Recent discussion about flooding at 55-57 Greens Farms Road — and the potential for more, if plans for a 250-unit apartment complex there move forward — got Eric Buchroeder thinking.
Though very young, he remembers construction of I-95 — then called the Connecticut Turnpike — in the mid-1950s. It was part of President Eisenhower’s plan for a nationwide highway network to provide security against foreign invasion. (As a young cavalry officer in World War I, he’d had difficulty moving large numbers of troops around the country.)
In 1953, Eric says, the plan was to construct an elevated highway, in a right of way between Greens Farms Road and the New York, New Haven & Hartford railroad tracks.
Though later built level with the tracks, it needed much more roadbed material than was available commercailly.
Someone had the idea to pump liquified sand and silt from the bottom of Long Island Sound at Compo Beach. Steel pipes ran the material from the beach, up Hillspoint Road to Greens Farms Road, where it was used as landfill to elevate the road embankment.
Greens Farms Road was rebuilt too, replacing curves with the current stretch between Hillspoint Road and Compo Road South/Bridge Street.
Readers: Do you remember construction of that stretch of I-95, and the construction of the “new” Greens Farms Road? Click “Comments” below.
We have no photos of the construction of I-95 along Greens Farms Road. So this view — looking east from Saugatuck — will have to do.
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The Y’s Men of Westport and Weston have a number of sub-groups. They cover many interests, like technology, travel and food.
Plus music.
Last week, the Y’s Men’s Classical Society hosted the Staples Jazz Band, at the Westport Library.
The group, directed by Kevin Mazzarella, “displayed musicianship well beyond their years,” the Y’s Men newsletter says.
The concert was the second of 4 performances. Coming soon: the Staples Stradivarius Chamber Orchestra, and the Art Greenberg Memorial Olga Vinokur Piano.
But you don’t have to be a Y’s Man to enjoy the Jazz Band. Click here or below to watch and listen. (The concert starts at the 4:30 mark.)
Tommy Greenwald got more than he bargained for, when he watched the Harvard-Yale men’s basketball game on ESPNU.
Cooper Boardman was on the call.
The 2017 Staples High School and 2021 Syracuse University grad has broadcast Boston Red Sox games on the WEEI radio network. He also worked for Fox Sports and Westword One, doing college basketball, softball and lacrosse.
Boardman began his career at Staples. He called a number of sports, and won several John Drury Awards.
Speaking of sports: congratulations to Staples wrestlers.
Seamus Brannigan and Julian Rousseau finished first, at this weekend’s FCIAC (league) championships.
Damian Rousseau and Gavin Donaldson placed second, while Kai Schwartz was fourth.
Up next: the state and open meets. Go Wreckers:
From left: Head coach Jordan Marion, Gavin Donaldson, Damian Rousseau, Seamus Brannigan, Julian Rousseau, Kai Schwartz, Francesco Beccarra, Charlie Goldman, Amelia Guimond, coach Will Switzer. Not pictured: Jessiah Jones, Amere Miller, Grady McHugh, Kia Halper.
Speaking still of sports: Congratulations to Dylan Rosen!
The Coleytown Middle School 8th grader recently placed 3rd in Junior 3 Clone Class. It was his first full season of racing with the Norwalk Karting Association, at Calf Pasture Beach.
Dylan is coached by 66 year-old Hugh Gorman. They began a trackside friendship during repairs, and Hugh began offering tips to improve the kart and Dylan’s driving skills.
“He has a lot of patience to talk through things and share his knowledge.” said the 13-year-old racer.
When the season ended in November, Dylan’s 25-year-old Coyote Kart was beyond repair. He and his dad, Frank, called the company. They offered a steep discount on a 15-year-old frame, which they could transfer their working parts to.
Dylan did all the work on it himself. He plans to compete in regional races, beginning next month — with a goal of qualifying for Daytona kart week.
He is looking for local sponsors, to help with karting expenses. Email rosenfamilyracing@gmail.com for details.
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The Fire Department reports: “A tractor-trailer has become disabled, causing a significant diesel fuel spill on I-95 southbound between exits 18 and 17 (Hillspoint and Hales Road overpasses).
