Will Sharon ever emerge from its funk?

It seems a perfect emblem of the times in which we live. A symbol of a more prosperous era sits empty in what passes for the commercial center of a small town in northwest Connecticut.

The owners of the former Trotta’s supermarket which, at 14,000 square feet, is the largest retail space in Sharon, have been unable to find a tenant since Skip Trotta closed up shop on Dec. 31, 2008. The few businesses adjacent to the market are struggling without the anchor store.

The only positive aspect of the closing of Trotta’s is that it appears to have renewed a much-needed dialogue on the future of one of Connecticut’s prettiest but most problematic towns.

Like several other towns in the Northwest Corner, Sharon is classically divided between those who want to see growth in the face of too many obstacles and those who want to limit that growth or stop it altogether.

The town has a history of those two factions going at it rather fiercely, most recently in the case of Robert DePretis, who tried to obtain approval for a 28-unit adult condominium complex on Jackson Hill. DePretis charged that members of Sharon’s Planning and Zoning Commission were so intent on stopping him that they ignored their own conflicts of interest and mishandled his application. HE turned his charges into a federal civil rights lawsuit, which is still pending.

In Sharon’s 2005 municipal elections, P&Z issues reached such a fevered pitch that Lawrence Kurland, a candidate for P&Z alternate, even had his own lawn signs. In 10 years covering elections in these parts, I’ve never before seen that happen.

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Now the good news. Sharon resident Jenny Hansell recently started a Facebook group entitled, appropriately enough, “The Future of Sharon CT.†As of Jan. 10, there were 107 members. And Sharon native and local banking executive Lynn Humeston is chairing an economic development panel that is studying the situation.

In a post on the Facebook page, Hansell says she “loves Sharon just the way it is,†but quickly added that she’d like to see a grocery store again. Here’s the interesting part: Hansell does not say she wants the town’s business community to grow, but she’d like to see the community “support the businesses we have.â€

Rick Hotaling, who owns Rick’s Wine & Spirits next door to the vacent Trotta’s, said he’d like to see “a warehouse-type†of business somewhere in town — something that would employ office workers, packing and shipping clerks and perhaps “bring some younger families to town.†And, of course, in addition to providing jobs, businesses support local charities and generate tax revenues. Hotaling further suggested the town consider converting a former chicken farm north of town into an affordable housing complex.

Sharon native and local radio personality Marshall Miles harkened back to when Sharon supported three food markets, The Singing Hollow Shop, Starr’s TV, two pharmacies, a hotel and a lumber store.

“Right now, we have Tri-Arts, Sharon Hospital, and Sharon Audubon as destinations … come on, we should be able to put together something for the people who come to be entertained, to visit friends in the hospital, the people who use the Audubon and the people who work here and live here.â€

Not surprisingly, many of those local businesspeople and commercial property owners interviewed for Humeston’s study reportedly considered Sharon to be unfriendly to business.

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I suspect that, for all they have in common, Jenny, Marshall and Rick represent competing visions for Sharon’s future. Most of the weekenders and people who moved here from New York City prefer the town of 3,000 the way it is — that is to say, very quiet and largely void of commercial activity. Natives want to see growth because they’ve witnessed firsthand the scarcity of jobs and affordable housing that have driven longtime friends and family away.

Sadly, I doubt Rick’s vision for the future of Sharon will ever come to fruition. For it’s not only transplants and weekenders who want to sharply limit growth. How about the hundreds of retirees who live in the town? If you’re in your golden years and looking for quiet, Sharon is a paradise — nothing happens there to disturb your peace and, five minutes away, there’s an army of terrific doctors ready to tend to your every need.

Lakeville resident Terry Cowgill is a former editor and senior writer at The Lakeville Journal Company. He can be reached at terrycowgill@gmail.com.