Every year, the race to secure a prime spot for the Compo Beach fireworks begins earlier and earlier.
This was the scene at 7 a.m.:
At least no one has yet staked out a grossly over-aggressive swath of sand.
(Photos/Matt Murray)
Just wait.
That’s next.
Comments Off on It’s 7 AM. Do You Know Where Your Fireworks Beach Spot Is?
Posted in Beach, Westport life
Tagged Compo Beach, July 4th fireworks
For over 100 years, Westport’s Minute Man has crouched, alertly and patriotically, near the entrance to Compo Beach.
He’s our beloved town symbol. And these days, he looks better than ever.
His dark metal shines. His lines are smooth. Even his historical plaque has been restored to its old glory.
(Photo/Andrew Colabella)
Representative Town Meeting member and Staples High School graduate Andrew Colabella was intrigued by the project. He’d seen an “06880” of a man working alone, power washing the statue.
(Photo/Jamie Klein)
He wanted to learn more. Mike West, Parks & Recreation Department parks superintendent, told Andrew the man’s name is Francis Miller. He’s repaired and restored artwork since 1991.
On Monday, Andrew spotted Francis working on Veterans Green, across from Town Hall.
(Photo/Andrew Colabella)
Andrew is fascinated with hands-on, labor intensive niche work, like welding and metal restoration.
He asked Francis how he restored both the Minute Man and doughboy.
He heats the metal with an acetylene torch, burning off foreign material. As it cools, he applies a mixture of waxes he made himself (it’s been approved by the National Parks Service and Conservation Department).
Francis uses a shoe polish brush that gets into the metal, but leaves no striations, grooves or runs. The waxes seal and bond to the metal.
Veterans Green doughboy. (Photo/Andrew Colabella)
Andrew’s questions were not idle ones. He recently completed his own metal restoration project just a few yards away.
He’d found the old, discarded solid brass “Public Notice” board in a dumpster.
Andrew kept the original imperfections and marks, dating back over 70 years. It’s now been re-hung in front of Town Hall — a great addition to the “new” front entrance.
Andrew Colabella’s restored Public Notice board, before installation outside Town Hall.
Andrew is impressed by Francis Miller’s restoration work. He hopes the rest of Westport will be too.
So as you head to the fireworks tonight — or any other time you’re near Compo Beach or Veterans Green — check out our newly restored Minute Man and doughoy.
And don’t forget the new Public Notice board either. It too is a beauty.
(“06880” is honored to honor Westport’s history. Please consider supporting the work we do. Just click here to contribute. Thank you!)
Posted in History
Tagged Andrew Colabella, Doughboy statue, Minute Man monument, Town Hall, Veterans Green
Compo Beach jetty (Photo/Sunil Hirani)
The other day, Ellen and Mark Naftalin mistakenly took a train home from Grand Central that did not stop in Southport.
The conductor made an exception, and stopped the train there for them.
“He was so, so friendly,” she says. This small-town type of thing makes a big difference.”
She doesn’t know who the conductor was. I don’t know if what he did was “legal” or not.
Most passengers probably did not notice it at all.
But Ellen and her husband sure did.
(Do you know an Unsung Hero? Nominate via email: 06880blog@gmail.com)
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The world’s largest hedge fund came to Westport’s largest beach yesterday.
Preparations began early for Bridgewater Associates’ private party. Portions of Compo Beach’s South Beach were blocked off. Tents were erected. Signs noted a variety of “contest” stations: “Chopped,” “Rube Goldberg Machine Build,” “Obstacle Course.”
Then there was this contraption:
(Photo/Karen Como)
Hope they all had a great time!
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Tomorrow, safety advocates from around the state come to town to raise awareness about important precautions parents and caregivers should take to keep children safe during July 4th celebrations, and throughout the summer.
The event (Thursday, June 29, 11 a.m., Connecticut Children’s Westport Specialty Care Center, 191 Post Road West) includes Kim Leonard and her daughter, mom of 3, Blake, from the Stew Leonard III Water Safety Foundation’s Stewie the Duck Swim School; Westport Fire Department; Connecticut Children’s physicians and injury prevention experts; Connecticut State Police; Amy Watkins, Watch for Me CT, and others.
