Saturday, June 30, 2012
Congress Approves Deal on Transportation, Student Loans
By Ana Radelat
www.ctmirror.orgIn yet another case of brinksmanship, Congress Friday—right on deadline—approved a deal to freeze a low-interest rate on student loans and approved billions of dollars in spending on local transportation projects.
All members of the Connecticut congressional delegation voted for the package, the result of a compromise between House Republicans and Senate Democrats that also authorized the federal flood insurance program for another five years.
The bill passed 373-52 in the House and 74-19 in the Senate.
But some Connecticut lawmakers gave their support to the legislation grudgingly.
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Westport Rotary Changes Leadership
The Westport Rotary Club tonight celebrated its annual changing of leadership at the Ned Dimes Marina at Compo Beach. Outgoing president Irwin Lebish passed the gavel to Julia Broder of Westport who was installed as the new president for a one-year term. The event was attended by 80 people including members, spouses and guests. Rotary is among the world’s largest non-sectarian organization that conducts humanitarian projects on a local, national and international level in more than 200 countries worldwide. (CLICK TO ENLARGE) Dave Matlow for WestportNow.com
One Sent to Hospital After Two-Car Crash
A two-car crash Post Road East at Cedar Road today sent a Westport woman to the hospital. Witnesses said the Ford Explorer had just exited the Subway sandwich lot when it collided with a BMW driven by a woman who had just left Starbucks heading west and crossed into the eastbound lane. She suffered burns from spilled coffee but declined transport to the hospital. Both cars had to be towed from the scene. (CLICK TO ENLARGE) Dave Matlow for WestportNow.com
Crunch
Two drivers escaped serious injury today in a head-on crash on Westport’s Post Road East at Cedar Road. Witnesses said one driver, a Westport woman, was pulling out of the Subway sandwich lot heading east when she collided with a car driven by a woman who had just left Starbucks heading west and crossed into the eastbound lane. The Starbucks customer suffered burns from spilled hot coffee but declined transport to the hospital. The other woman had slight injuries and opted to go to the hospital to be checked out. (CLICK TO ENLARGE) Dave Matlow for WestportNow.com
Car Shatters Window at Boat Locker
A Westport woman escaped injury today when she lost control of her Lexus and smashed into the front of the Boat Locker, 1543 Post Road East, shattering the store’s front window and brick storefront. No other passengers were in the vehicle. According to witnesses, the driver said that she was planning to shop at the next door Top Drawer apparel shop when the parking accident occurred. Assistant Fire Chief Michael Kronick said there did not appear to be structural damage to the building. (CLICK TO ENLARGE) Dave Matlow for WestportNow.com
Winning Duck
Nick Mathias, 7, of Westport shows off his prize winning entry in the Westport Sunrise Club’s duck decorating contest held at its Great Duck Race today. The Mini Maker Faire Duck, which is remotely controlled, thanks sponsors of the Mini Maker Faire held in April at the Westport Public Library. Nick’s father Mark was a principal in launching the event. (CLICK TO ENLARGE) Contributed photo
Pleased With Trophy
Nick Mathias, 7, of Westport, is pleased with his winning trophy after taking first place in the duck decorating contest at the Westport Sunrise Rotary Club’s Great Duck Race. With him is his Dad, Mark, who organized the Mini Maker Faire held at the Westport Public Library in April. The winning remote control duck thanked sponsors of the event. (CLICK TO ENLARGE) Larry Untermeyer for WestportNow.com
A Ducky Time for All
Scenes from today’s fourth annual Great Duck Race on the Saugatuck River in Westport sponsored by Westport Sunrise Rotary. Larry Untermeyer for WestportNow.com
We Have a Winner
The winner of the Great Duck Race today on the Saugatuck River is held aloft by a member of the Westport Sunrise Roatary Club, sponsor of the event. (CLICK TO ENLARGE) Larry Untermeyer for WestportNow.com
Getting Their Ducks in a Row
Members of the Westport Sunrise Rotary Club maneuver rubber ducks into position for today’s Great Duck Race on the Saugatuck River. (CLICK TO ENLARGE) Larry Untermeyer for WestportNow.com
