Government

Commission Rejects ‘Pollinator Garden’ at Mead Park

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The Parks & Recreation Commission on Wednesday night denied a request from local volunteers seeking permission to install pollinating plants on a traffic island at Mead Park. The “pollinator garden,” proposed for the traffic island near the little fields and entrance to the Mead Park Playground, was designed as part of a larger “pathway” serving butterflies, birds, bees and other insects and animals that move pollen from one plant to another. Several New Canaan organizations have been at work for more than one year to increase pollinator-friendly habitat here. Yet members of the appointed Parks & Rec Commission said they feared planting pollinator-friendly species at the traffic island would bring additional bee stings and motor vehicle traffic to a largely pedestrian area. 

“That’s just such a busy place in terms of automobile traffic,” Commissioner Hank Green said at the meeting, held via videoconference. “A lot of big SUVs, a lot of these cars are being driven by teens.

Bristow Bird Sanctuary

‘Pollinator Garden’ Proposed for Familiar Traffic Island in Mead Park

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A volunteer group that’s restoring a bird sanctuary along Old Stamford Road will request permission from town officials this week to create a gateway pollinator garden to the property. To be located in a familiar traffic island near Mead Park’s little league fields, the pollinator garden is designed to provide habitat for pollinating insects as well as to educate the public about the importance of such native plantings, according to Chris Schipper, a member of the Friends of Bristow Park and Bird Sanctuary and chair of the New Canaan Conservation Commission. A lone oak tree now stands in the traffic island, which some motorists have used for parking when Mead is busy. Plans drawn up by New Canaan-based landscape architecture firm Keith Simpson Associates call for native plantings such as viburnum, rudbeckia, milkweed and ferns. 

The Friends group is pursuing a $10,000 matching fund grant from Sustainability CT to create a “pollinator pathway” at Bristow, and is more than halfway toward its goal (details and donation information here), Schipper said. The Friends group is expected to go before the Parks & Recreation Commission at its regular meeting Wednesday night to get permission for the plantings.

Government

Parks & Rec: Tennis Court Usage Up Amid COVID-19 Emergency

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Officials say they’ve seen a sharp rise among residents seeking passes to play tennis at Mead Park this summer. 

The town has sold 216 total passes compared to 144 last year, Parks & Recreation Commissioner Steve Haberstroh said during the appointed body’s regular meeting Wednesday. 

Within those figures, the number of adult passes has increased year-over-year from 59 to 115, while youth passes have increased from 17 to 42, Haberstroh said during the meeting, held via videoconference. 

“Likely due to COVID, people are interested in tennis again,” he said during an update on tennis activity. 

The courts at Mead Park and New Canaan High School both are seeing robust regular use, Haberstroh said. On good weather days, 35 to 45 courts are used daily at each location, he said. Starting May 10, the high school courts began requiring users to register ahead of time to use the courts and had an attendant there to ensure CDC and U.S. Tennis Association guidelines are followed, and 450 people signed up, Haberstroh said. The only user group buying fewer passes is seniors, down slightly from 65 in 2019 to 56 this summer, he said. The reason for the overall increase likely is that residents are looking to do outdoor sports and to social-distance amid the COVID-19 public health emergency, Parks & Rec commissioners said.

Government

Town: Sales of Waveny Pool Passes Down 

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Fewer seniors are purchasing passes to Waveny Pool in years past, officials said last week, likely due to COVID-19 virus-related fears. As of Wednesday, 116 senior passes had been sold, according to Recreation Program Manager Steve Dayton. 

The figure is down 33% from the 174 total sold through the summer season one year ago, records show. In the past five years, the number of senior passes sold for Waveny Pool ranged up from 140. “I don’t think they are coming to the pool,” Dayton told members of the Parks & Recreation Commission during the appointed body’s regular meeting, held July 8 via videoconference. Commissioner Matt Konspore said, “I think there are still people in fear,” referring to transmission of the virus to seniors, for whom coronavirus disease poses great risk.

Government

Town Officials Eye June 22 Reopening of Playing Fields, with Restrictions

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Town officials said last week that they’re working on a plan to reopen New Canaan’s playing fields, following state guidelines. District and parks officials are hoping to start opening fields June 22, with several mandated restrictions, according to Recreation Director Steve Benko. For example, player benches at the fields will be removed because six-foot social distancing is required and they would need to be disinfected after every practice or game, Benko told members of the Parks & Recreation Commission at their June 10 meeting, held via videoconference. 

“The same thing goes with the bleachers,” he said. “It says you must practice six-foot social distancing in the bleachers. Our bleachers, like at Mead at the baseball field, there are five rows.