Tag Archives: Cribari Bridge

Roundup: Governor Lamont, Food News, Fishing Fun …

Posted on April 14, 2026 | Leave a comment

Governor Ned Lamont spoke to over 150 people at the Westport Library yesterday.

It was the 4th “Your State, Your Business” event, sponsored by the Westport Weston Chamber of Commerce.

Lamont covered a lot of ground, from the stability of Connecticut’s economy and energy costs, to affordable healthcare and housing.

But the audience was interested in local issues too.

The first question — from Representative Town Meeting member Kristin Schneeman — concerned the future of the Cribari Bridge.

The governor said he was getting up to speed on the subject. He said he understands that residents are concerned, and will look to put people — including 1st Selectman Kevin Christie, and the state Department of Transportation commissioner — together to figure out a solution.

A video of the event will be available later today.

After lunch at Nômade, Governor Lamont spoke to a smaller group at the Senior Center.

Governor Lamont answers a question from moderator Matthew Mandell, director of the Westport Weston Chamber of Commerce. (Photo/Lindsay Katz)

At Nômade, Governor Lamont posed with Chef Zoli Kovacs. (Photo/Sal Liccione)

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After 4,000 people voted in 11 categories, CTBites has announced semifinalists for their “It’s a Woman’s World” contest.

Two are from Westport and Weston.

Alison Milwe Grace (AMG Catering & Events) is nominated in the Catering category. Melanie Pabon (The Cottage) is a finalist in the Server/GM category.

Winners — the tops in Connecticut’s culinary world — will be announced April 27 at Hotel Marcel in New Haven. Click here for tickets, and more information. Click here for the full CTBites story.

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Those are not the only local connections in this week’s CTBites newsletter.

There’s also a feature story on Gruel Britannia.

It’s a deep dive into the popular Cross Highway spot (and her first location, in Southport).

There are also hints about a few innovations owner Karen Hubrich has planned for her Westport space. Click here to read the full story.

Lunch menu at Gruel Britannia.

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One more restaurant item: Hey Taco! has opened on Post Road East, between the Shell station and ASF.

It replaces Border Grille, which itself replace another mostly-takeout Mexican place, Tacos or What?

Chris Dobransky — aka FairfieldFoodDude — recently visited. He loved it.

He wrote about the “authentic, made-with-love tacos done right. Between the bold flavors, generous portions, and obvious passion behind the food, this place is already making a name for itself.”

Click here or below for the full writeup.

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Book lovers, take note: The Westport Library’s big spring book sale takes place May 15-18.

There is something for everyone — toddlers through adults — with thousands of gently used books in over 50 categories of non-fiction and fiction, including antiquarian, comic books,  and vintage children’s books. 

Plus a huge assortment of DVDs, CDs, vintage vinyl, jigsaw puzzles, ephemera, and framed artwork, from small desktop pieces to large wall pictures.

Hours are:

  • Friday, May 15 (noon to 6 p.m.; early access with ticket, 8:45 a.m. to noon))
  • Saturday, May 16: 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.
  • Sunday, May 17: (11 a.m. to 5 p.m.; almost everything half price)
  • Monday, May 18 (9 a.m. to 4 p.m.; fill a Library logo bag for $10, your own equivalent-size bag for $8, or buy individual books for half price).

For more information, click here. To volunteer, email  volunteers@westportbooksales.org.

A small part of the large Westport Library book sale.

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Yesterday was the first day of the Westport schools’ spring break.

Many families have already skedaddled out of town.

But bright and early, Andrew Colabella spotted these 2 boys, at Riverside and Treadwell Avenue.

(Photo/Andrew Colabella)

“It’s 7 a.m. School is off for the week,” Andrew writes.

“Your buddy meets you at your house, fishing pole and gear ready to go. Take the long haul across the bridge to the fishing spot.

“Two kids, living in the moment. Reminded me of when I was a kid. I love this town!”

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Atla DeChamplain — a jazz vocalist, lyricist and educator known for her expressive phrasing, vocal control and authenticity — headlines this Thursday’s Jazz at the Post (April 16, VFW Post 399; shows at 7:30 and 8:45 p.m.; dinner at 7).

