UPDATE A Westport-based investment company said today it has reached an agreement to acquire Waterworks Inc., the Danbury luxury bathroom retailer which filed for Chapter 11 reorganization in May.
Waterworks, a retail bath accessories shop that had been at 181 Main St. for 10 years and in Westport since 1981, closed its Westport store on April 24. (CLICK TO ENLARGE) Dave Matlow for WestportNow.com

Design Investors LLC is leading a group of investors in the acquisition, which is waiting for approval from a bankruptcy judge, Design Investors said in a news release.

Waterworks voluntarily filed for Chapter 11 in May, closed 20 of its stores nationwide and laid off more than 70 workers - including some in Connecticut, including Westport. (See WestportNow May 1, 2009)

The company has been in business more than 30 years and at one time, it had 38 stores in many major U.S. cities, including Los Angeles, Miami and New York.

Soap and lotion seller Crabtree & Evelyn Ltd., which has its Westport store at 136 Main St., says it filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection, a victim of the recession and management missteps. The company, a unit of Crabtree & Evelyn Holdings in Britain, said it would continue to operate its stores and would honor gift cards and returns as it reorganizes under bankruptcy protection. The company said it would close some stores and try to renegotiate leases for others. It currently operates 126 stores in 34 states and employs about 950 people. (CLICK TO ENLARGE) Dave Matlow/WestportNow.com file photo

Westport today awarded its $12.5 million general obligation bond sale to PNC Capital Markets at a special meeting of the Board of Selectmen.

The bonds, maturing from 2010 to 2029, sold at an average interest rate of 3.56 percent, said First Selectman Gordon F. Joseloff.

“This is the most favorable rate on Westport debt in four decades,” he said. “We are extremely gratified by the auction results.”

Proceeds from the bond sale will finance various school, sewer and municipal improvements.

UPDATE Moody’s Investor Service has affirmed Westport’s triple-A rating, First Selectman Gordon F. Joseloff announced today.

The rating service assigned its highest Aaa rating to the town’s $12.5 million General Obligation Bonds, Issue of 2009. It also affirmed the Aaa rating on the town’s parity debt, Joseloff said.

Proceeds from the bond sale will finance various school, sewer and municipal improvements. The bonds, maturing from 2010 to 2029, sold at an average interest rate of 3.56 percent. PNC Capital Markets won the bidding for the offering.

“We are very pleased with the rating review,” Joseloff said. “Despite these difficult economic times, it shows that Westport’s finances are in good shape.”

Another entrepreneur has chosen Westport to open a business.  According to owner John Minnock of Newtown, Artisan Kitchens and Countertops will open at 1252 Post Road East (next to Greens Farms Spirits Shop) around the first week of August.  “Now is the time to get a good deal on leases” he said. The proud father of two children, Minnock said the business will be family operated which includes his wife Gail who will do the bookkeeping and son-in-law Steve. Minnock, who operated his business for two years at 941 Danbury Ave. in Wilton, chose to move to Westport because he said most of his clients live here and to take advantage of more favorable leasing arrangements. (CLICK TO ENLARGE) Dave Matlow for WestportNow.com

The Westporter who heads a Stamford-based energy company which has agreed to refund $2.1 million in credits and cash for overcharging customers last summer said today the state found no evidence of intentional customer abuse.
Jeffrey Mayer “Customers were compensated for any mistakes.” Dave Matlow/WN file photo

“After an investigation of our retail electricity business, the state bodies made no finding of intentional customer protection abuse,” said MXenergy CEO Jeffrey Mayer in a statement. Mayer is the Democratic chair of Westport’s Board of Finance.

“In fact, they confirmed what we ourselves discovered after an internal investigation,” he said. “We have taken several steps to make sure that all customers were compensated for any mistakes we may have made.”

The Department of Utility Control (DPUC) began its investigation in August 2008, and was joined by the Office of the Attorney General and Office of Consumer Counsel.

Fuel oil tanks were removed today at Westport’s 30 Riverside Ave. where Sunny Daes Ice Cream will open in about two months, according to Peter Wiehl, a principal of Pepper Partners, LLC of Trumbull, landlord of the property. Wiehl said this will be the fifth location for Sunny Daes which is owned by Sergio Keskin of Trumbull who also operates two shops in Fairfield and one each in Trumbull and Stamford. WestportNow first reported on the ice cream chain’s arrival in February. (See WestportNow Feb. 18, 2009)  (CLICK TO ENLARGE) Dave Matlow for WestportNow.com