Around Town

Did You Hear … ?

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New Canaan Police are investigating packages stolen from a Silvermine Road mailbox (reported at 9:27 p.m. Wednesday), two packages stolen from a Ponus Ridge driveway (1:44 p.m. Tuesday) and a package stolen from a Millport Avenue apartment (2:14 a.m. Sunday). ***

Two petitioners’ pages turned in to the Town Clerk’s office Monday as part of a failed effort to force a referendum vote on the town’s $10 million contribution to New Canaan Library for a rebuilding project were not accepted because they weren’t notarized, according to notes on the documents. One of the pages had seven names, the other eight names. In all, town officials verified 528 signatures on the petition, short of the 689 needed to force a referendum. ***

New Canaan’s Bankwell has made another generous donation to Filling in the Blanks, a local nonprofit organization launched in 2013 by town residents Shawnee Knight and Tina Kramer.

Bankwell

‘It’s the Right Thing To Do’: Local Businesses Urge or Require Employees To Get Vaccinated

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Bankwell CEO Chris Gruseke and his management team already were tracking COVID-19 infection rates, deaths and government regulations related to the pandemic daily as the rollout of vaccines got underway earlier this year. The New Canaan-based company was in the early phases of its widely anticipated move into a new building at Elm and Grove Streets, and as workers moved into offices and cubicles, Gruseke and his managers “were encouraging people to get the vaccine, we were wearing our buttons and badges around the office,” he said. “Being an employer and being a public employer and being responsible for other people’s lives, also being a member of the community, we are monitoring this daily,” Gruseke, a New Canaan resident, said from his glass-windowed corner office at 258 Elm St. “What are the regulation changes and what is happening in Connecticut and what the CDC is saying? And we were always on the most conservative ends of the discussion.

Around Town

Did You Hear … ?

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The new cell tower at the end of Soundview Lane in northeastern New Canaan is on track to be operational by May, First Selectman Kevin Moynihan said during Wednesday’s regular meeting of the Town Council. ***

Some upcoming events to pencil in: 

“Success with Hydrangeas with Lorraine Ballato” from 9:30 to 11:30 a.m. on Wednesday, March 3—from the New Canaan Beautification League; 
Stepping Strong: Lowering Your Risk of Falls from 7 to 8:30 p.m. on Thursday, March 11—from Waveny LifeCare Network;
Lenten Season with the United Methodist Church of New Canaan, 10 a.m. Sundays via Facebook Live. ***

The Board of Selectmen on Tuesday afternoon held a special meeting with a single agenda item: “Executive Session to discuss potential litigation to protect the Town’s legal standing.” It came hours after the selectmen approved another $2,000 in legal fees related to the proposed “God’s Acre Platform.” Among other things, the charges reflect a Jan. 19 Zoom meeting with Moynihan, Nicholas Bamonte, an attorney for the town, and Tucker Murphy, a staffer in the first selectman’s office. Murphy also served as a member of a committee that proposed the year-round flagstone terrace at the top of God’s Acre.

Around Town

Did You Hear … ?

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The New Canaan husband and wife arrested by warrant in September on felony risk of injury charges now is facing eviction from their Briscoe Road home, court documents show. The lease ($5,500 per month) held by the couple is being terminated because of “serious nuisance” and because the conduct described through their arrests “presents an immediate and serious danger to the safety of the other tenants,” according to a complaint filed in state Superior Court by Norwalk attorney Mark Sank. ***

Here’s a video from New Canaan Chamber of Commerce Executive Director Laura Budd on “Holiday Doors,” a newly launched video series spotlighting local businesses this holiday season. The campaign is sponsored by Walter Stewart’s Market, Bankwell and Stewarts Spirits:

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The Board of Finance during its regular meeting Tuesday re-elected Todd Lavieri as chair and Judy Neville as secretary. ***

Officials on Wednesday gathered at Waveny Care Center on Farm Road as Waveny LifeCare Network accepted a donation of 1,000 N95 donated to its staff by Connecticut Biotech.

Bankwell

Podcast: Bankwell CEO Chris Gruseke

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This week on 0684-Radi0, our free weekly podcast (subscribe here in the iTunes Store), we talk to Bankwell CEO Chris Gruseke about how the bank is faring through the public health emergency, its experience with PPP applications and the widely anticipated launch of a new company headquarters here in New Canaan. Here are recent episodes of 0684-Radi0: