In 2011 — after years of court battles — town officials and neighbors reached an agreement to add lights to the Staples High School football field.
The court-ordered settlement precluded lighting other Westport fields, besides PJ Romano (behind Saugatuck Elementary School), and the Greens Farms Elementary School softball diamond.
The agreement expired a couple of years ago. On Monday — after long negotaitions — the Planning & Zoning Commission approved 5-1 (with 1 abstention) a text amendment to allow lights at other sites.
Each proposal will be reviewed by the P&Z. Among the requirements:
- Notification of all neighbors within 250 feet.
- Screening for residential properties.
- Most practices and games must end by 9 p.m.
Paul Lane Field (Photo/Mark Mathias)
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For 25 years, traffic agent Jerry Waldron has been a Westport Police Department staple.
Commuters and residents see him directing traffic at the Route 1 and 33 intersection and by the Cribari Bridge, or patrolling the railroad station and downtown parking lots.
Not bad, for a 90-year-old.
Yesterday, the WPD celebrated Jerry’s milestone birthday, at police headquarters.
Friends, family and officers — current and retired (all younger) — threw him a surprise party.
Jerry was surprised, and grateful.
But he’s not slowing down. He will be back at work tomorrow, directing lunch hour traffic at 1 and 33.
If you see him, wish him a belated “happy birthday.”
Maybe — considering all that traffic — a wave is better than a honk.
Happy 90th, Jerry Waldron!
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In addition to Jerry Waldron’s birthday, this is also Eating Disorder Awareness Week.
In its honor, Lift Wellness Group hosts a hot chocolate pop-up bar today (Wednesday, February 26, 11 a.m.) at their 8 Myrtle Avenue office.
They hope to shine a light on eating disorders, which have the second highest mortality rate of any mental illness.
And, of course, to offer a nice, tasty treat. The public is invited.
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The Compo Beach playground renovation is about to begin.
As “06880” noted yesterday, the Playground Committee has ensured that anyone who bought a fundraising picket during the last rebuild — 19 years ago — can claim it as a souvenir.
Jennifer Seideman offers more good news about the beloved site. She writes:
“While walking at Compo Beach yesterday, I noticed the project has begun. Of course it makes me nostalgic, as my twins were newborns when the last one was installed. We have many fine memories at that playground.
“I saw that the workers were thoughtful enough to gather together some shoes they uncovered while digging up the old playground.
“They created a ‘lost and found’ space on top of a garbage can near the boardwalk. Here is a photo that may help some families with missing shoes.”
“I will look forward to watching the transformation of the playground, seeing many families enjoy it and make it part of their special experiences in Westport as my children did,” she adds.
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For 3 weekends next month, Weston’s Lachat Town Farm becomes a Brooklyn restaurant.
That’s the setting for “Seared,” a comedy that brings audiences into a kitchen.
First produced off-Broadway in 2019, the show earned Outer Critics Circle Awards. As garlic and onions sizzle on stage, the play explores conflicts between artistic passion and the pressures of the business world.
“Seared” is produced by Diana Muller, formerly of Play With Your Food lunchtime theater.
Show dates are March 7 through 23: Fridays and Saturdays at 7:30 p.m., Sundays at 3 p.m. Click here for tickets, and more information.
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Voices Café often attracts interesting artists, from up and down the East Coast.
On April 5, one of them is a homegrown talent.
In fact, very talented.
Dustin Lowman — a 2011 Staples High School graduate, now making his name as a New York-based singer/songwriter — opens for Lucy Kaplansky.
Dustin says: “In the years since leaving Westport, I’ve forged an unconventional path, using the tools that growing up there afforded me.
“The path has been winding — from Vermont to Nashville to Chicago, and lately to Brooklyn — but its ineluctable root is Westport. I think at 32 that I’m too old for the title ‘The Prodigal Son’; nonetheless, returning to Westport to perform is like the most wonderful version of show and tell: showing the people who gave me so much what their gifts have done for me, and telling them the story of what I’ve tried to do with them.”
Click here for tickets about the show at the Unitarian Universalist Congregation in Westport, and more information.
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In today’s “Westport … Naturally” feature, at least a dozen crows blend in on a barren tree, at Compo Shopping Center.
Can you see them all? They’re there!
(Photo/Tracy Porosoff)
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And finally … this is one of my least favorite songs of all time. I truly despise it.
But — after the Planning & Zoning Commission’s decision about athletic fields (story above), it does work today.
(Attention, “06880” readers: You can light up my life by clicking here, to show your tax-deductible support of this hyper-local blog. Thank you!)