Jay Walshon moved to Westport in 1985. He spent his career in emergency medicine, including chair and director of Milford Hospital for 35 years. His 2 children are Staples High School graduates.
Though Jay has never sought political office, he frequently attends and speaks at public meetings.
He believes that an informed electorate is beneficial to Westport’s future. He is intrigued that there is a third party (Independent) candidate in this year’s election.
Curious as to the impact that candidacy might have, he did some research. Jay writes:
This is the 5th time since 1997 in which a third party candidate is running for first selectman. It might be instructive to review Westport’s political party registrations, along with all the first selectman races since 1997, to see if there are any trends or patterns.
Date on registered voters, from 1997-2021. For the 2017 and ’21 elections only, the numbers in parentheses show the number of eligible voters who actually cast ballots.
Here is a summary of the prior 7 first selectman races:
1997: Diane Farrell (D) defeated Joe Arcudi (R), 61% to 39%.
2001: Diane Farrell (D) defeated John Izzo (R) and John Kluchnick (Ind) 70% to 29% and 1%.
Diane Goss Farrell
2005: Gordon Joseloff (D) defeated John Izzo (R) 59% to 41%.
2009: Gordon Joseloff (D) defeated Gavin Anderson (R) 46% and John Izzo (Ind) 52% to 46% and 2%.
2013: Jim Marpe (R) 55% defeated Helen Garten (D) 55% to 45%.
Jim Marpe (Photo/Ted Horowitz)
2017: Jim Marpe (R) defeated Melissa Kane (D) and John Suggs (Ind) 49.5% to 45% and 5%. TJ Elgin (Ind) got 0.3%.
2021: Jen Tooker (R) defeated Jonathan Steinberg (D) and TJ Elgin (Ind) 50% to 49.2% and 0.8%.
Since 1997, the percentage of Republican registrations has diminished markedly, while the number of Democratic, unaffiliated and other registrations have markedly increased.
Voter turnout also varies.
In 2017 and 2021, Republican and Democrat turnout was around 50%, while unaffiliated and other was around 33%.
In 1997, despite Republicans far outnumbering Democrats, Diane Farrell handily beat Republican incumbent Joe Arcudi.
Joe Arcudi
In 2001 Farrell easily beat Republican John Izzo and independent John Kluchnick. The independent vote was inconsequential.
In 2013 the opposite of 1997 occurred. Republican Jim Marpe defeated Helen Garten.
The most recent 2 elections were interesting – and very close.
In 2017, out of 17,867 potential votes and 8,510 votes cast, Republican Jim Marpe beat Democrat Melissa Kane by 455 votes. The 2 independent candidates got 462 votes.
In 2021, Republican Jen Tooker defeated Democrat Jonathan Steinberg by 69 votes. The third party candidate received 64.
In 2001 and 2009, third party candidates had negligible impacts upon clear-cut elections. However, in the most recent 2 cycles they were impactful, and possibly determinative.
This year, the third party candidate has run a more competitive — and well-funded — race than any previous one.
The impact in 2025 will be known the night of November 4.
Staples High School’s Internship Program is a win-win-win.
Every spring, talented and eager seniors leave school 3-4 weeks before graduation. They spend the final month out in the real world.
They work everywhere: retail stores, salons, restaurants, non-profits, medical offices, financial firms, design shops, farms, marketing companies, photography studios, publishers … you name it. If there’s a job to be learned and done, they do it.
(And not just in Westport. Interns head to New York City — even beyond.)
The work and real life experience they gain is invaluable. The energy, creativity — and help — they bring to the workplace is huge. And the internships get them out of high school at a time when senioritis would otherwise kick in (that’s the third “win”).
But as hard as they work, the program coordinators work equally hard right now arranging 420 or so internships.
So they’re asking the greater “06880” community: Can you help?
Do you need a senior (or 2, or 3) for daily onsite (or remote) work? Perhaps you’re beefing up your social media presence. Or looking for research help, design work, web content, data entry. Or hundreds of other tasks.
You can be a small, medium or large size firm– or a single proprietor. Maybe you were an intern once yourself, and want to give back.
Internships begin May 20. Students are expected to work 5 hours a day for 3-4 weeks, onsite, remotely or in a hybrid model. Program leaders provide guidance and oversight.
The Board of Finance holds a special meeting this Monday (December 11, 7:30 p.m., Town Hall auditorium).
There is one agenda item: “Second discussion of the Long Lots Building Project.” It’s a discussion only; no vote will be taken.
The Long Lots Elementary School building project’s next step is the Board of Finance. (Drone photo/Brandon Malin)
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Speaking of local politics: 1st Selectwoman Jennifer Tooker is seeking residents registered to vote in Westport to serve on the Fair Rent Commission. This group, was recently established by the Representative Town Meeting.
Five members will be appointed to staggered 4-year terms. Click here for the full language of the ordinance, including its makeup and powers.
