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DXL, the men’s apparel store at 1505 Post Road East at the corner of Maple Avenue North, will close soon, according to window signage and an employee who said its lease expires at the end of the month. The location — onetime home of Blockbuster, which closed in 2011 — has been listed as a potential site of a medical marijuana dispensary. (CLICK TO ENLARGE) Dave Matlow for WestportNow.com
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Marpe Appoints Real Property Committee
Westport First Selectman Jim Marpe announced today the establishment of a Real Property Committee to act as his advisor for property purchases and leases.
It will also advise on acquisitions and sales of property for open space, municipal and recreational uses, conservation, rights of way and investments, the announcement said.
Appointed committee members are: former Selectwoman Helen Garten, Marty Fox and Iain Bruce.
According to Marpe, the committee expands the mission of the Land Acquisition Committee established by former First Selectwoman Diane Farrell during the late 1990s.
Comings & Goings: Dragone Classic Motor Cars to Orange
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Dragone Classic Motor Cars, 176 Post Road West, is moving to Orange after more than seven years at its present location. Manny Dragone, president, said the move would allow consolidation of its showroom in Westport and repair and restoration facility in Bridgeport to a 66,000-square foot facility. (CLICK TO ENLARGE) Dave Matlow for WestportNow.com
Comings & Goings: Ann Taylor Closes on Main Street
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After more than a half century presence on Westport’s Main Street, woman’s clothier Ann Taylor at 97 Main St. has closed, the latest major corporate retailer to leave the street. Other recent closings include Nike, Allen Edmonds, and Diptyque. Ann Taylor is part of the Ascena Retail Group Inc., whose other brands include Loft and Lane Bryant, among others. (Loft has an outlet at 17 Main St. in Westport.) There were rumors that the Ann Taylor space was of high interest to Sundance Catalog, a leading lifestyle brand retailer of women’s and men’s apparel, footwear, jewelry and home decor. It was founded in 1989 by famed actor and director Robert Redford, a former Weston resident. (CLICK TO ENLARGE) Dave Matlow for WestportNow.com
Comings & Goings: Riverside Barber Returns to Saugatuck
Riverside Barber, one of the oldest barber shops in Westport, is returning to Saugatuck. Since 2016, it has been at 231 Post Road West, above Greg & Tony Salon. Its 500-square foot new space at 1 Treadwell Ave. has recently been occupied by Westport Florist. Last year, Riverside Barber celebrated the 90th anniversary of its 1927 founding on Riverside Avenue in Saugatuck by John Santella. He was followed by his son Lou Santella and then owned by Pat Vigilio since November 1999 when he relocated the business to Post Road West. Vigilio recently retired and relocated to Florida, according to current owner Tammy Stefanidis. She said she worked for Vigilio for seven years until 2006 and then spent the past 10 years as a homemaker raising her family. (CLICK TO ENLARGE) WestportNow.com photo
Finance Board Cuts Education Budget by $2,050,000
The Westport Board of Finance tonight voted for a $2,050,000 cut in the Board of Education budget and approved a total school and municipal budget of $207,703,868, representing a 1.3 percent increase over the current year.
The Board of Education will have an opportunity to return next week to seek any restoration in the cut, which was approved 6-1 (Lee Caney opposed). It then moves next month to the Representative Town Meeting (RTM), the town’s 36-member legislative body.
The board had presented a proposed budget of $118,223,800, or a 3.36 percent increase.
The Board of Finance action followed word from Superintendent of Schools Colleen Palmer that cost savings of $1.3 million to $1.5 million would be achieved by the school bargaining units joining the state health plan.
New AG Opinion a Blow to Tribes’ East Windsor Casino
By Mark Pazniokas
www.ctmirror.orgAttorney General George Jepsen today strongly warned the legislature against allowing the Mashantucket Pequot and Mohegan tribes to jointly develop a casino in East Windsor without the approval of the U.S. Interior Department.
The approval was a condition of a 2017 law permitting the project to compete with MGM Springfield.
The opinion is likely to be the final blow in this legislative session to any hopes by the tribes to circumvent the requirement for Interior Department approval.
In a formal opinion sought by House Speaker Joe Aresimowicz, Jepsen said his office still views approval by the Interior Department of amendments to the state’s gaming compacts and memoranda of understanding with the tribes as necessary to guarantee the new project would not jeopardize Connecticut’s existing revenue-sharing arrangement with them.
Real Estate Report: Westport Market Stronger Than Year Ago
By Judy Szablak
Special to WestportNowThe first 100 days of 2018 have brought about a stronger market in Westport than last year.
Featured Home: This home at 2A Whippoorwill Lane is listed at $2,198,000. (CLICK TO ENLARGE) Photo courtesy of The Riverside Realty Group/ Bross Chingas Bross
According to our Multiple Listing Service, the 94 single family closings that have already occurred this year represent a 27 percent increase of unit sales for the same time period in 2017.
That’s a hefty increase, especially when inventory has been lower this year.
The amount of activity in different price pockets often point to a trend, if reviewed closely, but they are not at this time.
Town Partners With Off-Site Solar Farm
Westport officials today announced a partnership with Windham Solar LLC to buy solar credits from a panel installation located in North Franklin and Lebanon, Connecticut.
“With zero upfront cost to the town to install the solar panels, the electricity generated will be roughly equivalent to the electricity demands for the Town Hall, Fire Headquarters, Police Headquarters, and 50 percent of the sewer treatment plant, or 29 percent of the annual electricity demand for Westport’s municipal buildings,” the announcement said.
Officials estimate the solar facility will produce about 1,627 megawatt hours of clean, renewable energy this year. The Virtual Net Metering (VNM) credits for electricity production will be sold to Westport at a discounted rate, the announcement said.
According to David Mann, chairman of the Westport Green Task Force, the town will benefit from the solar energy generated, even though the town’s buildings are not physically connected to the solar facility.
Westport Man Gets 24 Months for Failing to Pay SEC Settlement
A Westport man will have to serve additional jail time for failing to pay $5.25 million as part of a settlement with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). 
John N. Milne: violated SEC settlement. File photo
Chief U.S. District Judge Janet C. Hall in New Haven today sentenced John N. Milne, 58, to 24 months of imprisonment for violating the conditions of his supervised release, the U.S. Attorney’s Office said.
According to court documents and statements made in court, on March 11, 2010, Milne was sentenced to 27 months of imprisonment, followed by three years of supervised release, for conspiring to falsify the books and records of Greenwich-based United Rentals, Inc. while he served as its president and chief financial officer.
In a resolution of a separate civil action brought by the SEC, Milne agreed to pay $6.25 million. He paid $1 million to the SEC prior to his sentencing in 2010.
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