She’ll be joined by her husband, pianist Matt DeChamplain, plus bassist Sameer Shankar, drummer Ben Bilello and saxophonist Greg “The Jazz Rabbi” Wall.

Click here for tickets, and more information.

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Speaking of the VFW: Rock star/soul singer/multi-instrumentalist Eliot Lewis — a longtime member of the Average White Band and Hall & Oates’ band, and who has performed with legends like Joe Walsh and Todd Rundgren — brings his many talents to the VFW this Friday (April 17). He’s joined by special guest artist, Weston’s own Owen Daniel.

The doors open at 6 p.m., for an opening set by Ecoustic Rock Monster.

Tickets are $15 online, $20 at the door. Light bar food and drink specials are available.

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The daffodils — and the daffodil photos — keep on coming.

Today’s “Westport … Naturally” image shows the colorful scene, from the lower Imperial Avenue parking lot up the steps to the back of the Westport Woman’s Club.

(Photo/Laurie Sorensen)

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And finally … on this date in 1912, Titanic hit an iceberg in the North Atlantic. It sank a few hours later.

1,501 passengers and crew members died; 707 were saved.

(Was there room for Jack on the door frame? Why didn’t Rose beg him to try? Who knows? But here’s one thing we know for sure: You can click here, and support “06880.” Our hearts will go on. Thanks!)

 

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“06880” Podcast: Dara Lamb

Posted on April 13, 2026 | 3 comments

Dara Lamb is a co-founder of the Westport Alliance for Saugatuck.

Last year, the grassroots organization battled the Hamlet development. Now they’ve turned their attention to the Cribari Bridge.

The other day, Dara joined me on the Westport Library stage to chat about their work, the controversy, the neighborhood and more.

Click here or below to learn what the Alliance is doing, how they’re doing, why it’s important — and what’s ahead.

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Posted in Local politics, Media, Saugatuck

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[OPINION] Cribari Committee Must Insist On “Honest Process”

Posted on April 12, 2026 | 10 comments

Werner Liepolt is a longtime Bridge Street resident. He writes:

On Thursday, 1st Selectman Kevin Christie announced a Cribari Bridge Advisory Committee.

That may sound reassuring.

But before anyone applauds, one question should be asked: Is this committee being formed to scrutinize the state’s process — or simply to give local cover to a decision already being pushed forward on an outdated record?

Because that is where things stand.

The state is moving toward a consequential decision on the future of the Cribari Bridge while relying on what it calls an “updated” Environmental Assessment that is, on close reading, still essentially the same document prepared in 2020.

First meeting of the Cribari Bridge Advisory Committee, in 2018. A new committee will soon be formed.

And Connecticut Department of Transportation officials say that kind of document has a shelf life of only 2 to 3 years.

So let’s stop pretending the issue is only what kind of bridge gets built.

The issue is whether Westport is being asked to accept a 2026 decision based on stale assumptions, stale analysis, and a process that no longer matches present reality.

I attended the first meeting of CTDOT’s Planning Advisory Committee in July 2018 as a federally recognized consulting party, because I live in the Bridge Street National Register Historic District.

At that meeting, CTDOT made the standard clear: Environmental Assessments do not last forever. After roughly 2 to three3 years, they must be revisited to account for changing conditions.

That was then.

At the March 19, 2026 public hearing, CTDOT presented a February 2026 version of the Environmental Assessment that appears to be little more than the 2020 document with a new date.

Cribari Bridge (Photo/Fred Cantor)

Yet the process rolls on:

  • Preferred alternative identified.
  • Public comment period underway.
  • Town leaders urged to engage.
  • Residents told their voices matter.

Fine. Then the first thing this new advisory committee should ask is obvious: Why is Westport being asked to react to a decision framework built on an expired study?

This matters because the bridge does not sit in some abstract engineering zone.

It sits in the Bridge Street Historic District, where setting, views, scale and patterns of neighborhood life are part of what is protected.

It also connects directly to Route 136 Scenic Highway, where preservation of visual character is not a sentimental talking point but part of the public purpose of the designation.

Start of the Route 136 Scenic Highway.

Since 2020, the surrounding conditions have plainly changed.

