Don Lowe First Selectman Column 04/29/2024
Our budget referendum on the Town and the Board of Education budgets will be held this Saturday, May 4 from 8am to 8pm in Charter Hall. Both budgets have increases of 3.7%, however, an increase in grand list revenue will keep the increases down to a 2% increase. Our Board of Selectmen along with the Board of Education worked diligently to hold the line on the budgets as inflation, the general costs of services, rising utility costs, collective bargaining, and insurances – all built-in expenses – presented challenges.
I urge you to vote YES on these budgets so that we can move smoothly into the new fiscal year that begins on July 1. Absentee ballots are available and have been available in the Town Clerk’s office in Mallory Town Hall.
When you come to vote on Saturday you’ll notice a lot of activity on the Town Green from the hours of 11am to 3pm: The Conservation Commission in conjunction with the Commission for the Arts is holding a community expo. There will be many tables of community groups gathered around the Green and it’s an opportunity to learn more of what is happening in Sherman and at the same time meet your neighbors. Music and other reverie is also planned.
I’d like to thank Ruth Byrnes for organizing another successful Town Roadside Clean-up Day. Ruth, who is our Town office administrator, puts in many hours of preparation for this day. Thank you, Ruth! Our roadsides are all the better and prettier for it, and we all appreciate you citizens who spent hours picking up litter along our state and local roads. Thanks to all of you! I would also like to thank Constable Ray Anderson for his efforts towards helping the day go smoothly. Good stuff, Ray!
I’m receiving a lot of interest and anticipation on when our new pickleball courts will be built. I can’t, at this point, offer a firm timeline but I will say that we are making some important steps forward. Just to clear up any confusion on location, they will be placed up at Volunteer Field in the area just south of the parking lot. There’s plenty of isolation there and also good flat ground for construction.
We are also putting together the Memorial Day Parade which will be held at 1pm on Sunday, May 26. Reach out to me if you’d like to be in the parade. We are always looking for new ideas.
