Compo Mill Cove (Drone photo/Scott Charette for Turn Key Media)
Compo Cove (Photo/Betsy P. Kahn)
“06880” readers were out in force today, capturing the force of the mostly-wind storm.
Wind gusts continue. A (very) brief period of sun gave way to more rain.
As of 2:45 p.m., Eversource was making steady headway with Westport’s power outages. There were 491 customers still without service — 3.87% of the town — down from earlier numbers. Weston reported 318 customers without electricity (8.16%).
Statewide, 61,792 customers lacked power (4.77%).
Next up: plunging temperatures. Stay safe and warm, wherever you are!
Close to the pavilion …(Photo/Nathan Greenbaum)
… and the cannons. (Photo/Nathan Greenbaum)
Cool — or foolhardy? (Photo/Nathan Greenbaum)
Bridge Square (William Whitmal)
Saugatuck River, as it’s seldom seen … (Photo/Mark Taglia)
… and near the I-95 Exit 17 ramp, where a boat is seldom seen. (Photo/Patti Brill)
These baseballs floated out from one of the (flooded) Compo Cove garages. Only 52 days till the start of spring training! (Photo/Matt Murray)
Nighttime, at the Compo Beach basketball courts … (Photo/Tomoko Meth)
… and Old Mill Beach, toward Compo Cove (Photo/George Bullwinkel)
Comments Off on Pics Of The Day #1952
Posted in Beach, Pic of the Day
Tagged Compo Beach basketball courts, Compo Cove, Old Mill Beach
As beach season begins — and the newly retro-named Old Mill Grocery prepares to reopen — it’s time to look at Old Mill Beach, back in the day.
Seth Schachter sent a fascinating postcard, from his vast collection. Click on or hover over to enlarge:
There is so much to see here: the meadow (foreground), where homes now stand.
The channel (now filled in) that runs from Sherwood Mill Pond toward a pair of homes (or sheds?), long ago demolished or destroyed by storms.
Old Mill Beach itself — back then, just rocks or grass.
The handsome stand of trees.
The narrow strip of land on the north side of Old Mill Road. Were the houses there now built on landfill?
I wonder too who took this “bird’s-eye view” — and how? Was it from Compo Hill, or a low-flying airplane?
So much has changed at Old Mill in the century or so since this photo was taken. But from the pedestrian bridge and the “grist mill” house , on out to Compo Cove, the scene seems timeless.
(If you like our “Friday Flashback” feature, please click here to support “06880.”)
Hillspoint Road and Compo Hill, from Compo Cove (Photo/Maxx Crowley)
Comments Off on Pic Of The Day #1791
Posted in Beach, Pic of the Day
Tagged Compo Cove, Compo Hill, Hillspoint Road
Compo Cove (Photo/Susan Leone)
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It’s no secret that alcohol consumption has soared during the pandemic.
What is a secret is that few people have talked about it.
Westport Together — the town’s health and wellness alliance — wants that to change.
On February 17 (7 p.m., Zoom), they’re sponsoring an online roundtable discussion. “Mindful Drinking: Reimagining Our Alcohol Habits & How They Impact Our Relationships” includes local residents talking about the role of alcohol in Westport culture, and its impact on ourselves and friends.
Click here for more information, and to register.
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Yesterday morning at 7:40, a car was stolen from the Playhouse Square parking lot. It was soon involved in an accident near the office building across from Fire Department headquarters, though the car thief escaped.
Around the same time, a wallet was stolen from a vehicle parked near Trader Joe’s.
In both cases, the cars were unlocked. The vehicle that was stolen had the key fob inside.
These incidents are astonishingly common in Westport. For a town that prides itself on its schools, the simple lesson of “lock your vehicle — and take the fob with you!” seems to take waaaaay too long to sink in.
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Calling all Olympics fans — especially those who follow Westport’s own Julia Marino:
The silver medalist snowboarder has one event left: big air.
Qualifiers are set for this Sunday (February 13), 8:30 p.m. EST, on NBC or USA. However, that may be pushed back to Monday morning at 12:30 a.m., due to Super Bowl coverage.
The big air finals are Monday (February 14), 8:30 p.m. on NBC.
Go for the gold, Julia! (Hat tip: Matthew Mandell)
NBC’s split screen last weekend showed Julia Marino in China, and the Marino family and friends in Westport. (Screenshot/Jeanine Esposito)
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For over 75 years, “Soundings” and “QED” have published Staples High School students’ prose, poetry, artwork, photography and more.
The publications have won many awards — including most recently 1st place in the American Scholastic Press Association’s national contest. The publications show off our town’s teenage talent, and inspire countless students to find careers in the literary and visual arts.
For the past couple of years — for reasons both economic (budgets) and medical (COVID) — the magazines have been digital only.
Yet editors and readers know there is something special — still — about print.
To publish on paper, they need money. It’s not a lot — just $3,000 — but they’ve asking for help. Via GoFundMe.
Click here to contribute. And if you need a few dozens reasons why this is important, click here for “Soundings”‘ website.
Make sure you’ve got time, though. Those 7 decades of archives won’t read themselves.
A page from the 1983 “Soundings.”
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It’s a lone little tree, stuck in a tiny park with no name on the windy walkway from Old Mill Beach to Compo Cove.
But it’s proud. And these days, the mini-tree is sprouting a special Valentine’s Day heart (and garlands).
Love is truly where you find it.
(Photo/Tracy Porosoff)
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George Billis Gallery hosts an opening reception tomorrow (Saturday, February 12, 4:30 to 6 p.m.) for its new show. Adam Noel and Karen Recor are the featured artists, at the Main Street space.
Adam Noel, in his studio.
