After nearly 5 years, there’s finally some action on the William F. Cribari Bridge.
The state Department of Transportation is preparing a long-overdue environmental document. It will examine many issues pertaining to the 133-year-old swing span over the Saugatuck River.
It will include a “preferred alternative” — probably, a replacement.
When the document is published, there will be public hearings and comments. DOT will then forge ahead.
Yesterday, the South Western Region Metropolitan Planning Organization moved ahead with an endorsement for a $4.1 million addition to the DOT’s Transportation Improvement Plan for the design phase for the bridge.
William F. Cribari Bridge (Photo/Sam Levenson)
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Hot off the mic!
Rabbi Jeremy Wiederhorn of TCS recently returned from a trip to Israel, with Rabbi Michael Friedman of Temple Israel, and congregants from the 2 synagogues.
Soon after he returned, Rabbi Wiederhorn sat with 1st Selectwoman Jen Tooker, for the Y’s Men’s “Westport … What’s Happening” podcast.
Click below to listen to their informative, emotional conversation.
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Spring and summer Westport Parks & Recreation Department program offerings are now viewable online.
There will be 2 online registration dates.
Registration begins at 9 a.m. on Tuesday, March 5 for Camp Compo and RECing Crew only.
Registration begins at 9 a.m. on Wednesday, March 6 for all other spring and summer programs.
Officials urge residents to login in to their online account to verify family information.
In the profile, choose “Manage Family Member” on the bottom right. Then, on the “My Family Members” page, click on the first name in the column. Verify date of birth, and the correct grade (as of December 31, 2024). Then hit “save.”
Unable to log in? Email recreation@westportct.gov or call 203-341-5152. Office hours are weekdays, 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.
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The Westport Fire Department responded with 4 fire engines, 1 ladder truck and the shift commander to a fire last night on Burr Farms Road.
First arriving companies found heavy smoke coming from the garage. Entry was made, and firefighters quickly extinguished the blaze.
All occupants safely evacuated the house. There were no injuries.
The WFD reminds everyone to have smoke and carbon monoxide detectors in their homes. Homeowners were alerted to this fire by a smoke detector.
Westport EMS and Police assisted on scene. The cause of the fire is under investigation.
Aftermath of the Burr Farms Road fire.
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Dave Brubeck — a longtime area resident who earned a Kennedy Center Honor, a Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award and a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame, before his death in 2012 a day before his 92nd birthday — lives on.
The Brubeck Brothers Quartet is set for a special fundraising event March 9, (Westport Library). Proceeds support the Library’s vast array of free programs and offerings.
The Brubeck Brothers Quartet is led by Chris (bass and trombone) and Dan Brubeck (drums), sons of the jazz legend. They recorded their first record in 1966. Rounding out the group is guitarist Mike DeMicco and pianist Chuck Lamb.
They have performed across North America and Europe, including Newport, Detroit, Montreal, The Hollywood Bowl, and Monterey Jazz festivals.
General admission tickets are $75. VIP tickets ($125) include a pre-event reception with the Brubeck family and gifts, including a vinyl LP exclusive pressing of “Time OutTakes,” featuring previously unreleased takes from the original Brubeck masterpiece “Time Out” — the first jazz album to sell 1 million copies.
Click here for tickets, and more information.
Brubeck Brothers Quartet
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Next up in the Westport Country Playhouse Script in Hand series: “The Trip To Bountiful” (March 11, 7 p.m.).
Carrie Watts dreams to escape the city, and return to simpler times in her beloved Bountiful, Texas. On her risky journey she encounters kindness and compassion — and makes a remarkable discovery about the true meaning of home.
Click here for tickets ($30), and more information.
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Also at the Playhouse: Rodgers & Hammerstein’s classic musical “Cinderella” — originally seen on Broadway in 2013 — is set for a limited run this weekend and next. Dates are February 17-25.
Click here for more information, including the all-star cast and tickets.
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MoCA Westport’s current “60s Mod” exhibition showcases iconic works by established artists, and submissions from high school artists who interpret the era.
One influential featured artist — and quite appropriate for Black History Month — is the late Richard Hunt. He pioneered using industrial machine imagery as a staple of modern art.
Inspired by modernism and abstract expressionism, the sculptor took to junkyard metals to recreate organic figures. His monuments to civil rights heroes include Martin Luther King Jr., Mary McLeod Bethune, Jesse Owens and Ida B. Wells.
At 35, he was the first African American to have a retrospective at the Museum of Modern Art, and the first to serve on the National Endowment for the Arts governing body. The MoMA has presented 12 exhibitions of his work.
MoCA Westport’s exhibition features a Hunt lithograph and serigraph. The Westport Arts Collection curated this exhibition, and has 21 other prints related to his 3-dimensional sculptures.
Click here for more information on the exhibit.
Richard Hunt, in his studio.
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In the 1940s, whist parties were all the rage in Weston. James and Cleora Coley — the last owners of the history Coley house — won many tournaments.
They return March 27 (6:30 p.m.), when the Weston History & Culture Center hosts its own event. That’s the site of the same Coley house where James and Cleora lived (and played).
The evening includes its card playing, and retro-inspired snacks and cocktails. Experienced players will be at each table of 4 to teach whist, and assist.
Tickets are $15 each; click here to purchase.
Whist!
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Snowmen linger all over Westport, after Tuesday’s storm.
This one — a bit the worse for wear (and warmer weather) entertains beachgoers at Old Mill:
(Photo/Jill McGrath)
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Meanwhile, today’s “Westport … Naturally” feature stars Anne Bernier’s tunnels and perches, made by her son and daughter (ages 15 and 10) for Toby (the dog). They stood yesterday, despite the melting snow.
Today will be mostly sunny, with a high of about 42. Saturday may bring snow showers.
(Photo/Anne Bernier)
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And finally … today is the 101st anniversary of Howard Carter’s unsealing of the burial chamber of Pharaoh Tutankhamun, as well as the birthdays of Sonny Bono (he would have been 89 years old) and Ice-T (66).
I’m pretty sure this is the first time in history that King Tut, Sonny Bono and Ice-T have appeared in the same sentence.
(“06880” is indeed “Where Westport Meets the World.” But we can’t do it without your support. Please click here, to make a tax-deductible contribution. Thank you!)
