Sand and salt from storms like Irene and Sandy had Westporters wondering whether the beauty of the beach was irreparably harmed.
The answer is a resounding “no!”
This was the scene yesterday, on Bradley Street just a block from Compo.
Of course, spring in Westport does not last long.
Today, the blossoms might already be gone.
Compo Beach may soon look different. But this time changes will come from us – not nature.
Within the next few weeks Parks & Rec will issue a Request for Proposals. Engineering and design firms will bid on a master plan.
The Westport News quoted director Stuart McCarthy as saying the days of people “going to the beach, lathering themselves in suntan oil, and sitting in a chair” are over. Now everyone walks, jogs, bikes, pushes strollers, flies kites, launches windsurfers — you name it. And a lot more of us do it, too.
There’s always plenty of activity at Compo Beach.
Noting the sorry state of bathhouses and bathrooms, and the crowded entrances and exits, Compo Beach Association president Skip Lane said the beach “hasn’t been improved or really looked at in 100 years.”
Well, not quite.
In fact, the beach has seen many changes over the past century. (Historical reference point: The cannons were dedicated in 1910, 103 years ago. If they’d been there in 1777, maybe the British would not have landed and marched up to Danbury.)
For over 100 years, the cannons have been a Compo Beach icon. This painting is by Thomas N. Graves.
A wooden bathing pavilion was built in 1919; 750 bathhouses were rented by the hour. (Sounds sketchy, I know.)
By 1927, what we now call the “pavilion” — the open-air area with a few benches between the volleyball courts and beach — was a handsome 2-story affair, featuring dining and dancing.
A small lifeguard cottage, trimmed by a nice garden, sat by the water’s edge.
But as Roaring 20s-ish as that all sounds, the beach itself was awful. It was filled with rocks — good-sized ones, this being New England. It took a few more decades before Compo became the sandy beach we know today.
The wooden bathhouses, with a boardwalk over the sand — and the 2-story pavilion in the distance.
Anchored offshore — until about 1960 or so — were several large rafts. They were popular spots for diving, sunbathing, and teenagers trying to impress each other.
I don’t know why they were removed, but I bet liability was an issue. Things are much worse today, of course. If McDonald’s has to warn customers that coffee is hot, we’ll never see those rafts again.
Even through the 1950s, oldtimers say, the beach along Soundview Drive — from the drop-off area to Hillspoint Road — was considered “private.” It wasn’t, of course, but many Westporters asked permission of Soundview residents before sitting down to lather on suntan oil.
A scene from the late 1940s or early ’50. (Postcard courtesy of CardCow.com)
In my coming-of-age age — let’s call it the Age of Aquarius — Chubby Lane ran the concession stand. It was located where the volleyball courts are now. And with parking right outside, you didn’t need a sticker to drive up, order one of the best cheeseburgers known to man, and hang out until someone told you to move.
Chubby had another great way of boosting business. Employees — wearing blue button-down shirts, and high knee socks — roamed the beach taking orders. They called them in by walkie-talkie, and tied a balloon around a beach chair. Soon, another employee delivered the food.
The playground has changed over the years too. A carousel once sat near the basketball court, along with monkey bars and other stuff. The playground we now know was built in the late 1980s, in a burst of community spirit and volunteer labor — but not until a full-blown, nasty, typical Westport controversy wound through court.
Neighbors complained that the playground would ruin “the vista,” and send property values plummeting. It would also attract rowdy teenagers, who’d drink, do drugs and have sex.
Today, of course, the Compo Beach playground is one of the first things realtors show to prospective buyers. And kids party safely in their own basements.
It’s a full house at the Compo Beach playground.
So no, the beach has not just sat there, unchanging, for 100 years. Plenty has happened. Some of it’s good; some bad. Some has been planned; some not. I haven’t even mentioned the changes — to the coastline, the seawalls, the structures themselves — wrought by weather.
(Side note: A month ago, I wondered how Parks & Rec would ever get the post-Sandy beach ready for this summer. Thanks to a herculean effort — with help from Public Works and Kowalsky — it looks great. )
Back in the Carter administration, I was a young pup serving on a committee aimed at – surprise! — improving Compo Beach. Planning consultants were hired. They looked at the beach from all kinds of angles, and with fresh eyes. One of their proposals was to move parking away from the sand. “Reclaim the beach!” the consultants said. “People don’t need to drive that close to the water.”
No way, our committee said. This is Westport. People have always parked there, and they always will.
Let’s hope this next engineering and design firm comes up with some creative, reimagined ideas for the beach. They might even suggest diverting cars away from the water.
Hey, you never know.
Back in the day, cars parked even closer to the water than they do now. Check out the rocky beach. too.
Today’s leaden skies threw cold water on Homes With Hope’s 12th annual Castles in the Sand fundraiser.
Only a few of the 34 registered groups braved the weather to create clever, intricate sand sculptures (and raise money for one of Westport’s most impressive organizations).
Organizers extended the event another day. Tomorrow’s forecast is slightly better than today: partly cloudy.
Out in force today was Builders Beyond Borders. This year’s service trip was to Guyana, so their sculpture incorporated that country’s flag, and its famed Kaieteur Falls (it actually works — see it below, right in the middle?).
Builders Beyond Borders members (from left): Tom Wormser, Leo McElroy, Michael Ferry, Maggie Sherin, Selena Lauria, Corey Werner, Noah Bender, Claire Smith and Ileana Muxo.
Meanwhile, Emily Harris and Grace Olsen made a comfy sofa out of sand (below). The cat — sitting on the left — is named (of course) Sandy.
Posted in Beach, Organizations, People
Tagged Builders Beyond Borders, Castles in the Sand, Homes With Hope
Not long ago, several trees near the Compo Beach basketball courts were chopped down. Dozens of squawking monk parrots had nested there.
Last week, the Blu Parrot closed.
Westport is in grave danger of being parrot-less.
Too bad they’re not deer.
My recent post on the Battle of Compo Hill got alert “06880″ reader June Eichbaum thinking — and writing. She says:
When I open the window and the air smells like onions, I know it’s spring.
Before there were houses, Minuteman Hill — where I live — was an onion farm. During the Civil War, Westport farmers harvested barrels of onions. Union troops ate as many onions as Westport could grow, as protection against scurvy.
In the late 1800s yields dropped after years of single-crop farming robbed the soil of nutrients. Demand from the Army declined, and the Irish potato famine fungus arrived in America, causing an onion blight.
Minuteman Hill is a drumlin — an inverted spoon — that rises 100 feet above the moraine and wetlands below. Thousands of years ago, melting glaciers relentlessly scraped, mixed and reworked minerals, decaying vegetation and loose particles. Glaciers literally tilled the ground to make the soil in my garden as they melted.
The Minuteman statue. In the distance is Minuteman Hill.
Our street’s namesake is the bronze statue created by Henry Daniel Webster of a life-sized Minuteman soldier, crouched at the ready with musket in hand. He gazes up to where patriot sharpshooters sacrificed their lives in 1777, after ambushing British troops marching back to their war ships after burning an arsenal in Danbury.
The Minuteman is cared for by the community. When it snows, people put a woolen cap on his head and a scarf around his neck. At Christmas, he dons a Santa costume. On July 4th the Minuteman dresses up as Uncle Sam, surrounded by flags. He oversees the fireworks at the same beach where invading British ships dropped anchor.
In 1855 a house was built on the site of that Revolutionary War battle, next door to where we live now. It was sold in 1878 to Signorney Burnham, who rebuilt it in an eclectic Victorian style.
The Burnham house, on the site of the Battle of Compo HIll. (Photo by June Eichbaum)
Burnham bred prize cattle, imported from his farm on the Isle of Jersey. Their manure improved the soil, and their grazing gave the land respite from farming. Burnham Hill marks the cows’ path down to Old Mill Beach.
Before 1950, our neighbors’ great-aunt owned the entire hill (it was then part of Compo Hill). My neighbor tells how her great-aunt sold a piece of the hill every time her husband wanted to travel to Europe (apparently quite often).
In 1950 she submitted a proposal to the town to subdivide some of the land. She penciled in a path to access those parcels, writing by hand “Minute Man Hill.”
Today, Minuteman Hill is a dead-end street of 22 homes. More than half sit along one of the 5 spokes that radiate out on the flat land at top.
In the early 1950s Harry Suttenfield built a modest home for his growing family on land adjacent to the elaborate Victorian. His house has been our home for 20 years. The trees he planted create a sense of place so grounded and strong that living here feels like a reprieve from a world of soundbites and short attention spans.
Weeping cherry trees on Minuteman Hill. (Photo by June Eichbaum)
For the 7 days each spring that 2 weeping cherry trees bloom, their ethereal beauty is breathtaking. As the petals gently descend, our entire front garden, driveway and road are covered in delicate white. From a distance, it looks like snow.
Directly in front of the house, Suttenfield planted what today is an enormous sycamore tree. He also planted an apple orchard. Five trees remain. From late August to early October, neighbors pick apples. We take turns using a bright red gadget that it is as fun as it is practical.
The apples from our tree taste better than any I have ever eaten. They also make great pies.
Do you have a story about your neighborhood, home or road? Click “Comments” — or send it to dwoog@optonline.net.
A rose arbor on Minuteman Hill. (Photo by June Eichbaum)
Posted in Beach, Looking back, People, Places
It may not be the wolf lying down with the lamb.
No — this might be even more remarkable.
Mark your calendar: Thursday, July 18 (6 p.m.). That’s the date of the 1st-ever “06880″ party.
Every member of the “06880″ (as in, this website) community is invited. Democrats, Republicans, libertarians, fascists — even socialist wealth-distributors (that’s me). Like the comments section, this event is a big tent. (Metaphorically speaking — if it rains, we’ll postpone to July 25.)
We’ll gather at Compo Beach — the alcohol-is-okay end. Bring your own food, beverages, beach chairs and blankets. Like the website, “06880″ simply provides the space to get together, have a good time, chat, laugh, and of course bitch.
We expect a big turnout at our “06880″ party on July 18.
We’ll have name tags. Feel free to use your real name, your “0688o” alias, or (like most of you) “Anonymous.”
There’s no charge. It’s a “fun-raiser,” not a fundraiser.
The “06880″ tagline is “Where Westport meets the world.” Let’s call this party “where ’06880′ meets each other.”
One final thing: We picked a Thursday because the beach is not as crowded as on weekends. As alert readers know, “06880″ does not believe in reserving tables.
Posted in Beach, technology, Totally random, Westport life
Tagged "06880" blog, Compo Beach
For over a century, the Minuteman has stood as Westport’s most beloved symbol. Harry Daniel Webster’s statue was dedicated in June 1910.
But this will make you feel really old: The skirmish it commemorates — the Battle of Compo Hill — took place 126 years before that.
The Minuteman statue in 1912 — 2 years after its dedication.
According to Mollie Donovan and Dorothy Curran, 2000 British troops under the direction of General William Tryon landed at Compo Beach at dusk on April 25, 1777. Tory loyalists planned to guide them up Compo Road to Cross Highway, across to Redding Road, then north through Redding and Bethel to Danbury, where they would burn a major munitions depot.
Patriots fired a few shots at the corner of the Post Road and Compo, but the British marched on. In Danbury they destroyed the Continental Army’s munitions, then headed back toward their waiting ships at Compo.
Hastily assembled patriot forces fought them in the fierce Battle of Ridgefield. Led by Brigadier General Benedict Arnold — not yet a traitor — and outnumbered 3 to 1, the patriots deployed a strategy of selective engagement.
British forces landed at Compo Beach, marched to Danbury, returned south and — after the Battle of Compo Hill — retreated to Long Island.
The next day — April 28, 1777 — patriot marksmen waited on Compo Hill (the current site of Minuteman Hill road). They did not stop the redcoats — 20 colonials were killed, and between 40 and 80 wounded when the British made a shoulder to shoulder charge with fixed bayonets — but they gave them a fight.
Graves of some of the patriots who fell that day lie along Compo Beach Road, just past the Minuteman statue.
Though Tryon returned to burn Norwalk and Fairfield, never again during the American Revolution did British troops venture inland in Connecticut.
This Friday (April 26) the Westport Historical Society celebrates the 236th anniversary of that engagement. There’s a 6 p.m. lecture by John Reznikoff (a professional document and signature authenticator with Rockwell Art and Framing), plus a display of historic documents related to the skirmish.
One of the documents on display — and for sale — at the Westport Historical Society this weekend.
All documents are available for purchase. If you can’t make Friday’s event, additional sale days are Saturday (April 27, 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.) and Sunday (April 28, 12 to 4 p.m.).
And if you can’t make any of those days, at least think about the Battle of Compo Hill. That’s the reason our Minuteman stands guard, facing Compo Road.
Like his fellow patriots 236 years ago, he’s ready to give the Brits his best shot.
The Minuteman statue today.
Posted in Beach, History, People
Tagged Battle of Compo Hill, Benedict Arnold, Minuteman statue, Revolutionary War
No one minds fair competition.
Unfair competition — well, that’s different.
Nick Yiozanakos and Niki Boulas, Elvira’s owners.
In February, Niki Boulas — owner of Elvira’s Deli near Old Mill Beach — emailed the first selectman’s office.
She said that after Hurricane Sandy, there’s been lots of construction in the area. Recently, she noticed a big impact from food trucks. She wondered what could be done.
Pat Scully replied:
All food trucks are required to have a health permit. Food trucks that park on town-owned property are also required to obtain a town vendor’s permit.
However food trucks on private property are not required to obtain a town permit (just a health permit). There are no local zoning laws regulating food trucks. Therefore if the food trucks you mention are located on private property construction sites, the town does not have any jurisdiction to ban them from operation.
The food permit costs $10. There is an additional fee of $25 for each vehicle used.
Elvira’s, in a festive mood last year. (Photo by Mike Lauterborn/Westport News)
Yet the town’s “Vendor’s Permit/Door-to-Door Solicitors” regulations also say:
Vendors are not allowed to compete directly with established retail operations anywhere in the Town of Westport. For example, ice cream vendors may not operate in the main business areas of Westport or in close proximity to outlying stores which sell ice cream.