  • COVID transformed our demographic and altered our work habits.
  • Traffic patterns are different.
  • Navigation apps now push drivers through residential streets in real time.
  • Greens Farms Road already functions, at key hours, as a pressure valve for I-95 congestion.
  • Development in Saugatuck has intensified.

And nearby infrastructure changes raise entirely foreseeable questions about whether this corridor is being transformed, in practice, into something far more consequential than CTDOT’s analysis admits.

Residents do not need a consultant or an advisory committee to tell them that conditions have changed.

They live them.

What makes this even harder to defend is that the project’s own visual analysis appears partial. The review described in the current materials does not meaningfully capture winter visibility from elevated homes within the historic district, even though those views are part of the setting that gives the district its character.

The Bridge Street streetscape changes with the seasons.

So no, this is not just a procedural quibble.

It goes to the integrity of the entire decision-making process.

Because when a study is outdated, everything built on it becomes suspect: the alternatives analysis, the impact claims, the traffic assumptions, the mitigation discussion, and the town’s ability to say honestly that it has evaluated current conditions.

That is why the new advisory committee matters.

Not as a public-relations device.

Not as a way to calm people down.

Not as a stage on which local officials can appear engaged while the real framework remains untouched.

It matters only if it is willing to say, clearly and publicly, that Westport should not be boxed into commenting on a preferred option grounded in a stale Environmental Assessment.

Part of the state’s assessment of the Cribari Bridge.

Westport’s elected officials should be careful here.

A committee can be a tool for real scrutiny.

It can also be a way to absorb public anger while avoiding the central issue.

If this committee is serious, it should demand answers to a few basic questions immediately:

  • Why is a 2020 Environmental Assessment still serving as the foundation for a 2026 decision?
  • What exactly was reevaluated, and what was merely repackaged?
  • How were post-2020 traffic changes actually studied?
  • How were cumulative corridor impacts assessed?
  • Why should residents trust a process that appears to have updated the cover more than the analysis?

Those are not anti-bridge questions.

They are pro-accountability questions.

No one is asking for delay for delay’s sake.

What people are asking for is something much more modest and much more reasonable: that before Westport lends its name, its cooperation, or its political cover to this process, someone in authority insists that the underlying record reflect the world as it exists now — not as it looked 5 or 6 years ago.

The Cribari Bridge, in 2019. (Drone photo John Videler, for Videler Photography)

More than 1,600 people have signed a petition calling for federal oversight on the protection of Westport and the nation’s historic resources.

The March 19 hearing drew a packed room and a near unanimous, clear mandate.

The public has spoken with unusual clarity at the sole public hearing CTDOT has conducted on this project.

Now the question is whether this advisory committee will do anything more difficult than listen.

Because in the end, this is not just about what replaces the Cribari Bridge.

It is about whether Westport’s leaders will insist on an honest process — or help legitimize one that is already past its shelf life.

(“06880” Opinion pages are open to all. Email submissions to 06880blog@gmail.com. To support this hyper-local blog with a tax-deductible contribution, please click here.)

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Posted in Local politics, Politics, Saugatuck, Transportation

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Christie Forms Cribari Bridge Advisory Committee

Posted on April 9, 2026 | 4 comments

Last month — before and during the state Department of Transportation public hearing on the future of the Cribari Bridge — residents and Representative Town Meeting members urged 1st Selectman Kevin Christie to form an advisory group.

Today, he did just that.

Christie said that a new Cribari Bridge Advisory Committee would “support the town’s ongoing engagement with the DOT as the state-led process moves forward.”

He did not announce names of committee members, or indicate when and how they would be appointed.

The first selectman noted, “the well-attended public hearing reflected strong community interest and underscored the complexity of the issues involved.

“Traffic, safety, neighborhood impact, historic and neighborhood context, and long-term fiscal responsibility are all legitimate concerns that deserve to be evaluated carefully and in an informed way.”

Residents packed Town Hall for last month’s Department of Transportation public meeting. (Photo/Dan Woog)

While state officials have identified a “preferred option” for the bridge, no final decision has been made. The environmental review process remains open.

Christie said, “the Advisory Committee will bring together technical expertise and community perspectives to help keep Westport’s input grounded in facts and reflective of community priorities. It will evaluate options for the bridge, including structural and design considerations, in the context of community impact, funding implications, and long-term maintenance responsibilities.”

