Around Town

‘It Grows Tall and Straight’: Sugar Maple Tree Planted at Town Hall in Memory of Ben Olmstead Sees Its First Spring

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It’s been nearly two years since a beloved, longtime New Canaan public works employee died on the job following an accident. Ben Olmstead was known by family, residents, co-workers and friends for his kind and generous spirit and his vast, detailed knowledge of the town’s infrastructure and history. Killed on July 23, 2014 by a slow-moving motor vehicle while striping the road with spray paint for a sewer hookup to a residence near the corner of routes 123 and 106—Olmstead knew so much about New Canaan that what he could do in a part-time job is now being done by full-time workers. He was “a tremendously valuable person,” First Selectman Rob Mallozzi said. “He was kind and had many relationships with people around town, really an ideal employee,” the first selectman said.

Around Town

Did You Hear … ?

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Town officials on Tuesday night approved plans for a new business’s sign and awning at 31 Vitti St.—known for two years as the home of Eclectic, which recently closed (locals may recall chef Robert Milano’s delicious cheesesteak, which recently made our Top-10 New Canaan Sandwiches list). With a planned launch about two weeks away, the new business at 31 Vitti, Good2Gourmet, according to its website, will offer convenient home delivery and curbside pickup from foods on its “tantalizing menu providing maxim flavors with minimum sodium and no additives.” Led by a renowned chef and founded by a mother of four, Good2Gourmet has joined the New Canaan Chamber of Commerce and defines its mission as providing “a variety of healthy and delicious dishes for the entire family.” Read more about the company here. ***

The male Maltese mix found on the night of June 15 on Lakeview Avenue is up for adoption as of Wednesday, June 24 through New Canaan Animal Control. He’s about two years old and Officer Maryann Kleinschmitt said she’s calling him ‘Finnegan.’ “Finn for short,” Kleinschmitt told NewCanaanite.com. “He is so cute.”

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The New Canaan Board of Education on Monday night bid farewell to two administrators who earned high praise at their final school board meetings.

News

‘A Tragic Accident’: Police Conclude Investigation into Collision That Claimed Beloved DPW Worker Ben Olmstead’s Life

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Investigators have finished their report on the July 23 car vs. person collision that claimed the life of a beloved, longtime Department of Public Works employee, and are calling it a tragic accident, New Canaan’s police chief said. Ben Olmstead, 71, at about 11:15 a.m. that Wednesday was striping East Avenue with spray paint for a sewer hookup to a residence—“something he did tens of thousands of times over the course of his career,” Chief Leon Krolikowski said during a press briefing Thursday at the New Canaan Police Department—when a motorist traveling north on Route 123 turned left and struck him. The motorist—a 60-year-old Norwalk man who stopped his truck immediately and was very distressed by the accident—had been traveling just 5 to 10 mph, was not distracted and did not see the kneeling Olmstead in the road, Krolikowski said. Neither man had any alcohol or drugs in his system that would have contributed to the accident, and an inspection of the vehicle revealed no contributing problems, the chief said.

Around Town

Family, Friends Gather to Remember Ben Olmstead: ‘Dad Really Was the Mayor of New Canaan’

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More than 300 relatives, friends and colleagues—including dozens of New Canaan municipal employees and officials—on Wednesday gathered at St. Jerome Roman Catholic Church in Norwalk to remember Ben Olmstead as a man of rare and dependable strength in character that showed itself in qualities of consideration, love and generosity of spirit. A native and lifelong resident of Norwalk who worked as a surveyor in the New Canaan Department of Public Works for 37 years, Olmstead died July 24 following an accident. He was 71. Olmstead is survived by his wife of 40 years, Donna Pollastro Olmstead, daughters Kim Olmstead Dennehy and Lisa Olmstead Weed and their husbands, granddaughter Julia Grace Dennehy, sister Patricia Weaver and her husband and many extended relatives.