While “directly” and “close proximity” are not great legal terms, the food trucks are clearly on town — not private — property. Niki took this photo yesterday, in “close proximity” on Hillspoint Road:
On Friday, Elvira’s placed a petition on their counter. It reads:
As many of you are aware, there have been many food trucks coming into our area from out of town. These trucks have had a significant negative impact on our business.
Their fees to the town are minimal. There is no way for Elvira’s, as a small mom and pop business, to compete with their prices as our overhead costs are greater, and we are a Westport taxpayer.
For over a month now we have been dealing with town officials and our First Selectman, and we have gotten nowhere. As a local business serving the community for the last 16 years, we find this situation to be unfair. Now we need your help by signing our petition to ban or restrict them from our Compo Beach area. Thank you!
Bedford 8th graders Bryce Reiner and Billy Hutchison are big — and loyal — Elvira’s customers.
As of yesterday afternoon — despite 98% of Westport being away for school vacation — nearly 200 customers had signed. The names included some heavy hitters in town.
Elvira’s has many fans. It’s been an anchor of the Old Mill community — during Hurricane Sandy, sure, but before as well.
And long before the invasion of the (perhaps illegal) food trucks.
Posted in Beach, Local business, Local politics, People, Weather
Tagged Elvira's, food trucks, Gordon Joseloff, Hurricane Sandy, Niki Boulas
A grassroots group invites everyone — runners, walkers, bikers, spectators — to a community run/walk this Saturday (April 20, 8 a.m.) at Compo Beach.
The event — organized by the Joggers Club — is a response to Monday’s Boston Marathon bombing.
Donations will be collected for the family of 8-year-old Martin Richard, who was killed after hugging his father at the finish line, and his 7-year-old sister Jane, who lost her leg; 27-year-old Jeff Bauman, who lost both legs as he waited for his girlfriend to finish, and the Boston Marathon team and first responders.
After a few words in memory of those killed and maimed in Boston, the run/walk will begin. The route loops around Green’s Farms Road.
Great Cakes is sponsoring the event.
Every neighborhood has its own traffic concerns. Folks living near the Bayberry Lane/Easton Road intersection are debating a roundabout and stop signs. On North Kings Highway, speeders have slowed considerably since speed humps were installed.
The other day, Janet Tatusko checked in with a report from Saugatuck Shores. A lot is happening in that lovely but well-traveled corner of town.
A petition called “Lines and Signs” has helped bring walking lines and guardrails. Signs — including arrows, “Bus Stop Ahead” and “Curve Ahead” — have been installed.
Trees have been cut back, to improve sight lines. Neighbors initiated an educational campaign (“Drive Like Your Kids Live Here”).
“Drive Like Your Kids Live Here,” says a sign near the beginning of Harbor Road.
But drivers still speed, Janet says — and walkers are afraid they’ll be pinned against the guardrails on blind curves.
A traffic survey last August showed that 32,274 vehicles entered Harbor Road. 27,109 exceeded the 25 mph speed limit. One driver reached 65.
During the school year, Janet says, “over 28 kids would normally be out there — except not one mother will let them. So a big bus comes down tiny Covelee Road, and stops at each home. No one can walk, jog, bike, etc. It’s another Shake Shack waiting to happen.”
A guardrail separates Harbor Road from the water.
Harbor Road is a residential street — but also the main route to Saugatuck Island. There are 200 homes, and a yacht club at the end.
Interestingly, the recent sewer project helped. Potholes have slowed cars and trucks considerably. However, truck traffic has increased since last fall, as construction vehicles heading to homes damaged by Hurricane Sandy are a constant presence.
Janet, Frank DiScala and others are figuring out what’s needed to help walkers, bicyclists, joggers, moped riders, pets and kids.
They’ve worked closely with Police Chief Dale Call, the Fire Department, Public Works and the Department of Transportation. Recently they met with First Selectman Gordon Joseloff. The Fire Department has agreed to put in a speed hump.
Harbor Road is narrow, windy — and very, very scenic.
But Janet, Francis and the others have not forgotten aesthetics. They’d like to see potted plant holders in the middle of the road. (Think Soundview, the Compo Beach exit road.)
They’re talking about a park-like entrance to Harbor Road and Saugatuck Shores, including an elevated planter box, flowers, and welcome signs.
Sounds like some solid solutions for a neighborhood that feels under siege — for reasons both natural and man-made.
But what a shame that we have to put up signs — anywhere in town — reminding each other to “Drive Your Kids Live Here.”
Harbor Road continues over a canal. This handsome sign marks the entrance to Saugatuck Island.
Posted in Beach, People, Places
Tagged Frank DiScala, Harbor Road, Janet Tatusko, Saugatuck Shores, traffic calming
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