Burger King is long gone from Westport. (Spoiler alert: It’s the Starbucks drive-thru.)
But now Matthew Mandell can call himself our new Burger King.
As executive director of the Westport Weston Chamber of Commerce, he oversees events like The Great Burger Contest. Twenty restaurants competed, in 7 categories.
But Matthew didn’t just sit in his office. He went whole hog.
He visited all 20 restaurants, during the 31 days of March. He ate a burger at every one (and tons of fries, too).
Matthew Mandell: 20 burgers in 31 days.
Voting ended at midnight last night. Results will be announced soon.
We’ll also announce how Matthew is feeling.
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Jay Norris is a busy man.
The Westport resident is co-founder and CEO of Guesst, the real estate and restaurant leasing software platform. He also co-founded BlackLight, the world’s first search engine for Black-owned businesses nationwide.
In addition, he helped start Startup Westport, the public/private partnership whose goal is to make our town the tech entrepreneurial capital of Connecticut. He founded Westport10, the social and networking organization for Black men and their families.
And he’s a board member of both the Westport Library, and the Westport Weston Family YMCA. Oh, yeah: He also volunteers as a mentor with A Better Chance of Westport.
Now he’s added a new gig.
Jay was just named co-chair of the Manhattan Chamber of Commerce. Focusing on innovation and technology, he’ll work to connect tech leaders in New York, and help them come up with solutions for the city and their small-to-medium- sized businesses.
(Don’t be fooled: Information is not free. “06880” relies on reader support. We’re serious! Please click here to make a tax-deductible contribution. Thank you.)
It’s a way for town employees — police officers, firefighters, teachers — to live in the town where they work.
It’s how longtime older residents can remain here, and striving young people can come.
But it’s not cheap to buy the land for affordable housing, then build it.
In other words: How can Westport afford affordable housing?
Earlier this month, we took a big step forward.
The Planning & Zoning Commission established an “Inclusionary Zoning Fee,” and recommended a fee: 0.5% of construction costs of all projects for which zoning permit applications are filed. That’s $5 for every $1,000.
The fee will be paid by anyone filing for a zoning permit — for instance, builders of new construction, and homeowners making major renovations.
The Representative Town meeting then unanimously passed the motion to create the fund, and voted 30-1 to ratify the fee. The ordinance becomes effective February 23.
What does it all mean?
Here’s one example. The 1 Glendinning Place project — a plan to build 10 homes near the office complex off Weston Road, 2 of them reserved for people with special needs — has an estimated construction cost of $10 million.
That would generate $50,000 for the new Affordable Housing Trust Fund. More would be added from other related zoning permit transactions.
The Glendinning Place proposal could add over $50,000 to Westport’s new Affordable Housing Trust Fund.
The Fund would be used to purchase land, and for the subsequent construction, of affordable housing.
Though the ordinance is not yet effective, the Affordable Housing Trust Fund is already at $10,000. It was jump-started by an anonymous donation, from a resident who believes in its mission.
Besides the 0.5% zoning permit fee and donations, the fund will include investment income, as well as possible state and federal grants.
Planning began almost 2 years, with discussions by then-P&Z chair Danielle Dobin about Westport’s Affordable Housing Plan.
RTM members Matthew Mandell and Seth Braunstein helped shepherd it through many legislative steps. It had strong support from town officials (including 1st Selectwoman Jen Tooker), town attorneys, and RTM members.
The fund will be administered by an oversight committee. They’ll advise the Boards of Selectwomen and Finance, and the RTM, on how and where to spend the funds. Those bodies must then approve the recommendations.
Tooker will appoint the 5 members of the committee.
“This is a high priority for me,” Tooker tells “06880.”
She has already explored opportunities on town-owned land. The Linxweiler property on the Post Road (between Fresh Market and McDonald’s) could be used for cluster housing, for example.
The Linxweiler property, on Post Road East.
The 5 existing structures on Baron’s South could also be renovated and repurposed, through the Affordable Housing Trust Fund.
The committee will add “a whole other perspective, and another strategic viewpoint and layer of focus” to the work Tooker has already done, she says.
“It’s incredibly important to have diverse housing in Westport,” the 1st Selectwoman adds.
“It’s an issue we take very seriously. The committee and fund will be a big help as we proceed strategically.”
Westport is not the first Fairfield County community to embrace the idea of an affordable housing fund. Fairfield, New Canaan, Darien, Stamford and Greenwich have similar ordinances.
