Westporter Arthur Levitt, chairman of the Securities and Exchange Commission from 1993 to 2001, told a Westport audience tonight that despite turmoil in the markets and continuing fallout from real estate, he remains an optimist. There will be a resurgence of good news, he said, but there must be more transparency in investment banking, hedge funds, private equity funds and in listed companies. Levitt, who addressed the Temple Israel Men’s Club, said the market tumult will result in more regulation of the financial systems and greater oversight of the regulators by Congress. (CLICK TO ENLARGE) Phylllis Groner for WestportNow.com

Kevin J. Lally: former Westport News publisher. Contributed photoThe Westport/Weston Chamber of Commerce announced today that it has named Kevin J. Lally, former publisher of the Brooks Community Newspapers which includes the Westport News, as its executive director.

Lally served on the board of the Chamber beginning in 1983 and was chairman from 1995-1998.

“We are pleased to have Kevin return to the Chamber of Commerce,” said Richard Gordon, Chamber chairman. “A life-long resident, he has been extraordinary in his contribution to our community. He truly knows Westport and is well suited to build a positive environment for all who work and or do business in our town.”

Lally, a graduate of Staples High School and Skidmore College, will take over Oct. 1. He succeeds Lance Herman, a former manager of the Westport Inn, who has served in the post since April.

Workers prepare for the opening of the Westport HomeGoods store next month. (CLICK TO ENLARGE) Dave Matlow for WestportNow.com
Taking the space that once housed Toys ‘R Us, HomeGoods will open its Westport doors next month.

The store is slated to open Sunday, Sept. 21 from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. in the 37,000-square-foot space at the corner of Post Road East and Bulkley Road South.

It will be the fifth HomeGoods in Fairfield County with stores also located in Danbury, Norwalk, Stamford and Trumbull. HomeGoods is a division of Framingham, Mass.-based The TJX Companies, Inc., which also owns T.J. Maxx, Marshalls, A.J. Wright, and Bob’s Stores.

HomeGoods is a discount “home fashions” store. Store officials said in a press release that the goods in the store are 20-60 percent less than the same items in catalog, specialty and department stores.

Crate & Barrel executives said they have been seeking a Westport location for 12 years and today the quest became reality with the opening of a 37,000-square foot facility at 1200 Post Road East.  Co-manager Raul Montero (l) and sales associate Drew Foster, a Westport resident, celebrated a successful opening day for the national retailer of contemporary furniture and housewares. (CLICK TO ENLARGE) Dave Matlow for WestportNow.com

Westport’s new Crate & Barrel store opens at 10 a.m. Thursday at 1200 Post Road East, the former Carriage Hill South. The national retailer of contemporary furniture and housewares occupies 37,000 square feet and will employ about 60 full and part-time people. An advertisement on a bag wrapper for some home-delivered copies of today’s New York Times mistakenly said the store was open. Employees had to be deployed outside to tell would-be shoppers they had to wait a day. (CLICK TO ENLARGE) Dave Matlow for WestportNow.com

Westport’s Terex Corp., which makes construction, transport and mining equipment, will buy the port equipment businesses of privately-owned Fantuzzi Industries for about 215 million euros ($323 million) to expand its cranes business, Terex said today.

The port equipment businesses, with factories in Italy, Germany and China, had 2007 sales of 447 euros ($671 million), Terex said. It expects the deal to close in the fourth quarter and to boost its earnings by the end of 2009.

“This acquisition provides us with an important growth opportunity in the intermodal transportation area of infrastructure,” Terex Chief Executive Ronald DeFeo said in a statement.

“The acquisition is an excellent fit with our strategy of expanding our market presence in related product areas and is a natural extension of our Cranes business.”

Hearst Corporation announced today that it has acquired the Westport News and six other non-daily Connecticut newspapers as well as the Connecticut Post in Bridgeport from Denver–based MediaNews Group, Inc.

While terms were not disclosed, The Associated Press reported that a person with direct knowledge of the deal who spoke on condition of anonymity said the price was $155 million.

The announcement was made jointly by George B. Irish, president of Hearst Newspapers, and Joseph (Jody) Lodovic IV, president of MediaNews Group.

With the acquisition of the Connecticut Post and its assets, Hearst also assumes management control of three other Fairfield County daily newspapers including The Advocate (Stamford), Greenwich Time (Greenwich), and The News-Times (Danbury).