As a homeschooled middle schooler, Quinn Fitts was vaguely aware of Toquet Hall.
Yet until, as a Staples High School freshman, she heard youth board members of the town’s teen center talk about an upcoming “’20s Night” — 1900s, not 2000s — she had never gone.
But she climbed the stairs to Toquet (it’s in one of those if-you-know,-you-know locations, in the alley between the Post Road and Jesup Road by the Westport Book Shop).
Toquet Hall’s funky exterior.
Quinn walked into the wide-open room, with couches, a stage, video games and snacks. She played table games, and card games.
“It was pretty cool,” she recalls.
Toquet Hall: the view from the stage.
Two years later, Quinn is on the Toquet Hall youth board herself.
They meet weekly. They plan, and run, events. “It’s a great way to get involved in the community of Westport,” she says.
And to offer fun, low-key activities to middle and high schoolers here.
As the youth board has done for nearly 3 decades — ever since the center opened in 1998, in a 19th-century building that was once an opera house — they’ve tried to get the word out that it is a great place to hang out.
Plenty to do for everyone, at Toquet Hall.
One of the first big events Quinn helped with was “Spicy Twos” — a “Hot Ones”-esque evening. More recently, she worked on another “20s Night.”
On Friday, March 20 Toquet Hall is open from 5 to 10 p.m., for board games, card games, video games (there’s a Switch, Wii, and 3 types of Smash Bros), pool, or just talking with friends.
Pool, video games, and much more.
The next event (Saturday, March 21) is “Jeopardy Night.” In the works: a “Star Wars” movie.
And of course, there is music.
The Townies get ready to play.
Toquet also offers events for middle schoolers. (Tonight — Friday — there’s a Super Smash Bros. tournament, from 7 to 9 p.m.). And it’s open for drop-ins after school for that age group too.
Quinn is part of Staples Players. Her friends enjoy Toquet Hall (and serve on its youth board).
She wants other friend groups to come too.
“It’s a fun place to hang out,” she notes. “We don’t have other places where you can just exist for free, except the library.”
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Toquet Hall is Westport’s teen center. The entrance is hidden in plain sight: tucked in the alley between Post Road East and Jesup Road.
Toquet Hall was also the site of 2 recent election events: a Westport Youth Commission-sponsored 1st selectman candidates debate (adults were welcome too), and a League of Women Voters “Meet the Board of Education Candidates” session.
But who was Toquet (pronounced “Toe-kay”)?
Benjamin H. Toquet was born in Paris in 1834, and came to America in 1845. He served in the Civil War, then returned to Westport.
His son, Benjamin Louis Toquet, was born in 1864.
Toward the end of the 19th century the younger Toquet — now a respected businessman — built an opera house on Post Road property inherited by his wife, Nellie Bradley. The first town meeting was held there on April 2, 1892.
For the next 17 years, all town meetings and assemblies were held there.
The original Toquet Hall (left). Check out the horse and buggy, watering trough, hoop-skirted woman and trolley. Those were the days! (Photo courtesy of Christopher Maroc)
The older Toquet died in 1913, a successful entrepreneur. He headed the Toquet Motor Company, which developed carburetors for Fords.
B. Lewis Toquet had a daughter, Vivienne. His family — and his father — lived at 10 Avery Place. As of 1946, he was still living there.
In 2025, Toquet Hall plays a different role in town.
Rock bands play there. Hip hop artists, comedians and magicians perform. Teenagers put on plays. Political candidates meet voters.
The only thing missing is opera.
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There are several ways to get from the Jesup Green parking lots to the Post Road and Main Street.
You can walk toward Starbucks. Through Taylor Place, next to Tiffany. The Walrus Alley alley. Across the Bank of America lot. Down Bay Street.
You can also take the alley between Green & Tonic and the Westport Book Shop, passing Toquet Hall on your right.
But why would you?
That quick shortcut could be the skankiest in town.
Toquet Hall alley.
It’s filthy. An array of garbage cans gives it a distinctive smell. You might not get mugged there, but it feels like you will.
Has anyone tried to clean it up?
Yes.
Basso — the restaurant a few doors down from the unnamed alley — wants to beautify it.
Sure, it would help them. But it would add to the appeal of its retail neighbors, while also offering another way to drive foot traffic across both sides of the Post Road.