In addition to the Fair Rent Commission, Westport residents with varying interests, talents, backgrounds and political affiliations are encouraged to volunteer to serve on other appointed committees that currently have vacancies or upcoming member term limits:
Architectural Review Board
Arts Advisory Committee
Blight Prevention Board
Commission for Senior Services
Conservation Commission
Flood and Erosion Control Board (Alternates)
Historic District Commission
Parks Advisory Committee
Tree Board
Youth Commission
Click here for descriptions of the roles and responsibilities of these appointed boards, commissions and committees.
Registered voters seeking any appointment should submit an Interest Form, including a brief description of your background, biography or resume to selectwoman@westportct.gov.
Westport’s November residential home real estate market was stronger than a year ago.
There were 25 unit sales — up 8.7% compared to November 2022.
The median sales price of $1,75 million was up 9.7%; the median sales price per square foot of $434 is a 3% increase.
76% of homes sold for 95% or more of the list price. 84% sold within 90 days of listing.
The inventory of 91 homes represents a 12.5% decline compared to a year ago. The days on market — 48 — is a 15.8% decline. (Hat tip: Meredith Cohen/Raveis)
This 5-bedroom, 5 1/2-bathroom house at 2 Owenoke Park is listed for $8.795 million. It is 4,820 square feet, on 0.47 acres.
La Plage celebrates the holidays with 2 special dinners.
There are 3-course prix fixe meals on Christmas Eve (4 to 10 p.m.) and Christmas Day (noon to 7 p.m.; $90 per person; $55 for 12 and under; $20 for kid’s menu). Click here for the menu, and reservations (required).
New Year’s Eve features a la carte seating from 5 to 7 p.m. A gala dinner, with 5- course tasting menu, is served from 8:30 on. Click here for the menu, and reservations.
Speaking of the holidays: It will be a cold one in Lyman, Ukraine. For the second winter in a row, our sister city is dealing with the effects of Russia’s invasion.
Brian Mayer — the Westporter who co-founded Ukraine Aid International — is in Lyman this week.
Yesterday, he sent a video. It shows both the destruction, and the opportunity to help.
Our goal this month is to raise $60,000. That would pay for 2 wood pellet machines. Each provides pellets to heat 1,000 homes. In just 96 hours, “06880” readers have donated nearly $51,000.
With your help, the machines can be funded — and delivered — by Christmas. $30 will heat one home all winter. $300 will heat 10. $3,000 will heat 100. And 3 of those $3,000 donations will enable us to reach our goal.
To donate by credit card, click here; then click the “I want to support” box; then select “Westport — Lyman Sister City.” Scroll down on the Donate page for other options: mail, wire transfer and Venmo. Thank you!
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Pizza and a play.
That’s on the menu December 20. Westport Country Playhouse hosts “Together at the Table Family Dinner,” before a performance of the holiday production “A Sherlock Carol.” Doors open at 5:30 p.m. for a pizza dinner, followed by the show at 7.
Families can enjoy a communal dinner in the Playhouse’s rehearsal barn and a casual conversation with an artist from the show before the performance together – all for $10 per ticket (must attend as a family, with student-age children. For reservations, call 203-227-4177.
“A Sherlock Carol” runs from December 19-23. Click here for the full schedule, and more information.
Former 1st Selectwoman Diane Farrell returns to Westport.
This time, she’s the deputy under secretary for international trade, in the office of the Deputy Undersecretary of Commerce.
She’ll speak to the Westport Sunrise Rotary Club this Friday (December 15, 7:45 a.m.,; coffee, bagels and muffins at 7; Green’s Farms Congregational Church).
Kerri Rosenthal turns its attention from women’s clothes to women’s work.
On Tuesday (December 12, 6 to 8 p.m.), the Main Street store hosts a launch and discussion for Dr. Hilary Berger’s new book, “Work Like a Mother: Rewriting the Script for a Mother’s Career and Wellness Journey.”
Congratulations to Staples High School’s December Students of the Month: seniors Deneil Betfarhad and William Lacend Duprey; juniors Elsa D’Elia, Christina Kavanah and Kelpin Gomez Ramos; sophomore Reese Rein, and freshmen Lila Roach and Simon Van Aken.
Students of the Month “help make Staples a welcoming place for their peers and teachers alike. They are the ‘glue’ of the Staples community: the type of kind, cheerful, hard-working, trustworthy students that keep the high school together, making it the special place that it is.”
Staples Students of the Month (from left): Simon Van Aken, Lila Roach, Kelpin Gomez Ramos, Deneil Betfarhad, Christina Kavanah, Elsa D’Elia, William Lacend Duprey. Missing: Reese Rein.
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Speaking of Staples: 1979 graduate and Clemson University men’s soccer head coach Mike Noonan is headed to the NCAA championship.
His Tigers beat West Virginia University 1-0 yesterday in the Division I semifinal. They face Notre Dame in Monday’s final (6 p.m.).
Noonan had a legendary soccer career at Staples, helping lead the Wreckers to the 1978 state championship. After earning All-America status at Middlebury College, he played professionally — including in Louisville, where the Final 4 is being held.
Several of Noonan’s former Staples teammates and friends made the trip there for yesterday’s match, including Rich Hiltz, Eric Strausser and Dan Donovan. Donovan’s son Paddy is a reserve goalkeeper for Clemson.
