(Friday Flashback is one of “06880”‘s many regular features. If you enjoy this — or anything else on our website — please consider a tax-deductible contribution. Just click here. Thank you!)
The word is out: The VFW is Westport’s new hot place for entertainment.
From tribute bands to comedy, the club on at the Riverside/Saugatuck avenue fork — with a killer view of the Saugatuck River — is a great spot to chill with friends, have a drink and some bar food, and do it all without breaking the bank.
This Saturday (June 27; 6:30 p.m. doors, 7:30 p.m.) you can do it with a Rock & Roll Hall of Famer.
Mark Naftalin — the Paul Butterfield Blues Band’s keyboardist, and a longtime Westport resident — plays piano.
And he’s bringing along some A-list friends.
Connecticut Blue Hall of Famer Paul Gabriel (guitar and vocals), Connecticut Blues Challenge winner Mark Zaretsky (harmonica and vocals), bassist Paul Opalach, drummer Nick Longo and special guest Washboard Slim (washboard and vocals) will rock the house.
It’s just $20 — cash at the door.
The VFW asks for a 1-drink minimum — “even if it’s only a soda.”
A small price to pay, to hear some legit Hall of Fame sounds.
A yacht anchored near the Compo Beach shore — just a few yards beyond the buoy — has gotten Westporters wondering: Who owns it? And: Why is it there?
(Photo/Amy Schneider)
This is hardly the first yacht to attract attention.
In the 1960s — when he was wooing Westporter Mia Farrow — Frank Sinatra moored offshore.
Eric Clapton was rumored to have dropped anchor there twice, in 2009 and 2010.
In 2021, Rosehearty — Rupert Murdoch’s former 185-foot vessel, which he sold to a Westporter — drew admiring glances (and a few lucky visitors from the mainland).
We’re not sure who owns this yacht. But we hope they enjoy their visit.
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Speaking of yachts: How about this beauty?
Jamie Walsh spotted it yesterday, leaving Ned Dimes Marina.
Speaking of animals: Longtime “06880” reader Anne Guglielmoni recently published a children’s picture book. The Curious Life of Vader: How it Began features a true story.
And it happened at the Fairfield Center train station.
That’s where, a while ago, Anne stumbled across a tiny, helpless black kitten. She rescued him, brought him home, and namied him Vader.
She wrote and illustrated his journey as a simple story for her 2 young nieces. Seeing the excitement on their faces every single time they turned the pages and saw the cat sparked her to share the message of compassion, kindness and courage with other children.
Karl Mergenthaler sends along today’s “Westport … Naturally” images — and the back story:
“My wife and I have been startled a few times this summer by an unexpected guest: a bobcat.
“It looks like a 20-pound tabby cat skulking across our backyard. Our neighbor Liz figured out what it’s doing: Her shed has become the nursery room for 3 kittens.
Female bobcat …
“Although I’ve spent most of my life in and around Westport, I’ve never personally seen a bobcat. Deer (of course), foxes, coyotes, hawks … but this is my first bobcat sighting.
“Apparently, the local bobcat population has exploded. There are now an estimated 4,000 to 5,000 bobcats in Connecticut.
“Are they dangerous? It doesn’t seem so.
“My cursory Internet research suggests that bobcats rarely attack people. I’m pretty sure I’d rather not find out what it would do if it felt threatened, though.
“Bobcats don’t celebrate Father’s Day, apparently. Bobcat fathers do not stay with their babies. Bobcat mothers are single parents and raise their kittens entirely on their own. Male bobcats are solitary animals, and hit the road immediately after mating.”
… and kittens, hanging around the shed. (Photos/Liz Archibald)
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And finally … oops! We missed our Father’s Day song yesterday.
Here it is, a day late:
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A new community garden at Burr Farms. At least 2 synthetic turf fields. Some upgrades to Compo Beach and Winslow Park. A dedicated maintenance facility.
Those were some of the key “Phase I” recommendations for Westport’s Parks & Recreation Department, offered last night as part of the new Parks Master Plan.
