Government

Selectmen Postpone Funding for ADA Ramp Between Town Hall, Vine Cottage

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[The NewCanaanite.com Summer Internship Program is sponsored by Karp Associates.]

Saying they need more information, municipal officials this week postponed the approval of $250,000 in construction work at the Town Hall campus. After the federal government cited the town for violations of the Americans with Disabilities Act—citing dozens of barriers to access at public facilities throughout New Canaan—the municipality and U.S. Department of Justice reached an agreement. 

Part of that agreement calls for the town to improve access between Town Hall and Vine Cottage, where the New Canaan Department of Health is located. 

An additional accessible route needs to be built, Public Works Director Tiger Mann said during Tuesday’s Board of Selectmen meeting, held at The Town Hall and via videoconference. Mann said a site plan from local firm Architectural Preservation Studios would locate the new ramp on part of an existing staircase from the access road through the campus up to Vine Cottage. “The far right side of the staircase will be separated, and that will become a ramp which will turn left towards the parking space,” Mann said. “We’ll remove one slot of the parking lot which will put us in the correct position to then head to the Vine Cottage.”

Installing the ramp will require removing part of the WPA-era retaining wall there, and is estimated to cost $258,583.11, including a 10% contingency, Mann said.

Congregational Church

Silver Hill Neighborhood Town Hall 3/26, 630-8pm @ New Canaan Congregational Church

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The next town hall to discuss recent events (e.g., court mandated inpatient escapee with history of violence) in connection with Silver Hill Hospital and the community, and Silver Hill’s proposed increased security measures, will be held on Wednesday, March 26th, 6:30-8pm at the Congregational Church of New Canaan, 23 Park St, New Canaan, in the main meeting house/church space.

Government

Town Hall To Get Plaques Listing New Canaanites Who Served in Korea, Vietnam and during Gulf War, War on Terrorism

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Town officials recently approved the payment of about $7,000 in privately raised funds to a Trumbull-based company that will install plaques at Town Hall honoring New Canaanites who have served in wartime. The additional plaques for the new major entrance of Town Hall will list the names of residents who served during the Korean War, Vietnam War and Operation Desert Storm of the Gulf War, according to Bill Oestmann, buildings superintendent of the New Canaan Department of Public Works. The Board of Selectmen at its June 27 meeting voted 3-0 to approve $6,962.76 for A.W. Construction LLC—funds raised by VFW Post 653 and the Exchange Club of New Canaan. VFW Post 653 Commander Peter Langenus said later that New Canaan’s American Legion Post 30 has given an “incredible commitment of time and money” to the project. During the meeting, held at Town Hall,First Selectman Rob Mallozzi said: “I applaud the effort.”

Government

Selectmen Approve Installation of New Sound Barrier for Chillers at Town Hall

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The Board of Selectmen at its most recent meeting unanimously approved a request from the Department of Public Works that ultimately will reduce the noise levels created by the chiller sound barriers on the south side of Town Hall. New Canaan will enter contracts with Hoover Treated Wood Products and Gannon Rustic Fences at a total cost of $18,191. The sound barrier closes the loop on an ongoing dispute between the town and next-door neighbor Cody Real Estate. When Town Hall was renovated and expanded, the chillers were placed on the south side of the building, adjacent to commercial buildings owned by Cody. The company said that the noisiness of the chillers were prohibitively loud, especially if the commercial properties were to be developed to include second-floor residential units.

Around Town

‘It Grows Tall and Straight’: Sugar Maple Tree Planted at Town Hall in Memory of Ben Olmstead Sees Its First Spring

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It’s been nearly two years since a beloved, longtime New Canaan public works employee died on the job following an accident. Ben Olmstead was known by family, residents, co-workers and friends for his kind and generous spirit and his vast, detailed knowledge of the town’s infrastructure and history. Killed on July 23, 2014 by a slow-moving motor vehicle while striping the road with spray paint for a sewer hookup to a residence near the corner of routes 123 and 106—Olmstead knew so much about New Canaan that what he could do in a part-time job is now being done by full-time workers. He was “a tremendously valuable person,” First Selectman Rob Mallozzi said. “He was kind and had many relationships with people around town, really an ideal employee,” the first selectman said.