Fairfield — which has the same 0.5% construction cost fee as Westport — has raised $2.25 million since 2018. They’ve allocated nearly $1.5 million so far, mainly to acquire property.
New Canaan collects 1% of construction costs for new construction and additions. They have raised $1.1 million since 2020.
Mandell hopes Westport’s Affordable Housing Trust Fund will receive $750,000 to $1 million a year. The first results could be seen in 2026.
(“06880” covers local politics, real estate, and much more. Please click here to support our work. Thank you!)
There’s one more plan for Long Lots Elementary School.
Sort of.
1st Selectwoman Jen Tooker began last night’s Long Lots School Building Committee meeting by announcing a new version of the controversial renovation project. The goal was to address objections raised previously by the Planning & Zoning Commission, to a baseball diamond at the location of the current Westport Community Gardens.
A “multipurpose field” would be constructed there instead. The garden would be relocated somewhere else, on the Hyde Lane property.
There was no drawing to accompany the concept.
The LLSBC then held a work session. Microphones were either off or insufficient, making it difficult to hear.
Residents Jennifer Johnson and John Suggs both complained that the meeting was neither livestreamed nor recorded.
The newest plan — with, perhaps, a drawing — may be presented to the P&Z at its January 22 meeting.
For over 90 years, the Westport Country Playhouse has attracted Big Names.
Next up: Audra McDonald.
The singer/actor — winner of a record-breaking 6 Tony Awards (plus 2 Grammys and an Emmy); National Medal of Arts recipient, and one of Time’s 100 Most Influential People — takes the stage on Saturday, February 10 (7 p.m.).
The Jewish Federation of Greater Fairfield County is sponsoring a solidarity gathering on Sunday. It marks 100 days of captivity for dozens of hostages taken by Hamas during their October 7 terrorist attack on Israel.
Sunday’s event — called “Bring Them Home Now” — is at 1 p.m. Click here to register, and receive location details.
In her last issue as editor of Westport Lifestyle, Robin Moyer Chung writes about Henry Putnam. The Staples High School student is a non-verbal 18-year-old with cerebral palsy. As with other classmates with disabilities, he participates in an internship that will help him get a job after graduation.
Click here to read the story. It begins on page 42.
Henry Putnam (Photo courtesy of Westport Lifestyle Magazine)
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Fresh off a national championship, Jake Thaw has entered the transfer portal.
The University of Michigan punt return specialist is a senior, after graduating from Staples High School in 2020. However, he has 3 years of eligibility remaining, after walking on for the Wolverines.
The Detroit Free Press writes: “Thaw, 6-1 and 192 pounds played in 15 games on special teams as a senior this season. He may now be most known for his muffed punt near the goal line against Alabama in the final minute of the Rose Bowl, though it should be highlighted he was able to recover the loose ball and avert disaster.
He had 11 fair catches, and returned 16 punts for 111 yards the season.
A muffed punt with less than a minute to play in the semifinal almost cost UM a shot at the national title. Thaw was vilified on social media, but also praised for not giving up a safety.
He wrote: “For those that have kept unwavering support — thank you. And for those that have not, I understand. I made the biggest two mistakes of my life on the biggest stage, and I won’t ever forgive myself. I’ll always love and cherish @UMichFootball and this fanbase. Go Blue.” (Hat tip: Pete Wolgast)
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Westport artists Miggs Burroughs, Darcy Hicks, Dale Najarian and Tammy Winser — all of whom advocate for common sense guns laws — will show their work in a juried exhibit at Metro Art Studios in Bridgeport. “In Our Hands” explores many perspectives of gun culture in the US. All proceeds benefit Sandy Hook Promise and Street Safe Bridgeport.
The opening reception is January 21 (1 to 3 p.m.).
Matthew Mandell paid a surprise visit yesterday to wish Westporters Dana Noorilly and Julie Mountain good luck with their new Upper West Side Granola Bar location.
Business was brisk, he said, in a beautiful spot.
Mandell is director of the Westport Weston Chamber of Commerce. “We support our members!” he notes.
Dana Noorilly, Matthew Mandell and Julie Mountain, at the New York Granola Bar.
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Neal Radding sends today’s “Westport … Naturally” image from Sherwood Island State Park, plus a George Costanza quote: “The sea was angry that day, my friends.”
