Following Monday’s Planning & Zoning Commission vote approving plans to redesign the Parker Harding and Jesup Green parking lots, longtime Westport resident and civic volunteer Lawrence Weisman has launched a petition.
Its goal is to for Representative Town Meeting moderator Jeff Wieser to place on the agenda “the matter of how best to supplement and improve downtown parking.”
The Change.org petition says:
Westport is a vibrant town which owes great deal to its downtown and its merchants for whom adequate, convenient parking is a priority. The scheme which is making its way through the approvals process, involving an unnecessary complete restriping of the Parker Harding lot without loading spaces and with parallel (as opposed to angled) parking is inadequate and poorly conceived.
A parking deck on the Baldwin lot will provide additional parking in an easily accessible location at affordable cost without the need to encroach upon the town green. If you want to keep Westport vibrant, sign our petition so we can make the case to the RTM.
The petition to the RTM includes the idea of a parking deck on the Baldwin lot, off Elm Street.
Another Change.org petition — also opposing changes to Jesup Green and aimed at the RTM, though it does not seek an agenda item — was started by Tracy Porosoff. It says:
Save Jesup Green and mature, beautiful trees from being turned into parking spots!
As Dr. Seuss said, we must speak for the trees, for the trees have no tongues.
Please ask the RTM to reject the funding to convert 1/3 of Jesup Green, an inviting green, open space in the heart of downtown, into parking spots that the downtown merchants do not even want.
Turning this area into paved parking spots will only exacerbate existing flooding problems near the Saugatuck River.
This proposal is not a solution to Westport’s parking issues- it is a sad attempt to destroy our precious trees and open, green spaces. The Westport Library conducts story times in this area. Children play in this area. Birds build nests and rest in the leafy branches. People walk their dogs and sit outside and relax in the shade of these magnificent trees. Jesup Green has been a community meeting space for protest groups, Westport Youth Commission events and the annual Westport Library book sale.
Tell our RTM representatives to preserve Jesup Green and vote against cutting down trees to fund a Jesup parking lot.
Use your voice to keep Jesup Green green, open and beautiful for our town! Vote against funding the destruction of Jesup Green to create inconvenient, unwanted and environmentally unsustainable parking.
We must speak for the trees, which some people are chopping as fast as you please!
Jesup Green, looking south toward the Westport Library.
==================================================
In the 6 years since the Parkland High School shooting, Fred Guttenberg has become one of America’s most prominent anti-gun violence advocates.
On May 21 (noon), he’s the guest speaker at CT Against Gun Violence’s spring benefit luncheon. He’ll discuss his — and his fellow activists’ — efforts to turn pain into purpose, as well his book “Find the Helpers: What 9/11 and Parkland Taught Me about Recovery, Purpose and Hope.”
Since its founding in 1993, CAGV has lobbied effectively for some of the strongest gun laws in the country.
They were behind Connecticut’s 1993 assault weapons ban, the 3rd in the nation. Since Sandy Hook, they’ve worked closely with the state legislature to enact universal background checks, an expanded assault weapons ban, and limits on large capacity magazines.
Click here for tickets, and more information.
================================================
The Westport Sunrise Rotary Club is proud of its interesting guest speakers.
Next Friday (April 19, Green’s Farms Church), US Senator Richard Blumenthal takes the mic.
The public is invited. Coffee, bagels and muffins are served at 7 a.m.; the meeting begins at 7:45.
Senator Richard Blumenthal
================================================
Speaking of politics: Congratulations to the Staples High School Class of 2024!
On Wednesday, the Westport League of Women Voters registered 112 seniors who will turn 18 by Election Day (November 5). Another 15-2 took home forms to complete there.
Last year, 57 seniors registered. So the Class of ’24 set a Staples LWV single-day voter registration record — by a landslide.
LWV registers new voters at Staples.
==================================================
Och and oy! Alan Cumming and Ari Shapiro are a powerful 1-2 punch.
The Scottish actor (“Cabaret,” “The Good Wife”) and American journalist and singer (NPR’s “All Things Considered,” Pink Martini) join forces for an evening of entertainment at the Westport Country Playhouse.
The November 22 event is called “Och & Oy.” The title pays homage to Cumming’s Scottish and Shapiro’s Jewish roots.
