Peeping at Spring Leaf-Out
Local observation station is longtime contributor to national network By Wiley Wood The three spindly lilac bushes growing near the cooperative weather station on Windrow Road don’t look like much, but they are an unusually well-documented trio of plants. Not the common lilac, which is more lushly flowered, they are a clone, Syringa chinensis […]
Taxes Increase Despite Drastic Cuts to Town Programs
Botelle School budget takes major hit By Wiley Wood Town taxes will rise about 4.5 percent in the coming year, according to Board of Finance Chairman Michael Sconyers, who spoke at the town’s annual budget hearing on April 24. “I really don’t like the budget,” said Sconyers, who explained that a decrease in allocations […]
Norfolk Sewer District Prepares for $4.2 Million in Repairs
Membership will meet to decide course of action By Wiley Wood A modest brick building beside the Blackberry River going toward Canaan houses Norfolk’s wastewater treatment plant. Bill Hester, the plant’s superintendent, points out a sunken concrete box near the building into which a 12-inch pipe discharges water. Although the influent looks only slightly […]
Wendy Roberts Reclaims the Beauty and Serenity of the Mountain View Inn
By Colleen Gundlach When Erastus Johnson built his stately Gilded Age home on the knoll just south of Norfolk’s Village Green in 1900, he named it Wildwood. This was a name that stayed with the property through its next owner, H.E. Adriance, a wealthy New York City resident who kept Wildwood as his summer […]
Buttons to Commemorate Veterans at Memorial Day Ceremony
For Linda Perkins, Memorial Day is an important holiday, not only for the nation but for the small town of Norfolk. As she puts it, “It’s the one time we gather as a town community to honor those who served our country. They deserve to be remembered. We owe them a debt of gratitude.” But […]
Wildlife Rehabilitator Angela Luna Grano Finds a New Home in Norfolk
By Ruth Melville Wanting to escape what she calls “a suburban prison,” Angela Luna Grano decided to buy a farm and move to Norfolk, drawn here by the town’s natural beauty. Grano, who is a federally licensed wildlife rehabilitator, says that she “felt a certain spirituality in these woods.” She wanted her two daughters […]
For Emily Irwin, Home = Love
New homewares shop opens in downtown Norfolk By Janet Gokay Mead So you want to open a shop that sells things for the home—thoughtful, lovely things. You live in New Marlborough, in the Berkshires, where you run a very successful restaurant, Cantina 229, with your husband. You have three kids: two, nine, and 14-years […]
Michelle Childs Teaches Pilates and Nia Classes in a Historic Setting
By David Beers Parts one and two of this series on fitness classes in Norfolk highlighted the classes offered at Battell Chapel, but that is not the only venue in town offering fitness classes. There are also group fitness classes almost every day in a lovingly restored carriage barn just south of town. Located […]
Torrington Coffee House Serves Up Coffee, Tea and “Good Company”
By Julie Scharnberg It’s just the place you’re looking for when you want a coffee or tea break. Located in a charming, sage-green building at 33 Franklin Street in Torrington along the Naugatuck River across from Danielle Mailer’s colorful “FishTales” mural, Good Company Coffee House is cozy and comfortable and smells heavenly when you […]
KidsPlay Children’s Museum: A Children’s Wonderland to Learn and Play
By Dijana Vajushi As soon as you enter the KidsPlay Children’s Museum at 61 Main Street in Torrington, you can’t help but feel as though you’ve just entered a children’s wonderland. The museum operates over 11,000 square feet of interactive, hands-on exhibits where children ages one to 10 can practice pre-academic skills, build curiosity […]
