Tag Archives: Compo Acres Shopping Center

Those Pesky Red Lights

Posted on July 24, 2015 | 28 comments

This is not stop-the-presses news:

The other day, someone ran a red light in front of Trader Joe’s.

This time though, the driver did not simply scare the crap out of a poor person attempting to exit from Compo Acres Shopping Center, through The Worst Intersection In The Entire Multiverse.

The driver — roaring east on the Post Road — denied running the light.

That did not sit well with Bruce Leavitt. He’s the husband of the woman who was hit. He knows how common it is for drivers to race through the light.

In 20 minutes, he saw it happen more than once. He also saw how tough it is for drivers leaving the shopping center; a large sign blocks the view of traffic coming from the left.

Bruce took this video, of a common sight:

(If your browser does not take you directly to YouTube, click here.)

Now he wants others to do the same. And not just at the Trader Joe’s/CVS Intersection From Hell — anywhere else in town you think there’s a problem.

If we get enough, we’ll publish them on “06880.”

And then we’ll have actual proof, to convince someone — the Connecticut Department of Transportation? Shopping center owners? The Traffic Genie? — to do something.

“Remove a sign. Delay timing on a light. Crack down on light runners…” Bruce suggests.

Send videos (via YouTube or Vimeo format) to dwoog@optonline.net. As the saying goes, “It can’t hurt.”

Unless, that is, you get hit by a Very Important Driver running a very clear red light.

This is the light in question. Drivers exiting from the Trader Joe’s lot (dark car) often have to contend with cars flying through the red light on the Post Road, from the left

28 Comments

Posted in Local business, Places, Transportation

Tagged Bruce Leavitt, Compo Acres Shopping Center, Trader Joe's

Robeks Runs Out Of Juice

Posted on June 19, 2015 | 2 comments

With its fellow Compo Acres tenants, Robeks endured ~~weeks months~~ years of construction.

Finally, it’s over.

But so is Robeks.

Today, the smoothie shop stands empty.

Don’t count on traffic to ease up for long in the notoriously difficult parking lot, though.

Chipotle opens soon.

2 Comments

Posted in Local business, Restaurants

Tagged Compo Acres Shopping Center, Robeks

“It’s Baaaaaack”: The Back Story

Posted on June 15, 2015 | 5 comments

Equity One’s offices were closed this weekend, when Westporters first noticed the reappearance of the “paint palette” sign at Compo Acres Shopping Center.

But this morning, a spokesman for the shopping center’s owner provided some background information:

When Equity One became aware that their property manager had discarded
the sign, they set aside funds to replace it. They contacted the Westport Arts Center, which recommended Duvian Montoya.

Working from less-than-clear Google Street View images, he recreated it almost perfectly.

The spokesman said, “It is a shame the original sign was lost. But we are glad we could restore something similar in its place, which hopefully will remain for a long time.”

The new sign …

… and a view of the original, which Duvian Montoya worked from.

5 Comments

Posted in Local business, Places

Tagged Compo Acres Shopping Center, Equity One

It’s Baaaaaack!

Posted on June 13, 2015 | 10 comments

Antonia Landgraf is many things. She’s

New to town
An alert “06880” reader
And a very alert Westporter.

Tonight, Antonia emailed me:

Is this the sign everybody was in an uproar about when it was removed? It was leaning against a tree today on the corner of South Compo and the Post Road.

Yes! It is!

As “06880” reported nearly 2 years ago, the “paint palette” sign — a fixture at Compo Acres Shopping Center since it was built in the 1950s — disappeared when Equity One bought the property.

Another alert reader — Suzanne Sherman Propp — tracked down the man responsible for the center: Northeast regional manager Glenn Wilson. He sent a curt reply: “We had that replaced and I believe it was thrown out.”

Now, however — without fanfare — it’s back. It’s almost exactly where it sat, for decades. And — judging from the undated photo below — it’s almost certainly the original sign:

Score one for Equity One.

Now, if they can bring back Silver’s, Carousel Toy Store, Franklin Simon and the luncheonette…

10 Comments

Posted in Local business, People, Places

Tagged Antonia Landgraf, Compo Acres Shopping Center, Equity One, Suzanne Sherman Propp

You Think Compo Acres Needs Some New Signs?!

Posted on May 30, 2015 | 23 comments

In all my years in Westport, only once have I seen a car going the wrong way in the narrow drive in front of Compo Acres Shopping Center.