The show combines the best bits of public radio and a musical, with “deep, thought-provoking conversations and also entertaining, perhaps slightly bawdy, musical numbers.” It’s a mix of songs, Q&A and personal storytelling.
Click here for tickets (on sale at 1 p.m. today), and more information.
=================================================
The Westport Weston Family YMCA is all about health for all — especially youth.
So it’s a no-brainer for them to invite everyone to Healthy Kids Day (April 27, 11 a.m. to 1 p.m.).
Part of a national Y program, Healthy Kids Day highlights the importance of nutritious eating, physical activity, mental resilience, and developing lifelong healthy habits.
The event includes mini-classes, food trucks with healthy options, a bounce house, water safety demonstrations, and community vendors and partners.
To register (it’s free!), click here.
=================================================
The “swirling, ethereal” voices of Lyyra Ensemble’s women’s choral comes to Christ & Holy Trinity Episcopal Church on Sunday, April 21 (5 p.m.).
The repertoire includes jazz, folk and classical pieces. Afterward, attendees can meet the singers at a special reception.
Tickets are available at the door, or by clicking here.
Lyyra
================================================
There are garage sales.
And then there is MoCA and Designport’s “Upscale Garage Sale.” It’s set for May 4 (noon to 4 p.m.), at MoCA Westport.
Interior designers, stagers and local shops will join together to “spring clean” excess inventory at discounted prices — for example, furniture pieces like end tables, dining chairs and ottomans), tableware, vases, lamps, pillows, accessories, throws, frames, small rugs, coffee table books and more.
Upscale Garage Sale sellers include Apadana Fine Rugs, Kerri Rosenthal, House of Prim, The Post, The Rath Project, House of Huck, Maison Sheik, Smart Playrooms and Innate Studios.
A “Drop In Kids’ Art Studio” will entertain youngsters. There’s also music by LeRoy Decker.
There is a suggested $10 donation. Click here for more information.
=================================================
Molly Doe Wensberg.is Sorelle Gallery’s new featured artist. Her abstract landscapes of New England scenery — from rolling hills to coastal sunsets — are on view through May 4.
The show opens tomorrow (Saturday). Click here for more information about her work.
“Between Tides” (Molly Doe Wensberg)
==================================================
Westport resident and tennis aficionado Christian Le Brun died Saturday at home. He was 56, and had been diagnosed 22 months earlier with glioblastoma brain cancer.
Born in Buenos Aires, he grew up in Scarsdale, New York. He played tennis for Scarsdale High School and Lehigh University, and met his wife Oona on the tennis courts of Roosevelt Island.
A voracious competitor, Chris had a rich social life built around tennis. He spent many hours while ill watching the Tennis Channel, with a sprinkling of news. He also played canasta with his sister and parents.
His family says, “Chris was a stylish and elegant man, tall and slim, always impeccably groomed. On the work front he was unusual: a lawyer who loved being a lawyer.”
After working in New York for Chadbourne & Parke, Chris joined Orbcomm as general counsel in 2005. He played a key strategic role through an IPO, multiple satellite launches, 12 acquisitions and a go-private transaction.
His family says, “Chris loved family dinners with his wife and 1 boys, taking long walks with Oona and their chocolate lab Latte, and playing as much tennis as his busy schedule would allow.”
In addition to his wife and sons Nicolas and Jacque, Chris is survived by his parents Yves and Ana, brothers Lee and Paul, and sister Ceci.
A memorial service is set for on April 22 (2 p.m., Greens Farms Congregational Church). Click here to leave online condolences.
To honor Chris’s love for tennis, his family encourage donations to OTA, which supports underprivileged children in Cameroon through tennis and education.
Chris Le Brun
==================================================
As spring envelops us, scenes like this are popping up — and entrancing — folks all over town.
Today’s “Westport … Naturally” can be found on Compo Road South.
It won’t last long. But that makes it even more special.
(Photo/Bob Weingarten)
==================================================
And finally … happy birthday to Herbie Hancock! The jazz great is 84 years old today.
(And finally … every day, “06880” brings news of upcoming shows, talks, gallery openings and every other event imaginable. Please click here to support our wide-ranging blog. Thanks for your help!)