The new dumpster enclosure that’s going into the parking lot behind The Playhouse is progressing on time, officials said Tuesday, and it’s taking steps this week toward completion.
The contractor working in the Playhouse Lot is planning to pour walls for the dumpster on Friday, and soon will start building a ramp from that lot down to the alley or ‘allée’ between the movie theater and Le Pain Quotidien, according to Public Works Director Tiger Mann.
“I was pushing for Thursday,” Mann told members of the Board of Selectmen at their regular meeting, held at Town Hall and via videoconference.
The staircase that runs between the Playhouse Lot and the “allée” between The Playhouse and LPQ is getting an accessible ramp. Oct. 21, 2025 photo. Credit: Michael Dinan
Mann continued: “And he [the contractor] has got a little bit of forming work left to do, and then the contractor will be looking to start the excavation Thursday-Friday on the ramp going down on the allée. So at that point in time, we’ll have to take that [the current staircase] out of service since it’ll be under construction. And then we’ll put in some signage to direct people to the staircase over by White Buffalo or the sidewalk on Park Street since they could walk up to Park Street and come down.”
The comments came during a general update from Mann on DPW projects to First Selectman Dionna Carlson and Selectmen Steve Karl and Amy Murphy Carroll.
The conspicuous dumpsters in the corner of the Playhouse Lot soon will be inside a new enclosure built into a hill between the Playhouse and Park Street Lots. Oct. 21, 2025 photo. Credit: Michael Dinan
The dumpster and ramp work is part of the town’s multi-phase plan to improve traffic flow on Elm Street. The first part, paid parking on Elm and free parking in the Park Street Lot, took effect two weeks ago. Once the work in the Playhouse Lot is finished, town officials have said, parking enforcement officers will focus on getting double-parking delivery trucks off of Elm.
The pedestrian path from the Park Street Lot (and access road below it) to Elm Street is “a nice accessible route,” Mann said, referring to the temporary walk-around while the staircase is out of commission with the ramp installation work.
“You’d be at the upper end of Elm Street, but at least you’d be on Elm Street proper,” Mann said. “So they’re working towards that right now. They haven’t had any glitches. The contractor has been very cooperative. He’s tightened up his area, we asked him to tighten up his area as far as parking goes. So now he’s in a tight little space. Only taking up about three or six parking spaces—three for the actual dumpster enclosure and three for his work.”