And finally … on this date in 1969, the New York Jets of the American Football League defeated the NFL’s Baltimore Colts of the National Football League to win Super Bowl III (and the first championship game with that name). The 16-7 victory is one of the greatest upsets in sports history; the Jets were 19 1/2-point underdogs.
(The Jets and Sharks agree on one thing: Supporting “06880” is cool. Please click here to make a tax-deductible contribution. Thank you!)
As a Representative Town Meeting member for District 1, Matthew Mandell has his ear to the Saugatuck ground.
This weekend, he included some stunning news in his regular email to constituents and friends.
He reported that Cathy Walsh has filed an 8-30g application to turn a pair of 2-story homes into a 5-story, 42-unit apartment building. (8-30g projects include up to 30% of housing that is deemed “affordable,” by a state formula. Towns cannot deny an 8-30g proposal unless there is a specific significant health or safety concern.)
This is Very Big News for 3 reasons:
Cathy Walsh is a former Planning & Zoning Commission chair. She is now a land use consultant.
The property is owned, Mandell says, by Patrizia Zucaro’s family. Last month, she was re-elected as a Republican member of the Planning & Zoning Commission.
The addresses of the 2 homes are #5 and #7 Hiawatha Lane. That’s a small street filled with some of the most affordable homes in Westport — just a few yards from Hiawatha Lane Extension, where the mammoth 157-unit Summit Saugatuck development has finally been okayed, following nearly 2 decades of litigation.
5 and 7 Hiawatha Lane.
Mandell says:
Yes, Hiawatha is in the gun sight again, even before the full impact of the Summit development has even broken ground. This project will destroy the “middle housing” that the state says is so important to communities in favor of this out of place monstrosity.
And if you can count like I can, this is actually 7-stories with the garage and pitched roof, huge. This is way bigger than what is going up at the intersection of Wilton Road and Kings Highway North.
Quite the turn. Cathy Walsh, while on the P&Z, was one of the more vocal commissioners against 8-30g and overdevelopment. As chair she went so far as to shut down 8-30g applicant Tim Hollister’s (Summit) speech, leading to one of the many lawsuits which ultimately gave us the first Hiawatha debacle.
She was part of the majority that upended the senior housing project slated for Baron’s South which would have brought over 80 units of senior housing, 40% of which would have been affordable. (Note – on appeal to the RTM, a vast majority voted to overturn that decision, but did not achieve the high bar of 2/3s of the body).
Now, I don’t know Ms. Zucaro’s part in this and will not presume, but it is her address, owned by her family and the project is called “Zucaro Apartments.” Clearly she can’t sit on this application.
A rendering of “Zucaro Apartments,” from the Planning & Zoning application.
8-30g has never been about creating affordable housing. It is a blunt instrument under the guise of such to allow developers to bust zones and profiteer from the law. One just has to shake one’s head as to how this is shaping up.
To my constituents in that area: You know you have my support. We have been through this before. I guess we’ll have to do it again.
“06880” emailed Walsh for her reaction to Mandell’s mailing. She said, “Thanks for reaching out. At this point I must say no comment.”
“06880” also emailed Zucaro yesterday. As of 10 p.m last night, she had not responded to a request for comment.
(Hat tip: Dick Lowenstein)
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The 1880 Victorian just north of Saugatuck Elementary School — owned by the town, and used previously by the Board of Education — will include 5 apartments. Four are for people with special needs; one will be rented to a staff member, who also qualifies under regulations for affordable housing.
The off-site affordable housing is part of the Richmondville Mill project. Funding came from Sam Gault and Joe Feinleib.
It’s a great example of public/private cooperation to address affordable housing needs. The town gets a $500,000 prepaid lease, on property it still owns. The historic house got a $2 million restoration (and landscaping) through Redniss & Mead.
Abilis — the 72-year-old nonprofit serving over 800 people with special needs — gets a completely redone home, gratis, for clients. Each unit includes a kitchenette and private bath
The town gets moratorium points toward affordable housing units — without going through the contentious 8-30g process.
Once a certificate of occupancy is granted, residents and a staff member will move in.
Representative Town Meeting member Matthew Mandell rose, at Tuesday’s meeting, and requested time to speak on a subject he feels strongly about: antisemitism.
Less than 72 hours after announcing a holiday fund drive to heat 2,000 homes for the winter in Westport’s sister city of Lyman, Ukraine, we’re already more than 3/4 of the way to our goal.
