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Parks & Rec Director: Pickleball Players Suggest Constructing Four Courts in Waveny

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Municipal officials are hearing from pickleball enthusiasts that the town should consider installing four courts in Waveny. Parks & Recreation Director John Howe said Wednesday night that he’s heard from a local man on the issue “and he thinks he has a lot of other people.”

The five courts already installed in Mead Park “are going to be busy during the season,” Howe told members of the Parks & Rec Commission during their regular meeting, held at Lapham Community Center and via videoconference. “We think we could fit them in—and there needs to be more research—in the grass area basically between the roadway, the dog park, and the paddle courts, in that area,” Howe said. “But, I just want to throw it out there that what we’re seeing is, pickleball is not going away. And it might be, if we ever do have the new picnic area installed by the paddle courts, and maybe a possible another paddle court, this would possibly be a great place to do it.

Government

Town Approves Contract for Fireworks at ‘Family Fourth,’ Set for July 6 at Waveny

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Town officials on Tuesday approved a $35,000 contract with a Douglassville, Pa.-based company to put on a fireworks show for the annual Family Fourth picnic at Waveny. The Board of Selectmen voted 3-0 in favor of the contract with International Fireworks Mfg. The popular gathering of local families is “a Norman Rockwell quintessential event,” according to Tom Stadler, chair of the Family Fourth Committee. “We’re getting everything in place right now,” Stadler told the selectmen during their regular meeting, held at Town Hall and via videoconference. “We have the garbage contract here, we’re working to get the bands lined up, get the food trucks lined up,” he said.

Government

Town Finishes Survey Work for Planned New Playground at Waveny

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The town has had a survey done of the area at Waveny Park where a new playground is planned, officials said last week. The survey allows the committee that’s steering the playground project to “truly have a design instead of this concept ‘put it over there’ type thing, to really figure out what fits in the area,” according to Parks & Recreation Director John Howe. “We’re working through designs and budget issues and that type of stuff,” Howe told members of the Parks & Recreation Commission at their regular meeting, held Jan. 10 at Lapham Community Center. 

The comments came in response to a request for an update from Commissioner Hank Green. The town’s plan to create a children’s playground in Waveny was first publicly floated in early-2021.

Government

‘Pickleball Has Taken Over’: Paddle Tennis Numbers Down

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Though platform or “paddle” tennis, like other outdoor activities, saw a major uptick during the pandemic, the number of people seeking permits is down, parks officials say. One reason appears to be that an increasing number of people are choosing a different outdoor racket sport, according to Parks and Recreation Director John Howe: pickleball. “Unfortunately, this year and last year, our [paddle] permit sales are way down,” Howe told members of the Parks & Recreation Commission during their regular meeting, held Wednesday night at Lapham Community Center and via videoconference. “We’re not seeing the same usage that we had in the past,” Howe said. “We think a lot of it is, while the [paddle] numbers are down, pickleball has taken over.

Government

Selectmen Approve $70,000 for Baseball, Softball Field Maintenance 

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The newly elected Board of Selectmen during its first meeting Tuesday approved two contracts totaling approximately $70,000 for maintenance work on New Canaan’s baseball and softball fields. 

The town owns 11 ball fields and eight of them have clay infields, according to Assistant Superintendent of Parks Ryan Restivo. The “recreational premium infield mix from Grove City, Pa.-based Dura Edge Products “has benefited our maintenance program and is the most important aspect of New Canaan’s renowned clay fields,” Restivo told the Board during its regular meeting, held at Town Hall and via videoconference. First Selectman Dionna Carlson and Selectmen Steve Karl and Amy Murphy Carroll voted 3-0 in favor of a $24,086 contract with Dura Edge and $45,579 contract with Bridgeport-based Athletic Field Services. 

The funds are available in the Parks Department capital infrastructure budget, Restivo said. The selectmen asked why the project needs a contingency (unexpected costs for AFS and because the delivery tonnage from Dura Edge may not be exact), whether the department could “true up” contingency totals each quarter to see whether they’re used (yes) and whether coaches are allowed to perform field maintenance (no). Carlson how many companies were approached for a bid on the project.