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Sharon education budget talks at a standstill following board meetings
Alec Linden
May 27, 2026
Sharon Center School
File photo
SHARON – The controversial Sharon Center School budget will remain flat for now, following two heated meetings last week that produced significant debate but no changes to the bottom line.
The meetings marked the first official gathering between the Board of Finance and Board of Education since the town’s proposed spending package was voted down by residents May 8 – a vote that saw the highest turnout in recent memory.
A second town vote has yet to be scheduled, although the Board of Finance and Board of Education plan to gather in June to continue conversations. The next budget, whether updated or unchanged, is due June 30. The previous proposed spending package was set at $11,502,187, with a zero percent increase for the Board of Education.
On Tuesday, May 19, the polarizing topic of out-of-district tuition funds was revisited during a Board of Finance meeting. Some residents and parents have been calling for the funds – which are predicted to total $32,250 for 2026-27 – to be earmarked for the school budget rather than going into a general fund in the municipal budget, where it currently sits. However, a motion to create a new line item for school use in the municipal budget failed.
During a follow-up special meeting Wednesday, May 20, BOE member Pam Jarvis said she was discouraged by Tuesday’s discussion. “What I took away from last night is that they’re not interested in a compromise,” she said of the BOF.
Sharon Day Care Center parent Veronica Betts also expressed disappointment. “This is coming down to principle,” she said during Wednesday’s BOE meeting. Betts said the BOF’s perceived unwillingness to negotiate “says that the town does not care.”
For its part, the BOF has maintained that its position is meant to address a years-old accounting error that “inflated” the budget, which can’t be reduced due to a state law that prohibits municipalities from decreasing education spending year to year, as well as on a cost-per-pupil basis. At just over $46,000, Sharon has the highest in the state.
Moving forward, BOF Chair Tom Bartram said his committee will hold a special meeting to resume budget discussions before its next scheduled regular meeting on June 16. The BOF must provide at least two weeks’ notice before holding another town budget vote ahead of the June 30 deadline. Bartram said he cannot predict whether the board will make changes or opt to send the same budget back to the vote.
If no budget is voted through by the town by then, property tax assessments will default to the current budget until a vote passes. Bartram said this would leave the school budget flat, but could have more immediate consequences for the town, which has new spending wrapped into the fiscal year ’27 proposal.
Despite the rocky start, leaders of the two boards maintain they are committed to improving cooperation as this budget season passes and the next begins. “The two sides have lost track of why we’re doing this,” said BOE Chair Philip O’Reilly. “There is a need for both sides to sit down without arguing to determine a way out of this challenge.”
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Turning Back the Pages - May 28, 2026
Norma Bosworth
May 27, 2026
125 years ago — May 1901
Miss Ethel Everts visited her uncle E.F. Sanford at Ore Hill on Saturday.
A band of gypsies passed through this village Tuesday.
SHARON — Walter Peck has recently purchased the merchantile business of Clayton M. Card.
Canaan business men were up-to-snuff-enough to buy a site and present it to the Borden people to locate a factory there; and seventy-five men are already at work.
The residence of Edward Winckworth came near being burned on Thursday morning. When F.H. Chapin arrived with the daily supply of milk about 4 o'clock he noticed smoke coming from the large door mat. Mr. Chapin thought this a singular affair and proceeded to investigate. When he removed the rug he found it to be on fire and a couple boards and a part of a joist of the piazza were also burning. Upon the removal of the mat immediately broke into flames. Mr. Chapin used the first means at hand and doused the blaze with milk from a large can he was carrying. This treatment was effective and the fire was soon extinguished.
The work on the cellar and foundation of the new St. Austin's School on Frink Hill is going forward at a good rate. We understand the school is to be completed by next fall.
For the first time since the G.A.R. was organized the mortality in the order last year went beyond 10,000. Within four or five years one-half of the 400,000 members in 1890 will have passed from the rolls of the living.
The John Brown homestead inn Torrington has been bought for a purpose of preservation by Mr. Carl Stoeckel of the village of Norfolk. The homestead has been placed for the present in the care of Dwight C. Kilbourn of East Litchfield, but it is intended to transfer it to four custodians, who will be chosen from the towns of Winsted, Torrington, Litchfield and Norfolk.
100 years ago — May 1926
Miss Dorothy Curtis and Master Myron Millies are confined to their respective homes with the measles.
Mrs. Eva Ostrom has purchased a Victrola.
Miss Catherine VanHovenburgh our resident nurse returned Sunday from a week's sojourn at Atlantic City.
