Tag Archives: Colony Road

Roundup: Long Lots Approval, Saugatuck Block Party, Temple Israel Storyteller …

Posted on June 17, 2025 | 1 comment

The last official town body to weigh in on the new Long Lots Elementary School delivered its verdict last night.

The Planning & Zoning Commission voted unanimously to approve a revised 8-24 site plan for the $108 million project.

Four days earlier, the Representative Town Meeting (RTM) gave its unanimous consent.

One hurdle remains, before the project can be put out to bid, and ground broken: a possible referendum.

Opponents have 14 days to gather 1,860 signatures — 10% of registered voters.

One early sketch of a new Long Lots Elementary School.

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It’s not quite the Slice of Saugatuck.

But a variety of businesses in Saugatuck Center invite everyone to block party this Sunday (June 22, 2 to 4 p.m.).

In and around the Whelk plaza, there will be live music, small bites, lawn games, and fun for all ages. It’s sponsored by “your favorite local businesses.”

See you there!

Block party time!

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Alex Edelman — called “the Jewish voice of his generation,” whose shows blur the line between standup comedy and narrative-driven storytelling — brings his show to Temple Israel next month (July 30, 7 p.m.).

Click here for tickets, and more information.

Alex Edelman

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If it’s (almost) summer, it must be paving season.

This was the action yesterday, on Colony Road at Salem Road.

(Photo/Richard Fogel)

As always, there is an ambitious schedule all across town.

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Just over a year ago, Sivan Hong shared a “Westport … Naturally” photo of a pair of baby foxes.

That den has new tenants. Five baby groundhogs waddled out on Sunday. Sivan says they’re about 5 weeks old.

(Photo/Sivan Hong)

We’ll check back a year from now. Who knows what creatures we’ll find then.

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And finally … on this date in 1631, Mumtaz Mahal died during childbirth. Her husband, Mughal emperor Shah Jahan I, spent the next 17 years building her mausoleum. Today we know it as the Taj Mahal.

(Ain’t nobody’s business but ours. To keep “06880” going, please make a tax-deductible contribution by clicking here. Thank you!)

1 Comment

Posted in Education, Entertainment, Local politics, religion, Saugatuck

Tagged Colony Road, Long Lots Elementary School, Planning & Zoning Commission, Temple Israel, The Whelk

Police Arrest Israel Flag Thief

Posted on February 28, 2024 | 21 comments

Westport Police have arrested a 27-year-old Brooklyn man, for the December theft of Israel flag lawn signs.

On December 30, the WPD initiated a larceny investigation after a complaint was made concerning those thefts. A Colony Road resident saw a man walking down the street, hauling a dumpster.

He stopped at a house across the street, with an Israel flag on the lawn. He seemed to check to see if anyone was looking, then stuffed the flag in his dumpster and continued walking.

The resident got in his car, and took a picture:

Worried what would happen if he confronted someone who would do such a thing, he returned home and called the police.

When he went back out a few minutes later, the man “seemed to have disappeared,” the resident said. “Maybe he was picked up by someone.”

A detective quickly arrived.

The neighbor had already replaced her Israel flag. But as the officer and the resident who called were at his front door discussing the incident, a white car with New York plates pulled up across the street.

Someone jumped out, grabbed the new sign, and zoomed away. He did not see the police car — but the detective saw it all.

He tried to pursue them, but was too late.

The police investigation revealed that 5 Israel flag yard signs were stolen.

William Banks

Through law enforcement sharing, the suspect was identified as William Banks.

A warrant was issued. Yesterday, Banks turned himself in to the Westport Police Department.

He was charged with 6th degree larceny, and released after posting a $500 bond.

He is due in Stamford Superior Court on March 19.

21 Comments

Posted in Police

Tagged Colony Road, Israel flag yard signs, William Banks

Brazen Israel Flag Thefts Stun Neighborhood

Posted on December 30, 2023 | 30 comments

A Colony Road resident was drinking coffee this morning.

Glancing outside, he saw a young man — late teens or early 20s — walking down the street, hauling a dumpster.

He stopped at a house across the street, with an Israel flag on the lawn. He seemed to check to see if anyone was looking, then stuffed the flag in his dumpster and continued walking.

The resident got in his car, and took a picture:

Worried what would happen if he confronted someone who would do such a thing, he returned home and called the police.

When he went back out a few minutes later, the young man “seemed to have disappeared,” the resident said. “Maybe he was picked up by someone.”

A detective quickly arrived.

Someone different from the first incident jumped out, grabbed the new sign, and zoomed away. He did not see the police car — but the detective saw it all.

He tried to pursue them, but was too late.

“I’m pretty sure what I saw the first time,” the Colony Road resident.

“I was hoping though, there might be a reasonable explanation. But I know what I saw the second time. Those signs were definitely stolen.”