The Town Hall event was the third public session for BL Companies, the consultants who have undertaken an independent review of the town’s beaches, parks and playing fields.
Thirty residents — including a number of elected officials — heard Dominick Celtruda offer a “10,000-foot” view of current facilities and operations, and 3 phases for the future.
Parks & Recreation director Erik Barbieri, last night at Town Hall. (Photo/Dan Woog)
Specifically, Phase I priorities involve:
Infrastructure upgrades, including maintenance; a multi-purpose field at the Doubleday complex, and a minimum of 2 synthetic fields. BL Companies urges a balance between natural grass and artificial turf surfaces.
The Community Garden at Burr Farms would share space with a 50 x 70 multi-purpose athletic field, as well as restroom facilities for gardeners and field users.
Upgraded trails and a dedicated dog area at Winslow Park.
At Compo Beach: Upgraded pickleball (site TBD), a relocated skate park, reconfigured internal circulation, and dune restoration.
Phase II would include Baron’s South — for example upgraded access, vegetation management, removal of invasives, and a small percentage of space dedicated to semi-active recreation.
Phase III would focus on Luciano Park, Jesup Green, other parks, and the Town Hall athletic fields.
Celtruda emphasized that these are recommendations only. Parks & Recreation director Erik Barbieri noted that while BL offers important insights, he “may not necessarily agree” with all of the recommendations, or their timing.
“Nothing is set in stone,” he noted. His department, and the Parks & Recreation Commission, will continue to assess the report.
After nearly 600 of these Photo Challenges you’d think I’d know which ones are tough, and which are easy.
Nope.
I thought no one would guess last week’s image: Jerry Kuyper’s criss-crossing blue pattern.
Very quickly, 14 readers responded correctly.
There were various descriptions, but all nailed it: one of the 2 “Mobi-mats” at Compo Beach, that allow easy access to the sand and water for wheelchair users.
As many pointed out, the mats are also great for folks using walkers and canes, parents with strollers, and just about anyone else who needs a little help at the beach.
Congratulations to Elaine Marino, Katie Carmody, Debra Levin, Seth Schachter, Lynn Untermeyer Miller, Matt Murray, Michelle Garvey, Richard Hyman, Nathan Greenbaum, Clark Thiemann, Andrew Colabella, Amy Schneider, Linda Vita Velez and Matt McGrath.
See you at the shore!
Now it’s on to this week’s Photo Challenge. If you know where in Westport you’d see this, click “Comments” below.
(Photo/Colleen Coffey)
(Every Sunday, “06880” hosts this Photo Challenge. We challenge you too to support your hyper-local blog. Please click here to make a tax-deductible contribution. Thank you!)
As Westport’s Parks & Recreation Department prepares Compo Beach for another season, we think of that town jewel as timeless.
In many ways, it is.
But in other ways, it’s not.
This photo, taken soon after a 1950 hurricane, shows the destruction on the boardwalk.
(Photo/Hereward Wake, courtesy of Christopher Maroc)
Bathhouses and the lifeguard station lie in ruins. (The iconic brick showers were untouched).
Look further north. At the far right are the remains of what was then a 2-story pavilion. A ballroom was on top.
After it collapsed, and the debris was hauled away, the roof was saved. Today, it covers the picnic tables near the playground and volleyball courts.
Here’s another photo, from 10 years later:
(Photo/George Mench, courtesy of Christopher Maroc)
Don’t concentrate on the Porsche 356 or models, posing for the cover of Porsche Magazine.
Don’t look at the cannons — already several decades old — or Compo Cove in the distance.
Instead, check out the rocks.
In 1960, all of Compo Beach looked like that.
From one end to the other, the beach was covered with rocks.
A couple of years later, a massive project made Compo much sandier — and far more enjoyable.
The beach we love today is nothing like the one of 6 decades ago.
You just need to know where to look.
(Friday Flashback is one of “06880”‘s many regular features. If you enjoy this — or anything else on our website — please consider a tax-deductible contribution. Just click here. Thank you!)
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