The Scoville Library is anxious to obtain a copy of the Atlantic Monthly for August 1924, for the purpose of binding. If there is a copy available would the owner please communicate with the librarian.
50 years ago — May 1976
Olympic paddler Eric Evans of Amherst, Mass., took first place again this year in Sunday's one-man kayak slalom event. Evans was upset in Saturday's one-man five-mile downriver race by newcomer Bob Alexander. Last weekend's whitewater canoe and kayak events drew a record field of registrants but only 420 actually raced because of high water. Race chairman Peter Wood of the Salisbury Rotary Club said that at least a foot and a half of water was pouring over the dam above Falls Village, swelling the Housatonic and making competition tough.
Only one person out of 24 questioned this week in a random survey said she was against the sex education course proposed for Housatonic Valley Regional High School. Two were against the idea conditionally, but 16 others were definitely for it. The remaining five hadn't heard about it and offered no opinion. None of the six students interviewed at the high school was even aware of the proposal but four of them said it was a good idea.
Two daughters of Edward F. Murphy of Sharon are graduates this spring. Kim Elizabeth Murphy will graduate June 5 from Stoneleigh-Burnham School, Greenfield, Mass. President of her class, she will participate in a U.S. Olympic training program for skiing in Utah this summer. Carrie Tuthill Murphy received her master's degree May 18 in psychiatric social science from Simmons College, Boston. She will administer Massachusetts' newly developed program to combat child abuse.
Florence Thomen and her mother, Wally Vining, contributed an authentic touch to last weekend's Old North Road Revisited tour. Both women dressed in 19th century costumes for the tour, which covered four towns, New Hartford, Barkhamsted, Colebrook and Norfolk. The dresses have been handed down in the Vining family, who were early Colebrook residents. Mrs. Thomen's dates from the 1850s or 1860s while Mrs. Vining's is probably from around 1870.
An East Canaan couple were among the more than 2,500 candidates scheduled to receive degrees last Friday at the 126th commencement of Central Connecticut State College, New Britain. Mr. and Mrs. Gary Norton of Route 44, East Canaan, each received a bachelor of science degree, Gary in physical education and his wife Karen in biology. Residents of East Canaan since the first of the year, the couple met and married while students at the New Britain college.
FALLS VILLAGE — First Selectman David Domeier met with his board Wednesday afternoon, seeking authorization to invite state engineers to review Falls Village's septic problems. The tiny community of 1,000 residents has never been sewered, and its densely-populated center, with homes closely spaced on small lots, has experienced septic system failures with increasing frequency. Domeier said that he did not know whether the septic systems had been as consistently troublesome before his term in office, but that they seem to be "a problem right now." He noted that there are currently two village center lots with septic system failures — one of which is acute.
25 years ago — May 2001
Sharon Center School principal Patricia Chamberlain was named the new assistant superintendent of Region 1 at Monday's meeting of the regional Board of Education. Starting in July, she will replace Al Suttles, who retires this summer.
FALLS VILLAGE — More than 100 boaters from all over the East Coast turned up Saturday morning for the oldest downriver race in Connecticut (and possibly the second oldest race in New England.) It was the 31st annual Housatonic Downriver race and while there were a goodly number of paddlers in their 60s, there were also a fair number of teens. All proceeds from entry fees were donated to the Northwest Corner Chore Service, a program that provides elderly and handicapped area residents with help doing essential chores such as housekeeping, shopping and cooking.
The Colonial Community Theatre group has moved its office from the downtown theater it hoped to buy, renovate and reopen. But that does not mean the non-profit group has disbanded. Members still active with the group say they are moving ahead with plans, but are looking to the town for guidance, since it appears they have reached an impasse with theater owners Richard and Michael Boscardin.
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Kent celebrates new farmer's market location
Alec Linden
May 27, 2026
Rosie's Kitchen is one of 35 vendors to attend theKent Farmers Market May 22.
Lans Christensen
KENT – The first trial run of the Kent Farmers Market’s new downtown location was a hit Friday afternoon, according to Spencer Lord, a local mushroom and poultry farmer who took over management duties of the market for this season.
"This is what a farmers market should be," Lord said, gesturing toward couples and families strolling the leafy grounds around the Kent Welcome Center.
Some visitors spread out picnic blankets and camping chairs to enjoy live jazz by Jonah Weinstock & Friends, while others relaxed in lawn seating. Many of the 35 vendors were half out of stock by 4:30 p.m., and that's a good sign, Lord said.
There was plenty of parking and pedestrians who just happened to stroll in, which delighted Gary Kidd, secretary of the Chamber of Commerce and owner of sweets shop 45 On Main across the street. "You can't walk past here and not come in," Kidd said.
