Government

Parking Officials: Commuter Lot by Train Station Remains 60% to 75% Empty on Weekdays

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Saying demand for commuter parking remains down, town officials are in the process of issuing 100 additional permits for the large lot right next to the train station. On a given weekday, the Lumberyard Lot remains somewhere between 60% and 75% empty, parking officials say. In November, the appointed body that oversees the town’s municipal lots asked Parking Manager Stacy Miltenberg to start issuing an additional 100 permits. As of the Parking Commission’s Feb. 7 meeting, Miltenberg had moved down 137 names on the list, she said—39 people wanted permits, 64 wanted to be added to a “priority list” where they reserve the right to pay for a permit in the future, nine didn’t want a permit and 25 never responded.

Government

Town Upholds $150 Parking Ticket Issued for Blocking Disabled Space

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Town officials this month upheld a $150 ticket issued to a Norwalk woman who had blocked a disabled space on Main Street while picking up a large item purchased at a local store. Clara Cohen told members of the Parking Commission that she didn’t realize she was blocking a space on the afternoon of Jan. 4 (a Tuesday) when she pulled up in front of the store near East Avenue for about two minutes with her flashers on. Cohen had paid to park in a municipal lot while doing her shopping that day, she told the Commission during a Feb. 7 appeal hearing, held via videoconference. 

“There was a mail truck right in front of the store and I don’t want to block that, so I pulled up a little more,” she said. 

“I didn’t realize blocking a handicapped spot.

Parking Commission Upholds $50 Ticket Issued to Starbucks Worker Who Parked the Wrong Way on Elm Street

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Town officials last week voted to uphold a $50 ticket issued to a Starbucks employee who’d backed into an angled parking space on Elm Street. Christopher Diaz told members of the Parking Commission during his Feb. 7 appeal hearing that he had crossed the Starbucks lot and exited onto Elm Street very early on the morning in question (Nov. 3, a Wednesday). 

Then he “backed into the spot, always the very first spot” by the coffee shop, Diaz said during the hearing, held via videoconference. 

“My style is always to back into a spot, that’s something I do wherever I go,” Diaz said. “So I didn’t think twice.

Around Town

‘I Was Not Even at the Place for More Than One Minute’: Parking Ticket Appeals

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The New Canaan Parking Commission recently received the following written appeals from ticketed motorists. ***

“I have been lived in town of New Canaan past 5 years n I have never parked my hybrid electric car in the town parking lot. What happened was I need to charge my hybrid electric car n I tried the first time in town parking lot. I always charge in Darien where I work. Due to holiday I am home n I parked to charge 40 mins while I walked n paid town hall my tax bills.

Around Town

Did You Hear … ?

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New Canaan Police at about 4:25 p.m. Monday received a report of a larceny at 16 South Ave., according to a call log. That’s the street address of the Mobil gas station. Asked about the incident, police said it involves a juvenile and is being worked out between the business owner and family. 

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A Stamford-based company, Case Study Brands, on Thursday presented a plan for Waveny House to the Board of Selectmen during a regular meeting. The company provided a broad sketch whereby Waveny gets a “luxury brand reflective of both its heritage and crown jewel positioning with the community,” with a new website and promotional materials, larger events and a staff “house director” whose responsibilities would include “concierge services.” The current online information for Waveny House lives in the Recreation Department’s area of the municipal website and “doesn’t feel glamorous” for what a bride is looking for,” officials from the company said. “It’s a little bit lacking in the glamour” compared to competitors such as the Roger Sherman Inn and Philip Johnson Glass House, they said.