Town Applying for State’s ‘Neglected Cemetery’ Grant

Municipal officials are applying for a $5,000 grant to help pay for the cleanup and maintenance of neglected cemeteries in New Canaan. The deadline for the state’s 2025 Neglected Cemetery Account Grant Program is Feb. 13. The town two years ago received $2,000 under the program, and $5,000 last year, officials said at the Board of Selectmen’s most recent meeting. The grant would be used at nine cemeteries in New Canaan, according to Joe Zagarenski, senior engineer in the Department of Public Works.

Domestic Violence and Partner Abuse in New Canaan [Q&A]

Town officials say that New Canaan residents in abusive relationships often report that their spouse refuses to pay agreed-upon child support, and a recent community wellness survey showed that 134 people here have safety concerns about someone in their home. Even so, more than one-third of respondents said in a recent survey that they don’t know where to access domestic violence support. These are some of the data points that Dede Bartlett, founder of the New Canaan Abuse Prevention Partnership, shared during a conversation Sunday at New Canaan Library. (Note: The library has set aside a book list display to mark the month, view the book list here.)

We met because February is Teen Dating Violence Awareness Month, to talk about domestic violence and partner abuse. Here’s a transcription of our conversation.

New Canaan Woman Charged After Fleeing Scene of Car Crash

Police on Jan. 31 arrested a 31-year-old New Canaan woman and charged her with evading responsibility. At about 2:28 p.m. that Friday, officers responded to a two-car crash at Pine and Cherry Streets, according to a police report. One of the vehicles had left the scene, the report said. On further investigation, police found that the vehicle that fled had run a red light, it said.

Town Upholds $50 Ticket Issued To Woman Who Parked on Sidewalk

Town officials on Wednesday night upheld a $50 ticket issued to a Ridgefield woman for parking on a sidewalk alongside the Locust Avenue Lot. 

Allison Butash told members of the Parking Commission during an appeal hearing that she didn’t know she’d hopped the granite curb and parked on the brick sidewalk near the Post Office. “I apparently went over the curb and it’s a very small curb so I didn’t even know I had gone over it, and apparently in doing so the back of my car was mostly on the sidewalk,” Butash said during the hearing, held via videoconference. “But I was more concerned with the front part of my car, because I didn’t want it to block the turn-in to the parking lot and the fire hydrant that was there. So I completely had no idea I was on the curb when I left my car. I didn’t turn around, I didn’t look.