Newtown taxpayers will be able to get a thorough understanding of the multimillion dollar emergency communications system upgrade they are being asked to endorse at the upcoming budget referendum by t...
The Legislative Council conducted a public hearing over Zoom on March 17, before its regularly scheduled meeting, to hear voter’s comments on the 2021-2022 Annual Budget of The Town of Newtown.
First Selectman Dan Rosenthal is taking issue with a proposed Charter Revision charge that would review and determine whether to remove Newtown’s top elected leader as an “ex-officio” member of the Bo...
If not for the quick actions of a neighbor who grabbed a garden hose and a passerby who ran to help, a March 15 house fire on Botsford Hill Road may have destroyed the structure.
Thanks for the reply. I meant the numbers you presented in your letter. I found one place where other numbers were listed: https://www.newtownbee.com/04232026/get-out-and-vote-on-the-2026-27-proposed-municipal-and-school-budgets/?q=\\\%22advisory%20questions\\\%22.
In that article, the numbers were cited as:
Treadwell field: $1,125,000
Library: $720,000
Salt Storage: $600,000
As one who started out in the early 80's when inflation was double digits, my 1985 mortgage rate was 14%, and child care costs were comparable (in present value), I shared your grief but never considered the voters ironic or shameful.
PS. I agree college tuition is ridiculous. Thankfully, universities are offering (or considering) waiving all or most tuition for middle class families (upwards of $200,000 incomes). Hopefully, they'll also reconsider their need for those funds in the first place.
Sure! Child care costs: https://www.ffyf.org/2022/10/13/data-child-care-prices-continue-to-rise-ahead-of-midterm-elections-outpacing-inflation/ (also from 2021-2025 we had 2 children in a local daycare in Newtown and it cost us $3200 a month, so that's a number I am very familiar with)
Home price / median price vs income source: https://www.jchs.harvard.edu/home-price-income-ratios
Tuition increase vs inflation: https://feed.georgetown.edu/access-affordability/noting-a-decline-in-middle-class-students-colleges-provide-more-aid/
Hope this helps :)
Shame on NAFC. Unless you have not read about the controversy surrounding why I left Michelle Ku’s campaign, I cannot understand why you would endorse a candidate that uses homophobic and stereotypical tactics to run a campaign. Ask her to share the texts sent to her committee involving “diva” and Spanish tshirts because “Brazilians” are moving into Newtown. As if Latinos are all Brazilian and don’t understand English. Shame on you.
Nothing says “community spirit” quite like declaring moral bankruptcy because voters didn’t fund your preferred project.
Apparently, approving basic infrastructure that everyone uses—like functional sidewalks and parking for a facility that all community members use and salt that keeps those touchpoints functional in winter—is now evidence of generational selfishness. The real irony isn’t in what passed or failed; it’s in accusing others of self-interest while insisting they should have voted for something you happen to value. That’s not “us”—that’s just a different version of “me.”
Voters weighed priorities and made a choice. Calling that “shameful” doesn’t elevate the argument—it just reveals how little tolerance there is for democratic outcomes that don’t go your way. If the takeaway is that more people should show up and vote, fair enough. But let’s not pretend disagreement is a character flaw. Sometimes the electorate simply decides that not every nice-to-have is a must-have.
