Dionna Carlson

Town Approves ‘Third Annual Waveny Arts Festival’ for Sept. 28

By |

Town officials have approved use of Waveny for a hugely popular arts festival organized by a nonprofit organization. The 3rd Annual Waveny Park Arts Festival will be held Sunday, Sept. 28 following unanimous votes by the Parks & Recreation Commission and Board of Selectmen at their most recent meetings. The first year of the festival was a test to see how it would go “and it was a huge success,” according to Hilary Wittmann, executive director of the Carriage Barn Arts Center. 

“We did grow quite a bit last year, and everything went really smoothly,” Wittmann told the selectmen at their Feb. 25 meeting, held at Town Hall and via videoconference.

Board of Selectmen

Selectmen Approve $19,000 Purchase of ‘New Canaan Brick’ for Elm Street Bumpouts

By |

After approving the purchase of $20,000 in granite curbing for soon-to-come sidewalk “bumpouts” on Elm Street, officials this month authorized the purchase of about $19,000 in bricks for the project. The low bidder, the Bridgeport-based Homer C. Godfrey Co. ($18,404.75), came in with a far lower price than the town’s accustomed provider, Stamford-based Paramount Stone ($31,500), according to Public Works Director Tiger Mann. “I was shocked at Paramount’s price,” Mann told members of the Board of Selectmen at their Feb. 11 meeting, held at Town Hall and via videoconference.

Amy Murphy Carroll

Selectmen Put Off Vote on Redo of ‘Bridegroom’s Room’ at Waveny

By |

Saying they need more information, members of the Board of Selectmen this week put off voting on contracts for a future “bridegroom’s room” at Waveny House. Building officials came to the Board at its regular meeting Tuesday seeking approval for two contracts that would see a chandelier installed in a former IT Department office that the town now wants to convert into the groom’s room for weddings at Waveny. The room also would be painted, but the selectmen said they first need to understand how many lower wall electrical outlets are in it, and also what color it will be. “I don’t think we’re ready,” First Selectman Dionna Carlson said of voting on the contracts, totaling about $15,000. “I don’t think we’re ready for this one.

Government

‘I Don’t Understand What It Takes’: Selectmen Push Back on Registrar’s Request for Higher Pay

By |

The Board of Selectmen following a strained discussion at its most recent meeting voted 2-1 to increase the compensation for each of New Canaan’s registrars of voters by 3%, to $41,200. 

The figure is far less than the $52,000 that one of the registrars, Joan McLaughlin, had been seeking. In addressing the selectmen at their Jan. 7 meeting, McLaughlin said her work doubled with the introduction of early voting in Connecticut last year, as well as a recent shakeup of state legislature districts that resulted in three more for New Canaan. McLaughlin, who serves two-year terms as the Republican registrar in New Canaan, said during the meeting that she worked an average of 32 hours per week last year (up from 20 to 22 hours per week in the past) and that the higher figure was due to 14 days of early voting. “I have 14 days of early voting that starts at 10 o’clock in the morning and ends at 6 o’clock at night,” McLaughlin said during the meeting, held at Town Hall and via videoconference.

Dionna Carlson

‘Leaving an Indelible Mark’: Dr. Harrison Pierce Steps Down from Health & Human Services Commission

By |

The town’s highest elected official last week honored a local physician and community leader during the COVID-19 pandemic known to generations of New Canaan families. First Selectman Dionna Carlson recalled during last week’s Health & Human Services Commission meeting that the appointed body’s chair, Dr. Harrison Pierce, dropped into her office following Carlson’s one year ago to say it may be time to step down from the role, she recalled. “And I said, ‘Please don’t leave me’ ” and “Please give me a year at least,’ ” Carlson recalled during the Commission’s Dec. 4 meeting, held at Town Hall and via videoconference. “So he was gracious as he always is, in being willing to serve an additional year to help me get on my feet,” she continued.