Ducks Taking to Water
Rubber ducks are dumped into the Saugatuck River today at Parker Harding Plaza by a machine donated by Westport construction firm A. J. Penna in preparation for today’s Great Duck Race sponsored by the Westport Sunrise Rotary Club. (CLICK TO ENLARGE) Larry Untermeyer for WestportNow.com
Duck Race on Saugatuck Draws Large Crowd
A large crowd attended today’s fourth annual duck race on the Saugatuck River sponsored by Westport Sunrise Rotary. It took place under sunny skies with temperatures around 90. (CLICK TO ENLARGE) Dave Matlow for WestportNow.com
Picnic With a View
Friday’s night’s Compo Beach sunset provided ani ideal background for a summer picnic on South Beach. (CLICK TO ENLARGE) Helen Klisser During for WestportNow.com
Saturday, June 30, 2012
10:30 a.m. - 2 p.m. - Parker Harding Plaza - Westport Sunrise Rotary 4th Annual Great Duck Race
Noon - 4 p.m. - Westport Arts Center - “Landscape: Scene/Re-seen”
Noon - 4 p.m. - Westport Historical Society - “The Sound & the Saugatuck” & “Watershed Moments”
3 p.m. and 8 p.m. - Westport Country Playhouse - “The Year of Magical Thinking” (last day)
7:15 p.m. - Levitt Pavilion - RiverSwing Series: DJ Rekha
8 p.m. - Town Hall - Westport Community Theatre: “Company”
See more events: Celebrate Westport Calendar
Friday, June 29, 2012
Power Outages Affect Westporters
UPDATE Connecticut Light & Power Co. reported scattered outages in Westport tonight.
At 10:10 p.m., CL&P said 14 Westport customers were in the dark.
All customers were restored by late evening.
Ned Dimes in the Pink
Tonight’s sunset as seen from the Ned Dimes Marina at Westport’s Compo Beach. (CLICK TO ENLARGE) Jane Sherman for WestportNow.com
Picture Perfect Sunset
Cameras were snapping away tonight at another spectacular Compo Beach summer sunset. (CLICK TO ENLARGE) Helen Klisser During for WestportNow.com
Westport Library Names Three Trustees
The Westport Public Library’s Board of Trustees has announced the appointment of three new trustees, all of them Westporters active locally, statewide and in the business world: G. Kenneth Bernhard, Michael Guthman and Jessica Cohen. 
Ken Bernhard: former state representative. Contributed photo
The three join the board headed by the 2012-13 slate of officers: Eduardo Andrade, president; Jocelyn Barandiaran, vice president; Julie Belaga, secretary; Gary Goldberg, treasurer; John Hooper, vice president and chair of governance and nominations committee; Russ Barris, vice president and chair of the library’s finance committee; and Marianna McCall, vice president and chair of the development committee.
Bernhard, a principal of the law firm Cohen and Wolf’ in Westport, is a former state representative from 1997 through 2005, serves as the town attorney for Wilton, a post he previously held in Westport and Weston, and has broad experience in municipal law, library officials stated.
He also served as a Westport’s selectman and on the boards of the Westport Chamber of Commerce, Norwalk Human Services Council, Earthplace, Westport Historical Society, Aspetuck Land Trust, Fidelco Guide Dog Foundation, and Westport Library.
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Remembering 50 Years Ago
The Staples High School Class of 1962 tonight kicked off a weekend of events marking their 50th anniversary of graduation. Members gathered at the Ned Dimes Marina at Compo Beach for an evening of cocktails and food served up from JR’s Weeniemobile. (CLICK TO ENLARGE) Contributed photo
Chow Line
Retired Westport Police Inspector Robert Hallock (c) joins Staples High School Class of 1962 members tonight on the food line at Ned Dimes Marina at Compo Beach. Class members, including Hallock’s wife, Loretta Santella Hallock, have planned a weekend of celebrations marking their 50th high school graduation anniversary. (CLICK TO ENLARGE) Contributed photo
Beach Shabbos
The Conservative Synagogue of Westport-Weston held a Friday night sabbath service tonight at Westport’s Compo Beach. It included the traditional challah and cup of wine.. (CLICK TO ENLARGE) Helen Klisser During for WestportNow.com
New Haven Delays
UPDATE Metro-North said at 8:15 p.m. that New Haven Line Service is now operating on or close to schedule after experiencing 15-20 minute delays between Bridgeport and New Haven due to a disabled train in the vicinity of Stratford.