We’re aiming for $60,000. That would pay for 2 wood pellet machines. Each would heat 1,000 homes — all heavily damaged in the Russian invasion, and all filled with families facing a cold, bleak winter.
Thanks to 2 large anonymous donations, and dozens of smaller ones, we’ve raised $48,112. We are less $12,000 away from helping 2,000 people — many of them elderly, and children — in the war-torn town.
Come on, Westport! Let’s close this out today! $30 will heat one apartment for the winter. $300 will heat 10. Any gift — of any amount — will make the winter bearable, in our sister city.
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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The short block of Rayfield Road between Post Road East and Spicer Road is public — and gets plenty of traffic.
For years, Volvo of Westport used both sides as a parking lot. After many complaints, the Board of Selectwomen voted to ban parking there. The “No Parking” signs went up a month ago.
Big deal.
Volvo — and others — continue to park there.
This was the scene Wednesday, at 2 p.m.: 6 cars. Plus a tractor-trailer.
Police: Take note!
(Photo/Arthur Hayes)
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Speaking of parking … a reader sends a photo from yesterday morning, at the Sherwood Mill Pond Preserve:
He writes: “Granted, there might not be huge demand for the very limited parkin spaces this time of year.
“But there were 4 commercial vehicles parked there, presumably by contractors working on a nearby house.
“I know there’s not much available parking down here. But those few spaces are intended for residents’ recreational use.”
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50,000 copies of “Agent Orange” — the new book by Westport author and Vietnam veteran Carl Addison Swanson — have been delivered to 4 regional VA offices. They’ll be distributed free to former servicemembers.
“The dreadful chemicals, some 19 million pounds, sprayed on Vietnam, Cambodia and Laos during the war have now murdered over 300,000 veterans since we left Vietnam in 1975,” Swanson notes.
Click here for more information on the book, and to order. Click here for Swanson’s website.
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Ring cameras capture some plenty of prosaic scenes.
And some pretty interesting ones.
But even the cutest deer nuzzling up against a door, or the most brazen thief running away with an Amazon delivery, can’t compare with this video, from a couple of nights ago, in the Cranbury neighborhood:
Screenshot of Ring video (courtesy of Brian McGunagle)
That’s right. You’ve always been told there’s no such thing as a unicorn.
It was 10 years ago yesterday that the almost instantly popular restaurant opened in Playhouse Square.
To celebrate — and for a limited time only — they’re offering a Morning Zest Parfait.
It’s made with morning zest granola, Greek yogurt, almost butter and strawberry compote, it’s part of TGB’s 10th anniversary menu. The Classic Parfait, Shrek, Granola Bowl, Dana, The Good Date, Very Berry and Lemon Drop are all just $10.
And — if you use the discount code “GC10” — you get 10% off online gift cards. The offer is only good through (of course) December 10.
The Staples football team hopes for a great turnout tomorrow (Saturday, December 9, 5 p.m., Central Connecticut State University’s Arute Field), for their state “LL” (extra large schools) championship game against West Haven.
But if you can’t make it to New Britain, there’s a livestream. Click here (and follow the prompts to subscribe).
As exciting as the game is, it’s tinged with tragedy. Christopher Fidalgo-Pugh — a sophomore player for West Haven — died suddenly on Tuesday.
Carmen Roda — Westport Parks & Recreation Department operations manager, and director of the Fairfield County Football League — is helping raise funds for funeral costs. Click here for the GoFundMe link.
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This bobcat looked right at home yesterday, hanging out on a deck off Wilton Road and posing for his “Westport … Naturally” close-up.
And finally … Denny Laine — the singer/songwriter/guitarist who co-founded both the Moody Blues and Wings — died Tuesday in Florida. He was 79, and suffered from interstitial lung disease. Click here for a full obituary.
(“06880” is your hyper-local blog. We rely on the support of readers like you. To make a tax-deductible contribution, please click here. Thank you!)
Westport is a state leader among suburban communities in addressing affordable housing.
The Representative Town Meeting may soon address the issue, through a fund to pay for land and development.
And Westport’s state representative “hopes for best, and expects the worst” as Hartford addresses the issue.
Those were 3 of the main takeaways from last night’s “Affordable Housing Needs and Solutions: What Westporters Should Know and How They Can Help” Zoom meeting.