He’s right.

That resident’s 2 flags were not the only ones taken. A resident told “06880” that other Israel flags — perhaps a dozen, up and down Colony Road, Salem Road and Terhune Drive — have also disappeared.

Anyone with any information should call the Westport Police: 203-341-6000.

30 Comments

Posted in Politics

Tagged Colony Road, Israel

Drew Angus’ Wrecking Ball

Posted on April 7, 2022 | 6 comments

This old house is quiet now
But I still hear the sounds
The Stones on the stereo
Mets on the radio
Mom screaming turn it down
Dust on the shelves
Dents in the rug where my bed once rested
Tomorrow the Wrecking Ball tears it down.

The words may be unfamiliar. But the feelings resonate with anyone whose childhood home was chopped down.

Just like the one on Colony Road, where Drew Angus grew up.

I still see my family and me
Framed on the walls
My brother’s first steps
Big wheel wrecks
And the fire pit in the fall
You might see some shutters and shingles
But to me it’s something sacred
Tomorrow the Wrecking Ball tears it down.

Drew’s parents moved there in 1994, when he was 4 years old. Four houses shared one driveway.

Drew Angus’ Colony Road home.

“It was such a fun place to grow up,” he says. “We rode our bikes to school. There was a huge ravine in the back. We played manhunt, hide-and-seek and paintball. It was the best trick-or-treating spot in town, before Gault.”

Drew graduated from Staples High School in 2007. He’s now a singer/songwriter, with a great following. This summer, he’ll join the Lumineers and Stevie Nicks at Bridgeport’s Sound on Sound Festival.

Drew Angus

He sings about what he knows. One of those is that his childhood home is now just a memory.

Oh tomorrow the Wrecking Ball tears it
Down to the dirt in a cloud of dust
22 years and what’s left of us
Surrenders to the Wrecking Ball
Oh, surrenders to the Wrecking Ball.

Drew had so much to write about. He and co-writer Neil Herman captured some of his feelings in the lyrics above and below. But he remembers so much more: The scratches on the floor from a rowdy sleepover. The spot where orange soda spilled during a birthday party. His bedroom wall, painted like a western movie scene.

Not all the memories are great, of course. But right now, they’re all he has.

That, and his song.

If this old house could speak somehow
What would it say?
Thanks for the memories
But just like a melody
It’s my time to fade away
Take one last look
Carve your name in the door
And kick out the kitchen windows
‘Cause tomorrow the Wrecking Ball tears it down.

“Wrecking Ball” cover.

The backhoe creaked up the driveway. Drew asked if he could hop in. The operator showed him which lever to push. Within seconds, the garage came tumbling down.

Oh tomorrow the Wrecking Ball tears it
Down to the dirt in a cloud of dust
22 years and what’s left of us
Surrenders to the Wrecking Ball
Oh Surrenders, surrenders
Surrenders, surrenders
Surrenders to the Wrecking Ball.

The lyrics, he says, are “some of the truest to my heart of any song I’ve written.”

It’s tough to put himself out there like that. And countless other people are losing their homes for other reasons, like foreclosures and bombs.

But, Drew says, “this is my story.”

And — at least in “06880,” and places like this — it’s many of his fans’ stories too.

This old house is quiet now
But I still hear the sounds…

(Click here to stream Drew Angus’ “Wrecking Ball” on Spotify, Apple Music, iTunes and other platforms.)

6 Comments

Posted in Entertainment, Real estate, Staples HS

Tagged "Wrecking Ball", Colony Road, Drew Angus

Storm Sequel: Police Report Road Closures

Posted on July 1, 2019 | 10 comments

As cleanup and repairs continue after yesterday’s storm, the Westport Police Department urges residents to stay home. They say: “If you must be on the road, please drive with caution. Do not attempt to go around police tape and/or barricades.

“Please be considerate of these conditions during your morning commute. Allow for extra time, as damage has been extensive.”

These roads are still closed:

Long Lots Lane
1 Long Lots Road
30 Long Lots Road
Long Lots Road at Morningside Drive North
30 Morningside Drive South
Spicer Court at Spicer Road
6 Clapboard Hill Road
235 Greens Farms Road
245 Greens Farms Road
23 Hillandale Road

The WPD also reminds Westporteres to treat every downed wire as if it were live, even if it does not appear to be energized.

Power outage reports, general outage questions, or non-emergency issues associated with electrical repairs should be directed to Eversource: 800-286-2000.

This Colony Road home sustained a direct hit from a tree during yesterday’s storm. One resident sustained minor injuries. The house was declared uninhabitable. (Photo/Westport Fire Department)

10 Comments

Posted in Police, Weather

Tagged Colony Road, June 30 2019 storm, Westport Fire Department, Westport Police Department