Beating the Heat With Ice Cream
Some Westporters seeking a respite from today’s high temperatures and humidity migrated to Sunny Daes, 30 Riverside Ave. for a refreshing ice cream break. Among them were Zoe Molina, 12, and brother Luke, 9. (CLICK TO ENLARGE) Dave Matlow for WestportNow.com
Westport Property Transfers June 11 - 15, 2012
Westport property transfers as reported by the Town Clerk’s office for the period June 11 - 15, 2012:
SIR-28 Rayfield LLC to Scott Mitchell Weiner, 28 Rayfield Road, $1,825,000
Jeffrey L. and Lisa Nable to Michael B. Masters, 35 Woody Lane, $1,599,000
Josiah H. and Laura Ann Dearborn Trs. to William and Janet Jacklin, 46 Wright St., $775,000
Eymard and Madhurya Chitty to Scott S. and Diana L. Metro, 40 Meadowview Drive, $2,150,000
More "Westport Property Transfers June 11 - 15, 2012"
Malloy to Boost ‘Still Revolutionary’ Tourism Campaign
Gov. Dannel P. Malloy today announced that he will launch a summer-long effort to highlight the role Connecticut’s hospitality, tourism, and recreation sites play in strengthening the state’s overall economy.
He said he will tour state tourist spots following last month’s unveiling of the state’s new ‘Still Revolutionary’ marketing campaign,
He is counting on the new initiative to boost revenues and draw attention to the state’s “distinctive attractions and extraordinary destinations” through an aggressive marketing campaign, his office said.
Connecticut’s hospitality and tourism industry employs more than 110,000 people, generates $1.15 billion in state and local tax revenue and is responsible for $11.5 billion in spending, according to 2011 statistics.
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Connecticut Still Revolutionary, But No Minute Man?
By James Lomuscio
The Mystic Aquarium is featured in one ad. (CLICK TO ENLARGE) Contributed photo
One print ad shows a young girl cheek-to-cheek with a whale at the Mystic Aquarium. The caption “When was your last mystical experience?” It is followed by a slogan “Connecticut: still revolutionary” and an invitation to go to CTvisit.com.
Another print ad depicts a happy couple near the New London lighthouse. It states, “Let our history rekindle yours,” followed by the same “Connecticut: still revolutionary” slogan.
The catchphrase—the Nutmeg State’s answer to “I Love New York”—is the brainchild of Westporter Tony Kobylinski’s New York City ad firm Chowder, Inc. His firm won the the creative bid for Gov. Dannel P. Malloy’s $22 million state marketing campaign to promote tourism and Connecticut as the place to do business. (See WestportNow Jan. 25, 2012)
Kobylinski, an art director, said the slogan was created by his company’s co-creative director, writer Jim Ritterhoff. Part of their challenge was to educate people who know little about Connecticut including, according to their focus groups, that it has a coastline.
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Running for a Layup?
Thursday night’s basketball game at Westport’s Compo Beach was a neat way to spend a summer evening, attracting ball players and a scurrying skunk. (CLICK TO ENLARGE) Ted Horowitz for WestportNow.com
Friday, June 29, 2012
9:30 a.m. – Town Hall Room 201 – Baron’s South Committee Executive Session
10 a.m. - 11 a.m. - Westport Arts Center - Art Café
10 p.m. - 2 p.m. - Westport Arts Center - “Landscape: Scene/Re-seen”
10 a.m. - 4 p.m. - Westport Historical Society - “The Sound & the Saugatuck” & “Watershed Moments”
8 p.m. - Town Hall - Westport Community Theatre: “Company”
8 p.m. - Levitt Pavilion - Bone Dry
8 p.m. - Westport Country Playhouse - “The Year of Magical Thinking”
See more events: Celebrate Westport Calendar
Thursday, June 28, 2012
After the Ruling, a Celebration
By Aroosa Masroor
www.ctmirror.orgWithin hours of today’s U.S. Supreme Court health care ruling, students, health care providers, older citizens and members of the clergy gathered at the Capitol to share their joy. Calling it a historic victory, advocates said they were proud of the decision, which they say will change the lives of more than 400,000 people in Connecticut with no access to health care.
Rabbi Joseph Ron Fish, from Norwalk (l), Frances G. Padilla of the Universal Health Care Foundation and Imam Kashif. CTmirror.org photo
The group included Rabbi Joseph Ron Fish of Norwalk’s Congregation Beth El whose infant son needed cleft palate surgery. After the operation, the rabbi and his wife tried to buy a less costly insurance policy—the couple had been paying $30,000 a year for the family because of their son.
