Around Town

‘A Shining Light Where Every Person Is Seen’: New Inclusive Playground Opens at Waveny

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More than 50 New Canaan parents, kids, municipal government officials and parks and public works employees on Friday attended the formal opening of the new Waveny Playground. Gathered outside the roomy, inclusive play space near the Orchard Field on a clear, warm morning, the crowd heard from Parks & Recreation Director John Howe, Superintendent of Parks Ryan Restivo and First Selectman Dionna Carlson—a trio that cut a ceremonial ribbon before throngs of little kids funneled onto the playground’s Poured-In-Place rubber surface to climb, swing, slide and otherwise enjoy brand-new play structures. “As we celebrate the opening of this wonderful new playground, before we officially dedicate this space, I would like to thank everyone who played a role in bringing this project to fruition,” Howe said from a podium placed on the playground’s “donor walk” as passersby joined the large crowd. 

He continued: “It took the efforts of many people over many years to turn an idea into what we see before us today. While there are many individuals deserving of recognition, I would like to take a moment to recognize someone whose vision, dedication, perseverance helped make this project a reality: our Superintendent of Parks, Ryan Restivo. This journey began nearly five years ago when Ryan— then a young member of our staff, attended one of the very first meetings to discuss the possibility of building a playground here at Waveny Park.

Government

Town Hires 103 Part-Time Summer Workers

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The Board of Selectmen at its most recent meeting voted in favor of hiring more than 100 part-time employees for the 2026 summer recreation season. Parks & Recreation Director John Howe told the elected body at its May 19 meeting that he is seeking to hire 103 this summer, as the town does each year, to help operate a wide range of municipal facilities, including revenue-generating ventures such as the pool at Waveny and camps. “103 kids,” Howe said at the Board of Selectmen meeting, held at Town Hall and via videoconference. “This is anything from lifeguards for the Steve Benko Pool to supervisors to summer camp counselors and even umpires. It’s all our seasonal help for the summer.”

First Selectman Dionna Carlson and Selectmen Steve Karl and Amy Murphy Carroll voted in favor of the request.

Government

Elevator at Waveny House Now Projected for Late-Summer Use

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Though the town is trying to make the work site of a new elevator going in at Waveny House as inconspicuous as possible, the apparatus itself won’t be ready for use until late-summer, several months into the wedding season, according to new projections. The first wedding at Waveny was scheduled for Saturday, April 18, and while the elevator next to the grand staircase in the main hall originally was supposed to be done April 1, “we are now looking at the end of July, the latest mid-August,” according to Parks & Recreation Director John Howe. “So we’re going to be going through the whole spring wedding season where they’re going to be able to work during the week and then the whole place needs to be cleaned up and then they need to be out of there,” Howe told members of the Parks & Recreation Commission at their April 15 meeting, held at Lapham Center and via videoconference. 

“The main thing of note for this group [Parks & Rec] is: That means we’ve had to cancel almost all meetings, events during the week so they can work. So any community organization that was planning to have a meeting there et cetera, we’ve had the fun task of having to call them and say, ‘Listen we can’t accommodate you.’ ”

The comments came during Howe’s regular update to the Commission. 

Discussed for nearly a decade by municipal officials, the elevator had once appeared to be a priority for the town, which even created a Waveny House Renovation Advisory Committee to help plan for it. The Committee’s meeting minutes from October 2018 called for formal planning for the elevator to commence the following month for an early-2020 project completion.

Government

Parks Department: 92 of 120 Out-of-Town Families Returning to Steve Benko Pool This Season

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Of about 120 non-New Canaan families that held passes to the Steve Benko Pool last year, 92 have said they want to come back for this season, parks officials say. Thrown into a lottery with hundreds of other non-resident families in years past, the town this year is offering “right of first refusal” to out-of-towners who want to return to the popular facility in Waveny. “We did give the option for out-of-town members to re-sign up so that they wouldn’t have to go into the lottery, so that if they make friends they’d be able to still come, and we had 92 families that wanted to come back,” according to Parks & Recreation Director John Howe. The town has always capped the number of nonresident families allowed to purchase the passes, which are far more expensive (up to $1,450 per season this year) than for New Canaanites ($455 as of 2020). While the town can accommodate the 92 returning out-of-town families, it can’t take “the other 300 families” from surrounding towns such as Darien who want to use the Steve Benko Pool, Howe told members of the Parks & Rec Commission at their most recent meeting.

Government

Price for Pass to July 4th Fireworks Up $5 to $40

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Town officials last week approved a modest increase to the price of a family pass to the New Canaan Fireworks set for Saturday, July 4. The new price, $40, is for those purchasing their passes early (up from $35) and it will cost $50 to buy a pass on the day of the picnic and fireworks show at Waveny. “This entrance pass has been in place for—I’ve gone back through the records that Tom [Stadler] has provided me for 10 years and our costs have gone up and I think it’s time that we at least increase the price from $35 to $40,” New Canaan Fireworks Committee Chair David Shea told members of the Board of Selectmen during their March 17 meeting, held at Town Hall and via videoconference. “On the day of, it will go up to $50. So buy your passes early.”

First Selectman Dionna Carlson and Selectmen Steve Karl and Amy Murphy Carroll voted 3-0 in favor of the increase. 

The passes generally are used on a per-vehicle basis for those driving into Waveny for the fireworks, or on a per-group basis for those walking in, officials said.