A virtual audience of 100 people heard RTM moderator Jeff Wieser lead a panel of experts: State Senator Ceci Maher, State Representative Jonathan Steinberg, Planning & Zoning Commission chair Danielle Dobin, RTM Planning & Zoning Committee chair Matthew Mandell, and Westport Housing Authority chair David Newberg.
Maher called Westport “a leader (in) thinking, planning for and examining all housing options.”
Dobin noted that the town needs 1,040 deed-restricted affordable units to reach the state mandate of 10% of the housing stock. Counting units now being built or in the pipeline, she expressed confidence that we are on the way to meeting that threshold.
136 Riverside Avenue has been renovated, and now houses adults with disabilities. It is off-site affordable housing, part of the new Mill project, and an example of a creative approach to developing affordable units.
She cited the 5-Year Affordable Housing Plan, adopted last year (click here to read). Drafted to “proactively create affordable housing, in a way that fits with Westport’s New England village feel,” it includes ideas for building on town-owned land; collaborating on state-owned land, at sites like the Post Road near West Parish Road; developing “cottage clusters,” and establishing a trust fund to acquire land.
Over several decades, Newberg said, the Westport Housing Authority has invested $57 million in affordable housing. They operate 4 residential communities: Canal Park, Hales Court, Hidden Brook and Sasco Creek Village.
Among Westport’s affordable housing options: Sasco Creek Village.
Their biggest challenge is finding land to develop more. “If we built 221 more units, we could fill them tomorrow,” he said.
Some of the funding for that land could come from an Affordable Housing Fund. Mandell described various forms that could take, and a variety of revenue sources for it, such as conveyance taxes by buyers of residential property.
Steinberg spoke last, and was the least optimistic. He cited 2 bills pending in the General Assembly.
HB 6633 — the “Fair Share Bill,” which could result in the loss of local zoning — is “vindictive to communities like Westport,” the state legislator said.
HB 6890 — nicknamed “Work, Live Ride” — seeks to increase housing density near transit points. It too would override key local zoning considerations.
While other towns in Connecticut look to Westport as a model for proactivity and practical solutions, Steinberg said, he worries constantly what his colleagues representing large cities will do to the suburbs.
Affordable housing units are part of 1177 Post Road East. The project helped Westport earn a 4-year moratorium on 8-30g proposals.
Wieser then turned the session over to the audience. To the question of how Westport can create more homes for first-time — presumably lower-income — buyers, Dobin reintroduced the idea of small cottage clusters, as well as a fund through which the town could purchase small “starter” homes. That would save them from demolition and the new construction of large homes that follows.
Answering a question about the next moratorium from 8-30g — the state mandate for building affordable housing — Dobin said that Westport is well on the way to amassing enough “points,” from projects underway and planned.
However, she added, there are no guarantees. A planned multi-family development at the former Men’s Wearhouse on Post Road East is now apparently off the table.
Dobin said that shows the importance of the town providing housing, on land it owns, rather than relying on developers.
Another questioner asked about the possibility of amending 8-30g. “I’ve been trying for 13 years” without much success, Steinberg said.
Meanwhile, one resident asked, what can Westporters do? “Read the Affordable Housing Plan,” Dobin urged. “Get involved with the RTM and P&Z. Go to meetings, and speak up.”
(“06880” is your hyper-local blog. Please click here to support our coverage of town issues, events and more.)
Posted onMarch 15, 2023|Comments Off on Roundup: Sweetgreen, Y Memories, March Madness …
As reported last July on “06880,” Sweetgreen will be opening in Westport.
The salad-and-bowl fast casual restaurant — with over 150 outlets in more than a dozen states — will replace Organic Krush.
Although Sweetgreen representatives went before the Architectural Review Board with plans for their new restaurant in July, Organic Krush protested vociferously that they were not leaving.
After 100 years, the Westport Weston Family YMCA knows plenty of folks have lots of memories. And memorabilia.
As part of their century celebration they ask members, former members and everyone else to haul out their photo albums, think back on the past, and share what they find. Click here to submit.
All year long, the Y will feature those photos and stories on their lobby monitor, website and social media, and in email newsletters.
Click here for the dedicated web page. Click below for a sample submission.
The media celebrity (Fox News, NBC Sports, CNN) is hosting “March Madness Fast Break” for Turner Sports. It’s noon to midnight, Thursday through Sunday on MarchMadness.com and the March Madness Live app.
