Library Attorney: Decision on Fate of 1913 Building Must Come During P&Z Process

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Though a clause inserted last week into a draft agreement between the town and New Canaan Library would appear to forestall a decision on whether to demolish the original 1913 library building for at least two years during construction, the fate of that structure must be decided far sooner, an attorney said Tuesday. While it’s true that the library will operate out of its existing building until the new one is completed and ready for move-in, the Planning & Zoning Commission must approve the library’s full plan for the site even before construction starts, including for the century-old structure overlooking Main and Cherry Streets, according to Ted O’Hanlan, a longtime partner at Stamford-based Robinson + Cole who was nominated last week as a state Superior Court judge (the class of nominees awaits confirmation by the General Assembly). P&Z “has to approve a plan before we can start anything, so this will be resolved by then,”” O’Hanlan told members of the Board of Selectmen during their regular meeting, held via videoconference. “I don’t believe it can be an open issue,” O’Hanlan added, where construction can commence without a final plan for the 1913 library. “The library plans to put forward a very articulated reason why it’s not proposing to save the 1913 building,” he said.

Government

Library: Rebuilding Project on Track for Spring As Parking Plan, Schematic Design Get Finalized 

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The timetable for municipal approvals of the widely anticipated New Canaan Library rebuilding project has been pushed back a bit pending details around parking and specifics of financials, the town’s highest elected official said this week. First Selectman Kevin Moynihan said Tuesday that he had anticipated the library coming to the Board of Finance this week “with further financial information, but they are waiting for pricing estimates on their project.”

“The Board of Finance has made clear that they want much more specific numbers before they can move forward,” Moynihan said during a regular meeting of the Selectmen’s Advisory Committee on Buildings and Infrastructure, held via videoconference. “The Town Council has made clear that they want to see what is going to Planning & Zoning, which now has slipped a bit to the end of November, apparently.”

The $36 million rebuilding of New Canaan Library is still expected to commence next spring and construction will continue for about two years, the library’s executive director, Lisa Oldham, confirmed when asked about the project. Under a draft Memorandum of Understanding or ‘MOU’ with the town that’s been under negotiation since early this year, the town is to contribute $10 million toward the project while the library bears the balance of the cost through its own fundraising and a $15 million commercial construction loan from Bankwell, documents show. Moynihan said that parking is among the key pieces of the MOU.

Around Town

Did You Hear … ?

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Friends and family of a 2009 New Canaan High School graduate who died suddenly this summer honored their loved one at a fundraiser on Saturday. Participating in a rappelling event in Stamford to raise funds and awareness for Shatterproof, “Team E” was named by Andrea Reinhardt for her brother Evan, who passed in July at age 24. Together with fellow New Canaanite Miles Turpin, Sara Sparks of Fairfield and Dan Egan of Norwalk, “Team E” rappelled 21 stories down Landmark Square as part of Shatterproof’s national movement to fight drug and alcohol addiction. With offices in Norwalk and New York City, Shatterproof is holding 26 rappelling events nationally this year. ***

Two miniature ponies from Comstock Hill Road got loose on a recent evening and ran in the road to a nearby residence.

News

New Canaan Woman Re-Launches ‘Slow Down In Our Town’ Campaign

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Kimberly Norton remembers the first time she spotted the iconic ‘Slow Down In Our Town’ image in New Canaan—five years ago, just after she’d moved here, in the parking lot at New Canaan Library. Printed in Rams black-and-red and encircling the silhouetted tree of our official town seal, ‘Slow Down In Our Town’ for years has graced street-side signs and bumper magnets throughout New Canaan. Its message soon struck a chord with Norton, who had lived in New York City for 20 years prior to moving to Green Avenue—accustomed to walking everywhere—and she began noticing how fast people drove here and sought to teach her kids pedestrian safety. “I heard that we had seven pedestrian accidents last year, and started hearing about people not crossing in the crosswalks,” Norton said. After a close call where a motorist nearly struck her husband, a commuter, on his walk to the train station in the morning, Norton sought to educate pedestrians and urge motorists to be more mindful at the wheel.