A great shortcut. But little used, for obvious reasons.
Basso owner Renato Donzelli has proposed a low-cost, interactive and culturally enriching initiative. Local artists could create murals along the gray walls of the buildings. Visible from the Post Road, the artwork would showcase Westport’s history, culture and values.
The town could host a competition to choose artists. (A similar project was a great success in Norwalk, Basso’s previous home.)
At the same time, enclosing the dumpsters would provide aesthetic — and health — benefits.
Light fixtures similar to those at Basso and on Main Street would create continuity, showcase the art, and ameliorate some of those I-might-get-jumped-here fears.
Planters on both sides would add to the upgraded alley’s appeal.
Basso has helped its neighborhood in the past. In 2021 they spent more than $20,000 on pavers, light fixtures, gates, posters, tables and chairs.
Outdoor at Basso, a few yards from the alley. (Photo/JC Martin)
Basso’s landlord, Jim Randel, favors the idea.
But, Basso says, Mel Mioli, the landlord of 46 Post Road East — the building on the west side of the alley — has no interest in participating. He denied a request to string lights on the side of his structure.
Mioli told “06880” that he is concerned about safety. More pedestrians using a more attractive passageway might increase his liability in the event of an accident.
However, the idea still seems like a no-brainer (unless you’re not worried about getting brained walking on the path).
New York Times chief theater critic Jesse Green gave a rave review to “Cult of Love,” the new show that opened Thursday at the Helen Hayes Theater.
He likes the “rip-roaring home-for-the-holidays dramedy” for its plot, direction, music and more.
He also praises playwright Leslye Headland. This is the 1999 Staples High School graduate’s Broadway debut. But she’s earned kudos before, as a playwright, screenwriter and director (“Bachelorette,” “Sleeping With Other People,” “Russian Doll,” “The Acolyte”).
“Cult of Love” is Headland’s final work in a series called “Seven Deadly Plays.” Inspired by the 7 deadly sins, this one is about pride. It was first staged in Los Angeles in 2018.
The play focuses on 4 adult children of one family and their partners, coming home for a contentious holiday gathering.
Green writes: “Though ‘Cult of Love,’ like many unhappy family reunion plays, draws big buckets of humor from the toxic brew of religion and repression, those buckets also draw blood.
“Headland knows just how to get there, suggesting deep familiarity with the territory. But she also has a gift for complication and construction, as was already evident in “Bachelorette,” her Bridezillas Gone Wild breakthrough play of 2010…. Loading pattern on pattern — a holiday-season design don’t for most — is for her an opportunity to dizzy us down to hell.”
Click here for the full Times review. Click here for more information about “Cult of Love.” (Hat tip: Tommy Greenwald)
The Board of Education’s Policy Committee meets Wednesday (December 18, 9 a.m., Town Hall Room 307), with a wide-ranging agenda.
They’ll discuss the first reading of possible revisions to graduation requirements; admission to the Westport Public Schools at or before age 5 and assignment to grade levels; and student attendance, truancy and chronic absenteeism.
The committee will also discuss health concerns “such as lice,” and a possible new civility policy.
meanwhile, the Long Lots School Building Committee meeting scheduled for Tuesday has been postponed to Wednesday (December 18, 6 p.m., Town Hall Room 307/309. The agenda has not yet been posted.
Speaking of schools: All month long, Kings Highway Elementary School students have collected gifts for their annual Holiday Bear drive.
Each year, the Connecticut Education Foundation’s Holiday Bear provides gifts for children whose families face financial or other hardships.
The KHS Caring Council helped package 25 Holiday Bear bags.
Meanwhile, yesterday the school helped raise funds for Connecticut Children’s Hospital.
Students also wore pajamas as part of a statewide spirit day.
It’s been an eventful month for Kings Highway!
A few of Kings Highway’s many holiday bags.
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John McKinney is the newest member of the Connecticut Mirror’s board of directors.
The Mirror is state’s non-profit, non-partisan, digital source for public policy, government and politcal news.
McKinney — a descendant of Westport’s famed Bedford family — is also a trustee of the Westport Weston Family YMCA.
The former State Senate minority leader and a Republican candidate for governor, he was appointed by Governor Ned Lamont to the Liquor Control Commission in 2021.
