For years, the state Department of Transportation has pushed for a major renovation of the William Cribari (aka Bridge Street) Bridge.
For just as long, Westporters and town officials have pushed back. They fear that modernizing and widening the 2-lane span over the Saugatuck River would draw traffic — including 18-wheelers — off I-95, whenever there is an accident or delay on the nearby highway.
A solution appears to have been found.
And it’s a creative one.
The William Cribari (Bridge Street) Bridge. (Photo/Fred Cantor)
According to State Representative Jonathan Steinberg, the DOT is prepared to reroute Route 136. Right now, 136 includes North and South Compo Roads, and Bridge Street, through Saugatuck and on out to Saugatuck Avenue headed toward Norwalk.
Under the new plan, Route 136 would join the Post Road (also US1) at the North Compo intersection. It would head over the Ruth Steinkraus Cohen Bridge downtown, then go south on Riverside Avenue (also known as Route 33), and on toward Saugatuck Avenue.
Thus, the Cribari Bridge would no longer be a state road.
DOT has agreed to do repair work on the bridge — but not a major renovation.
When repairs are finished, DOT would hand the bridge over to the town. Westport would own it — and be responsible for ongoing and future maintenance.
The bridge and environs would no longer be Route 136.
The plan was described to a bipartisan group of state legislators from the area — Steinberg, State Senators Toni Boucher and Tony Hwang, and State Representative Gail Lavielle — by state DOT officials, including commissioner James Redeker. DOT wanted the legislators’ input, before presenting it to 1st selectman Jim Marpe.
[NOTE: An earlier version of this story described — based on a source — the meeting as a “negotiation.” It was an informational meeting only.]
“It’s not cost-free to the town,” Steinberg admits. “But once in a while we come up with creative solutions that work for everyone.”
He gives credit to the DOT. “If they weren’t on board, we’d still be battling this out,” Steinberg says.
Marpe notes, “The concept has just been presented to me. I’m working with my staff to understand the short-term and long-term implications — including finances and public safety — to the proposal. It’s certainly an alternative that needs to be seriously considered.”
Heather Hightower graduated from Staples High School in 1999, and the University of Virginia 4 years later. She’s still in Charlottesville, where she’s the founder and owner of The Center for Vocal Study (and choir director at Field School).
In the aftermath of that city’s domestic terrorism incident — as the world tries to figure out what to make of her adopted hometown — she emailed “06880.” Heather says:
The Charlottesville I know is full of caring, good, hardworking people who actively seek to improve the lives of others.
The Charlottesville I know cares about its children, its small business owners, its food sources, its historical mark on this nation.
The Charlottesville I know is full of people who take the time to read about the issues and who then give careful consideration to how to best support the highest good.
The Charlottesville I know had people attending lectures on historical roots of racism, prayer vigils and other peaceful forms of activism the nights and weeks leading into this past weekend’s events.
Heather Hightower
The Charlottesville I know is committed to the values our nation holds dear, including diversity and freedom of speech.
The Charlottesville I know has the strength and presence of mind in its residents and leaders to tackle major issues and work towards resolution. We have faced some difficult issues in the past few years that have sparked national conversation. The events of this weekend, amplified by participants from out of town, do not represent the heart of Charlottesville. This city is strong, thoughtful, kind and cares about its neighbors and where we are going as a community.
The Charlottesville that will prevail is one powered by good. We have a marvelous opportunity to demonstrate how to lead in a time of crisis. It begins with how we conduct these conversations and how we rise to keep working towards change that builds community. Our community is listening, it is acting, and our artists are shining brightly.
All 3 Westport selectmen — Jim Marpe, Avi Kaner and Helen Garten — have signed an Anti-Defamation League petition. It requests that President Trump “publicly and unequivocally disavow white supremacy.”
The statement reads:
The White House’s repeated failure to stand up to white supremacy and other forms of domestic extremism emboldens and allows its perpetrators to increase their visibility.
