Town Meeting set for North Canaan budget

NORTH CANAAN — The Board of Finance and residents in attendance heard final presentations of spending plans from the schools and selectmen at a public hearing May 15. The proposed budgets will be voted on at a Town Meeting May 30 in Town Hall at 7 p.m.

Overall, the combined education and town budgets show reduced spending. North Canaan’s spending totals in 2024-25 are set at $13,344,971.70, a reduction of $51,150.13 (0.38%) compared to last year.

North Canaan’s Region One assessment is down compared to last year. The 2024-25 total is $5,565,923, a reduction of $136,960 (2.4%) from last year.

North Canaan Elementary School saw an increase, largely due to the hiring of a new teacher. NCES showed a bottom line of $4,536,112.70 for next year, an increase of $110,075.87 (2.49%) over 2023-24.

The selectmen’s spending proposal showed a total of $3,242,936 in municipal expenses, a reduction of $24,166 (0.73%) compared to 2023-24.

Since the initial spending proposals were put forth in March, the selectmen have added funding to two line items. Housatonic River Commission’s request for $400 was approved, and Women’s Support Services was assigned $1,500.

Latest News

Join us for


 

  

Keep ReadingShow less
Summer Nights of Canaan

Wednesday, July 16

Cobbler n’ Cream
5 to 7 p.m.
Freund’s Farm Market & Bakery | 324 Norfolk Rd.

Canaan Carnival
6 to 10 p.m.
Bunny McGuire Park

Keep ReadingShow less
When the guide gets it wrong

Rosa setigera is a native climbing rose whose simple flowers allow bees to easily collect pollen.

Dee Salomon

After moving to West Cornwall in 2012, we were given a thoughtful housewarming gift: the 1997 edition of “Dirr’s Hardy Trees and Shrubs.” We were told the encyclopedic volume was the definitive gardener’s reference guide — a fact I already knew, having purchased one several months earlier at the recommendation of a gardener I admire.

At the time, we were in the thick of winter invasive removal, and I enjoyed reading and dreaming about the trees and shrubs I could plant to fill in the bare spots where the bittersweet, barberry, multiflora rose and other invasive plants had been.Years later, I purchased the 2011 edition, updated and inclusive of plants for warm climates.

Keep ReadingShow less
A few highlights from Upstate Art Weekend 2025

Foxtrot Farm & Flowers’ historic barn space during UAW’s 2024 exhibition entitled “Unruly Edges.”

Brian Gersten

Art lovers, mark your calendars. The sixth edition of Upstate Art Weekend (UAW) returns July 17 to 21, with an exciting lineup of exhibitions and events celebrating the cultural vibrancy of the region. Spanning eight counties and over 130 venues, UAW invites residents and visitors alike to explore the Hudson Valley’s thriving creative communities.

Here’s a preview of four must-see exhibitions in the area:

Keep ReadingShow less