John DiFederico

PHOTOS: New Canaan Police Station Renovation in Final Stages

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The renovation of the New Canaan Police Station on South Avenue is nearly complete, with the ribbon-cutting ceremony scheduled for June 4. Several local officers said they view the years-long project as a success, telling NewCanaanite.com during a tour Tuesday of the department that they are very pleased with all the renovations. Police Chief John DiFederico said he was very happy with the modifications, describing the new building as “amazing.”

The renovated and expanded station at 174 South Ave.—a $20 million project, $29 million with soft costs such as insurance and the temporary headquarters downtown—includes all new office space, meeting rooms, locker rooms, systems and an extended sallyport at the back. During an afternoon tour that booked up quickly online, Police Commission Chair Paul Foley detailed the process of the long-lasting project. 

“We were trying to get the building renovated years ago because of things like mold, sewer fleas, and AC issues,” he said. “We patched it together over the years and had continuous meetings debating the best location and the best designs.”

He continued: “We must have looked at 20 locations around town and finally decided that the best option was a renovation.

Government

Selectmen, Commission ID Wages Issue within NCPD

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The New Canaanite 2024 Summer Internship Program is sponsored by Karp Associates. Town officials this month discussed what they described as an ongoing salary issue among New Canaan’s finest. 

During the Ag. 6 meeting of the Board of Selectmen, members of the Police Commission asked the selectmen for percentage salary increases for the highest-ranking members of the New Canaan Police Department. Paul Foley, a member of the appointed body, asked the Board to increase the deputy chief and captain’s salary from 2.75% to 3%, and the chief’s from 2.75% to 3.5%. During the meeting, held in Town Hall and via videoconference, Foley said these increases aren’t “quite where other departments are, but it gets them bumped up a bit.”

Foley said the increases would send a message to the rest of the staff that “there is some room for compensation increase.”

Foley said the department has been dealing with an issue where there’s a lack of individuals moving into administration positions.

Government

‘People Are Just Not Stopping’: South School Crosswalk To Get Pedestrian-Activated Flashing Beacon

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Saying the leadership at South School has flagged a safety issue for kids, town officials on Wednesday approved the installation of a second set of pedestrian-activated flashing beacons on Gower Road. The Police Commission about one year ago approved a set of “rapid rectangular flashing beacons” or “RRFBs” for a crosswalk leading from a Douglas Road neighborhood pathway to a playground at South. 

During its regular meeting Wednesday night, the Commission approved another set of RRFBs for a crosswalk located further east, near a parking area at the school. Public Works Director Tiger Mann, in seeking approval from the appointed body, said the new request came from both New Canaan Police School Resource Officer Shane Gibson and South School Principal Matt Kascak. Though the first set of RRFBs has been helpful is slowing Gower motorists, “the problem still is that cars are not stopping for kids as they want to try to come through the crosswalk,” Mann said. “And this is probably the major artery for walkers to South School to come down Gower Road and cross this intersection,” he said at the meeting, held at Town Hall and via videoconference.

Government

Police Commission Takes No Action Following Sight Line Concern at Farm and Main

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Saying the intersection works as-is, members of New Canaan’s local traffic authority will take no action in response to residents’ call for changes at the Main-Old Norwalk-White Oak Shade-Farm Road four-way. The Police Commission in December received at least two letters from residents voicing concerns about a picket fence recently installed atop a stone wall on the south side of Old Norwalk Road, at the intersection. Obtained by NewCanaanite.com through a public records request, the letters note that the fence appears to violate two sections of the New Canaan Zoning Regulations (see pages 154 and 161 here). In a Dec. 6 letter to the Commission, Peter Cooley notes that the fence atop the rock wall is taller than allowed and also in a public right-of-way.

Government

Town Pursuing Traffic-Calming Measures on Conrad Road

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Responding to traffic and safety concerns from the neighborhood, town officials say they’re asking the state for permission to make changes in the area of Conrad Road. Officials are asking the state Department of Transportation whether Conrad—a cut-through between Gerdes Road and South Avenue for motor vehicles seeking to get onto the Merritt Parkway at Exit 37—could be designated as a “no thru traffic” street, according to Public Works Director Tiger Mann. The town also can ask the state whether the timing of the light at Gerdes Road and South Avenue could be adjusted in order to release more motor vehicles from Gerdes onto the Merritt, Mann said, though that “would be very difficult to enforce.”

“We would just be shifting it back to Gerdes one way or another,” Mann said during the Police Commission’s July 19 meeting, held at police headquarters and via videoconference. The DOT’s Office of State Traffic Administration or OSTA “might not have a problem because it would be intra-town not inter-town, but it might be a problem with enforcement,” he added. In addition, the state’s “primary concern all the time is traffic on their road,” Route 124/South Avenue, Mann said.