They’ll offer guidance to keep children safe while playing in water and yards, attending summer camps, and more.
Hey, kids — be safe! (Photo/Dan Woog)
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Chris Coogan brings his special jazz-and-more to the Weston History & Culture Center’s Music at the Barn.
The outdoor summer concert series — now in its 8th year — welcomes Westonite Coogan on Sunday, July 9,
Doors open at 5 p.m. for food, history, crafts and fun. The music follows at 5:30.
Coogan has played pop with Phoebe Snow, Donna Summers, Bette Midler and Darlene Love; Broadway with Paul Newman, Jim Naughton and Kelli O’Hara, and jazz with Randy Brecker, Sal Salvador and his own Chris Coogan Quartet.
He music directs at churches, synagogues and theaters, and leads the Good News Gospel Choir. He teaches the art of jazz improvisation privately and at the University of Bridgeport.
Tony Pizza Napolitano Food Truck will be there; bring a lawn chair, blanket and BYOB. Tickets ($15 for members, $20 for non-members; children 12 and under, free) are available at the door or online.
Chris Coogan
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Westport Country Playhouse’s 2023 Joanne Woodward Internship class includes 4 aspiring theater professionals. Selected from nearly 250 applicants, hey’ll work with senior staff through mid-August.
Mandi Benjamin is the Camerota-Lewis education intern. She is from Trinidad and Tobago and has a BA in theater and dance from Trinity College, where she was assistant director of “Little Shop of Horrors.”
Christopher Conte is the R and B Siegel marketing intern. From Darien, he is a rising senior at Sacred Heart University with a double major in strategic communications, PR & advertising, and musical theater.
Giovanni Orozco is the Adam G. Clemens equity, diversity and inclusion intern. From Dallas, he is a student at Southern Methodist University pursuing a BFA in theater studies.
Erin Reynolds, development intern from Croton-on-Hudson, New York, is a student at Norwich University, pursuing a BA in political science with a minor in communications.
Westport Country Playhouse interns (from left): Chris Conte, Mandi Benjamin, Erin Reynolds, Giovanni Orozco, Ian Patton (Staples High School senior intern). (Photo/Ashley Sweet)
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Buggy is working through lymphoma (again).
But after her first treatment at Cornell Veterinary last week, owner Jo Shields Sherman says, she still had time and enthusiasm to celebrate a Pride gathering at Townhouse For Dogs.
And to pose for today’s “Westport … Naturally” feature.
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And finally … I never heard of Jesse McReynolds.
But he spent 55 years as lead singer and mandolin player with the bluegrass duo Jim & Jesse. He died last week in Tennessee, at 93.
He rated a nice obituary in the New York Times, including this tribute:
“The longest-running brother act in bluegrass, Jim & Jesse — Mr. Reynolds and his older brother, Jim — developed a smooth blend of harmony singing that contrasted with the more piercing, down-home vocal arrangements of Bill Monroe and the Stanley Brothers.” Click here for the full obituary.
(“06880” is your hyper-local blog — and a non-profit. Please click here to make a tax-deductible donation. Thank you!)
Westport may soon “pave paradise, and put up a parking lot.”
Or a school. Or athletic fields.
Lou Weinberg is chair of the Westport Community Gardens. For over 20 years the land just south of Long Lots Elementary School has been a soothing, lush home away from home for hundreds of Westporters.
From folks in their 80s to families with little children, they grow fruit, vegetables, flowers, herbs and grasses, in a wide array of designs and colors.
Bees pollinate. Birds feed. Youngsters learn about the environment. Intergenerational friendships bloom in a common space with a pergola, picnic table, grape vines, bocce court and Adirondack chairs, It truly is a “community” garden.
Westport Community Gardens — a bird’s-eye view.
Along the perimeter, Weinberg has helped create the Long Lots Preserve. Three of its 4 phases are complete, thanks to $40,000 in contributions from residents, and grants.
Invasive plants have been eradicated, replaced by a New England forest filled with mature oak trees and native plants.
It’s one more way to preserve, nurture and appreciate nature, in a town that has lost far too much of it.
Long Lots Preserve.
But on Monday morning, Weinberg says, he learned that the Long Lots School Building Committee — charged with renovating or replacing the 70-year-old elementary school — has come up with 3 options.