“I-95 is down to one lane of travel southbound in this area. Expect extended delays on I-95 and heavy traffic on local roads.”
The culprit. (Photo courtesy of Westport Fire Department)
Too many to count, they worked a couple of miles from Westport. But they made a gigantic impact on our town.
Less than 3 days after Thrusday’s horrific accident closed I-95 in both directions, the fire-damaged Fairfield Avenue overpass at Exit 15 had been demolished.
Northbound traffic flowed once again on Saturday night. Southbound traffic resumed a day later.
It was a remarkable effort, by engineers, demolition workers, pavers and line painters, state and federal Department of Transportation officials, Connecticut State Police and their local counterparts, Governor Lamont, and many others.
I-95 bridge repair, last Saturday.
Traffic in Westport was bad, for a couple of days. It could have been much worse, for far longer.
Another shout-out goes to Westport Police, who had their hands full with the spillover traffic. Special kudos to Ryan Paulsson.
“06880” reader Werner Liepolt wrote that Westport’s Deputy Police Chief “promptly cut truckers off from a left turn onto Greens Farms Road, after learning of numerous big trucks over running sidewalks” on Bridge Street and Imperial Avenue.
Thanks to all those listed above, we were back — remarkably quickly — to just our own bad drivers.
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Less than 80 hours after a truck with 8,500 gallons of fuel burned an I-95 overpass in Norwalk, the span has been demolished — and the vital highway is back in operation.
The southbound lanes reopened just after 10 a.m. today.
Traffic flowed on the northbound lanes shortly after 7 p.m. yesterday.
Demolition, paving and restriping was completed a full day earlier than expected.
Workers put the finishing touches on the southbound lanes (left).
Governor Ned Lamont and Connecticut Transportation Commissioner Garrett Eucalitto say:
Crews from the Connecticut Department of Transportation and contractors stayed at the site of the Fairfield Avenue Bridge throughout Friday night and continued working through the early hours of Saturday morning when additional equipment needed to remove the damaged bridge arrived.
Crews were able to complete demolition of the bridge by 12:30 p.m. today.
Following demolition, crews then began working to clean up all the debris and materials from the bridge off the highway. They also began making necessary repairs to the highway to ensure that it is safe for vehicular traffic.
The Connecticut Department of Transportation estimates that the northbound lanes of I-95 will reopen to vehicles by 8 p.m. tonight (Saturday).
All southbound lanes of the highway will remain closed to vehicles through the day on Sunday, May 5, because the pavement on this side of the highway was so damaged from the Thursday morning crash that those lanes need to be milled and repaved.
“Crews are making great progress in Norwalk and I am encouraged that we’ll have one side of I-95 open later tonight,” Governor Lamont said.
“Completely removing that bridge in less than 36 hours is an impressive feat and is credit to the hard work and dedication of the contractors and Connecticut Department of Transportation crews, who are pushing to get the entire highway fully reopened in both directions by Monday morning.”
As of 7:20 p.m. Saturday night, the entire Fairfield Avenue overpass in Norwalk had been removed.
“I continue to be thankful to the CTDOT crews and contractors who are working as hard as they can to get this highway reopened,” Commissioner Eucalitto said. “They made great progress today and I remain optimistic that we will meet our Monday morning deadline. I ask the public to remain patient with the ongoing traffic congestion and to continue using alternate routes and public transportation throughout the weekend.”
“I remain completely impressed with the response from our Norwalk Fire Department, Norwalk Police Department, and the State of Connecticut, including Governor Lamont’s Office, the Connecticut Department of Transportation, the Connecticut Division of Emergency Management and Homeland Security and our State Police,” Norwalk Mayor Harry Rilling said. “The fact that there were no injuries from the accident and that crews are working incredibly quickly to remove the bridge so we can reopen I-95 in both directions as soon as possible is a testament to Governor Lamont’s leadership and the high level of collaboration between each agency and level of government. I also want to thank our Norwalk residents and business community for their patience, as I know these temporary closures have been a complete inconvenience to their lives.”
