Editorial: A legal victory with complications

The Connecticut Superior Court ruling Tuesday validated State Rep. John Santanella's complaint. This is a clear win, and allows him to avoid an August 11 Democratic primary against his challenger, former town attorney Tom Tyler. Tyler can appeal, but absent that, Santanella can shift his focus to November. But a winning legal outcome is not the same as a winning narrative outcome. This was an honest mistake by the Tyler campaign, a consequence of some flawed official guidance and a decision to rely on that guidance. The court found that the Democratic registrar provided petition sheets four days before state law allowed, and that the state-supplied forms lacked a legally required statement from circulators on the number of signatures gathered — a defect that invalidated all of Tyler's petitions. The ruling also notes that there was no evidence the Tyler campaign exercised due diligence to confirm the official guidance. Connecticut election law doesn't allow for honest mista...
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Town Council Begins Revaluation Updates With Sharp Jump in Home Values—and Worries About What Comes Next


The town assessor cited four examples to the Town Council monday of price gains on Enfield homes since the last revaluation. This home showed the most dramatic increase. The jump may be due to strong demand for lower-priced homes, upgrades made between sales, or a combination of both.

The Town Council plans to give regular public updates on the upcoming property revaluation. The first of those updates came last night with a look at how sharply residential property values have increased since the previous revaluation.

Enfield is conducting a property revaluation as required by state law. The process will run through 2026, and residents will receive their new assessments in November of that year. Those assessments will apply to the FY28 budget, which takes effect in July 2027.

Residential values in Enfield have risen significantly since the 2021 revaluation (See examples below). The concern for town officials is a potential tax shift: if commercial property values have not increased at the same rate as residential property values, a greater share of the town’s tax burden will fall on homeowners. A shift in tax burden from commercial to residential can result in higher tax bills even if town spending remains flat.

Assessor Victoria Rose showed several examples of homes that sold in 2021 and then resold in 2025, with value increases ranging from 20% to 78%. But the market could change before the new valuation date, and Rose said “it would be impossible to say with certainty how much assessments will be going up or down” until sales data are thoroughly analyzed.

Council's Goal 

Mayor Gina Cekala said the Democratic-majority council plans to hold regular updates over the next year with the assessor and Vision Government Solutions, the town’s revaluation contractor, “so people really understand what’s happening.”

In a follow-up email, Cekala said the intent it to "push out as much information as possible for our residence on what to expect, when to expect it, what it means, why it’s happening ,and perhaps what the trends are."

"We want to do our part and push out as much information as possible so people are well informed,' she said.

Councilmember Bob Cressotti and Deputy Mayor John Santanella each warned that the most significant risk in this revaluation is not rising home prices but the possibility that commercial and industrial values may not keep up. If that happens, they said, the tax burden will shift further onto residential taxpayers.

Town Manager Matthew Coppler called the possible shift “an unknown,” adding that “there’s really not a lot of data out there to show us what that shift potentially could be.”

Examples of residential property value changes presented to the Town Council. These homes sold in 2021, after the last revaluation, and then resold in 2025, illustrating the range of price increases.








Location: Enfield, CT 06082, USA

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