All, he says, involve eliminating the Westport Community Gardens and Long Lots Preserve.
“06880” reached out yesterday morning to Building Committee chair Jay Keenan. A request for comment had not been received by 9 p.m. last night.
However, committee member Don O’Day — chair of the previous committee that renovated Coleytown Middle School — says, “We are a long way from paving paradise and putting up a parking lot,”
The committee’s next meeting was scheduled for tomorrow (Thursday). Due to the fireworks, it’s been rescheduled for Friday (June 30, 10 a.m., Town Hall Room 309).
There will be public comment and/or questions regarding the entire project, then a work session with the design team for project updates, and a review of “feasibility study options.”
If time allows, there may be a chance for public comment and/or questions after the work session ends.
A community gathering, at the Westport Community Gardens.
Weinberg says, “One of the options, as I understand it, is to build the new school on the Gardens and Preserve, while students continue to attend the current school.
“Another option is to build the new school on the athletic fields on the other side of the current school, and cover the Community Gardens and Preserve with athletic fields to replace the ones they would be losing.”
Weinberg is not anti-school, or anti-fields. However, he hopes to find a solution that does not involve losing “a community asset that we have all built over the past 20 years, and which will continue to be here long after we are gone.
“The Gardens serve over 100 residents every year, at very little cost to the town. The Gardens are in oasis away from the hustle and bustle of suburban life. The Gardens and Preserve practice extremely effective environmental stewardship of the land. Isn’t that what we are trying to teach our kids?
“Athletic fields are replaceable. A community garden built with love, blood, sweat and tears is not.”
“The Gardens and Preserve are an incredible educational opportunity for the schools. I never thought that we would have to defend a town asset that we’ve been building for 20 years.”
Taking a quick break, at the Community Gardens.
The Community Gardens and Preserve have long been supported by selectmen, the Departments of Parks & Recreation and Public Works, and the public schools.
Kowalsky Brothers, Belta’s Farm, Gault, Daybreak Nurseries, A&J Market and Gilbertie’s Herb Gardens, Robbie Guimond, AJ Penna and Bartlett Tree Experts all pitched in. The Green Village Initiative, Wholesome Wave Foundation and New England Grassroots Environmental Fund provided money.
Weinberg hopes he can show the building committee exactly what the Community Gardens and Preserve are, and do. He also offers a tour to any resident who asks. His email is WestportCommunityGarden@gmail.com.
(For an earlier “06880” story on the Westport Community Gardens, click here. For the Community Gardens website, click here. For the Long Lots Preserve website, click here.)
(Education and the environment are just 2 of “06880”‘s regular beats. Please click here to support our work. Thank you!)
Gardeners donated surplus food to needy families, through the Grow-a-Row initiative.
A visitor to the Westport Community Gardens.
Posted in Categories
jUNe Day flags on the Ruth Steinkraus Cohen Bridge (Photo/Jerry Kuyper)
The Westport Public Schools’ move of bus companies — from Dattco to First Student — means a move in bus parking too.
With the current site — the congested lot on Post Road East, opposite Playhouse Square — unavailable after June 30, an alternate location is needed.
Until a permanent spot is found, buses will be parked from July 1 through October 31 at Staples High School, Bedford and Coleytown Middle Schools, and Coleytown and Long Lots Elementary Schools.
Dattco buses, entering the Post Road East parking lot. (Photo/Joyce Joiner)
The locations were chosen after analyzing the availability of parking for staff and students.
When the school year begins, buses will leave their school spots between 6 and 7 a.m, After pickups and drop-offs, they’ll return to their schools between 9 and 9:30.
They’ll leave for afternoon runs between 1 and 2 p.m., then return between 4 and 5.
Westport Public Schools’ chief financial officer Elio Longo says that at some locations, like Staples, there is already dedicated bus parking. In other locations, buses will be parked where there is the least impact on students, staff and neighbors.
Parking plan for Staples High and Bedford Middle School (click on or hover over to enlarge).
Even with bus parking, “each of the school locations still has a surplus of parking available,” Longo says.
