The Illusion of Stewardship
Bankruptcies, Budgets, and Sherman’s $42.8M Trap
In municipal politics, the easiest way to hide a failing ledger is to point the public’s attention somewhere else. For the past several weeks, the administration of First Selectman Don Lowe has engaged in a staggering display of misdirection—mobilizing state police, contacting federal agencies, and sending alarming emails to parents regarding a local journalist’s legally registered drone flight.
The sudden panic radiating from Town Hall prompts a basic question: Why the disproportionate response to a camera in the sky? The answer, predictably, is in the math.
Personal Insolvency and Administrative Inflation
For years, First Selectman Don Lowe has sold himself as a fiscal pragmatist—a steward of the public purse who holds the line on Sherman’s taxes. Yet, an examination of public records, historical budgets, and board minutes reveals a vastly different reality. It is a portrait of profound institutional neglect that masks a quiet, massive transfer of municipal wealth.
Mr. Lowe has occupied various levers of Sherman’s government since 2000. But his personal financial baseline contradicts his public branding. Public records confirm that in 2017, just one year before he was elected to oversee the town’s multi-million-dollar budget, Mr. Lowe filed for personal bankruptcy.
The Administration's Priorities
- 2017: Don Lowe files for personal bankruptcy.
- 2018: Elected First Selectman and assumes executive control of municipal finances.
- 2018 - 2028: The First Selectman’s personal compensation is projected to increase by 70%.
- Present Day: The town is saddled with a $42.8 million debt crisis driven by years of deferred maintenance.
How does an administration justify a 70 percent spike in executive compensation while claiming to practice fiscal austerity? By playing a multi-million-dollar shell game with the town's most vital capital asset: The Sherman School.
A $2.3 Million Surplus Built on Neglect
The administration's prevailing narrative is that the Sherman School simply reached the end of its natural lifespan. The ledgers tell a different story. The building’s decline wasn't an unforeseen tragedy; it was the predictable result of a calculated political strategy.
Following the closure of the K-Wing in 2015, the school routinely returned funds—allocations originally earmarked for education and facility maintenance—back to the municipality. By chronically underfunding the maintenance required to keep the building structurally sound, the administration artificially padded the town’s coffers, hoarding an estimated $2.3 million.
He did not achieve a low mill rate through innovative financial stewardship. He achieved it by redirecting the school’s maintenance funds, allowing a vital community asset to rot while masking the true cost of his administration.
The Ledger of Betrayal
To understand how the school fell into such catastrophic disrepair, one only needs to look at the money the town authorized versus the money actually spent on the building:
- Fiscal Year 2013/2014: Taxpayers authorized $8,852,260. The BOE only spent $8,757,269.
Withheld from the school: $94,991 - Fiscal Year 2015/2016: Taxpayers authorized $9,298,106. The BOE only spent $8,634,343.
Withheld from the school: $663,763 - Fiscal Year 2016/2017: Taxpayers authorized $9,381,718. The town ledger recorded an actual spend of only $6,725,287.
Withheld from the school: $2,656,431 - Fiscal Year 2017/2018: Taxpayers authorized $9,381,405. The BOE only spent $8,725,195.
Withheld from the school: $656,210 - Fiscal Year 2019/2020: Taxpayers authorized $9,380,779. The BOE only spent $8,932,753.
Withheld from the school: $448,026 - Fiscal Year 2021/2022: Taxpayers authorized $9,319,821. The BOE only spent $8,851,274.
Withheld from the school: $468,547
The First Selectman was not blind to the school's failing infrastructure. Direct communications from the Superintendent in 2020 confirmed that comprehensive repairs were imminent and necessary. Yet, the executive branch ignored the reality. The administration watched the Board of Education reject millions in targeted, incremental repairs, fully aware that a massive capital crisis was building.
Weaponizing Authority Against Transparency
When a municipality hoards $2.3 million in necessary maintenance capital to artificially suppress taxes, the bill inevitably comes due. For Sherman, that deferred reality is a $42.8 million bond.
This financial reality provides the context for the recent drone panic. When a camera was pointed at the physical consequences of this multi-million-dollar negligence, the First Selectman’s office did not respond with transparency. It weaponized 911 dispatchers and stoked parental fears, attempting to turn a neighbor into a threat.
The administration is feeling threatened, but not by a drone. The true threat to Town Hall is an informed electorate—taxpayers who are realizing the real danger isn't the person operating the camera, but the officials quietly bankrupting the town’s future to subsidize their political present.
Update: Administration Response
Mar 13, 2026 at 12:00 PM EST
Prior to publication, Sherman CT News submitted a formal media inquiry to First Selectman Donald Lowe, Superintendent Patricia Cosentino, and the Board of Education regarding the issues detailed in this report.
The Administration was provided a deadline of 12:00 PM today to provide a statement or correction. As of publication time, the Town of Sherman has declined to comment or address these inquiries.
Sherman News remains open to publishing any official response from the Town regarding these matters.