St. Mary's Ukrainian Catholic Church in Colchester will have for the first time a Mother's Day brunch on Sunday May 11, from 9am to noon. Donations are; for adults $8 (moms 50 % off):children 6-12 $5 and children under 6 are free. Take out will also be available. All are welcome. For tickets, call St. Mary at 537-0011. 05/05/2008

The Colchester Historical Society is starting to work on its annual Festival on the Green, which includes a craft fair, to be held on the Green July 26 from 10am to 4pm. Applications have been sent out to those who signed up at last years fair. There are still openings and applications may be obtained by writing the Society at P.O. Box 13, Colchester, CT 06415. Send a picture of your craft if you are new to this fair. For more information, call Joann at 608-2911. 04/29/2008

A "New York On Your Own" trip will take place Sat May 24, with pick up at Town Hall, 127 Norwich Ave, Colchester, CT, at 8am. Participants will have their run of the cty before hopping back on the private motorcoach at 5pm for a ride back home. For tickets or more information, contact parks and Rec. Department at 537-7297 or register online at www.colchesterct.net. 04/21/2008

Parker Dimock, a 6th grade student at William J. Johnston Middle School, Colchester, CT, is organizing a neighborhood cleanup to celebrate Earth Day. People can get togetehr with neighbors, family and friends and clean up their neighborhood or street. Earth Day is April 22, and the neighborhood clean up an take place anytime that week. For more information, or to register, call Parker, 537-4489. 04/21/2008

The Friends of Salem Library have announced that patrons of the Salem Library, 264 Hartford Rd, Salem, CT, are now able  to visit the Mystic Seaport at no cost. The pass is available at the circulation desk and allows free entry of a family of four to the Seaport. The passes are issued on a daily basis. 04/17/2008

The Colchester Company Fire Department will hold a Spring Jewelry Expo, sat, April 19 from 10am to 3pm at Firehouse headquarters, 52 Old Hartford Rd, Colchester, CT. See the vendors spring line of jewelry. Shop for graduation gifts, Mother's Day or for yourself. For more information, call Monica at 537-5253 04/17/2008

The annual Town hall Expo "The Big T", will be held Tuesday, April 22, from 3-6pm.  he event will feature Touch-a-Truck, display booths, day camp open house,a trail from the Town Hall to the Senior Center with trucks and activities along the way. Start the trail at Town hall, 127 Norwich Ave, Colchester, CT, where you will pick up a map and take a shot at dunking someone. Also, police will perform car seat installations during the day, or go to the Senior center, 105 Main St, Colchester, CT, at 5pm, for line dancing instruction. 04/17/2008

The Jack Jackter Intermediate School PTO is sponsoring a Spaghetti Dinner & Bingo Wed April 9 from 5:30-8pm in the JJIS cafeteria, 215 Halls Hill Rd, Colchester. The cost for dinner & bingo is $5. In addition, there will be chances to tape faculty members to the wall & more! The whole family is welcome. 04/09/2008

A spring tag sale will be held Sat March 29 from 9am to 1pm at the Westchester Congregation Church, located at the corner of route 140 and Cemetery Rd, Colchester, CT. For more information, call 267-0480 or visit http://www.westchestercongrgationalchurch.com/. 03/25/2008

The Colchester Civic Orchestra & Choir will hold a Spring Concert on sat April 5 at 7pm. This is a free event open to all, and will be held at Bacon Academy, 611 Norwich Ave, Colchester. The theme of the concert will be "Opera, Etc." and will feature selections from such well known opera's as Carmen, The Barber of Seville, and Marriage of Figaro. There will be a reception with free refreshments to follow. 03/25/2008

Of all the things I do in my "spare time," I have enjoyed a seat on the Colchester zoning and planning commission for about 3 years now. I have seen a lot of subdivision approvals come across the commission's desk over the last few years. I keep wondering, "where are you people going to sell all of these houses?" The new homes and subdivisions have sort of slowed down for now. The next big waive - commercial real estate. Colchester has recently rezoned a few hundred acres of prime land to commercial and business park. This land is right in the areas the Route 2 and Route 11 interchange. There is no more prime place in our part of CT in my opinion. Once this land is developed, it will position Colchester for a more balanced tax basis. Right now, 90% of the burden lies on the residential ... 03/24/2008

As of 7PM on Sunday, March 23, the CT MLS shows the following facts in the town of Colchester, CT.  Houses on market115 Avg Cost/sqft$ 166.74High price$799,900.00 High Cost/sqft$ 258.46Avg price$329,145.00 Midpoint Cost/sqft$ 171.37Midpoint$334,900.00 Low Cost/sqft$ 41.02Low Price$ 37,900.00 Average Acres2.07Total Price Changes41 Average DOM90.95Price Decreases32 High DOM293Price Increases9 DOM Midpoint67 The CT MLS is a statewide MLS system used by real esate agents and brokers to advertise real estate for sale and cooperate with each other in brokerage. It does not reflect every property for sale in the state, but it is intended to reflect, at minumum, all properties for sale by its members. Generally, it is a good indication of the market overall. 03/23/2008

Cragin Memorial Library, 8 Linwood Ave, Colchester, will host "Paws and Read", with Donna Krammer and her specially trained dog, Haley, on sat Feb 23, from 11am to noon. Readers ages 6-10 will read for 15 minute sessions in the Story Time Room. Spaces are limited for this free program. Registration is required. For more information, call the library at 537-5752. 02/25/2008

Here are some pictures I took today of the snow.  These were taken in Colchester, Connecticut.    01/14/2008

Colchester Park Ranger Program CutThe Parks and Recreation Department has announced that, due to budget cuts,  it has reduced and eliminated some services previously provided at its recreation complex, including the Park Ranger program.While the chief responsibility of the park rangers was providing customer service to park visitors, they also performed such tasks as stocking and cleaning restrooms, managing lost and found and more, according to Parks and Recreation Director Jason Cohen, With the program’s discontinuation, which was effective Friday, Aug. 17, the restrooms at the complex are now locked on evenings and weekends. Town-endorsed sports leagues will be given special keys to access to the restrooms for use under their supervision and authority. 08/25/2007

Colchester Cooperative Nursery School Parents’ MeetingThe Colchester Cooperative Nursery School has scheduled its first mandatory parents meeting for Tuesday, Aug. 21, at 7 p.m. at Town Hall.One parent from each family must attend.  Parents are asked not to bring children, as the meetings tend to be lengthy.Also committee chairs are asked to arrive at 6 p.m. to meet with the Executive Board and the teachers.For more information, call Jenn Barber at 267-2212. 08/17/2007

Local Airline Trail Toastmasters MeetingThe Local Airline Trail Toastmasters Club, dedicated to improving communication and leadership skills, meets the second and fourth Thursday of the month from 7-8:30 p.m. at the Cragin Memorial Library, 8 Linwood Ave.  Guests are welcome. For more information, visit airlinetrtail.freetoasthost.org or call Frank (228-3261 or Heather (537-59 18). 08/17/2007

Colchester Karaoke Party a HitResidents, staff, friends and family all recently enjoyed Harrington Court’s outdoor karaoke party held Sunday, July 19. Singers included staff, friends, volunteers, and a few brave family members. DJ Mark Michaud sang a few numbers himself.Of the 121 Harrington Court residents, 79 came to the Karaoke party, and many stayed for the entire two-hour duration. Ice cream was provided. 08/17/2007