Planning & Zoning Department officials have placed restrictions on bus parking. All bus operators must comply with the sate law regarding idling. There will be no mechanical servicing of buses on school grounds, and “no amplified music or whistles.”
Parking plan for Coleytown Middle and Elementary Schools (click on or over hover to enlarge).
Longo is “confident that this temporary plan will serve the needs of the students but in a way that does not adversely impact the students, neighbors and community at large.”
District officials are working on other arrangements, once the temporary bus parking solution ends.
Parking plan for Long Lots Elementary School (click on or hover over to enlarge).
(Keep all the education news coming! Please click here to support “06880.” Thank you!)
A petition signed by 64 electors has been submitted to the Town Clerk, and Westport Representative Town Meeting moderator Jeff Wieser.
The petitioners — 3 times as many as required — say:
In the interest of having a full and transparent public discussion on the Downtown Plan Implementation Committee’s goals, process and proposed plan for Parker Harding, we request that the RTM add to its September 5, 2023 agenda the following item:
A review of the DPIC’s goals, process and proposed plan for Parker Harding, to be led by the lead petitioner, with an invitation to the Chair of the DPIC to present if desired, with time reserved for RTM member and public comments following the review.
Petition organizer John McCarthy says, “This is not a step we wanted to take. But we do so to make sure the voices of concerned citizens and impacted merchants are heard.
“The RTM is the public body which most fully represents all the people in town. Letting that body hear, first hand, how people feel about the plan is vital at this stage, before it is set in stone and presented as a yes/no decision to Planning & Zoning, the Board of Finance and ultimately the RTM.
“Following the last DPIC meeting, which included constructive comments from more than 30 members of the public that attended, the DPIC has decided to ignore all of those comments and is pushing ahead with the original plan, which is to spend $6 million, remove over 40 parking spaces and get rid of the vital cut- through road in Parker Harding. We can do better than this.”
The RTM petition follows one on Change.org, opposing the proposed elimination by the DPIC of the Parker Harding Plaza cut-through lane from Main Street to the Post Road, and the reduction of 44 parking spaces.
That petition was signed by over 1,000 residents.
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Chris Paul appears (virtually) at the Westport Library tonight (Tuesday, June 27, 8 p.m.).
The basketball star discusses his life, and new memoir, with journalist, FOX Sports anchor and Westport resident Lindsay Czarniak.
The event will be livestreamed and recorded as part of her podcast, “Lunch with Lindsay.”
After the conversation, members of the audience can ask questions. Autographed copies of Paul’s “61” book will be on sale.
Czarniak tells “06880”: “Human connections are so important. I’m so excited for the audience to get a chance to see and interact with Chris Paul because his story is so impactful and he relates it so well. He is still one of the biggest names in the NBA and he has so much to share.
“I read his book cover to cover. There were so many different layers. He has so much perspective. To be able to talk to him with an audience of kids and adults will be powerful. The fact that he is starting over with a brand new team — one of the strongest in the NBA — makes this even more interesting.”
Paul’s fans are one target audience. So, she says, are anyone interested in hearing a story that goes “way beyond the basketball court. I laughed and cried reading his book because he related his experiences in such a masterful way.”
Interestingly, Czarniak was about to interview Paul for her podcast, when she learned he had been traded to the Golden State Warriors 90 minutes earlier.
“Seeing him still processing the whole thing was pretty cool,” she says.
Chris Paul and Lindsay Czarniak.
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Speaking of the Library: WNYC has been promoting one segment on today’s “All Of It,” with Alison Stewart.
It’s about the Verso Studioes vinyl record released last month — the first one ever produced by a public library, anywhere.
The promo includes a great shout-out to the Westport Library.
We know it’s a special place. Now millions of WNYC listeners will know too. (Hat tips: Tom Broadbent and Mark Mathias)
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When she heard about Westport’s huge July 9 party honoring our sister city, Lyman, Ukraine (click here for details), Felicia Catale wanted to help.
She’s doing it the best way she knows: by offering free haircuts.
Between now and the July 9 party, the owner of Salon Nash on Post Road West will give a cut, gratis, to anyone who donates at least $60 to Lyman.
Those cuts and blow dries — for men, women and kids — usually go for a lot more than that.