Now is the time for President Trump to name the hate and acknowledge that this is not a matter of equivalence between two sides with similar gripes.
The White House’s refusal to disavow white supremacist ideology as a growing source of extremist violence empowers and abets its perpetrators.
President Trump must personally and unequivocally disavow white supremacy and end the White House’s enabling and tolerating its rise.
To truly take a stand, we urge President Trump to also terminate all staff with any ties to these extremists. There is no rationale for employing people who excuse hateful rhetoric and ugly incitement.
At 16 — with just $150 and “a bag of clothes” — Stephen Kempson left England for San Diego. His dream was to become a professional soccer player.
It didn’t happen. But unlike many Brits who don’t become the next Beckham, Kempson had another talent to fall back on.
As a lad, he’d worked for a small London haberdasher. On tea breaks he watched as tailors took fittings, then turned fabric into handsome suits.
Kempson liked soccer. But he loved men’s style.
When his sports career ended, Kempson worked on Rodeo Drive. Then came stints at Hickey Freeman, Dormeuil and Brioni. He learned about textiles, manufacturing and more.
In 2001, he opened his own business in Los Angeles. It grew — but the real potential was in his New York clients. They dressed more formally than men in California. Soon, Kempson was traveling every other week to the East Coast.
One summer Sunday in 2004, a friend who had moved from L.A. to Westport took Kempson and his wife to Longshore. Sitting at Splash, both said “Wow!”
It did not take long for them to move. They’re raising 3 kids here, and love the community.
For most of that time, Kempson commuted to his Park Avenue atelier. But a few months ago — as the train ride got longer, and his children got older — he thought about opening a pop-up shop here.
Driving over the Post Road bridge in April, Kempson spotted a sign in the first storefront on Post Road West. George Subkoff Antiques was moving.
The space was perfect. With a cutting table in the front, passersby could watch suits being made. Enormous windows on the side and in back offered superb views of the Saugatuck River and downtown.
Stephen Kempson in his store. Behind him are diners on Arezzo’s patio, and the Saugatuck River.
Stephen Kempson London opened just over a month ago. In addition to bespoke suits, jackets, pants and shirts, he offers shoes, ties and cufflinks; tailoring; ready-to-wear items off the rack, and wardrobe consultation.
In fact, that personal touch is where Kempson truly excels.
As we chatted the other day — with the river behind us, and a well-stocked bar in the corner — a customer walked in. He carried a $5,000 jacket. But it did not fit well — and the tailor in Milan had never met him.
Kempson knows his customers — where they work, what they do, what makes them them.
“I want people to put on my jacket, smile, and say ‘Wow! This is me!'” Kempson says.
Stephen Kempson explains fabric.
He tells the story of a Financial Times staffer who interviewed him in New York. At the end, the writer asked Kempson for a critique of his suit.
Kempson told the truth: It did not fit him well. When the man handed over his business card, Kempson learned he was Lionel Barber — the FT’s New York managing editor. Kempson figured he’d blown the interview.
But it turns out Barber’s colleagues had long despaired of his wardrobe. They encouraged him to get a full makeover.
A few weeks later, Barber wore his new suit to an industry dinner. Colleagues marveled at how great he looked. One asked where he got his tie. Others wondered if he’d lost weight.
“That’s why I do what I do,” Kempson says.
Suits in the Stephen Kempson window — and reflections across Post Road West.
And that’s why he is so happy to be doing it in his adopted hometown. He’s looking for a way to get more involved in the community — particularly for those in need.
Eight years ago on a train to New York, he overheard a conversation with a down-and-out man. Touched, Kempson offered to pay for his monthly train ticket, so he could keep his job. The two are still in touch.
“You have to give a hand up, rather than a handout,” Kempson explains.
And then — near the end of our chat — this perfectly dressed, well-coiffed man says something stunning.
“I was homeless once,” Kempson admits.
Twenty years ago in L.A. — separated from his wife, with a 6-month-old child — he was living on the streets, showering at a pool. A friend of a friend gave him a place to live.
