Around Town

Did You Hear … ?

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New Canaan Police at 12:32 p.m. Sunday received a report of a vehicle stolen from Ponus Ridge. The investigation is active. ***

Happy Pride Month. Show your support for our LGBT+ friends and neighbors with a New Canaan Pride sign. Email New Canaan’s Hilary Ormond for purchase and pickup details: hritter@gmail.com. 

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On May 5, the Canaan Parish chapter of National Charity League gathered at the Roger Sherman Inn to celebrate a successful year of volunteering, leadership, learning and connection.

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Superintendent: Saxe Undergoes 30 Minutes of ‘Sheltering In Place’ Wednesday Morning

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Saxe Middle School underwent about 30 minutes of “sheltering in place” Wednesday morning after the Farm Road facility “received a non-credible, anonymous communication,” according to the superintendent of schools. The incident triggered “a brief safety protocol,” Dr. Bryan Luizzi said in an email sent around 11:30 a.m. to the New Canaan Public Schools community. “Following our established security procedures and operating out of an abundance of caution, administration immediately initiated a ‘shelter in place’ protocol for all students and staff in the building,” Luizzi said in the email. “The situation lasted for approximately 30 minutes before normal operations resumed.”

Under the district’s safety procedures, sheltering in place is triggered “when a problem occurs outside the school or a non-crisis event inside of the school (i.e. medical emergency).” When sheltering, all exterior doors are locked, no one is allowed in or out of the building and regular classroom instruction continues. The school day was “minimally interrupted, and students are safely continuing with their regular schedules,” Luizzi said.

Around Town

New Canaan Man Trips on Brick on Elm Street, Sues Town

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A New Canaan man who tripped on a jutting brick on Elm Street two  years ago and fell on the sidewalk is suing the town. Harvey Melzer, the plaintiff, had been “lawfully walking” near 73 Elm St.—the address of Elm Restaurant—at about 11:24 a.m. on Oct. 15, 2024 (a Tuesday) “when he suddenly, and without warning, was caused to trip and fall as a result of [a] defective, unsafe, dangerous and/or hazardous protruding brick piece of the sidewalk,” according to a complaint filed April 15 by attorney Jason Gladstone of New Canaan-based Lampert, Williams & Toohey, LLC. The fall caused headaches, dizziness, nausea, disorientation and a number of injuries to Melzer (left hand, left knee, left hip, neck, back) as well as “loss of sleep” and a “general feeling of malaise,” according to the complaint. As a result, Melzer has “incurred expenses for ambulance transportation, emergency care, surgical care, orthopedic care, visiting care nursing, x-rays, physical therapy care, medications, medical care and attention for matters incidental thereto,” Gladstone said in the complaint.

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Warrant: Following Dispute, Man Sent Threatening Text Messages to New Canaan Family

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New Canaan Police on May 19 arrested a 54-year-old man by warrant in connection with a series of expletive-laden, threatening text messages that had been sent following a dispute in January. The initial dispute occurred on the afternoon of Jan. 15, a Thursday, according to police. Two New Canaan parents—the man, then 53, and a 38-year-old woman—each were charged with disorderly conduct after the latter discovered that her minor son “had purchased alcohol” with the man’s daughter, according to the affidavit of Officer Carlos Prado that forms the major part of an arrest warrant application signed Jan. 26 by a state Superior Court judge.

Claudia Weber

Referendum Filing Pauses Ban on Gas-Powered Leaf Blowers

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New Canaan’s newly adopted ban on the summer use of gas-powered leaf blowers is not in effect, officials say, as opponents have filed for a referendum vote on the measure. The Town Council’s ordinance “is on hold until the referendum process is completed,” according to Town Clerk Claudia  Weber. “I have received a few calls from residents who thought the ordinance was in effect, and I would like to get the word out that the ordinance is on pause until the referendum process plays out,” Weber said. The Town Council, New Canaan’s legislative body, voted 8-4 in favor of a seasonal ban at its May 20 meeting. On May 27, a “A Notice of Intent to Petition,” containing the required 50 qualifying signatures, was received by Weber’s office.