That’s when Fish and his wife learned they were “prisoners of our insurance company because our son was described as having a pre-existing condition.”
The group also included Kashif Abdul-Karim, an imam of the Islamic Center of Greater Hartford and co-chairman of the Interfaith Fellowship for Universal Healthcare, which has been advocating for health reforms for more than sevene years.
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Hamburger Art
Winning entries were unveiled today of the Westport Arts Center and Westport’s Shake Shack high school art exhibit “Expression Session.” Teens were asked to create artwork in any medium inspired by the restaurant’s food, location, history, team, or its impact on the community. Lindsay Johnson, 17, of Wilton High School was first place winner. Her parents, Sue and Steve Johnson, show off her winning entry, a portrait of a Shake Shack burger, with Dave Yearwood, manager of Westport’s Shake Shack, and Helen Klisser During, director of visual arts at the Arts Center. Other winners: second place: Emily Weyrauch, 16, Weston High School; third place: Charlene Whitaker, Bridge Academy; honorable mentions: Alex Gentry, Fairfield Ludlowe High School; Rose Propp, and Emma Rhoads, both of Staples High School. (CLICK TO ENLARGE) Jill Sarver for WestportNow.com
All Gone: 126 Beachside Ave.
The house at 126 Beachside Ave. in Westport’s Greens Farms area was demolished today. Built in 1981, the two-story custom contemporary, had 4,716-square feet, was situated on a 2.48 acre property and was part of a $20 million transaction in October 2010 of three adjoining parcels on almost seven acres that, at the time, was Westport’s second largest residential real estate transaction. It was the WestportNow Teardown of the Day on Dec. 15, 2010. The fire truck in the picture is a used vehicle acquired by the demolition company to wet down demolition sites. (CLICK TO ENLARGE) Dave Matlow for WestportNow.com
An Elephant Ride in Celebration at Save the Children
Westport’s Save the Children today marked the 93rd anniversary of its founding with a celebration at its Westport headquarters. It was in 1919 that British social reformer Egklantyne Jebb decided that a British blockade after World War I that left children in cities such as Berlin and Vienna starving was intolerable. So she set up the Save the Children Fund. She later went on to write the pioneering statement of children’s human rights that has since evolved into the U.N. Convention on the Rights of the Child. Enjoying the elephant ride was Westporter Valentina Davis, 6. With her are (l-r) Hannah Brencher, communications associate, Carolyn Miles, CEO of Save the Children, and Mary Beth Powers, Children’s Survival campaign director. (CLICK TO ENLARGE) Phyllis Groner for WestportNow.com
Going Down: 9 Roosevelt Road
The house at Westport’s 9 Roosevelt Road, off Compo Beach Road, was demolished today. Built in 1947, the two-story colonial had 2,162 square feet and was situated on a .20-acre property. It was the WestportNow Teardown of the Day on Sept. 10, 2011. The owner will retain the property. (CLICK TO ENLARGE) Heather Tiefenthaler for WestportNow.com
Ruling Prompts Two Different Visions of State’s Future
By Keith M. Phaneuf
www.ctmirror.orgThe U.S. Supreme Court’s landmark ruling today conjured two distinctly different visions of Connecticut’s future.
For health care advocates and other supporters of President Obama’s surviving health care reform, Connecticut dodged a bullet.
For opponents, the Nutmeg State caught the bullet—right between the eyes.
On one side, the image includes a massive increase in Connecticut’s insured population coupled with a huge infusion of federal dollars, both for state government and needy households.
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Comings & Goings: J. McLaughlin Closing
J. McLaughlin, an apparel retailer at 1026 Post Road East (and formerly at 91 Main St.) is closing on July 15, according to Samantha Holmes, acting store manager and area director. “It has not been a good location for us, and it’s too big with enormous overhead,” she said. A store employee said the company, which has Connecticut stores in Greenwich, New Canaan, and Washington Depot, may find another location in the area. Holmes said the store, which has been at its present location since November 2010, would participate in Westport’s annual sidewalk sale July 13-15 and then close for good. Sale items will include fixtures and displays, she said. (CLICK TO ENLARGE) Dave Matlow for WestportNow.com
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PROPERTY TRANSFERS
Westport Property Transfers June 11 - 15, 2012MORE >>
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