Track project wins approval at town meeting

SHARON — At a town meeting on Friday, Sept. 21, taxpayers approved spending $30,000 to complete construction work on a walking track at Veterans’ Field.

Tom Casey was elected moderator of the meeting, which drew 60 residents to vote on the proposal and on some updates to town ordinances.

The funding, requested by the Parks and Recreation Committee, will be allocated from the town’s undesignated fund. It will bring the project to completion this fall, First Selectman Brent Colley announced. At present, the work is half done — but the half that is done was the hard part.

The remaining work on the gravel-paved, 6-foot-wide track traverses level ground with no obstacles. The first half involved some grading work and the removal of one tree. To complete the circle the new track will pass by the pavilion and skirt the nearby baseball diamond.

Residents sought clarification on the plans. To one resident’s question about maintenance going forward, Colley responded that maintenance will be minimal, mainly involving weed control. Donna Christensen, chair of the Parks and Recreation Committee, said that only safe materials will be used for that control. 

Commenting on the plentiful miles of walkable roads in town, another resident questioned the need for a walking trail, asking for an estimate on the number of people expected to use the track. In response, another resident commented that the park is in use every day.

“We assume that when it is finished, it will attract many more people,” Christensen added. Selectman Dale Jones said, “the track setting is beautiful.”

Changes to existing ordinances were also approved, including those regulating bingo, bazaars, raffles, trailers, snow plowing habits and abandoned vehicles and neglected properties.

Following recent action in which the state relinquished authority to each town to administer bingo and other charitable enterprises such as bazaars and raffles, residents voted to allow the first selectman to assume that administrative duty. The vote on that action was unanimous.

Regarding trailers, voters allowed a change so that recreational vehicles are no longer included in the definition of “trailer.”

An ordinance prohibiting the depositing of snow upon public and private roadways, sidewalks and properties won unanimous approval from voters. Also included in the prohibition are leaves, yard debris and brush. After warnings, fines will be imposed.

For more than a year, a special committee charged with updating ordinances met and wrestled with the issue of abandoned and neglected properties, Jones reported. He said that the resulting ordinance allows for as much latitude as possible for the town to work with affected homeowners. His committee drafted an ordinance that would be a “good fit for the town of Sharon” while keeping owners responsible for their own abandoned vehicles and premises.

Jones emphasized that by design, the words “blight” and “junk” do not appear in the ordinance. Rather, the emphasis is on “health and welfare.”

“Open communication and working with people are central to the intent,” Jones said.

As for the “abandoned premises” ordinance, it does not address a situation where an owner-occupied dwelling has an abundance of debris.

Committee member David Moore said that the committee did not want to regulate lifestyles. “We chose to limit this,” he explained.

The vote on this new ordinance was unanimous.