The Kent Farmers Market’s new downtown location draws a large crowd May 22. Alec Linden
Lans Christensen
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With federal cuts in sight, Community Health and Wellness Center boosts fundraising efforts
Patrick L. Sullivan
May 27, 2026
Community Health & Wellness Center in North Canaan.
File photo
NORFOLK – A northwest Connecticut healthcare provider serving thousands of rural patients is preparing for anticipated federal Medicaid cuts by launching new fundraising efforts and searching for additional revenue sources to help offset rising financial pressure.
Joanne Borduas, chief executive officer of the Community Health and Wellness Center (CHWC), discussed the potential local impact during a talk Wednesday, May 20, at the Norfolk Hub.
CHWC, which is headquartered in Torrington and has offices in North Canaan and Winsted, provides primary, behavioral and dental care. It also runs school-based health centers in the Torrington public schools and throughout Region One, including Housatonic Valley Regional High School, North Canaan Elementary School, Sharon Center School, and, soon, Salisbury Central School.
Borduas said CHWC and other nonprofit health care providers are anticipating approximately $80 billion in cuts to federal Medicaid spending beginning in January 2027.
Federal funds currently cover roughly 18% of CHWC’s operating costs.
“After that, we have to make it work, just like any other business,” Borduas said.
Additional revenue comes from billing private insurance and from grants.
“We have razor-thin margins,” she said. “So we look at expenses and at new sources of revenue.”
To help sustain services amid anticipated funding cuts, CHWC recently established a fundraising department led by Kelly Baxter Spitz.
“Philanthropy has never been a part of this, but it is now,” Borduas said.
The organization is not starting from scratch. Borduas said CHWC has secured two grants from medical technology company BD, which manufactures medical devices at its North Canaan facility, and also partners with the Walgreens in North Canaan to offer discounted prescriptions to qualifying patients.
Borduas said CHWC has 7,500 patients, many of whom are uninsured or underinsured and deviate from stereotypes often associated with poverty.
“Today the face of Medicaid has changed,” Borduas said. She said she knows several single parents whose employers do not provide health insurance.
Apologizing for using yet another acronym, Borduas said many of CHWC’s clients fall into the “asset limited, income constrained, employed,” or ALICE, category — working households that earn above the poverty line but still struggle to afford basic necessities.
She said obtaining insurance through the Affordable Care Act exchange isn’t necessarily a viable option, with only two insurance providers participating in the Connecticut exchange, and premiums recently tripled.
Borduas said the CHWC team is focused on finding solutions to the current challenges, and never turning anyone away.
“Every day we have to get creative about how to do the next day’s work,” she said.
Lakeville resident Janet Lynn suggested handing out CHWC brochures at food pantries and observed that in her experience, many northwest Connecticut residents are unaware of the organization and how it can help them.
Borduas said CHWC works closely with food pantries and even maintains food supplies at its three locations.
As for publicity, she said events such as the May 20 talk and a January “town hall” at the Colonial Theater in North Canaan are one way of getting the word out.
Still, she said there is more work to do. “It’s been a challenge getting the word out.”
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Let's Hear it - May 28, 2026
Lakeville Journal
May 27, 2026
Last Week’s Question
What is one change you’d make to your town center to make it more welcoming?
“Parking downtown. And definitely need a small grocery store perhaps next to the liquor store in the empty building.”
— Robert Bloxsom Jr., North Canaan
“Build more village housing dedicated to low and middle income residents.”
— Dan Dwyer, Salisbury
“Flowers on the posts in town throughout the summer like other towns have”
— Renee Fleming, North Canaan
“Garbage cans like other towns have. So people with takeaway coffee and ice cream can toss trash and people with dogs have a place to put poop. In town and also along the Rail Ramble from Lakeville into Salisbury.”
— Laura van Straaten, Salisbury
“Cornwall Bridge and West Cornwall both need parking and public bathrooms.”
— Michelle Shipp Schatz-Mullins, Cornwall
This Week
Bear encounters are being reported with increasing frequency across the region — rummaged trash cans, damaged bird feeders, and face-to-face surprises.
Have you had a run-in with a bear? What happened, and how did you handle it? And what do you think towns and neighbors should be doing to keep both people and bears safer?
Send your responses to publisher@lakevillejournal.com by Monday, June 1 at 10a.m. or comment on Facebook or Instagram.
We’ll publish a selection in next week’s paper.
Editor’s note: Dan Dwyer is the Board Chair of LJMN Media, Inc.
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