‘CLOSE TO HER HEART’

Hiking area now includes memorial for Joni Norton

NEW HARTFORD — A public/private partnership between the town and resident Matt Norton has revitalized the overlook at Jones Mountain, a 158-acre open space reserve.

Norton wanted to create a memorial for his wife, Joni Norton, on the overlook, and at the same time, provide an attractive viewing area at the top of the 985-foot mountain.

The idea began last fall when Joni Norton died from cancer. Jones Mountain had been one of her favorite hiking areas, Norton said. “I knew she loved hiking here. It was close to her heart.”

Matt Norton approached First Selectman Dan Jerram about the idea to upgrade the site. Because the view from the overlook was overgrown, Norton suggested the downhill trees could be cleared and a memorial bench installed.

“It’s a very nice project,” Jerram said. “Jones Mountain is one of the most beautiful parks and hiking destinations,” in the town.

He said he and Norton went up to the site to consider the plan.

“I realized we could do something up there,” Jerram said.

With a design in mind, and support from the town Department of Public Works, Norton launched the project in September. Because the existing viewing area was small, and a 12-year-old wooden bench was damaged, a decision was made to enlarge the area and replace the bench with a sturdy, cast cement model.

Norton’s co-worker at Cigna Health Insurance, Tom Hixon, started a fund among employees to pay for half of the improvements.

Public works employees cleared as many as 75 trees, Jerram said, to open up the scenic view that had been blocked for years by overgrown trees. Hikers can now see the Barkhamsted hills in the distance.

The viewing area now offers a 10-by-24-foot terrace made of New York blue stone. The flagstone was purchased from Torrington-based O&G Industries Inc. The bench was manufactured with two posts that resemble cut-wood trunks, and a large slate-like sitting platform.

The platform is inscribed with a memorial statement that reads, “In memory of Joni Ellet Norton whose effervescence brought light to those around her, 19642017.”

“It’s a place her friends can go and the community at large can enjoy it,” Norton said. The preserve “is a gem in my mind.”

The overlook, he said, is at a spot where hikers often take a break after arriving at the summit.

“I think it’s awesome. I love the view, it came out great,” said Public Works employee Matt Catania. He and co-worker Craig Haskell were at the lookout on Thursday adding mulch around the terrace, which the two constructed.

“It’s a place her friends can go and the community at large can enjoy it. The preserve is a gem in my mind.”

Matt Norton

“We pretty much built it from scratch,” Catania said.

“There was an outpouring of support,” from residents for the project, Jerram said. “You can see the entire downtown.”

According to the New Hartford Land Trust, some of the hiking trails follow wide carriage roads that were built in the 1900s. The preserve opened in 2006 after the organization negotiated a property transfer from the Jones family, which has owned the land for five generations. The designation as a preserve permanently protects the land from development.

The Jones Mountain Preserve is eight-tenths of a mile from the intersection of Steele Road, Central Avenue and Rt. 219 in downtown New Hartford.

Matt Norton / Contributed photo Joni Norton, center, with her children, Grant, 20, on left, and Skyler, 17, on right.

Leslie Hutchison / Hearst Connecticut Media Matt Norton, of New Hartford, led the effort to revitalize the Jones Mountain Preserve overlook, in memory of his wife, Joni.

Leslie Hutchison / Hearst Connecticut Media The inscription for Joni Norton at the overlook on Jones Mountain.

Leslie Hutchison / Hearst Connecticut Media From left, Matt Norton, organizer, with Marcus Catania and Craig Haskell, from the town's Department of Public Works. Norton led the effort to revitalize the Jones Mountain Preserve overlook, in memory of his wife Joni.