By Susan MacEachron and Avice Meehan

The Board of Finance held two meetings in March. On March 10, members heard presentations from the Botelle School Board of Education (BOE), the Norfolk Volunteer Fire Department (NVFD) and First Selectman Henry Tirrell. At a March 24 special meeting, Tirrell shared the draft town budget, sought BOF approval for two items ahead of an April 6 special town meeting, and shared information relating to a possible settlement involving the 2022 gasoline spill.

John DeShazo, BOE chair, provided details on the request for an increase of 4.47 percent ($113,665) in the 2026-27 school budget. He noted that contractual obligations for teacher and staff salaries and benefits, transportation, professional licenses and utilities increased by $118,773. Superintendent Kevin Case said he reviewed every line of the budget to find savings. A reduction in the transportation and support services for students needing special education provided a significant savings. Case said the needs of students requiring additional support were less severe.

Case said Botelle anticipates enrolling 58 students in the next school year, an increase of three. Eleven will require special education services. In response to a question, he said four students are children of Botelle employees who pay tuition. BOF Chair, Michael Sconyers, applauded the work by the BOE and Case.

Fire Chief Brian Hutchins described the NVFD’s efforts to recruit and retain volunteer fire department members. He emphasized the importance of knowing that the BOF and the Norfolk community support and appreciate the department. This came ahead of a subsequent request to the Board of Selectmen for multi-year budget commitments to pay for a new fire truck. The price tag is an estimated $1.2 million, according to preliminary estimates presented by Steve Hutchins. Sconyers said he hoped private donors would be willing to shoulder some of that expense.

Tirrell said the Board of Selectmen has been working on the 2026-27 budget during a series of special meetings. He described financing for the town’s new $10 million fire-house as one complicating factor in developing the new budget. The town has taken out a bond anticipation note that expires Aug. 3, but the short-term borrowing may need to be

extended because of weather-related construction delays. Tirrell also met with Firehouse Committee Chair Barry Roseman and the committee is reviewing the extension of temporary financing. Both Tirrell and Roseman emphasized the importance of having a good understanding of the ultimate amount needed before committing to long-term financing. In a related matter, Tirrell discussed short-term financing that the townwill need while it waits for state reimbursements for the cost of replacing the Mountain Road bridge over Spaulding Brook. He also said the town will need to replace at least one dump truck from its ageing Department of Public Works fleet.

Many of these same topics were the subject of lively discussion at the March 24 special meeting. Tirrell and Selectmen Sandy Evans and Leo Colwell Jr. presented a draft budget that included line items for a second dump truck and $130,000 toward the new firetruck. The budget in its entirety received little focused attention as the BOF debated the competing needs of the DPW and NVFD and how to offset the impact on the mill rate.

Tirrell came to the meeting with two pressing requests: that the BOF approve the purchase of a new dump truck at a cost of $270,000 and a $1 million revenue anticipation note to cover expenses for Mountain Road while the town awaits full reimbursement. Ultimately, both were approved and will go to a town vote on April 6. But it took a while to reach that point. Before the discussion concluded, the BOF added $130,000 toward the purchase of a new firetruck to the proposed resolution. The $400,000 would be drawn from the uncommitted funds remaining after the dissolution of town’s defined benefit pension plan.

At the outset, Sconyers appeared skeptical about the DPW’s needs and tangled with Colwell, who served on a committee asked to assess the department’s ageing fleet. The committee included Tirrell, BOF member Jeff Torrant and Henry Crunden, the town’s

If approved by voters and ordered in April, the first would be ready for service in November. The new trucks would replace vehicles acquired in 2007 and 2010, respectively. “Does it make sense to bite the bullet now on these trucks given the age of our fleet?” asked BOF member Jeremiah Bickford as the discussion began to shift toward a resolution. Sconyers then suggested that the town accelerate the plan to put aside money for the new fire truck and the combined resolution ultimately passed, as did the motion on short-term borrowing for the Mountain Road bridge.

Set aside for a future meeting was a discussion of how best to proceed with capital investments for new equipment while sparing Norfolk’s taxpayers a major increase in the tax rate. As a preliminary matter, Sconyers suggested using upwards of $400,000 from the town’s positive fund balance to offset part of the budget increase, an amount roughly equal to a new dump truck and a payment toward a fire truck. He did not support tapping the $1 million capital reserve, and pressed Tirrell for information about how much Norfolk might receive in compensation for costs associated with the gas spill. The town has been in mediation for months. “We are awaiting a response from the defendants. They offered up a settlement number and we said, ‘That sounds good,’” said Tirrell, who would only say that the amount exceeded $500,000.