The Advisory Committee will make recommendations to the First Selectman.

However, he noted, “the Advisory Committee will not replace the formal state process or make a final decision on the project. Its role is to support the town’s engagement with DOT by providing a structured forum for coordination, analysis, and public input, with a focus on outcomes that serve Westport’s long-term interests.

“Westport has a real stake in this project for our neighborhoods, our infrastructure, and our fiscal future. This Advisory Committee will build on the Town’s discussions with the DOT by grounding decisions in facts, incorporating community input, and identifying solutions that work for Westport.”

The public comment period on the DOT’s Environmental Assessment is open through April 17. Comments can be submitted online, by email to James.Barrows@ct.gov, or by mail to James Barrows, P.O. Box 317546, Newington CT 06131-7546. Reference Project No. 0158-0214.

Cribari Bridge (courtesy of Connecticut Department of Transportation)

 

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Posted in Local politics, Saugatuck, Transportation

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[OPINION] Traffic Apps Care About Algorithms, Not Neighborhoods

Posted on April 2, 2026 | 15 comments

As a longtime Bridge Street resident, Werner Liepolt has a front-porch view of traffic — including the vehicles that apps like Waze send past his house. He writes:

Take a look at Westport the way a navigation algorithm does.

I-95: Thursday, March 26, 9 p.m.

It sees not a collection of neighborhoods — but a network.

Because that’s how today’s traffic actually moves.

From the Waze-eye view, the logic is clear. Waze sees traffic speed and volume, but it doesn’t reliably see or respect local rules and human factors that shape safe and appropriate traffic patterns.

Waze emojis and avatars — “Moods” — represent “Wazers:” happy, fast, or stuck in traffic. Other icons indicate real-time reports, crashes, hazards and police.

Waze does not consistently indicate local thru-truck prohibitions. Neither school bus stops nor routes are accounted for. Ditto cyclists, crosswalks and pedestrian activity.

And Waze of course has no way of measuring or reporting long time and cumulative effects of traffic noise, pollution, aesthetic impact or vibration damage.

Waze also ignores narrow streets and historic districts — for example, the Bridge Street National Register Historic District.

The Cribari Bridge is not isolated. It connects directly to a sequence of roads that carry traffic eastward through Westport.

From the Waze eye view, the logic is clear.

The William F. Cribari Memorial Bridge connects Riverside Avenue’s commercial district directly to Bridge Street (Route 136), feeding traffic into a residential corridor that continues inland. What appears to be a local crossing is, in fact, a key link in a broader east–west route.

Now look a few miles away.

Individually, these are routine infrastructure projects.

Together, they form something much more consequential.

Just east of Westport, the Sasco Creek Bridge sits on Greens Farms Road near the Post Road and I-95 Exit 19. The Connecticut Department of Transportation proposes removing a major constraint at the eastern end of the same corridor.

CTDOT is:

  • Likely increasing load capacity at Sasco Creek. The design drawings show a full-capacity structure capable of carrying legal truck traffic.
  • Removing geometric constraints and increasing load capacity at the Cribari Bridge, making it capable of handling legal truck traffic.

Yet the Environmental Assessment of the Cribari Bridge assumes trucks will not use this route — without analyzing what happens once both bridges in this corridor are upgraded,

That creates a continuous, higher-capacity east-west route from Fairfield on the Old Kings Highway through Westport on Greens Farms Road and Bridge Street to Saugatuck — closely paralleling I-95 between Exits 18 and 19.

This is not speculation. It is visible on the map. The Sasco Bridge CTDOT Project 0158-0218 is already underway. The hearings concluded in 2021.

They concluded about the time the Environmental Assessment for CTDOT project 0158-0214 (the Cribari Bridge) was being written. Now the hearings and time for public comment on that project will end on April 17.

Combined, these CTDOT projects should broaden the Cribari Bridge Area of Potential Effect to the entire I-95-Greens Farms Road corridor.

Navigation apps do not consider whether a road is “appropriate” for through traffic.

They calculate the fastest route.