Dave calls it “Red Zone for college basketball with the best live action, analysis and social media reaction.” He partners with a pair of legends: Kentucky’s Tony Delk and Wake Forest’s Randolph Childress.
The Levitt Pavilion season is still 3 months away. But — to help raise funds for over 50 nights of free entertainment — the riverside outdoor venue has just announced 2 special ticketed events.
Samara Joy — 2023 Grammy Award winner for Best New Artist and Best Jazz Vocal Album — takes the stage June 3. Triple Grammy winner Bruce Hornsby follows with the Noisemakers on July 1. Both Saturday shows begin at 7:30 p.m.
Member pre-sales start today (Wednesday, March 15) at 10 a.m. Public sales start Friday (March 17, 10 a.m.).
Tickets are already on sale for the June 24 show: Michael Franti & Spearhead Big Big Love Tour, with Phillip Phillips.
Representative Town Meeting member Matthew Mandell joins other elected officials this morning (Wednesday, March 15, 10 a.m.; Zoom).
They’ll speak prior to the state General Assembly Planning & Development Committee’s public hearing on HB 6890, the “Live Work Ride” bill that proposes withholding, withdrawing and perhaps clawing back state infrastructure funding from communities that fail to adopt regulations permitting greater density, with limited parking and a prescribed affordability component, around transit areas.
Mandell and his colleagues are part of “CT169Strong.” It’s a statewide non-partisan group “dedicated to local control and oversight, and protecting the unique qualities of Connecticut’s 169 towns.
Click here for a link to Mandell’s meeting. The ID is 455 019 2513; the passcode is 6C436A.
Love the Westport Library? Want to help make it even better?
The Library and Representative Town Meeting are seeking candidates to fill vacancies on the Library board of trustees.
Trustees work closely with the executive director, in areas like funding, policies and planning. They develop long-range plans, monitor the budget and help oversee fundraising. The board meets monthly; there are also committee meetings.
Trustees must be Westport residents. There are 20 members. Half are appointed by the RTM, half by the Library board itself.
More information about the role of trustees is available here.
Applicants should email a resume and letter of interest to rpowell@westportlibrary,org. by April 17, with information on how past work and experience qualify them for consideration as a trustee.
How can parents and caregivers support healthy identity development in young children?
Many ways. And you can learn about them at “Supporting Healthy Identity Development in Young Children: Race, Culture and Beyond.” The Westport Library keynote (April 4, 7 to 8:30 p.m.) is led by Takiema Bunche Smith, founder and CEO of Anahsa Consulting and a noted executive leader, advisor, coach and educator.
The session will explore “how adults socialize young children into racial, cultural and other social identities, and what that means in the context of an inequitable US society.”
Click here for more information. The event is sponsored by TEAM Westport.
The Westport Weston Chamber of Commerce is unlike any other Chamber, anywhere.
Instead of lobbying for business interests, it organizes on-the-ground events to actually help businesses succeed. The Slice of Saugatuck, Dog Festival, Supper & Soul concerts, Pizza and Hamburger Contests — they’re all Westport Chamber efforts.
And they’re all spearheaded by executive director Matthew Mandell. The other day, I chatted with him at the Westport Library for an “06880” podcast.
His route to the job was intriguing. His work for the Chamber (and the Representative Town Meeting, where he represents District 1) is fascinating. And his insights into this town — its retailers and restaurants, its politics, and what makes it tick — are delivered clearly and strongly.
Luke Garvey is a frequent commenter on “06880.” I hope he doesn’t mind that I’m stealing this comment, which he posted on Facebook yesterday:
“Today I will hold a FREE snow shoveling class in my driveway. Join the class and learn about the proper ways to shovel.
“Techniques will include the scoop and throw method, the down and push method (aka the plow technique), as well as the upside down scraping technique.
“Don’t miss out on this amazing opportunity to enhance your snow lifting techniques without throwing your back out! I will provide the driveway and multiple walkways to ensure your training is conducted in real-life situations.
“I only ask that you bring your own shovel (ergonomic designs suggested). Spaces are limited, and on a first-come, first-served basis.”
Earlier this month, Harris Falk showed off his own snow shoveling style.
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Matthew Mandell may have started a movement.
The Westport Weston Chamber of Commerce director heard that local restaurants were getting gouged by 3rd-party delivery apps like Uber Eats, Grubhub and Door Dash.