Since the recent renovation though, it’s become an epidemic.

In the space of about 5 minutes yesterday, alert (and very frightened) “06880” reader Susan Shuldman spotted 3 — 3! — drivers who apparently entered by Trader Joe’s.

In the absence of “One Way/Do Not Enter” signs — and/or blithely ignoring all the cars facing them on both sides, and/or mesmerized by the prospect of Robek’s, SoulCycle or the texts they were reading — they casually cruised through the one-way traffic, calmly parked, and went about their business.

(Photos/Susan Shuldman)

The good news: Thanks to the new, higher curbs, you can no longer exit directly from that parking lot into the Post Road.

23 Comments

Posted in Local business, Places, Transportation

Tagged Bad drivers, Compo Acres Shopping Center

Sycamore Sidewalk

Posted on April 24, 2015 | 9 comments

The handsome sycamore that sits just inside Compo Acres Shopping Center — right near the Post Road/South Compo entrances — has been the subject of “06880” stories before.

In December, owner Equity One declared the tree to be a “defining aspect” of the property. Representative Michael Lai said that Equity One “takes its stewardship seriously.”

Just how seriously has come into question recently.

The ongoing renovation project — very ongoing — has entered its sidewalk phase. Concerned Westporters wonder if the sycamore — which has already survived a construction-related “mulch volcano” (a potentially tree-killing layer was mounded against the trunk), and bark damage (a woman attached an advertising sign for a fitness center) — can withstand all the cement that will soon be poured around its base.

9 Comments

Posted in Environment, Local business

Tagged Compo Acres Shopping Center, Equity One, sycamore tree

Despite What It Looks Like, Compo Acres IS Open For Business This Holiday Season

Posted on December 17, 2014 | 10 comments

You just have to park in the back.

Well, the waaaaay back.

10 Comments

Posted in Local business, Real estate

Tagged Compo Acres Shopping Center, Equity One

Saving Compo Acres’ Sycamore

Posted on December 2, 2014 | 8 comments

Equity One has been pilloried for its excavation work behind Compo Acres Shopping Center. More trees than allowed by permit were demolished to create a level parking lot. The result: more asphalt, and less privacy for neighbors.

But around the corner, the owner is working to save one tree.

Equity One representative Michael Lai told “06880” reader and town activist Morley Boyd that the company considers a massive sycamore — located near the confusing entrances/exit on South Compo and the Post Road — to be a “defining aspect” of the property. Lai said that Equity One takes its stewardship seriously.

Wendy Crowther's before-and-after photos show the "mulch volcano" (left), and the mulch pulled back (right).

Wendy Crowther’s before-and-after photos show the “mulch volcano” (left), and a close-up of the mulch pulled back (right).

Boyd and others were concerned about a “mulch volcano”: the tree-killing layer that was mounded against the trunk, above the natural flare at its base. It arose because untrained landscapers did not realize the tree could suffocate to death.

Equity One hired Bartlett Tree Experts to complete a thorough treatment protocol for the sycamore. It includes feeding, and careful removal of the mulch volcano. Work began over the holiday weekend.

So all is well — except for some bark damage:

Turns out that Lai saw a woman install an advertising sign for a fitness center on the southern face of the tree. He asked her to leave. He did not know it, but damage had already been done.

A portion of bark spawled off. More came down over the next couple of days. Unfortunately, Lai did not get a look at the name of the business.

Fortunately, the bark should mend in time.

Now, if Equity One could only restore the iconic “paint palette” that stood for decades next to the sycamore. It’s been missing for more than a year.

The Compo Acres paint palette is gone.

8 Comments

Posted in Environment, People, Real estate

Tagged Bartlett Tree Experts, Compo Acres Shopping Center, Equity One, Morley Boyd, mulch volcano

Compo Acres Construction To Be Halted

Posted on October 28, 2014 | 10 comments

Equity One has heard the pleas of Compo Acres Shopping Center merchants.

They’ve agreed to a new construction schedule. The parking project and sidewalks are now slated to be completed by November 15 — if possible. The holiday season will not be impacted.

While it’s not a perfect solution — renovations on 2 storefronts will continue — it’s far better than the previous plan, which would have devastated merchants during the crucial holiday season.

Who says you can’t fight ~~City Hall~~ corporate America?