When I-95 backs up — as it often does — these systems will route drivers off the highway, send them across Sasco Creek, through Greens Farms and Bridge Street, over the Cribari Bridge, and back toward the highway or local destinations.

Once weight limits and geometric constraints are removed, this corridor becomes accessible, continuous, and visible to routing algorithms.

At that point, it will be used.

The Environmental Assessment for the Cribari Bridge suggests that trucks and through-traffic will not find this route “desirable.”

But that assumption belongs to an earlier era.

Today, traffic patterns are shaped not just by drivers, but by software. And software does not share local sensibilities.

Nowhere does the Environmental Assessment meaningfully examine:

  • The combined effect of upgrading both bridges
  • Diversion from I-95 during congestion
  • The role of real-time navigation systems
  • Impacts on residential streets and safety

Instead, the project is evaluated as if each bridge exists in isolation. It does not.

If this corridor begins to function as an alternative to I-95, the consequences will be felt across Westport:

  • Increased traffic through residential neighborhoods
  • Safety concerns for pedestrians and cyclists
  • Noise and air quality impacts
  • Changes to the character of a federally recognized historic district

These are precisely the kinds of indirect and cumulative effects that federal law requires agencies to consider.

No complex modeling is needed to understand the risk. The map already shows:

  • A connected route
  • Fewer constraints
  • A faster alternative to a congested highway
  • Numerous Waze alternative routes from the Post Rd and through residential neighborhoods south of the Post Road

The question is not whether traffic will use the corridor. The question is why the state has not fully evaluated that possibility.

Public comment on the Cribari Bridge project is open through April 17. Submitted comments make a difference and must be counted under FHWA regulations. Comments can be submitted here or by voicemail: (860) 594-2020. (reference State Project No. 0158-0214). Written comments can be mailed to: James Barrows, 2800 Berlin Turnpike, P.O. Box 317546, Newington CT 06131-7546.

(Our “Opinion” pages are open to all. Email submissions to 06880blog@gmail.com. To support our work, please click here. Thank you!)

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A Tale Of 2 Bridges: CTDOT Considers Downtown Span Too

Posted on April 1, 2026 | 13 comments

One often-overlooked element of the discussion on the future of the Cribari Bridge is climate change.

As the Saugatuck River rises by a few inches over the next decades, clearance under the 143-year-ol span will diminish.

The state Department of Transportation is considering that, in its plans for rehabilitation or replacement.

But the rise will not be confined to the Cribari Bridge alone.

Consider the Ruth Steinkraus Cohen Bridge downtown.

Very little river traffic now passes underneath the Post Road — a few kayaks and canoes, mostly at low tide.

But CTDOT is looking ahead.

A project (formally #0158-0980) would replace the current structure with a drawbridge:

Artist’s rendering of proposed Ruth Steinkraus Cohen Bridge drawbridge.

Steve Lance — the “06880” reader who spotted the plan, while searching for information on the Cribari Bridge — reached out to CTDOT.

James Barrows, who serves as manager for the Cribari project, responded.

“Work would not begin until #0158-0214 (the Cribari Bridge) is completed,” he said. “CTDOT would not want to disrupt traffic on two major crossings simultaneously.

“However, we see it as an important next component in making the Saugatuck River navigable as far upriver as possible.”

Barrows said that while the drawbridge would initially be open only far occasional traffic, it could adopt a regular schedule to allow more watercraft to pass through than currently do.

He noted that the entire operation would take “only 6 to 8 minutes.” Traffic disruption would be “minimal,” he said.

Barrows — who was at DOT’s recent public meeting at Town Hall — said, “our intention is to involve residents, business owners and other stakeholders as early and often as possible” in the project planning.

Click here to see the full report. A link is included in the report for preliminary comments.

(“06880” will follow this story — as we do all that impact Westport. Please click here, to help us continue our work. Thank you!)

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Posted in Downtown, Local politics, Politics, Transportation

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Friday Flashback #495

Posted on March 20, 2026 | 13 comments

We’ve run this photo before.

But today — the day after a public meeting with the state Department of Transportation, in the midst of fierce discussions about the future of the Cribari Bridge — is a good time to resurrect it.

The last time the Saugatuck River span was renovated — over 30 years ago — a temporary bridge took it place.

