News

NewCanaanite.com Endorsements for Town Council

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Seven candidates—four Republicans and three Democrats—are vying for six Town Council seats that are up for election on Tuesday. For reasons listed below, I am endorsing three Republicans—John Engel, Rich Townsend and Tom Butterworth—and three Democrats—Sven Englund, Colm Dobbyn and Liz Donovan. Two candidates, incumbents Engel and Englund, most clearly have earned re-election to the legislative body. Engel is an insightful, articulate councilman who brings a singular perspective as a lifelong resident, community volunteer, open space advocate, parent and Realtor. His also is a common-sense voice in a body that can be derailed by overreach and politicking.

Government

Town Council Candidates Discuss Transparency in Local Government at Debate

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New Canaan’s strong zoning is one of its most important assets, according to one incumbent member of the town’s legislative body. The zoning regulations are what underpin property values here, yet in recent years—considering the handling of applications for Merritt Village, Grace Farms, the Roger Sherman Inn, mixed-use on Forest Street and “Zone D” on Grove Street, New Canaan has been “managing by exception,” according to Town Councilman John Engel. “The mere fact that we have 100 caveats to the Grace Farms approval, another 100 for the Merritt Village approval, shows that we have got to do a better job of getting in front of this and the evidence is, it is costing us money,” Engel, a Republican seeking re-election to the Town Council, said during a debate last week. “When I talk to the developer [of Heritage Square] on Forest Street and I ask, ‘Would you do it again?’ and he said, ‘No, it’s far too risky to develop in this town not knowing after a two-year process whether your project will get approved or not.’ So developers are staying away and I don’t know if most people realize it, but building permits are down by 50 percent this year versus last year. It is costing us money.

News

Letter: Colm Dobbyn for Town Council

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Editor,

I have served with Colm Dobbyn on New Canaan’s Inland Wetlands Commission for five plus years. He is exactly the kind of person we need on Town Council. Colm is very smart, a good listener and always fair-minded. As a corporate attorney, currently at MasterCard and formerly at PepsiCo, Colm has had years of experience dispassionately analyzing complex problems and coming up with creative solutions. He has used these skills to good effect on the IWC, where he is a thought leader and his clear arguments often command the agreement of other commission members.

News

Letter: Colm Dobbyn for Town Council

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Editor, New Canaanite;

Electing Colm Dobbyn to our Town Council this November makes tremendous sense. Colm brings a strongly analytical mind (a highly successful corporate attorney specializing in intellectual property rights and technology), coupled with a well-founded sense of what makes New Canaan such a special and vital community (a 24-year resident with more than a decade serving on our Inlands Wetlands Commission) together with a commitment to open and transparent governance conducted with respect and civility. I have known Colm for more than a decade and had the privilege of serving with him on the town’s Wetlands Commission for seven of those years. He works hard on behalf of our town, and represents the kind of talent and leadership we need on—and that Colm will bring to the Town Council. New Canaan needs Colm’s talent, dedication, and intellect to help lead our town through the challenging and potentially difficult times ahead.

Business

Town Body Seeks Meeting With Landscaper Who Violated Environmental Regulations

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Members of the volunteer group responsible for enforcing regulations that govern some of New Canaan’s most sensitive environmental habitats are seeking a meeting with an area landscaper who cleared a large wetlands area on Old Stamford Road. If Mount Kisco, N.Y.-based landscaper Mike Nolan “had disappeared from the face of New Canaan, that would be one thing,” Inland Wetlands Commission Secretary Angela James said during the group’s most recent regular meeting. “But my fear is that he is still operating in New Canaan and could quite easily do something similar on another property,” she said at the Dec. 21 meeting, held in the Town Meeting Room. Specifically, Nolan appears to have violated New Canaan’s Inland Wetlands and Watercourses Regulations at 279 Old Stamford Road —as well as a conservation easement for the property, which noted “no disturbance, no maintenance, no planting” there—in clearing out vegetation from a large area.