McKinney serves on the advisory board of Operation Hope, a homeless shelter in Fairfield. He and his family help provide housing and care for people with AIDS through the Stewart B. McKinney Foundation. It is named for his father, the longtime US Congressman from Westport’s district.
And finally … on this date in 1819, Alabama became the 22nd US state.
(Whether you’re here in Westport, way down in Alabama, or anywhere else, “06880” is your hyper-local source for news, events and much more. Please click here to support our work. Thank you!)
Posted onAugust 30, 2023|Comments Off on Cabry Lueker Takes Reins As Youth Commission Chair
The first requirement to serve on any Westport board or commission is clear: You must be a registered voter.
There is one exception: The Westport Youth Commission.
That makes sense: Half of the 30 members can’t vote. They’re still high school students.
The Youth Commission has a low-key presence. That’s surprising. It’s been around since the 1970s; it was the impetus for creations like Toquet Hall and the Compo Beach Skate Park, and it organizes popular events like Dodge-a-Cop, bringing teens and police officers together.
(Full disclosure: Way back in my Staples High School days I served on what was then called the Youth-Adult Council; later, as an adult, I spent a decade on the Youth Commission.)
As the Commission gears up for a new school year, incoming chair Cabry Lueker hopes to raise its presence in town.
Cabry Lueker
His path to leadership was swift. His extracurricular activities are diverse — he started Staples’ Finance Club, is a member of the Up Next service organization, and is very involved in WWPT-FM and the television program. Last year he heard about the Youth Commission last year from a friend.
Cabry attended the first meeting of the year, at Toquet Hall. He was impressed to see all the members facing each other — not sitting in a row, as at many town commission sessions.
Alex Laskin and Carolyn Caggiano ran the meeting, as the teen leaders always do. Everyone offered opinions. Cabry was encouraged to speak too.
He learned about Youth Commission initiatives like iMentor, a 6th grade internet safety program.
He became a regular member. A year later, he’s president.
Cabry has several goals. Having enjoyed being an iMentor. He’d like to expand it to 8th graders, with an emphasis on teaching about “digital footprints” (including implications for college admissions).
He’d like to resurrect a long-discussed project — mini-golf — through discussions with the Parks & Recreation Department. He hopes the Youth Commission can work with Parks & Rec and Staples’ Skate Club too to renovate the Skate Park.
The Compo Beach Skate Park began as a Youth Commission initiative. (Photo/Larry Silver)
Cabry wants to raise the Youth Commission’s visibility too. He encourages all students to attend meetings, citing his own path beginning as a non-voting member.
There are a couple of vacant seats for adults, he notes. Meetings are held once a month, evenings at Toquet Hall.
There are 2 sub-committees: Peer Advisory (dealing with iMentor, mental health, police-youth relations and more) and Town Improvements (Skate Park, mini-golf, etc,).
Working closely with adults has been beneficial, Cabry says. He has learned about marketing and finance — their day jobs — from fellow members. People like Lee Shufro and Adam Chusid have gone “above and beyond” to help.
Youth Commission group photo, from several years ago.
“People think government is inefficient,” Cabry says. “But if you get involved actively, you can get things done.” He and vice chair Lola Lamensdorf are open to all suggestions.
“The whole premise of the Youth Commission is to bring youth and adults together, with youth representing their peers.
“It’s a privilege to live here. Other towns have Youth Commissions too. But I don’t think the others have the advantages we do, or work as thoroughly.”
He cites Dodge-a-Cop and Corn-a-Cop — 2 youth/police initiatives (dodgeball and cornhole, respectively) — as examples of close relationships forged through the Youth Commission.
A Dodge-a-Cop team, with actual police officers on the far left and right.
Now as chair, Cabry says, “I want to make sure everyone in Westport knows what we do, and knows they can help.”
(The first Youth Commission meeting of the 2023-24 school year is August 31, 7:15 p.m. at Toquet Hall. It is open to the public. Click here for the Youth Commission website.)
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Factories no longer churn out ping pong balls. The Embalmers Supply Company has gone to that great business graveyard in the sky.*
And it’s been more than a century since the Toquet Launch Company developed mechanical equipment for automobiles and boats, including carburetors for Fords.