Demolition of the I-95 Fairfield Avenue overpass in Norwalk will begin tomorrow morning. The road, at Exit 15, was damaged this morning, when a gasoline tanker involved in a multi-vehicle accident caught fire underneath.
I-95 will remain closed during demolition. The state Department of Transportation expects the work to last about 4 days.
The goal is for I-95 to reopen on Monday, May 6.
Westport Police say: “Over the next few days, local roads will continue to be severely affected with increased vehicular traffic.
“We urge anyone who does not need to travel to stay off the roads. If you need to travel, please give yourself extra time and be patient.
“We also encourage anyone traveling to and from Westport to use Metro North train service or alternate routes.”
A multi-vehicle accident and fire on I-95 southbound just before 5:30 a.m. today caused gridlock throughout Westport.
And it won’t ease for a while. Officials estimated this morning that I-95 in that area could be closed for several days.
Westbound Post Road traffic, just before noon. The cross streets are Myrtle Avenue (left) and Imperial Avenue (right). (Drone photo/Charlie Scott)
The crash — involving 2 tractor-trailers and a passenger vehicle — ignited a blaze in a tanker truck with 8,500 gallons of gasoline, underneath Fairfield Avenue at Exit 15. None of the occupants were hurt, though a firefighter suffered a leg injury. (Click here for a video of the fire.)
The I-95 accident and fire earlier today. (Photo/Norwalk Fire Department)
Traffic was closed in both directions, and on surrounding streets. Fairfield Avenue connects Martin Luther King Boulevard and Connecticut Avenue.
Officials are checking for damage to the overpass.
The aftermath of this morning’s tanker fire. The truck cannot be moved until all contents are offloaded. (Photo courtesy of News12 Connecticut)
The result was horrendous traffic, throughout Westport.
The Post Road was backed up for miles at rush hour. Alternate routes paralleling I-95, as well as to the Merritt Parkway, were also jammed.
The Post Road, at Wilton Road and Riverside Avenue. (Photo/Craig Bergamo)
Large trucks — including semis — jammed the Post Road. Some headed west on Greens Farms Road, but had to turn right on Imperial Avenue because they could not cross the Cribari Bridge.
That created additional traffic, at the Imperial/Post Road East traffic light.
Officials urge drivers — particularly truckers — to use alternate routes, including I-84 and I-87, if possible. Signs throughout the state, and in New York and Rhode Island, urge motorists to avoid the area.
Another view of the accident and fire. (Facebook screenshot courtesy of Kalin Barber)
I-95 (aka the Connecticut Turnpike or Thruway — though definitely not the “John Davis Lodge Turnpike”) has been part of Westport for so long that its path through here, largely paralleling the railroad tracks, seems foreordained.
Of course, it was not.
In 1951 — when planning for the highway was underway — 2 different routes were proposed.
One was very similar to what was ultimately decided — though it appears a second, or alternate, exit was included, at the Compo Road South/Greens Farms Road/ Bridge street intersection. (Greens Farms Road was further south then than it is now.)
But a northern highway was also considered.
Two proposed routes, from the October 18, 1951 Westporter-Herald. Click on or hover over to enlarge.
It would veer off just after the Norwalk border. It would rip through Treadwell Avenue and Kings Highway South, cross over Post Road West (with an exit by Birchwood Country Club), then head east at Riverside Avenue (another possible exit).
The “expressway” would continue just south of Post Road East (known at the time as State Street East), obliterating residences in its path through Hillandale Road, then just south of Greens Farms Elementary School (another potential exit), and on eastward through Maple Avenue South.
At the Fairfield line, the highway would continue at what is now its current location.
Legend has it that the more southern route was chosen because the governor — a Westport resident — lived on Easton Road, closer to the northern path.
The Staples High School boys soccer team, coached by Albie Loeffler, earned its 5th consecutive state title (a Connecticut record).
Jimmy Manning headed in a beautiful cross from Kenny Murphy in sudden-death overtime to defeat #1-ranked Manchester. The upstaters had a perfect record going into the state final.
Staples finished 13-1-5.
(Every day, “06880” covers the Westport of yesterday, today and tomorrow. Please click here to help support our work. Thank you!)
