Opinion

Letter to the Editor

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NewCanaanite.com recently received the following letter. Send letters to editor@newcanaanite.com to have them published here. ***

Will the Town Council cut the school budget? On April 3rd, the Town Council will approve a final budget for New Canaan Public Schools for 2025-2026. Inquiring minds wonder whether it will be enough to maintain the staff and services that drive our schools’ number one ranking statewide (30th nationally), or whether the budget agreed to (in open session) by the Board of Finance and the BOE is on the TC chopping block.  

If there are to be cuts, will there be time for the public and the BOE to assess and share the consequences before the final Town Council vote?

Circle of Care

Podcast: Circle of Care’s Liz Salguero

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This week on 0684-Radi0, our free podcast (subscribe here in the iTunes Store), we talk to Liz Salguero, co-executive director of Circle of Care, a nonprofit organization with strong New Canaan ties that she helped found more than 20 years ago when her then-3-year-old son was diagnosed with leukemia. Here on Facebook and here on Instagram, Circle of Care offers programs and services that meet the unique and challenging needs of childhood cancer treatment. The donor-supported nonprofit organization, which offers many volunteer opportunities, will hold one of its main fundraisers— “CARE to Laugh”—on April 3 in Fairfield (tickets here). Here are recent episodes of 0684-Radi0:

Opinion

Op-Ed: Town of New Canaan FY 2026 Budget Update

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[Note: Todd Lavieri is chair of the Board of Finance.]
Last week, the New Canaan Board of Finance passed the FY 2025-2026 budget. This budget now goes to the Town Council for their review, and approval. When the Board of Finance received the budget from the Selectman’s office in January, we set three goals to accomplish with our review: one, to reduce the amount paid in taxation by $3 million; two, to reduce the total amount of capital expense by at least $3 million; and three, to reduce the amount of taxpayer supported capital expense by $1 million. Working collaboratively with each department, we accomplished all three goals. We reduced the amount raised by taxation by $4.1 million, we cut the capital expense by $4.8 million, and we reduced the taxpayer supported capital (not bonded), by $1.2 million.

Who Knew: Making Moves on Main Street

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‘Who Knew?’ is sponsored by Walter Stewart’s Market. * * *

At the storied Roseland Ballroom in New York City, a wall of plaques used to bear the names of the 700-plus married couples who first met on the institution’s dance floor. It boggles the mind that there was a time when people made each others’ acquaintance doing the rumba–it seems wildly vulnerable to commit to an entire song’s worth of eye contact with a stranger, not to mention quite sophisticated for two adult human beings to have memorized a series of complicated things to do with their feet whilst exchanging origin stories. Nowadays, if the internet is to be believed, kids just DM each other photos of their bathing suit regions and then, presumably, go to Sweetgreen. In real life, though, dance is community.

Footer Featured Widget

Op-Ed: Women’s Day 2025, Embracing Our Power Despite the Headwinds 

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[New Canaan’s Sheri West is the founder and CEO of LiveGirl and author of “Confidence Unleashed.”]

This isn’t just about equality—it’s about excellence. 

As we celebrate International Women’s Day 2025, I find myself reflecting on the mission of gender parity with both hope and concern. The path forward has significant challenges, and this moment calls for renewed determination and focus on what we can control. 

The DEI and gender parity headwinds are strong and feel overwhelming. That’s precisely why now, more than ever, we must focus on aspects within our control. I’ve met many distraught women over the past several weeks, filled with anxiety in the current environment, and I say again, Now is the time to ensure that you are sitting firmly in the driver’s seat, investing in yourself, and owning your career. 
“This is not the moment to shrink, retreat, or waste energy justifying why we belong at the table. Instead, it’s the time to push forward more boldly, more visibly, and with even greater conviction in the value we bring.” —Dr. Margie Warrell, Author of ‘The Courage Gap’ 
Take a moment to reflect.