Month: November 2018 - Page 2

Tuesday, May 30, 2023

Gallery: Westport Town Hall Tree Lighting

Scenes from today’s Westport Town Hall Christmas tree lighting. WestportNow.com photos

Westport Town Hall Christmas Tree Lit

The annual lighting of the Westport Town Hall Christmas tree late today attracted a small crowd that heard selections from the Orphenians. (CLICK TO ENLARGE) WestportNow.com photo

Orphenians Perform

The Staples High School Orphenians, led by Luke Rosenberg, entertained at tonight’s Westport Town Hall Christmas tree lighting. (CLICK TO ENLARGE) WestportNow.com photo

John R. Humphrey, 94

John Robert Humphrey of Portland, Oregon, a former Westport resident, died Oct. 17 at home.. He was 94.

Born in Wausau, Wisconsin, John was the son of the late Howell Harris and Florence (McLay) Humphrey and the brother of the late Robert McLay Humphrey and David McLay Humphrey.

John and Nancy raised their children in Wisconsin, Texas, and Connecticut, where he worked for American Can Company and James River Corporation, before retiring to Massachusetts and finally Oregon.

They were active members of the United Methodist Church in Westport and later were founding members of Grace Community Church in Walpole, Massachusetts.

Playhouse Announces 2019 Season

The Westport Country Playhouse has announced its 2019 season featuring five productions, including two musicals, two dramas, and a comedy.

Playing April 23 through Nov. 23, under the artistic direction of Mark Lamos, 2019 season tickets are now on sale. Single tickets for 2019 productions will go on sale in March.

“I am happy to announce our first show of the season will be ‘Hamilton’ creator Lin-Manuel Miranda’s ‘In the Heights,’ winner of four Tony Awards including Best Musical and Best Score,” said Lamos.

“With an infectious score featuring a blend of hip-hop, salsa, merengue, and soul, ‘In the Heights’ invites audiences to celebrate life and love in a uniquely American story.”

9 a.m. – Town Hall Room 307/309 – BOE Teaching & Learning Committee
10 a.m. – 10 Woodside Lane – Sasco Brook Pollution Abatement Committee
10 a.m. – 5 p.m. – Westport Arts Center – Exhibition: “Paradise”
12:45 p.m. – Suzuki Music School (246 Post Road East) – WestportWRITES: Advanced Writing Class
2:30 p.m. – Town Hall Room 309 – Real Property Committee
5 p.m. – Town Hall – Westport Tree Lighting
5 p.m. – Town Hall Room 309 – Sherwood Mill Pond Committee
7 p.m. – Town Hall Auditorium – Planning & Zoning Commission (live on cable channel 79, Frontier channel 6020, & westportct.gov)
7 p.m. – 44 Imperial Ave. – Westport Library – The Path to Success in College: Using Technology to Support Learning
8 p.m. – Town Hall – Westport Community Theatre: “The Price” by Arthur Miller

See more events: Celebrate Westport Calendar

Wednesday, November 28th, 2018

State’s Revised Plans for Cribari Bridge Called Nothing New

By James Lomuscio

The state’s latest options for the historic William F. Cribari Memorial Bridge spanning the Saugatuck River received a lot of push back tonight from Westport stakeholders — so much so that one member of the Project Advisory Committee (PAC) set up by Connecticut Department of Transportation (CDOT) resigned.

There was a packed crowd for the meeting. (CLICK TO ENLARGE) James Lomuscio for WestportNow.com

“This advisory committee is simply a rubber stamp, and the DOT has not been listening to us,” said John Suggs, a member of the Westport Preservation Alliance.

“Effectively, I’m resigning from the advisory committee,” he added before leaving a packed Room 201 at Town Hall.

The more than dozen other PAC members remained, though many, too, were concerned the state’s plans appeared no different from those presented two-and-a-half years ago.

Historical Society Hosts Reception for Historic Bridgeport Homes

Miasa Tisdale, president and CEO of the Bridgeport-based Mary & Eliza Freeman Center, tonight addresses attendees at a Westport Historical Society fundraising reception for the restoration of the oldest surviving Connecticut homes built by African Americans. The Center is located in a section of Bridgeport that was a prosperous, seafaring community of free people of color since 1822. The Freeman Houses are listed on the National Register of Historic Places for significance to African Americans and Women. This year the National Trust for Historic Preservation placed the houses on the nation’s 11 Most Endangered Historic Places list. (CLICK TO ENLARGE) Dave Matlow for WestportNow.com

A Second Effort to Sound a Fiscal Alarm in Connecticut

By Mark Pazniokas

www.ctmirror.org

The Commission on Fiscal Stability and Economic Growth today produced a bleak assessment of Connecticut’s fiscal health for the incoming governor and General Assembly, the panel’s second attempt in nine months to convince policy leaders that the state is rapidly approaching a tipping point.

In a 32-page report, the commission sharpened a sprawling set of prescriptions initially issued on March 1, only to see its work attacked by labor and quickly shelved as a closely divided legislature turned to the short-term task of closing a deficit, balancing the state’s $20 billion budget, and campaigning for re-election.

The commission says the state needs to shrink spending by $1 billion, while adding revenue by modernizing its system of taxation and tax collection — not by raising tax rates. The panel backed away from a previous call to curtail collective bargaining for public employees, instead suggesting Gov.-elect Ned Lamont seek voluntary concessions.

“Now, the timing is right,” the commission says. “We have a new Governor-elect and General Assembly-elect, and a full legislative session coming in 2019. In this interim period we have refined and focused our recommendations, and now present our ‘Report 2.0.’ We believe it is the correct starting point for comprehensive and bipartisan reform. While our problems are severe, we are convinced they are fixable.”

More Input From Parents

A second listening session was held today at Town Hall on educational options following the closure of Coleytown Middle School. It was led by Superintendent of Schools Colleen Palmer and attended by members of the Board of Education, school administration, town officials, PTA, members of the Community Advisory Committee, and the community. CLICK TO ENLARGE) Contributed photo