It rose up and down at both ends: Bridge Street and Riverside Avenue.

It was wide. It curved around the original. It cut through the parking lot of what was then Mansion Clam House (now the aptly named Bridge at Saugatuck restaurant).

And it worked.

Traffic was a breeze.

For 3 decades since, Westporters have wondered why it was torn down.

Today is a good time to resurrect not only the photo, but the question.

(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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Roundup: Cribari Bridge, Craig Melvin, Railroad Parking, Cyber Threats …

Posted on March 20, 2026 | 1 comment

Among the many details offered at last night’s Cribari Bridge public meeting, this one passed without further comment: The state Department of Transportation has identified 10 properties and 1 dock as potentially affected by the project.

This morning, Bridge Street resident Werner Liepolt wrote to John McAvoy, Federal Highway Administration division administrator in Hartford: “No map, list of properties, or description of the nature of these potential impacts (temporary or permanent) was provided at the meeting nor, to my knowledge, at previous stage of the project.

“Without this information, it is not possible for affected property owners or the public to meaningfully evaluate or comment on the project’s impacts, as required under the National Environmental Policy Act and the Section 106 review process under the National Historic Preservation Act.”

Liepolt asks CTDOT and the FHWA to provide identification of all properties under consideration for right-of-way acquisition or easement; mapping showing the extent and type of potential impacts, and clarification of whether impacts are temporary (construction) or permanent.

He also requests that the comment period — now set to run through April 17 — be extended, so that the public and affected property owners have “a meaningful opportunity to respond.”

CTDOT has not indicated which 10 properties, and which dock, might be affected — including possible condemnation and eminent domain taking — by the Cribari Bridge project. (Drone photo/Alex O’Brien)

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Craig Melvin — co-anchor of NBC’s “Today” show, and our Westport neighbor — should draw a big crowd to the Westport Library on April 8.

He’ll be interviewed by Jim Marpe. The former 1st selectman is a member of the Y’s Men of Westport & Weston — sponsors of the event.

Craig will share stories from his career at the NBC News desk, including his transition into his current role.

The event is free, but registration is required (click here).

Craig Melvin, in January 2025.

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On April 6, all daily parking in Lot 1 — the large one opposite Riko’s Pizza — will revert back to permit-only parking.

The state Department of Transportation has returned Lot 8 (off Saugatuck Avenue, between I-95 and Exit 17) to the town for railroad parking, following several years as a staging area for the 95 bridge replacement project.

That restores approximately 140 daily parking spots.

During COVID and for some time afterward, permit-only lots were underutilized. The WPD adjusted parking allocations by adding daily spaces to Lots 1 and 3 to help offset the loss of Lot 8, and better utilize the lots closest to the station.

Now that commuting levels have returned to near pre-COVID patterns on most weekdays, they’ve readjusted again.

The website will be updated, and signage posted to alert commuters. A new parking map is also being developed, and will be available on the website soon.

Saugatuck train station parking map. Click on or hover over to enlarge.

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Cyber threats are everywhere.

On April 8 (VFW Post 399; cocktails for purchase 5:45; program 7 p.m.), 3 experts offer advice on keeping safe in the digital age.

Panelists include Westport Police Department Detective James Baker; Connecticut State Police Detective Mathew Hogan, and former Secret Service agent Brian McCabe.

The free event is sponsored by the Westport Republican Town Committee.

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Read to Grow — the great non-profit that ensures children begin life surrounded by books — once again hosts its annual statewide fundraiser in Westport.

“A Night for the Books” is set for May 7 (6 p.m.). The venue is appropriate: the Westport Library.

The evening will highlight the power of books, community, and connection, while raising money for programs that provide books and literacy resources to families across Connecticut.

Dave Briggs — former CNN, Fox, NBC, Turner Sports and Yahoo Finance journalist, and a Westport resident — will emcee.

Twelve Artists Collective of Westport members are creating book-inspired centerpieces, for the auction. Zucca Gastrobar caters the farm-to-table food; Alina’s Bakery adds treats. A giving tree – with gift cards donated by local stores and restaurants — will be part of the “mystery pull.”

Before the event (3 to 5 p.m.), families can pick up free children’s books, at the Read to Grow bookmobile.