(Photo courtesy of Paul Ehrismann)
The Riverside Avenue business was owned by Benjamin Louis Toquet.
If the name is familiar: He also built an opera house on the Post Road. It doubled as the site of town meetings and “assemblies.” After being used in the 1960s and ’70s as storage for Schaefer’s Sporting Goods, it’s served for 2 decades as Westport’s teen center.
The Toquets had long roots in Westport. Benjamin Louis’ father, Benjamin H., was born in Paris in 1834, but settled here in the 1840s. He served in the Civil War, then returned to Westport.
Benjamin Louis Toquet died in 1913. He could never have imagined what would become of the automotive industry.
Or the traffic crawling past his former factory on Riverside Avenue.
*Yep. Both are true.
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Westport’s $250,000+ fundraising for our new sister city of Lyman, Ukraine continues to make a real difference, in that war-ravaged town.
Yesterday, 50 stoves were delivered. They fill a crucial need. Many residents lack both heat and electricity, in the aftermath of 5 months of Russian occupation.
The stoves — sourced in Europe by Brian Mayer, the Westporter/founder of Ukraine Aid International, and delivered with the help of Liz Olegov from the Alex21 group — bear the names of those groups, and our 2 towns.
Brian and Liz continue to address the immediate needs of Lyman residents.
To see Katya Wauchope’s video of the stove deliveries, click below.
Toquet Hall is providing a “lighthouse” for LGBTQ+ youth.
Lighthouse is a confidential drop-in space for lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer and questioning young people to seek support. It runs every Monday, from 5 to 6:30 p.m.. at the downtown teen center.
A special “Night of Queer History” will introduce the program, with a special Jeopardy game, and a free dinner (January 30, 6 p.m., Toquet Hall). Longtime LGBTQ advocate Dan Woog — hey, that’s me! — will speak briefly on where the gay community has been, and where it’s going.
LGBTQ+ people of all ages — and allies — are welcome.
Questions? Call 203-661-1911, or email Phoebe Oler: poler@kidsincrisis.org.
Chabad of Westport celebrated its annual gala last night.
Honorees included Marissa and Hy Saporta (Community Builder Award), Elke and Lyle Katz (Jewish Heritage Award), and Sarah Hanna and Noah Wollowick (Camp Gan Israel Award).
Enjoying last night’s Chabad gala (from left): 1st Selectwoman Jen Tooker, Liz and Avi Kaner, Rabbi Yehuda Kantor.
The CAMP Gallery’s new show opened Friday. It runs through February 28, with a special wine-and-cheese, meet the artist event set for this Friday (January 27, 5 to 8 p.m.).
Lydia Viscardi is a mixed media artist who creates paintings through collage and sculpture, with found objects.
Rita Valley works in large-scale, hand-sewn fabric banners. Her political and confrontational imagery tackles social trends, morality and political behaviors.
CAMP Gallery (190 Main Street) is open Wednesday through Saturday, 11 a.m. to 5 p.m.
Posted onApril 28, 2022|Comments Off on Westport Welcomes AAPI Heritage Month
Asian American Pacific Islander Heritage Month begins Sunday — and AAPI Westport is ready.
With a full slate of activities, the group invites all residents to learn, connect and celebrate together.
Kickoff AAPI Heritage Month at Saugatuck Sweets on Monday, May 2 (4:30-6pm). Get an ice cream cone discount, and hear First Selectwoman Jen Tooker’s official proclamation.
Join the discussion: #StopAsianHate: One Year Later (Wednesday, May 4, 6 p.m., Westport Library). The film We Need to Talk About Anti-Asian Hate will be shown. NBC News correspondent Vicky Nguyen will moderate a discussion with Connecticut Attorney General William Tong, Organization of Chinese Americans of Fairfield County president Miriam Yeung, #IAmNotAVirus founder Mike Keo, and AAPI Westport co-founder Patra Kanchanagom. Click here to register.
Vicky Nguyen
Enjoy performances and food at the AAPI Festival (Westport Weston Family Y, Saturday, May 7, 2 to 4 p.m). Mecha-Uma will sell Japanese food. Admission is free; register click here to register.
Cocktails, conversation and fellowship are on tap at the AAPI & Allies Happy Hour (MoCA Westport, May 10, 5 to 7 p.m.).