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Gregg Tenser writes: “Some mornings, I found my bird feeder on the ground. I wondered: Did we have a bear?
“Apparently not. Tonight i busted the culprit.”
And there it is — in all its “Westport … Naturally” glory.
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And finally … happy 60th birthday, Sheryl Crow!
Posted in Arts, Beach, Downtown, Local business, Police, Sports, Staples HS, Westport life
Tagged car thefts, Compo Cove, drinking, Julia Marino, Soundings, Westport Together
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An extensive search river and land search was conducted yesterday by the Westport Department and Fire Dive team, after a 22-year-old woman disappeared from a canoe near the Ruth Steinkraus Cohen Bridge.
After 5 hours, the woman was seen on a surveillance tape at a local business. The search was suspended.
Early this morning she was located in Norwalk, and reunited with her family. Chief Foti Koskinas thanked all who aided in the search.
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In 2017, Miggs Burroughs’ “Signs of Compassion” project inspired visitors to the Westport Library.
Based on Emily Dickinson’s poem of the same name — and spurred partly by the darkening political climate — the noted Westport artist asked 30 Westporters to participate.
Old and young; Black, white and Asian — all learned one word or phrase in American Sign Language. Through Miggs’ unique lenticular photography, each sign shows the beauty of that form of communication. It’s also a “visual chorus of our community, expressing the need for compassion in the world.”
Nearly 5 years later — thanks to the generosity of Westporter Melissa Ceriale — the 30 portraits have been permanently acquired by Burke Rehabilitation Hospital in White Plains. They were installed on Wednesday.
COVID has delayed a formal unveiling. But the hospital has a robust social media presence, and they’re showing off their new acquisition to the world.
As Miggs notes, his piece lives on, “in a place dedicated to compassion and healing.”
Miggs Burroughs’ “Signs of Compassion,” at Burke Rehabilitation Hospital. And yes, that’s me in the top row, 2nd from left.
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Want to know what goes on behind the scenes at “06880”?
I don’t give tours (because there’s nothing to see). But you can watch my talk to the Y’s Women.
I spoke on Monday, via Zoom. I talked about how the blog began, how it grew, why I got rid of anonymous comment, and much more.
They women asked very wise (ho ho) questions.
Click here to see. Then click on some of the other, equally (or more!) fascinating speakers the Y’s Women have hosted over the past couple of years.
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Looking for some great reading this holiday weekend?
Click here for the “Westport Progress Report on Floodplain Management.”
As you probably know, the report is prepared annually to enable residents to receive a 10% reduction in flood insurance. That insurance is offered by FEMA, to communities participating in the Community Rating System.
Municipalities are ranked from 1 to 10. A ranking of 1 offers the highest reduction in flood insurance rates. Actions taken by the Planning & Zoning Commission over the years have brought Westport’s ranking from 10 to 8. More efforts are planned.
Insurance is important to homeowners in flood-prone areas like Compo Cove.
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Speaking of water: Yesterday was moving day at Joey’s by the Shore.
Equipment was moved out of the longtime deli/market, now closed for several months.
The property has been on the market. No deals have been finalized, and there is no word on what is next for the historic property across from Old Mill Beach.
(Photo/Matt Murray)
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Nicholas Marsan has been promoted to deputy chief of the Westport Fire Department, while Theodore Crawford has risen to lieutenant. They — and new Fire Chief Michael Kronick — were sworn in yesterday at Town Hall.
The promotions fill vacancies created by the retirement of Chief Robert Yost on January 1.
Marsan became a Westport firefighter in 2007. He then served as fire inspector and lieutenant.
He is a veteran of the US Army and the CT Army National Guard. In 2010 he was deployed overseas. He received the Army Commendation Medal for Valor during operations in Afghanistan, and is a 2-time recipient of Westport Rotary Public Protection & Safety Awards, and 2 unit citations.
Marsan was also president of the Westport Uniformed Firefighters Association, Local 1081. He earned a master’s degree in history from Western Connecticut State University. He is now completing a master’s in public administration and emergency management at Sacred Heart University.
Crawford joined the department in 2011. He is an EMT, and president of the Westport Uniformed Firefighters Charitable Foundation.
He is also a rescue diver on the Westport Police/Fire dive team, and a hazardous materials technician on the Fairfield County Hazmat Team. He received a Westport Rotary Public Protection & Safety Award, the Firefighter Dominic Zeoli Award, and 2 Unit Citations.
Crawford is a graduate of Clarkson University, majoring in civil engineering.
From left: Theodore Crawford, Nicholas Marsan, 1st Selectwoman Jen Tooker, Fire Chief Michael Kronick.
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Audiences across the country look forward to tonight’s “Stars on Stage From Westport Country Playhouse” (Friday, January 14, 9 p.m. Channel 13; check listings for other PBS stations).
Shoshana Bean is the star of this episode. It was taped in September, before 2 local audiences.
But that’s not the only Shoshana news this week. The “Wicked” and “Witness” actress has just been signed to the cast of the new musical comedy “Mr. Saturday Night,” with Billy Crystal. The shows opens at the Nederlander Theatre on April 27.
Click below for a teaser of tonight’s broadcast.
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For some reason, Westporters are captivated by turkey vultures. Today’s “Westport … Naturally” image comes from Morningside Drive North.
“There must be 3 dozen, in the trees and on the ground,” says Jilda Manikas.
(Photo/Jilda Manikas)
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And finally … in honor of the “Westport Progress Report on Floodplain Management” (see above):
Westport’s littlest Christmas tree, at Westport’s littlest park: Sherwood Mill Pond, near Compo Cove (Photo/Mary Sikorski)
Posted in Beach, Environment, Pic of the Day
Tagged Christmas tree, Compo Cove, Sherwood Mill Pond
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