Amy Murphy Carroll

‘It Frightens Me’: Selectmen Consider ‘Elevated’ Crosswalk Near Saxe Middle School

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The New Canaanite 2024 Summer Internship Program is sponsored by Karp Associates. Citing children’s safety concerns, town officials said last week that they’re thinking of creating a “bump” for motorists at a pedestrian crossing to Saxe Middle School. Many Saxe students use the crosswalk near Farm Road and Village Drive to get to and from school. Yet, despite signage and striping in the roadway, drivers regularly blow through the pedestrian crosswalk, Director of Public Works Tiger Mann said during the Board of Selectmen meeting last Tuesday. “We’ve put in flags and they have a monitor that is actually bent in the middle of the road and cars have still passed,” Mann said during the meeting, held at Town Hall and via videoconference.

Amy Murphy Carroll

Spencer’s Run: No More Swapping Codes

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Saying users sometimes swap access codes, town officials on Tuesday approved a request to install a new lock system at Waveny’s dog park. The Board of Selectman during its regular meeting approved a contract with a Brookfield-based company to replace the old four-digit-code method of getting into Spencer’s Run. First Selectman Dionna Carlson and Selectmen Steve Karl and Amy Murphy Carroll voted 3-0 in favor of the $12,500 contract with United Alarm Services Inc., following a request from the Parks & Recreation Department. The new access control system is complete with key fobs that allow for dog-owners to enter and enjoy the park, according to Parks and Recreation Director John Howe. Although the old system had been in place for many years, issues began to arise, he said at the meeting, held at Town Hall and via videoconference.

Amy Murphy Carroll

The Playhouse: Town Approves Contract for Delivery of New Theater Seats

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Town officials on Tuesday approved a purchase order with a Stamford-based company for the delivery of new theater seats for the Playhouse. The Board of Selectmen voted unanimously during its regular meeting to approve the $6,000 contract with Kaster Moving for the delivery. The new seats are currently being stored at Kaster in Norwalk, and will be brought to the Playhouse on May 31, according to Department of Public Works Director Tiger Mann. Mann presented to the selectmen the cost and process of delivering the chairs, which includes “storing the old seats in case we didn’t get the new seats.”

“Now they’re storing the new seats and they’ll bring them to the theater,” he said during the regular meeting, held at Town Hall and via videoconference. “So we’ll be bringing in the chairs for each theater separately, and then we’ll go to the installation on May 31st.”

It isn’t clear how many seats there are or what they look like.

Government

‘It’s a Complicated Building’: Water Is Infiltrating Waveny House’s Walls

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Municipal officials are calling for a study of Waveny House after it was discovered that the iconic town-owned building is suffering from water infiltration in its walls. Town residents should “know the scope of the seriousness of this,” according to Selectman Amy Murphy Carroll. “I don’t think people realize, it’s a complicated building,” Murphy Carroll said at the May 1 Board of Selectmen meeting, held at Town Hall and via videoconference. “The ADA stuff’s complicated. It’s old.

Government

‘Our Flagpole Should Not Be a Speech Mechanism’: Selectmen Pass New ‘Flag Policy’ for Town Buildings

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New Canaan’s highest elected official this week instituted a new “flag policy” for town buildings. 

First Selectman Dionna Carlson in introducing a draft policy Tuesday for the full Board of Selectmen to review noted that it wouldn’t apply to school buildings. Carlson said that during her first week in office she “had an individual come up to me and asked to fly another country’s liberation flag.”

“And I guess my predecessor allowed a week of flying that flag,” Carlson said at a regular Board meeting, held in Town Hall and via videoconference. 

“And I feel very strongly that the only flags that should be flown in municipal buildings are the American flag, the state of Connecticut flag and any town flag,” she continued. “I was thinking about school flags, and I really do believe that those should be reserved for the schools. The other thing that I’m trying to avoid is who gets to fly what flag when?…  If we did the school flags at the municipality, do we fly it for a football win? Then do we fly it for every debate [team] win?