Today, Kempson lives in Westport. He is elegant. His new store — also in Westport — is warm, welcoming and classic.
You can’t make this stuff up.
But Stephen Kempson can make sure that your clothes make you.
The weekend’s horrific events in Charlottesville shined a spotlight on the despicable, bigoted, anti-American groups and individuals now crawling out from under the rocks where they’ve hidden for years.
It also gave fresh momentum to a no-hate movement that’s been building here in Westport.
Earlier this summer, Bedford Middle School teacher Kerstin Rao visited Evanston, Illinois. She spotted several lawn signs:
Kerstin was staying with her husband’s cousin. Both men were born in India. Like Kerstin, her husband’s cousin is in a mixed marriage.
Pushing a stroller with her relatives’ infant daughter, and seeing similar signs on every street, gave Kerstin a “truly inclusive” feeling.
She vowed to bring that feeling back to Westport.
Online, she found the website for what was becoming a national movement. Organizers laid down a few simple rules: It could not be a fundraiser; it could not be political or partisan; the original design could not be altered, and the yard signs had to be sold at cost.
“This is truly a grassroots effort to show our welcoming hearts,” Kerstin says.
She learned that a few areas in Connecticut already had signs. She bought one from a Milford friend.
When Kerstin wrote about the movement on Jane Green’s “Westport Front Porch” Facebook page, the response was immediate. She organized a meeting at Barnes & Noble.
Baker Graphics offered a great price for printing. Steam Coffee at the Greens Farms train station offered to sell the signs to commuters.
The group that met at Barnes & Noble last week loved that the project is non-partisan. They vowed to include people from a wide spectrum to help spread the “no hate” message.
On Sunday, Kerstin and her husband Vijay brought their red-and-blue sign to the demonstration on the Post Road bridge:
“Peace is non-partisan,” Kerstin notes. “We are not affiliated with any political party, religion or cause. We just want to put a message in our neighborhoods that hate has no home here.”
She adds, “As a teacher, I imagine students of various backgrounds heading back to school, maybe feeling nervous. Maybe this will be their first year in Westport schools. The thought of them looking out their bus windows and seeing so many welcoming signs — well, that is really wearing our hearts on our sleeves.”
(The no-hate group has set up a fundraising page (click here). Donations will pay for printing only. To volunteer for the effort, email hhnhhwestport@gmail.com.)
Pat Kery thinks of the Saugatuck firehouse as “her” firehouse.
The art appraiser once had an office at Bridge Square. She still lives nearby.
So when she found a Stevan Dohanos print for sale called “Hose Co. 4” — which looked a lot like the Saugatuck firehouse, Engine Company 4 — she was excited.
The Saugatuck firehouse.
Actually, more than excited. She helped bring it home to Westport.
Kery consults for WestPAC — Westport’s Public Art Collection. She’s also a longtime Dohanos aficionado. Researching her 1982 book, “Great Magazine Covers of the World,” she learned a lot about the local illustrator. He drew 123 covers for the Saturday Evening Post — as well as the incredible mural that has hung since 1953 in the Coleytown Elementary School office.
Dohanos’ 1950 firehouse lithograph shows firemen shooting the breeze with a mailman, as they wait for the next call.
Stevan Dohanos’ “Hose Co. 4.”
“His genius was capturing the ordinary things in life — in particular some of the small details we might miss in our fast-paced lives,” Kery says.
“Hose Co. 4” shows bedposts in the 2nd-floor windows, laundry drying on a clothesline, and an alert Dalmatian for companionship.
“From a stylistic standpoint, the artist brilliantly echoes circles and squares — the firehouse, the trees, the dog — to visually tie in elements in the print,” she explains.
Stevan Dohanos at work.
Recently, Kery learned the print — signed by the artist in the lower right, one of an edition of 250, and in pristine condition — was being sold by a dealer in the Midwest. She called, and learned he’d visited Dohanos in Westport shortly before his death.