Click here to donate via the Ukraine Aid International website (under “Designation,” choose “Westport-Lyman” from the dropdown menu).
Then call or text Felicia (203-747-9753) to make an appointment. Brring your donation receipt to enjoy your free, generous hair session!
Felicia Catale
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Arn Peter Berglund, a 1970 Staples High School graduate, was killed in a bicycle accident last week in Idaho Falls, Idaho.
A motorcyclist struck the University of Idaho graduate, while he was pedaling away. He was wearing a helmet, but died at the scene. An investigation is ongoing.
Arn Berglund
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Joan Harper died peacefully at The Greens at Cannondale in Wilton last week, surrounded by her family. She was 92.
The Bridgeport native worked in retail before landing a job as a secretary at Sikorsky Aircraft. She met her husband Jim there.
They moved to Westport in 1960, and raised their children here. Once they were grown, Joan worked as an administrative assistant at Hall-Brooke Hospital.
Joan was an avid reader, loved crossword puzzles, and watched old black and white movies. She was an excellent cook, specializing in Hungarian dishes.
She is survived by her son Jim (Karen) of Oxford; daughter Susan Kowalsky (Daryle) of Westport; grandchildren Harley and Barrett Kowalsky, and Jessica and Caitlin Giorgio (Stefano); great-grandson, Hudson Giorgio, and brother Richard Donnelly of Stratford. She was predeceased by her husband, and sister Barbara Fritz.
The family thanks The Greens at Cannondale for their kindness, compassion and care, and her caregiver and friend Marjorie Reid for her love and support.
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This deer gets its daily requirement of greens — and much more — at Grace Salmon Park.
It’s a “Westport … Naturally” scene that too many homeowners are too familiar with.
But you gotta admit: It’s cute!
(Photo/Patricia McMahon)
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And finally … Doc Pomus was born today, in 1925.
You may not know his name. But you sure know some of the songs he wrote.
(“06880” is your hyper-local blog — and a non-profit. Please click here to make a tax-deductible contribution. Thank you!)
Redistricting of Westport’s elementary and middle schools — sure to be a hot topic in coming months — was on the agenda at yesterday’s Board of Education meeting. “06880” intern Andrew Brennan reports:
The main purpose of redistricting is to “achieve a more appropriate balance of students,” as overcrowding and lack of access to certain spaces and equipment become more prevalent.
Superintendent of schools Thomas Scarice.
Last night at Staples High School, superintendent of school Thomas Scarice recommended a flexible, unrushed timeline for planning and implementation. Three phases would span the next two years.
Phase one would involve research and other preparation — for example, determining enrollment projections — acting as a baseline for the next two phases.
This phase would be heavily influenced by the board, especially in areas like clarifying main goals and dates of the process.
The second phase would build on phase one to develop, formulate and test a redistricting plan. Scarice strongly recommended community input in the development of a plan.
The third phase would be the implementation of the plan that the Board decided was themost optimal.
During the meeting, Scarice was steadfast in his opinion that the implementation of a redistricting plan must take place no sooner than September 2025,
He said that the redistricting process was delicate and imperfect, but one that should be done well enough that it would only have to be done once. Rushing through steps to complete the process early could cause errors that would have been avoidable if those steps had been taken more slowly.
Despite circumstances in some schools, notably Long Lots Elementary where overcrowding has become an issue and classes like music take place in hallways, Scarice sees this as part of an ebb and flow of student enrollment. he noted that until recently, Long Lots was undercrowded.
Long Lots is Westport’s most crowded elementary school.
He favors a more drawn-out, but ultimately more effective, timeline of implementation, even as overcrowding exists in some schools.
Some board members countered that speeding up the process could make students’ learning experiences better, even at the risk of making mistakes in the process — most notably. having to move a student more than once between schools, something all members agreed would be a failure of the plan.
Board member Robert Harrington proposed a speedier timeline to counteract particularly Long Lots’ overcrowding issues for the good of students.
Scarice acknowledged the disparity in student populations and access to certain equipment, but saw it as necessary tradeoff in favor of a more thorough and effective process of implementing a redistricting plan in the future.
The board will continue redistricting discussions in future meetings.
(“06880” will follow the redistricting issue closely. Please click here to support our work. Thank you!)
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