Middle and high school students are invited to an interactive workshop about AAPI History: Fighting Anti-Asian Hate with Immigrant History Initiative (May 14, Toquet Hall, 4 to 6 p.m.). Admission is free; pizza provided. Click here to register.
To experience the multiverse and see Michelle Yeo, watch Everything Everywhere All at Once (May 19, Remarkable Theater, 8 p.m.). A short film about AAPI Westport will be shown too. Click here for tickets.
Fore more information click here. Sign up on Instagram (@aapiwestport) for updates.
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A rally in support of the Ukrainian people, and against Russian aggression, is set for tomorrow (Saturday, March 26, 11:30 a.m. to 1 p.m.) on the Ruth Steinkraus Cohen Bridge downtown.
A rally earlier this month drew hundreds of attendees. This will be smaller, but no doubt just as heartfelt.
Georgians have suffered under Russian rule. Earlier this month, these natives of that nation showed solidarity with Ukrainians on the Ruth Steinkraus Cohen Bridge. (Photo/Susan Woog Wagner)
Speaking of Ukraine: The world owes Lynsey Addario a huge debt of thanks.
The Pulitzer Prize and MacArthur Fellow-winning New York Times photojournalist — and, not for nothing, a 1991 Staples High School graduate — has taken some of the most riveting photos in the month since Russia invaded Ukraine. Her images have opened billions of eyes to the horrors of this war.
Yesterday, Lynsey returned home — to her home in London, anyway. Her family there — and her parents, Westporters Phillip and Camille, and her 3 sisters spread across the US — are grateful for her safe return.
Lauren, Lynsey, Lisa and Lesley Addario — the 4 sisters.
So far, we’ve heard — from various Jersey Mike’s communications — that they are “closed permanently” (front door) and “temporarily closed for renovation” (social media).
“06880” reader Jason Stiber used the company’s “Support” function to ask if they were closing the Westport location.
The response, from “Kristin” of the Customer Relations Team at Jersey Mike’s Franchise Systems, Inc. in Manasquan (New Jersey, of course) was: “The store is relocating. That is all the information we have at this time. Please feel free to check back for updated information.”
So that’s a third option. Almost as difficult as deciding what to order there …
“06880” reader James Grogan asks: “What are the best places — coffee shops, areas of the Library, etc. — in Westport (and surrounding areas) with Wi-Fi to get work done? I have a fully remote job, and want to change my routine.”
I’m sure he’s not the only one. If you’ve got a favorite spot — and don’t mind sharing it — click “Comments” below.
When the power went out during Tropical Storm Isais in 2020, Westporters took advantage of the library’s WiFi al fresco — masked and socially distanced, of course. (Photo/Miggs Burroughs)
That’s the name of the peer-to-peer social support group for LGBTQ youth (and their allies), ages 12 to 19. It’s part of Kids in Crisis, the Greenwich-based social service organization.
Meetings take place every Monday from 5 to 7 p.m., at Toquet Hall. Two adults are always present, And there is food!
Questions? Email program coordinator Joe Belisle: lighthouse@kidsincrisis.org.
The Westport Police Department earned national recognition for its work in helping donate more than 200 previously used ballistic vests and helmets to Ukrainian fighters.
They — along with departments in Brookfield, Darien, Easton, Fairfield, Greenwich, Monroe, Norwalk, Stratford, Trumbull and Wilton, plus Western Connecticut State University — joined the effort.
Police1 — a national website — highlighted the donations as its Photo of the Week:
Donated vests and helmets: Police1’s Photo of the Week.
Connectalent — the Westport-based recruiting company that places female talent and increases diversity within companies, –has just received B-Corp certification from B Lab.
Connectalent qualifies as a full-service recruiting agency that aims to solve a social issue through its work serving an underserved population of candidates — a group that faces chronic discrimination in a particular market, which includes job discrimination based on gender.
Click here to help support “06880” via credit card or PayPal. Any amount is welcome, appreciated — and tax-deductible! Reader contributions keep this blog going. (Alternate methods: Please send a check to “06880”: PO Box 744, Westport, CT 06881. Or use Venmo: @blog06880. Or Zelle: dwoog@optonline.net. Thanks!)
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