From the Desk of the First Selectman

Don Lowe First Selectman Column 06/10/24

I look forward to attending the Sherman School graduation ceremony on Wednesday, June 12 at 6pm. This is always an uplifting evening as our Sherman young people officially advance into the next phase of their education. So much is debated with regard to the expense of education both from a municipal budget viewpoint and also from a personal perspective as students to look to advance in college and trade schools. But I’ve always enjoyed the following saying by Benjamin Franklin:  “An investment in knowledge pays the best interest.” 

We are holding a Town Meeting on Thursday, June 13 at 6:30 in Mallory Town Hall to approve two expenditures. One is to authorize a request not-to-exceed $50,000 from the capital non-recurring fund to finance a list of summer repairs for the Sherman School facility. The other is a not-to-exceed expense of $10,000 from the capital non-recurring fund for a storage shed. 

The storage shed is a reaction to a recent inspection from OSHA (Occupational Safety and Health Administration) in which the Town was cited for a smattering of minor violations. The violations have almost all been abated but we are in need of a place to store certain industrial type items up here in Mallory Town Hall. The storage of them was part of the violation list. The inspection was our 7-to-10 year inspection and OSHA came simply because Sherman’s number came up. OSHA was created in 1970 by the Nixon administration for those who might be interested in such facts.

The Board of Selectmen’s regularly scheduled monthly meeting was moved up a week and will be held on Thursday, June 20 at 7pm in Mallory Town Hall. Also, our dedication and renaming of the roadway in front of Mallory Town Hall to “Carol Havens Way” celebration is this Friday, June 14 at 2pm. All are welcome!

The pickle ball courts were advanced last week by Planning and Zoning to a public hearing which will be held on Thursday, July 11 at 7pm at Mallory Town Hall. I am hopeful that a decision can be made that evening and that we will be cleared to begin constructing them. 

A big thanks to our Public Works crew for how beautiful Sherman looks. We truly live in a splendid Town!