The seller offered an excellent price — and framed it. Sam Gault generously provided funds for its purchase. Now it joins 3 other Dohanos Saturday Evening Post covers, and various illustrations — in the WestPAC collection.
It’s a treasure trove of art, including a Picasso and other world-renowned works.
But the real value of WestPAC is the chance to bring something like Stevan Dohanos’ firehouse “home.”
BONUS STEVAN DOHANOS PHOTO BELOW:
This circa 1950 print — donated by Kery — is from a photograph at the Norman Rockwell Museum’s Famous Artists School Archives.
It shows Dohanos hanging out with Westport firefighters, in front of the original fire headquarters. It was on Church Lane downtown, next to the YMCA Bedford Building (left).
When fire headquarters moved to the Post Road, where it is today (next to Terrain), the old firehouse was incorporated into the YMCA. Its 1st floor became the Y’s new fitness center, while the 2nd floor was converted into a weight room and cardio studio.
Today, both the Bedford Building and old firehouse have been refashioned into Bedford Square.
Fran Southworth has lived in Westport for 29 years. She is part of Indivisible Connecticut 4, and the Facebook Love in Action group.
Last night — saddened and horrified by the events in Charlottesville — she felt compelled to act. Fran writes:
Seeing the images of the University of Virginia students made me think about my own kids when they were in college, and the horror if they had been confronted with such hatred, intolerance and racism. Because of the hateful slogans chanted by the white supremacists, and the physical actions that caused at least 1 death and many injuries, I felt the need to unify as a community. We needed to come together to voice our opposition to hate, and teach our children and grandchildren that what they are witnessing now is not what America is all about.
So I decided to do a pop-up peaceful gathering on our bridge in Westport. I thought I might be standing there alone with my sign: “Normalize Love Not Hate! Honk if You Agree.”
Getting Darcy Hicks involved was a sure way to gather people.
This morning Melissa Kane contacted me. We chatted about our similar family history. She spread the word as well.
Then a new activist friend, Juliana Hess, told her group. We were off and running.
Juliana wrote beautifully that people in Europe would never have sat back and done nothing if they knew what was coming. My Jewish grandparents ran for their lives from Russia. They and others told me stories of friends and relatives who ran. Many were killed in the Holocaust. Others survived. All taught me: “Never Again.”
Never again — yet Charlottesville just happened. I feel very deeply the pain, destruction and horror it has caused. I also say: “Never Again.”
Fran Southworth (center), flanked by Myra Garvett and Darcy Hicks, on the Ruth Steinkraus Cohen Bridge earlier today.
I also want to speak out for my close friend and singing partner, an African American woman. Because of the history of slavery and racism in America, blacks have always struggled here. But things are worsening, with white supremacists set loose by the tacit acceptance of our administration toward violence and intolerance.
My friend explained to me that they don’t want to have a separate “Black Lives Matter” presence. Unfortunately they have to.
We have to stop these white supremacists in their tracks. We must make it very clear that they — and their hate and intolerance — have no place in our communities. White supremacists, neo-Nazis and anti-Semites are the antitheses of our American values.
The president said there are many sides to this. There are no other sides to hatred and bigotry. I watched David Duke, a former KKK leader, say that President Trump told them they will take back our country.
No! We will take back our country. We will continue to live up to the American ideals of tolerance and inclusion of all people.
We need to let our politicians know that this is a very important issue for all of us. It’s not about anyone’s political party or agenda. It’s about human decency, compassion and respect.
Bob Powers grew up in Westport. After graduating from Staples High School in 1971, then Amherst College in ’75, he headed to med school at the University of Virginia.
He loved life in the college town. His children were born there. He moved twice — to Minnesota, and back to Connecticut. But as Powers — a physician and professor at UVa’s med school — notes, he’s now spent 30 years in Charlottesville. That’s longer than he’s lived anywhere else.
Like any Southern town, Powers says, there’s a history of racial discord dating back to slavery. Though the university has provided an intellectual base, schools there closed in the 1960s rather than succumb to desegregation.