The organization’s programs include Books for Babies, which gives newborns in Connecticut hospitals their first book; Books for Kids, through which families request free books delivered directly to their homes, and the statewide bookmobile.

Early bird tickets are available through April 3; click here to purchase, and for sponsorship information. To learn more about Read to Grow, click here.

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In what has become an annual tradition, the Westport PAL 8th grade boys and girls basketball players took the court at Madison Square Garden this week, before the Knicks game.

For the past few years, the NBA (through its Jr. Nicks program) team has offered PAL a great experience. Young players attend the pre-game shootaround, scrimmage on the Garden floor, then watch the game.

Thanks, Jr. Knicks — and Westport resident and former Staples player Brett Tessler — for making it happen.

Westport PAL players, at Madison Square Garden.

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Want to laugh on April 1 — without being a fool?

VFW Post 399 is hosting a free comedy night, with local comedians.

The show begins at 7:30 p.m. Open mic sign-ups begin at 7.

For questions and more information, email meganharvist@gmail.com.

IYKNY.

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Speaking of entertainment: Corky Laing is no stranger to Westport.

The legendary drummer for Mountain has played — and hung out — here before

Can’t quite place Mountain? They’re the “Mississippi Queen” band.

Laing provided the iconic cowbell intro.

He returns April 11 (7 p.m., VFW Post 399), this time as a special guest with Ten$Grand Band.

Tickets are just $20. The show will sell out soon. Click here to purchase.

Corky Laing

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Up next at the Unitarian Universalist Congregation in Westport: “Birthday Club.”

The play — about 5 friends who reunite to celebrate a milestone birthday, and confront changes in marriage, career, health and identity, while examining what has sustained their friendships over decades — will be presented March 27 and 28 (7 p.m.) and March 29 (2 p.m.).

The story “gives space to regret, loyalty and second chances, revealing the warmth and resilience that shape enduring friendships.”

The production is presented by UU Players. Tickets are $25 at the door; students with ID are free. All proceeds support UU Westport.

“Birthday Club” cast.

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At last summer’s Pequot Library book sale, teenager Morgan Kofron bought an antique family Bible.

Soon after, it was learned that the Bible had belonged to the Adairs — Black and Indigenous (Shinnecock) landowning family who played a significant role in the economic and cultural history in both Westport and Fairfield.

The Adair family papers are preserved at the Westport Museum for History & Culture. The Bible will now be added to those materials.

Adair family Bible.

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It’s been a while since we featured Man’s Best Friend as a “Westport … Naturally” item. Our bad.

So let’s hear it for Fergie!

(Photo/June Rose Whittaker)

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And finally … Vera Lynn was born on this day, in 1917. The English singer — whose performances lifted all of Great Britain during World War II — died in 2020, at 103.

(They just don’t make ’em like Vera Lynn anymore. Fortunately, “06880” remembers her. But we also do a lot more than that. If you enjoy this hyper-local blog, please click here to support us. Thanks!)

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Posted in Library, Police, technology, Transportation

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CTDOT Cribari Bridge Hearing: The Public Speaks

Posted on March 20, 2026 | 8 comments

CTDOT can be flexible.

More than a dozen state Department of Transportation representatives — including deputy commissioner Laoise King — came to Town Hall last night, for a public meeting about the future of the Cribari Bridge.

“Save Saugatuck From Semis” signs greeted residents at Town Hall yesterday.

They offered a dry presentation, focused on structural engineering issues.

The public could comment afterward, they said — but only at a table near the front, speaking individually to a transcriber.

The public howled.

DOT — perceived as inflexible by many residents, during discussions over the past few years about the 143-year-old span — relented.

Residents could indeed step up the microphone and address the entire audience– including the DOT staff — the moderator said.

The public applauded.

Part of the Town Hall crowd last night.

For nearly 2 hours, the public — Representative Town Meeting members, other citizens, even the owner of the small Bridge Street house that once belonged to the bridge tender – spoke.

Nearly all emphasized two things: traffic and safety. Environmental concerns, and fears of damage to homes from the vibrations of semis, were raised too.

Kristen Schneeman — who demanded that she be allowed to speak from the lectern, not the corner table — was first. Her comments set the tone for the night.

