News

New Canaan Preservation Alliance Recognizes Homes, Property Owners at Awards Ceremony

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Silver Hill Hospital, itself a collection of architecturally important buildings, bought River House—the structure closest to the road, seen first on the right for motorists traveling north on Valley Road—in 1945. For years, it served as the residence for the psychiatric hospital’s president. In the mid-1980s, Silver Hill started using it as a house for patients, and about two years ago, staff members realized that a reconfiguration was needed, according to Liz Moore, the hospital’s COO. “But we wanted to maintain the architectural integrity of the house because it’s just so beautiful,” Moore said form the ballroom at the Country Club of New Canaan on Sunday evening as dozens of residents and town leaders gathered for an event recognizing that preservation-minded mentality. “We are using the architect, Richard Turlington, that we’ve used for a number of our projects and the same construction team that we’ve also used on a number of our projects,” Moore told NewCananaite.com.

Government

Town Gets Info on Historic Designation for Public Buildings

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The town’s highest elected official, together with parks and public works leaders, on Thursday met with local preservationists and historic registry experts from the state to explore the benefits—monetary, aesthetic and other—of designating  as historic some New Canaan buildings. Rob Mallozzi on NCPA meeting, workshop
During a recent interview with NewCanaanite.com—part of which can be seen in the video clip at right—First Selectmen Rob Mallozzi also said homeowners here who pursue historic designation may be entitled to tax credits and grants when they make structural changes to those houses. “What we found out that was most encouraging is that there are not a lot of strings attached, so all in all it was a very good day and it was a positive to discuss the whole concept for preservation,” Mallozzi said. “We’ve got something unique which you cannot re-create, and we need to preserve what we have.”

The comments come on the heels of a public workshop hosted by the New Canaan Preservation Alliance—a nonprofit organization formed in 2007 “in response to rising concerns over the rapid disappearance of the town’s historic built and natural environments,” its website says. In an interview Sunday (just after Caffeine & Carburetors) with NewCanaanite.com, NCPA Board of Directors President Rose Scott Long noted that Town Hall is the lone municipal building now registered as historic.