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Want to run the town?
Or at least, help pass budgets, review board and commission decisions, and weigh in on matters like plastic bags and the Vietnam War?
The non-partisan Representative Town Meeting (RTM) does (or has done) all that, and much more.
36 members are elected to 2-year terms, from 9 districts. All seats are open, in the next election.
Westport residents interested in running can pick up a petition at the Town Clerk’s office. You need 25 signatures from residents in their district to be on the November 2 ballot.
The Town Clerk’s office will supply a district map, and list of all voters. Petitions are due September 14.
Questions? Contact town clerk Jeffrey Dunkerton: 203-341-1105; jdunkerton@westportct.gov.
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No, you were not alone.
Air quality in Westport was poor last night. The culprit — as some suspected — was the wildfires ravaging the West. Particles have traveled thousands of miles, and are affecting our East Coast town.
Here’s a view from Compo Beach:
(Photo/Betsy Pollak)
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Last night was also a mess downtown.
Water gushed into the street from construction work at the former Banana Republic on Main Street. The Fire Department responded promptly.
Main Street, yesterday. (Photo/Isabelle Taglia, Coleytown Middle School 8th grader)
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Starting November 1, Westport’s Parks & Recreation Department will offer winter boat storage at Longshore. Residents can store boats on their trailers in the gravel lot (Lot F) through April 15.
Space is available for 24 boats up to 24 feet (including trailer). Five more spaces are available, for boats with up to 32 feet. Rates are $720 plus tax for up to 24 feet, $960 for tax for the longer vessels..
Spots are first come, first served, for Westport residents only. For an application, email rgiunta@westportct.gov. (Hat tip: Fred Cantor)
A beautiful summer sight. But where will you store our boat this winter?
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Congratulations to Marc Lasry. Besides being a hedge fund billionaire, the Greens Farms resident owns the Milwaukee Bucks. Last night, they won their 1st NBA championship in 50 years.
Marc Lasry (right), after the Bucks won the NBA championship. (Screen shot photo/Fred Cantor)
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Speaking of sports: Leela Narang-Benaderet just made history. The 1988 Staples High School grad is the first Westporter to qualify for the US Senior Women’s Golf Open. She did it last week, with a 76 in the qualifier at Greenwich Country Club.
Over 400 golfers — most of them pros — competed internationally to earn a spot. Leela may have the easiest travel of all: The event will be hosted by Brooklawn Country Club in Fairfield. Mark your calendars: July 29 to August 1. (Hat tip: Patty Kondub)
Leela Narang-Benaderet
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More competition news:
Vivek Kanthan is the US Rotax Max Challenge karting champion. The Westport 7th grader — who attends Pearson Online Academy, due to his travel schedule — won 7 of the 12 races in this year’s series. He will represent the US at the world championship in Bahrain later this year.
The final race was at New Jersey Motorsports Park last weekend. Sweltering heat, humidity and track temperatures of 103 degrees made the already exciting final round much more intense.
Karts reached speeds of 70 miles an hour. Vivek overcame a strong challenge to win, by just 0.08 seconds.
Vivek Kanthan, at the winner’s podium.
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STAR Lighting the Way has received a $20,000 grant from Fairfield County’s Community Foundation. The money will help people with intellectual and developmental disabilities find work, through STAR’s My First Jobs program.
STAR’s customized employment program for people with disabilities leads the state in job placements and hours worked. A team of job developers, employment managers and job coaches work with individuals, and networks with businesses, to create job opportunities, supervise training, and find locations to host classes in life, social, arts, and recreational skills.
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Parking’s reserved. So — apparently — is this spot atop the sign, for today’s “Westport … Naturally” photo.
(Photo/Daniel Hoffman)
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And finally … today marks the 160th anniversary of the first major Civil War battle. The First Battle of Bull Run, near Manassas, Virginia, ended in a Confederate victory.
In 1990, Ric Burns’ astonishing 9-part PBS miniseries brought the war — in all its glory and greed, courage and cowardice, epic sweep and tiny details — into American homes. I watch it every few years, to try and understand this momentous event in our nation’s history.
Perhaps the most memorable segment of the entire series was Sullivan Ballou’s letter to his wife. Written a week before the First Battle of Bull Run, it provides viewers an astonishing combination of love, eloquence and historical perspective.
Jay Ungar’s haunting “Ashokan Farewell” — a heart-rending violin duet with Molly Mason — makes this the most impactful three minutes you may ever see and hear.