Mike Noonan greets Westport fans after yesterday’s NCAA Division I semifinal win.
The Westport Astronomical Society’s free online lecture series continues December 19 (8 p.m.), with an out-of-this-world topic.
Dr. Catherine S. Plesko will discuss “Planetary Defense: Using Supercomputers to Prevent Asteroid Impacts on Earth.” She is the principal investigator for planetary defense at Los Alamos National Laboratory.
Claudia Sherwood Servidio offers today’s “Westport … Naturally” image from Main Street near Willowbrook Cemetery, with this comment: “There’s still color out there!”
And finally … in honor of Dr. Hilary Berger’s book launch (story above):
(Once again — as we’ve done every day since 2009 — “06880” delivers tons of useful, hyper-local news and information. Please click here to support our work. Thank you!)
Having lived in Westport my whole life, I thought I knew everything about this town.
From the Bankside Farmers to the banks no one ever goes to; from F. Scott Fitzgerald to Marilyn Chambers, I’ve heard all the stories.
Except the fact that Westport has 3 sister cities.
It’s right there in Wikipedia, which never seldom lies: “Westport currently has three sister cities: Marigny, France; St. Petersburg, Russia; Yangzhou, China.”
If that’s true, we must be part of a very dysfunctional family. You know, the kind that never gets together– even for holidays, weddings and funerals.
Well, it is true. I typed “sister cities” into the town website. There it is again, under “Appointed Boards”:
The Westport Sister Cities Association is a non-profit organization dedicated to improving human ties and understanding through cultural, trade, and educational exchange with other communities throughout the world. The Association strives to enrich the lives of Westport and Fairfield County residents through participation in such exchanges.
Westport currently has three sister cities: Marigny, France; St. Petersburg, Russia; Yangzhou, People’s Republic of China.
So we not only have 3 sisters — we’ve got an entire Association dedicated to them.
Marigny - magnifique!
The Marigny connection makes sense. Right after D-Day Westporter Bob Loomis — a gun sergeant — ended up there, 25 miles from Utah Beach. A couple of weeks later another Westporter, heavy machine gunner Clay Chalfant, moved through Marigny with his company on their way to Belgium.
Woody Klein’s history of Westport notes that after the war Charlotte MacLear, head of the French department at Staples, sparked an campaign to “officially adopt Marigny” and help its recovery. Our town sent clothes, money and Christmas gifts, thanks to fundraising that included selling toys and buckets with designs painted by Westport artists.
In return, Marigny created the “Westport School Canteen,” and named the town’s largest square “Place Westport.”
In June 1994 — as part of the 50th anniversary of the invasion of Normandy — Marigny invited 3 Westport middle school students and 2 Westport veterans to stay in the homes of residents. They visited shops named “Westport Pharmacy” and “Westport Gift Shop.” The 2 veterans were, of course, Loomis and Chalfant
Zut alors!
St. Petersburg seems to have no connection to Westport. It is, however, the only one of our 3 sisters I’ve actually visited. I don’t recall any signs hanging near the Hermitage or Neva River saying “Здравствуйте, Westport” (thanks, Google Translate!).
Of course, I might have missed them. There was a lot of vodka involved.
St. Petersburg -- not too shabby.
Finally, Yangzhou. Of our 3 lost sisters, this was the one with the most potential. After all, the US is now a wholly-owned subsidiary of China, so we ought to embrace our relative with all the money.
Bingo! (Or, as we say via Google Translate, 宾果!)
Google offered several links. The 1st was a long-ago sister-city site on a Staples server. It hasn’t been updated since 2002, but it included information about exchange programs with students, and a trip to Yangzhou by long-ago social studies teacher Todd Parker. Though the messageboard, chatroom and guestbook were all defunct, clearly some sort of arrangement once existed.
Clicking the link to Yangzhou’s official site delivered this error message: “The URL. http://www.china-yz.com is categorized as ‘pornography.'”
Now we’re talking!
Yangzhou in the spring.
Another link brought up a long-ago journal entry from Chris Fray, the Staples Mandarin teacher. Traveling in China, he wrote:
I meet Joel and Arline Epstein, two Westporters who have recently moved from Long Island. They are on a four day visit to Yangzhou and want to meet me. Joel and Arline are active in the Westport Sister City Committee and have come to Yangzhou to scout out some potential activities for the Committee as part of a larger-scale visit to China….We spend most of the dinner discussing China and the potential of future exchanges between Westport and Yangzhou.
And in June 2005, WestportNow reported, then-First Selectwoman Diane G. Farrell visited Yangzhou to “commemorate” the 10th anniversary of the sister city relationship, and then renew it.
Since then, 这是她写道 (“that’s all she wrote”).
Chris Fray confirms that — after 9 years or so of teacher exchanges, and a few other connections involving photographers and businesspersons — our Yangzhou connection has petered out.
There’s no more information online about our sister-city relationship with Yangzhou — or St. Petersburg, or Marigny. And, Chris thinks, the sister city committee hasn’t met in several years.
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Date on registered voters, from 1997-2021. For the 2017 and ’21 elections only, the numbers in parentheses show the number of eligible voters who actually cast ballots.
