Around Town

Waveny LifeCare Network ‘Breaks Ground’ on New Rehab Center

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Waveny LifeCare Network—a venerable nonprofit that provides a continuum of care for seniors—this week “broke ground” on a widely anticipated new facility in New Canaan. Announced at a ceremony held Wednesday at the organization’s Farm Road headquarters, the inpatient rehabilitation center is expected to address what officials called the growing challenge of increased demand for local post-acute care. The approximately 41,000-square-foot facility will serve 400 additional patients annually and give patients access to high-quality services, according to Waveny President and CEO Russell Barksdale Jr.

“We felt that we owed it to the community to expand our five-star quality,” Barksdale said at a ground-breaking ceremony launching the new facility. “This means more people can come in and actually rehab and take part in the short-term program.”

Barksdale said he believed the new rehabilitation center was necessary to accommodate the growing number of patients in need of a home. “We can only accept a very small percentage of people that get sent to us, and returning that many people down is impactful,” he said.

Amy Lehaney

New Canaan Health Director: ‘Flu Numbers Are Way Up’

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New Canaan has seen an unusually strong and early flu season, health officials say. The town “definitely had a nice peak before Christmas, unfortunately, which is not typically where we peak,” according to Health Director Amy Lehaney. “We typically peak two weeks after the Near Year-ish,” Lehaney told members of the Health & Human Services Commission during their regular meeting, held Tuesday at Town Hall and via videoconference. “So I’m curious to see if we end up having a second peak or if we kind of just peaked early this year. But the flu numbers are way up.

Government

New Canaan Health Department: Record-High Number of Ticks Submitted in May

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The New Canaan Health Department saw a record-high number of ticks submitted last month, officials say. In all, 51 ticks were submitted to the town in May, according to Health Director Jenn Eielson. 

Of those, seven tested positive for the bacteria that causes Lyme Disease, Eielson said during the June 1 meeting of the Health and Human Services Commission. 

“It’s a topic that is [top of mind] right now because of the amount of ticks, because it wasn’t cold enough this winter,” Eielson said during the meeting, held at Town Hall and via videoconference. “It was too mild. They didn’t die off. In fact, the opposite.

Around Town

Waveny LifeCare Network Buys Oenoke Ridge Property for $1.5 Million

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One year after withdrawing its application to build a senior housing complex on Oenoke Ridge, Waveny LifeCare Network last week purchased a residential property there for $1.5 million. 

Waveny officials had said in the months leading up to applying in October 2019 to build a 70-unit residential retirement building that its purchase of the .88-acre property at 65 Oenoke Ridge was under contract pending approval for its project by the Planning & Zoning Commission. 

Ultimately, following several widely followed hearings before P&Z, the organization on March 18, 2020 withdrew its application, citing its focus on the emerging COVID-19 pandemic. On Friday, Waveny purchased the parcel, which includes a 1929-built Colonial, from the New Canaan Museum and Historical Society, tax records show. The acquisition “is purely a prudent business decision,” according to a press release issued by Waveny on Monday on behalf of the organization. “This parcel effectively ensures a contiguous connection of important real estate that protects and improves the sustainability of Waveny’s future,” it said. Russ Barksdale, Jr., Waveny’s president and CEO, said in the press release, “Exercising the purchase option now gives us time to evaluate all of our options through an inclusive process to which we remain committed.”

A letter dated Friday and attributed to Barksdale as well as Kathleen Corbet and Leo Karl III—chair and vice chair Waveny’s Board of Directors, respectively—says, in part, “Although there are no specific plans for the property at this time, exercising the purchase option gives Waveny time to evaluate all options.”

It adds, “As you may know, St.

Government

Health Director: Small Private Gatherings Are Driving Community Spread

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New Canaan is seeing COVID-19 virus spreading through small private gatherings rather than through outings to restaurants, according to the town’s health director. Though dining out is the number-two cause of transmission statewide, “that’s not what I see here,” Jenn Eielson told members of the Health & Human Services Commission during their regular meeting, held Dec. 3 via videoconference. The virus is spreading “when people let their guard down, when they only ‘have a few friends over,’ but those friends are from outside your house,” Eielson said. 

She added, “And then the test is only a snapshot in time. So they get tested the day before Thanksgiving and then they find out two days later that they’re positive, now that 48-window is your infection period.