The RTM member noted that public opinion has recently converged around 2 needs: preventing tractor-trailer traffic from creating a “fourth lane of I-95 that jeopardizes safety, health, and quality of life well beyond the Bridge Street historic area,” and preserving the historic character of a local icon.

She said that CTDOT’s Highway Design Manual calls on designers to be “imaginative, innovative and flexible,” asking “if the oldest active movable highway bridge in Connecticut does not merit that flexibility, what does?”

RTM member Kristin Purcell and Westport Alliance for Saugatuck member Dara Lamb both said that state officials are encouraging more housing in Saugatuck, as a “Transit-Oriented District.”

Why then, they wondered, should tractor-trailers be added to an already congested area?

RTM member Kristin Mott Purcell.

Greens Farms Association president Art Schoeller called Greens Farms Road “already a go-to pass-through” for I-95. His organization, he said, opposed “any alternative that would allow trucks” in that neighborhood.

Carole Reichhelm drew applause when she thanked CTDOT for their extensive work on the project.

But, she added, “you’ve given waivers and allowed exemptions many times before, for a variety of reasons. Why wouldn’t the Cribari Bridge qualify for one?

“You can’t stop Waze,” she concluded. “But you can stop trucks. We want to work with you on this.”

Morley Boyd of the Westport Preservation Alliance held a copy of the CTDOT’s own Bridge Preservation Plan. (All photos/Dan Woog)

Public comment on the Cribari Bridge project (#0158-0214) is open through April 17.

Comments can be made online (click here); by email (James.Barrows@ct.gov); voicemail (860-594-2020), or mail (James Barrows, 2800 Berlin Turnpike, Newington, CT 06131).

To learn more about the Cribari Bridge project, click here.

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[OPINION] Move Cribari Bridge; Replacement Could Uplift And Inspire

Posted on March 19, 2026 | 28 comments

Joey Kaempfer is a 1965 graduate of Staples High School.

After working on commercial real estate projects around the world, he moved back to Westport. He lives near Saugatuck Shores, and drives through Saugatuck often. Joey writes:

I have watched and listened to the back and forth about our 143-year-old Cribari Bridge for some time. I have traveled across it in cars, bicycles and by foot on and off for nearly 70 years.

So, as a Westporter, I wish to offer a few thoughts.

First, I understand and completely concur with the idea of not curing the ills of an overcrowded I-95 by running giant trucks through the village.

Second, I have had the pleasure of living in antique houses, and in my business career rebuilding a number of old structures around the world. I do not find the Cribari either charming or pretty, except at Christmas time with its colored lights.

Yes, it’s old, but mere age isn’t really a meaningful reason to retain something that has outlasted its useful life. I say that as someone who is often nostalgic about older buildings, houses, and objects of beauty.

Mere age is not a reason to retain something that has outlived its useful life, says Joey Kaempfer.

I would like to see the bridge, or part of it, moved closer to town as a footbridge near the Library, or as an interesting replacement for the Kings Highway bridge near the medical park formerly known as Fort Apache.

We could then build a magnificent modern bridge in Cribari’s stead. It could be genuinely beautiful, perhaps designed by a remarkably talented architect. (Perhaps Jon Pickard of New Haven, the former head designer at the late Cesar Peilli’s office, or someone like Norman Foster in London, or another notable and brilliant designer.)

I would be delighted to pay the differential cost for this great design over yet another dull river crossing. Such a bridge could help lift up our wonderful town, by showing what startling design can do. I have found great design to be contagious.

One example of a modern bridge design. Joey Kaempfer notes, “Ours would be smaller and more delicate. But great design can lift the spirits of those who see and travel across it.” 

The replacement bridge could be slightly wider; be more graciously proportioned; have a simple, modern mechanism to allow taller boats to pass, and still not be designed to allow large, noisy trucks trying to avoid I-95 congestion.

I see this as an opportunity for Westport to keep some history, while creating something accretive to the beauty and charm of our town.

(“06880” Opinion pages are open to all. Send submissions to 06880blog@gmail.com. To support this hyperlocal blog, please click here.)

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Posted in Local politics, Saugatuck, Transportation

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