After several years of what can be described as inaccurate or even deceptive budgetary numbers due to the actions of the former finance director, the current fiscal year has begun to lay the foundation for the true financial condition and operations of the town. This new foundation is primarily the result of the efforts by Ms. Robin Manuele, finance director, and the additional efforts of all other staff. The town staff remains positive and dedicated to proudly serving the community and I believe that the vast majority of residents recognize and support those efforts.The current fiscal year’s tax levy of 31.20 mills was directly related to the recent revaluation and related decline in the town’s Grand List. The final rate specifically included a mill (approximately $680,000) which was dedicated to fund balance restoration efforts. In an effort to more speedily recover from the troubled financial condition, the Board of Selectmen levied a 3-mill supplemental tax, generating an additional $2 million in revenues to forestall cash flow issues at the end of the fiscal year and enable the town to begin to concentrate on neglected services, infrastructure and improvements.The town of Winchester 2013 Grand List, upon which the 2014-15 budget will be based, rests at $691,515,171 ($690 million will be subsequently used as a rounded figure). Assuming a historically conservative tax collection rate of 97.4 percent, a mill rate of 33.75, an increase of 2.55 mills, is desired to support the proposed $33,640,323 2014-15 budget. The proposed budget reflects a modest change to the level of current budget expenditures.The most substantial portion of the budget is, as is typical, the funding for Board of Education operations. The town appropriation for the Board of Education meets the superintendent’s request, $19,958,149, which reflects the state-mandated Minimum Budget Requirement. This appropriation is comprised of town tax revenues of approximately $12 million and state education cost sharing funds of approximately $8 million. In continuing recognition of the incongruous timing of the education cost sharing from the state (50 percent of the funds for education are provided to the town with only six weeks remaining in the typical school year), an appropriation is provided in the budget for grant anticipation notes, if needed. The funds to support Board of Education operations will be disbursed in accordance with a three-party agreement between the State of Connecticut Department of Education, the Winchester Board of Education and the town of Winchester. The Board of Education budget includes an additional $1.3 million of grant funding from other sources.The remaining $13,682,174 of the budget is for town operations. The most significant change to the proposed budget is the removal of specific capital projects from the general fund itself. A capital fund has been established, by which to formally secure and maintain funding that has been designated for capital projects. The capital projects are part of the Capital Improvement Plan (CIP) adopted by the Planning and Zoning Commission (in accordance with the town charter). Although the members of the Planning and Zoning Commission adopted all three tiers of the CIP, due to budgetary constraints, I have only proposed funding for the first tier projects, including road maintenance and improvements; financial software for town and school offices; police patrol cars; fire station furnaces and roofs; and Police Department improvements.Within the general fund, however, the greatest expenditures are for public safety (police: $3,106,589; fire: $423,328; dispatch: $328,779) and Public Works ($2,101,853), representing over 43 percent of all town expenditures (exclusive of the Board of Education). The Police Department, including dispatch operations, continues to struggle with adequate staffing: retirements and accrued leave (both due to the senior tenure of most officers) and the ongoing demands of routine scheduling necessitate continued recruiting efforts. The proposed budget includes replacing three sergeants and filling one patrol officer position. A part-time civilian position (evidence/property clerk) is introduced in the proposed budget. Finally, with the recognition of the potential retirement of the police chief, the deputy chief position is reinstated in order to prepare for an orderly transition.The proposed Public Works budget also includes a deputy director position (funded jointly by a 20 percent contribution from the Water and Sewer Commission). Similarly to the Police Department, the absence of a mid-manager relegates the senior staff to dedicating substantial time to daily tasks rather than more strategic organizational objectives. With the significant professional credentials of the Public Works director, those skills can better serve the community through long-term planning, design and development of major infrastructure improvements.Another senior staff position, community development director, is proposed, in part, due to the stated desires of both the Planning and Zoning Commission and the Economic Development Commission to have the services of full-time staff support. As configured in the proposed budget, the community development director, reporting directly to the town manager, would perform planning and inland wetlands duties, and, in conjunction with the town manager, support the Economic Development Commission. The community development director position would have a secondary title of executive director of Friends of Main Street (whose funding was diminished to partially support the new position). This designation will enable the town to again pursue additional redevelopment assistance and opportunities. The success of those opportunities will be directly related to the combined efforts of town boards, commissions, staff and business owners.Another positional change in the proposed budget is appointment of an assistant assessor. This position was vacated as the result of the retirement of the former assessor and the subsequent promotion of the former assistant assessor. The proposed budget also includes continued funding for a part-time recreation director.Two other facets related to personnel in the proposed budget must be described: wages and medical benefits. While not all collective bargaining agreements have been successfully completed, wage increases are included in the proposed budget. Since most of the agreements have expired, the proposed wage increases will be the first for most town employees in over two years. The medical benefits offered to employees have been modified to reduce costs to the town and to increase employee contributions.In accordance with the recently adopted fund balance policy, the goal of which is to achieve a fund balance equal to 10 percent of general fund expenditures by 2018, an appropriation of $448,500 is proposed. This amount represents an estimate of the annual allocation needed to meet the 10 percent goal.Other notable expenditures within the general fund include the redevelopment of the town’s website; engineering services to address bridge, dam and storm water issues; the Regional Refuse Disposal District assessment to the town (which has been reduced in half to $200,000 since 2011-12); street lighting; interfund repayments; pension contributions; scheduled debt service; and municipal insurance.After two years of reduced funding, all outside agencies, which provide valuable services to community residents and rely upon municipal support, have been allocated their requested funding (which in most cases is based upon a per capita rate). These agencies include the Beardsley and Memorial Library, Foothills Visiting Nurses, Community Mental Health, Youth Service Bureau, Cradle to Classroom, Torrington Area Health District and others. Voluntary support of these agencies is always needed and welcome. Those agencies, in great part, define our community.Several exciting projects that have a great likelihood of reinvigorating Winsted are forthcoming, bringing new businesses, jobs, visitors and revenues to our community. I expect that we will now turn our focus forward rather than back. I look forward to that future. Even more, I look forward to continuing to serve you and the town of Winchester and its residents.Dale Martin is the town manager of Winchester.Note: Finance Director Robin Manuele submitted her resignation in mid-March. Her last day will be Friday, April 4.
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Roy Wildlife Management Area, Sharon CT
Quiet back roads, hidden woodland trails and rolling fields are just part of what makes autumn so brilliant. Golden, amber and crimson leaves blanket the communities we call home, turning even the most familiar places into something special.
Take a look at some of the snapshots that capture the best of autumn in our communities.
Sharon, CTBill Wakeley
Mill Pond, Sheffield MADeb Segalla-Watson
New Marlborough, MAWendy Miller
Peter Austin
Falls Village, CTPete Sanders
Tom Carley
Factory Pond, Lakeville CTBarbara Peck
Lime Rock Road, Lakeville CTKeary Hanan
Lime Rock Road, Lakeville CTJake Marcum
Housatonic River, Sharon, CTBill Wakeley
Norfolk, CTTom Carley
Reed Brook, Deans Ravine, Canaan CTBill Wakeley
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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.
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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