“I have African American friends here who helped integrate the schools,” Power says. “And I have white friends who were pulled out of them.”
One of his patients — an older black woman — was involuntarily sterilized.
“This is not ancient history,” he explains.
Dr. Robert Powers
As a youngster in Westport, he says, “I was blissfully ignorant of all that. It’s part of Southern history. There’s nothing like that in the north.”
When he moved to Charlottesville he noticed rebel flags, and statues of Confederate heroes. He saw “thinly painted over signs” for colored restrooms.
Since then, he says, the town of 45,000 has gentrified. UVa has drawn “carpetbagging Yankees like me” for years.
Much of Charlottesville remains “voluntarily segregated.” There are black and white churches, funeral homes and neighborhoods. “People feel a level of comfort” in separate cultures and identities.
There is little “overt animosity” between blacks and whites, Powers says. The university in particular has made great strides toward inclusion. The dean of the medical school, hospital director and Powers’ own boss are all African American.
What happened this weekend, he says, began with outsiders who seized on the fact that Charlottesville’s officials “dithered” about removing statues of Robert E. Lee and Stonewall Jackson from prominent places. Issues like cost, and what to do with them once they were gone, made the city a “fat target and convenient flash point” for alt-right and racist groups.
However, he adds, 2 of the main organizers have ties to the area. White supremacist Richard Spencer graduated from UVa in 2001 (with high distinction in English literature and music), while self-described “white rights activist” Jason Kessler lives in Charlottesville.
A rally last month drew Ku Klux Klan members from North Carolina. It was “nasty,” Powers says, “but not terribly violent.”
A striking image from the Ku Klux Klan’s July 8 rally in Charlottesville.
That led to a national call to action, by a variety of alt-right, Nazi and KKK groups. It also galvanized opposition from around the country.
“It was very clear that people came this weekend expecting to fight,” Powers says. Protesters wore fatigues, and carried helmets, batons and shields. Virginia is an “open carry” state; some brandished civilian versions of AK-47s.
Storeowners boarded their windows. The UVa hospital discharged patients, keeping beds open for mass casualties.
The weekend turned into “much more than the First Amendment right of assembly and peaceful speech,” says Powers.
Mostly, he says, “this was not local people behaving badly. It was people coming in to our city to behave badly.”
A scene from yesterday in Charlottesville.
On Friday night — hoping to “demonstrate opposition” to the march, by “showing our faces and being counted without confrontation or violence” — Powers and his wife Sally attended a large community prayer service. Harvard professor Cornel West gave a powerful speech. Other clergy — including Muslims — spoke too.
Powers was gratified to see that the majority of attendees were white. “This is not about race,” he says. “It’s an outrage of principle.”
A torchlight alt-right procession came close to the church. As a precaution, police kept service-goers inside.
On Saturday morning, Powers and his wife went to a clergy-led march. It ended around 9:30. The couple went home.
Soon, authorities revoked the alt-right marchers’ permit. They dispersed — unhappily — into smaller groups around Charlottesville. Police could not control them. Confrontations ended when a car roared into counter-demonstrators, killing 1 woman and injuring 19.
“I’d be horrified to watch this from a distance,” Powers says. “It’s even worse when it happens in your own back yard, in a city not prone to this.”
Now, he predicts, there will be finger-pointing. Why were demonstrators and counter-protesters allowed to be so near each other? On the other hand, how could a small city be expected to handle so many inflamed people?
Powers is sure of one thing.
“The vast majority of the city — rich and poor, white and black, university-affiliated and not — were unified against this.”
And, he notes, the woman who was killed was from Charlottesville. The driver was from Ohio.
“Someone in our town was murdered by someone from elsewhere,” he says.
Bob Powers grew up in Westport. But Charlottesville is now his home town.
Like many Americans, he grieves for it.
And like many of us — in Westport and elsewhere — he wonders what comes next.
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