Winners of Tuesday’s election — newcomers and incumbents — will be sworn in on Monday, November 20 (7:30 p.m., Town Hall auditorium).
The public is invited to attend.
Dozens of town officials — including board and commission members, and those on the Representative Town Meeting — will take oaths of office November 20. This is a file photo from 2021. (Photo/Andrew Colabella)
The Westport Library Gift Store is now open, and filled with gifts. It’s located in the writing center adjacent to the Hub on the main floor, alongside the Library Store and Patron Services desk.
There are gifts for readers, writers, and anyone else special: handmade scarves, hats and gloves; puzzles and games; decorative items like unique snow globes; notebooks and journals; toys, art supplies, novelty items for kids, and more.
An added gift: Purchases are tax free. All proceeds support Library services and programs.
High school students were not around in the 1960s. Most of their parents were not, either.
But MoCA Westport is reaching back to that famous decade, while seeking submissions for their 2024 High School Student Art Exhibition.
The theme of the open call is “Through the Lens of Icons: Revisiting the 1960s.” The idea is to “reimagine the ’60s through your creative lens.” Individuals, moments or symbols that hold cultural, political or personal significance are welcome.
Categories include photography, painting, drawing, sculpture and video. Students may submit only one work each.
The deadline is December 1. For more details, including submission guidelines, click here.
President Kennedy, his wife Jackie and Texas Governor John Connolly, moments before the assassination that changed the world.
The “bridge slide” portion of the I-95 project is over.
But construction delays remain.
Long ones.
Last night, Jo Shields Sherman reports, 3 state highway trucks were traveling south, “as fast as 5 miles an hour.” Police vehicles kept pace, preventing any vehicles from passing.
One view of I-95, from the Hillspoint Road bridge …
The view from the other side of the bridge seemed eerie, she says, with not a single vehicle in sight. Here’s what it looked like:
(Photos/Jo Shields Sherman)
By 8:30, traffic was moving well again.
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After a 3-year hiatus, Stephanie Bass returns to the stage.
Westport’s favorite 70something comedian offers her always-hilarious take on life — including getting older, and raising a kid from 5 to adulthood in this wonderful, odd, often (unintentionally) humorous town.
The free show (including both stand-up and storytelling) on November 17 (7 p.m., Westport Library) is presented by students of Verso University’s Stand-Up comedy series. The host is comedian (and course instructor) Mina Hartong.
Staples High School’s November Students of the Month are seniors Dylan Fiore and Dylan Walsh, juniors Will Boberski and Kate Weitz, sophomores Tyler Smalls and Mia Zibly, and freshmen Ishan Pasham and Eliza Wadley.
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.”
November Students of the Month (from left): Dylan Walsh, William Boberski, Mia Zibly, Kate Weitz, Eliza Wadley. Not pictured: Dylan Fiore, Ishan Pasham, Tyler Smalls.
The Westport Library’s Big Fall Book Sale is set for 3 weeks before winter: December 1-4.
On sale: thousands of gently used books for children and adults in more than 50 categories, antiquarian books, vinyl records, music CDs, movie and TV DVDs, plus a limited selection of ephemera and artwork, and the “Fiction for $1” room.
Hours are Friday, December 1 (noon to 6 p.m.), Saturday, December 2 (9 a.m. to 5 p.m.), Sunday, December 3 (11 a.m. to 5 p.m., nearly everything half price), and Monday, December 4 (9 a.m. to 5 p.m.; fill logo bags for $8 or $10).
On December 1 (8:55 a.m. to noon), the book sale is open via an Early Access ticket (click here to buy). For more information, click here.
Can’t make the sale? Visit the nonprofit Westport Book Shop across Jesup Green from the Library, or shop any time on the Book Sale’s Online Store, or eBay.
Westport Library Book Sale.
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It’s been a few days since Tracy Porosoff sent in this “Westport … Naturally” photo.
Hopefully, these flowers are still hanging on, in her backyard garden.
And finally … if high school students need a prompt to create art for MoCA Westport’s “1960s” exhibition (story above), there are tens of thousands of songs to choose from.
Here are 3:
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