By Jim Cameron

I have seen the future and it is cool—very cool.

Metro-North has finally unveiled a full-scale, unpowered mockup of the new M8 rail car it designed and Kawasaki is building for Connecticut commuters. All I can say is “Wow!”

Much of the credit goes to renowned designer Cesar Vergara, who has commuted for years from Connecticut and spent many months riding the Harlem and Hudson line cars to learn from their successes and mistakes.

From the outside, our new cars will look much like those M7 cars running in Westchester and on the LIRR. But on the inside, it’s all first class, though it’s still two and three seating. The color scheme is deep burgundy and rich cream with frosted silver and aluminum.

The Westport Woman’s Club today presented the Westport Police Department with its annual Ruegg Grant—a $10,000 check for Project Lifesaver, a tracking system used to locate missing persons. Those enrolled in the program—often people with Alzheimer’s or autism—are given a personalized wristband that emits a tracking signal that can be picked up by police. Rose Jordan presented the check to Police Chief Al Fiore while First Selectman Gordon Joseloff looked on. Other Ruegg Committee members shown are (l-r) Barbara Szefc, Betsy Dickinson, Barbara Raffel, and Connie Case. At right is Lt. Thomas P. Casimiro. (CLICK TO ENLARGE) Dave Matlow for WestportNow.com

Thursday’s sunny skies and temperatures in the upper 70s made for perfect weather for those setting off from the docks at the Saugatuck Rowing Club in Westport. (CLICK TO ENLARGE) Phyllis Groner for WestportNow.com

A Ukrainian citizen arrested in Westport on charges of running brothels was sentenced by a federal judge in Bridgeport today to more than five years in prison.

Senior U.S. District Judge Alan H. Nevas also ordered Aleksander Dubogryzov, 45, to forfeit more than $100,000 in cash that authorities seized during the investigation and another $200,000 from the future sale of property he owns in Ellenville, N.Y.

Dubogryzov will be subject to deportation to the Ukraine after serving his 67-month prison sentence. He lived in Brooklyn, N.Y., before his arrest in Westport in 2006. (See WestportNow Sept.. 21, 2006)

A jury convicted him last September of conspiracy to transport for immoral purposes, transporting for immoral purposes and conspiracy to commit money laundering.

Susan Farewell of the Saugatuck Rowing Club makes her way along the Saugatuck River in Westport today. A founding member of the club and a former co-commodore, she has been single skulling for the past 17 years six days a week throughout the year except when there is ice on the river. (CLICK TO ENLARGE) Larry Untermeyer for WestportNow.com

Westporter Susan Farewell has a smile for the photographer as she spots him taking her picture along the Saugatuck River today. (CLICK TO ENLARGE) Larry Untermeyer for WestportNow.com

Some of the beauty observed in Westport’s Compo Beach area on Wednesday. (CLICK TO ENLARGE) Phyllis Groner for WestportNow.com