So he started a campaign, encouraging diners to order takeout instead — or at least call directly through a restaurant’s own phone line.
The idea has spread statewide.
The Hartford Courant reports that our Chamber’s “Order Direct/Pick It Up” initiative has been “picked up” by the Central Connecticut Chambers of Commerce. They represent businesses in Farmington, Bristol, Burlington, Wolcott, Plainville and Plymouth.
Click here for the full story — including quotes from Viva Zapata owner Bob O’Mahoney.
Speaking of food, here’s this morsel from Temple Israel:
On Wednesday (February 2, 7 p.m., Zoom), they’re sponsoring a tasty talk: “Deli Revival: American Judaism and the Return of Pickles and Pastrami.”
The promo says: “There has been a nostalgic resurgence of interest in the Jewish deli menu. In her book Beyond the Synagogue: Jewish Nostalgia as Religious Practice — a National Jewish Book Award finalist — Jewish studies Professor Rachel B. Gross examines how some restaurateurs are deliberately making American Jewish food fit for the 21st century.”
The temple has partnered with Gold’s, Westport’s classic deli. Catered boxes celebrating the best of the Jewish deli scene will be available for pickup from Temple Israel on the afternoon of the event.
I usually don’t list events outside Westport, unless they involve a speaker from here. It would open the door to too many other requests.
But in light of the recent kerfuffle over racism — and the definition of it — in our town, a few events through Fairfield University’s Quick Center Open Visions Forum might be worth checking out. They include:
Tuesday, March 8 (7 p.m.): Michael Eric Dyson, Ph.D. and John H. McWhorter, Ph.D.: “Race, Liberty & Justice: Diverging Perspectives with Eyes on the Prize.” Click here for tickets and more information.
Wednesday, March 23 (7:30 p.m.): David Brooks: “Democracy: Choices and Challenges.” Click here for tickets and more information.
Thursday, April 28 (8 p.m.): Isabel Wilkerson: “CASTE: Examining Race, Culture, and Consequences.” Click here for tickets and more information.
Today’s “Westport … Naturally” photo shows one of our most natural features (Gray’s Creek) from a less natural one (Longshore golf course). (Photo/Claudia Sherwood Servidio)
And finally … if you watched “Get Back” on Disney+, you know that on this date in 1969, the Beatles gave their last public performance, on the roof of Apple Records in London. The concert was broken up by the police.
Posted onSeptember 12, 2021|Comments Off on Rush Of Events Fills Chamber’s Fall
The pandemic played havoc with our lives.
Not to mention the Westport Weston Chamber of Commerce’s calendar of events.
A host of town activities — from Slice of Saugatuck and the Dog Festival to the Halloween Window Painting Contest — were postponed at least once.
Now they’re coming back. And the schedule is jam-packed.
On tap:
Slice of Saugatuck (Saturday, September 25): A walkable, eatable (tons of restaurant samples!), family-friendly and fun afternoon, in Westport’s funkiest neighborhood.
Westport Dog Festival (Sunday, October 10): Obstacle courses, K-9 demonstrations, vendors and more at Winslow Park. Make sure Fido brings you there!
First Selectman Candidates Forum – Tuesday, October 12: Get informed about the future of Westport, live at the Library.
Restaurant Week (October 19-31): So many great places to eat, we need more than an actual “week.”
Halloween Window Painting Contest (Saturday, October 23): Kids decorate downtown — and compete for prizes.
The Slice of Saugatuck will be back soon. (Photo/Terry Cosgrave)
While those events were put on hold the past 18 months, the Chamber helped the community cope in other ways.
“COVID hit our businesses hard, especially restaurants,” says director Matthew Mandell.
“The Chamber created a Take Out initiative, with a video and our BYOB (Bring Your Own Blanket) campaign to promote outdoor dining. We also ran an hour-long livestream variety show in the middle of the lockdown, to support ur retail stores. We had to think totally out of the box, and I believe we did.
“People needed things to do that were safe, but still felt normal. We organized the first drive-in concert in the state, beating established music venues to the punch. We sold out all 10 of our concerts.
“When the time is right, we hope go back inside the Library for our Supper & Soul series.”
The beat goes on. And the Westport Weston Chamber of Commerce seems to have hardly missed a beat.
Comments Off on Rush Of Events Fills Chamber’s Fall
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