls Village, to a house on the corner of Minor and Prospect Streets.
“I used to call the studio ‘Minor Prospects Atelier,’” he said.
He continued working in illustration and graphic design, creating book covers for stories by H.P. Lovecraft and other authors, along with magazine covers, logos, advertising and murals.
Justine and Victor Valla in their studio with a painting of Victor’s,”Jonah and the Whale.” Robin Roraback
His local commissions include the green and gold Noble Horizons signage and wall murals for the Stockbridge Inn, the Spa at Norwich Inn, Orchards Hotel in Williamstown and the David M. Hunt Library’s children’s section.
Justine grew up in the Bronx and studied at the Fashion Institute of Technology. After graduating, she took on whatever work she could find, including designing toys and novelty items for Russ Berrie. But her true calling was textile design.
She moved to Los Angeles to pursue that calling, where she learned silkscreen printing from 1960s design icon Corita Kent.
“I was in her program at Immaculate Heart College. All fabric design at that time was silk screen. My first job in textile design was in L.A., creating wallpaper for Bob Mitchell Design.”
Justine returned to New York City, where the advent of computers required her to learn new design techniques. She enrolled at Parsons School of Design, studying Photoshop, Illustrator, Lectra U4ia and Kaledo.
Around this time, she met Victor online and moved to Falls Village.
A recruiter found her a job in Arkansas at Dillard’s, a department store chain operating in 30 states and known for its exclusive designer collections.
“They had the best equipment I’d ever seen,” she said.
She became a senior computer-aided design designer there, designing fabric and preparing purchased designs for production.
The Vallas left Falls Village for Little Rock.
“It was a big move,” she said. “It was a different culture, but Little Rock was very progressive.”
The originally planned to stay in Arkansas for five years but ended up remaining for nearly 10.
Then Justine was hit by a car. She suffered injuries to her leg and head and required four years of rehabilitation.
“I lost the ability to paint after the accident. I struggled to paint again.”
The Vallas returned to Connecticut, this time settling in Salisbury, where they’ve lived since 2013.
After leaving Dillard’s, Justine had planned to sell her work through Printsource in New York City, an international showcase for surface and textile design. But after the accident, she no longer had the mobility or energy to travel back and forth to the city.
Instead, she began selling her work locally at craft shows, including clothing, hand-printed tea towels and floorcloths.
She is currently working on selling her collection of textile designs.
In December, Justine will have a show of her tea-themed watercolors at the NorthEast-Millerton Library.
Victor recently exhibited “The American West: A Pictural History” at the NorthEast-Millerton Library. The series, created in the early 1990s, was part of a commission from the Postal Commemorative Society for which he completed 100 paintings in two years.
He hopes to place the series in a museum and has created books from its images, complete with text. Over the years, he has designed many other books that are ready for publication, including “Looking In, Looking Out,” a cosmic view of the universe.
Reflecting on his career, Victor said, “It’s about doing what you love”.
Justine agreed.
To see, purchase or commission work, contact Justine at justinevalla@gmail.com or Victor at victorvalla@comcast.net, or call 860-596-4282.
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Jane Herold’s beautifully simple dinnerware.
Cornwall ceramicist Jane Herold explained that there’s quite a lot of enthusiasm for Clay Way among the region’s ceramic artists.
“We all need work space, which is hard to find or afford in urban areas. The wood-fire crowd needs lots of wood and outdoor space. This area is great because it’s rural enough for us, but has a wonderfully enthusiastic and supportive population of pottery [patrons].”
While many of the artists are returning from previous years, the loose collection of unofficial organizers likes to keep the event manageable for the public, limiting the number of artists and studios each year. A direct drive from the southernmost point at Ann Heywood’s studio in Wingdale to Herold’s big barn in Cornwall is under 40 minutes. But if you want to catch it all, plan for a full day’s worth of art exploration along some of the most beautiful roads in New England.
Starting at its northernmost point, Herold’s studio will host Matin Malikzada of Afghanistan, whose polished, modern interpretations of traditional forms are instantly recognizable. They’ll be joined by wood-fired ceramicists Steve Johnson, with his raw, organic forms, and Harry Levenstein, whose works relate closely to Johnson’s while making even more direct references to nature.
Herold herself creates work that is both beautiful and utilitarian. Her prolific output of objects is intended to be used by everyday people as part of their daily lives.
Moving south is Todd Piker of Cornwall Bridge Pottery. Piker has been making pots in his giant wood-fired kiln since 1971. The kiln looks more like an ancient blast furnace than something designed to transform clay into ceramics, but over the years, he’s mastered its intricacies and produces an impressive amount of fine work.
A ceramic vase by Kathleen Heidemann.Provided
Piker will host Sanah Peterson, who works at Cornwall Bridge Pottery and draws inspiration from both her time with Piker and her time traveling the globe as a child. They’ll be joined by Stephanie Haines, whose vibrant, eye-catching work features underglaze illustrations of birds, fruit and the bounty of nature.
Further along in Warren, Jessica Dubin’s pieces will be on display at the studio of Christine Owen. Both artists seem to appreciate the chaos and unpredictable nature of clay but find ways to refine it all using their own unique methods.
Heading east to Washington, Conn., Will Talbot’s creates intricate work while allowing for the unpredictable nature of clay to play a role. His studio will house Tom Knox and his wide variety of textures and forms, as well as New York City-based Alex Lebedev, who lets music and the nature of improvisation guide his work.
There will be two studios participating in South Kent. Alison Palmner, whose page on the Clay Way website states she “strives to achieve a lighthearted meld of human forms, animals and the vessel.” Her studio will host Ben Eberle, who trained under the guidance of legendary potter Toshiko Takaezu; James Guggina, whose intricate work can appear both deliberate and whimsical; and Paula Shalan, who blends rough, unrefined surfaces with polished precision in individual pieces.
Joy Brown’s delightful ceramic sculptures.Provided
Nearby is Joy Brown, whose work have become a staple of the area, with her figurative sculptures dotting the Northwest Corner. Brown’s studio will also feature Bonnie Levine, who taps into the beauty of chaos and destruction in her work, and Brendan Moore, whose more utilitarian forms are perfect for everyday use.
Finally, the tour crosses the border into Wingdale, New York, where the studios of Drew Montgomery, Ann Heywood and Amy Brenner will host Jackie Sedlock, Lynn Behrendt,and Kathleen Heidemann.
Brenner creates some of the most colorful and vibrant pieces on the tour, while Behrendt’s work is among the most studied and precise. Heywood creates carefully considered, intuitive forms, while Heidemann moves from simple minimalism to intricate textures. Montgomery and Sedlock both find new ways of playing with traditional forms, producing delightfully distinctive pieces.
To learn more about the artists and download a map of participating studios, visit clayway.net
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