New Canaan’s leaders in many areas—including government, business, education, public safety and parks—are facing choices in how to proceed with capital and other projects facing the town.
Kate Guthrie, director of academic services of grades 9-12 for the New Canaan location of the Greenwich Education Group, discussing the SBAC test at Zumbach's on Pine Street.
District officials face concerns from some parents about a practice run for new standardized testing on one end, while state officials from above are pushing for mandatory participation.
Business and town officials are eager to see natural gas service offered to New Canaan homes, restaurants, shops and offices—yet facing with no clear plan, timetable or cost/benefit analysis in hand, they’re pushing the utility for more information.
And while elected officials eye the future use of a structure on New Canaan Nature Center property that’s controlled by the town, public works and police say they’re trying to reason with a property owner on Main Street whose trees pose a sightline problem.
Town Talker
A discussion at a meeting of town parks officials this month, about dogs at Bristow Bird Sanctuary, has led to a push to disallow canines from the public property at all.
The Park & Recreation Commission wants Bristow Bird Sanctuary completely dog-free.
Advocates for the change say irresponsible dog owners are not only allowing their pets to roam unleashed in the area (which runs between Route 106 and Mead Park), but also that the animals disturb birds there.
Some parks officials at the meeting expressed reservations about designating Bristow “no dogs allowed,” since there aren’t any particularly safe birds there to protect from dogs, and commenters on NewCanaanite.com and the news site’s Facebook page largely agreed (in one case noting that birds can fly away from dogs as needed).
Coming Up
One of New Canaan’s most community-centric and generous businesses, Baskin-Robbins, on Tuesday will donate half of all sales between 5 and 10 p.m. to Make-A-Wish in honor of World Wish Day.
L-R: New Canaan Department of Human Services Youth and Family Services Coordinator Jacqui D'Louhy and Youth and Family Services Specialist Kate Boyle with Anna Valente-Krolikowski, owner of Baskin-Robbins, are promoting "30 Days of Family," a new initiative designed to celebrate family togetherness in New Canaan during April, which is Alcohol Awareness Month.
Anna Valente-Krolikowski’s Main Street shop, a fixture of our downtown, will offer music, children’s activities and “will even feature celebrity scoopers—local wish kids from New Canaan!” according to a press release on the event.
Also coming up a bit further out is “A Night in Havana,” the inaugural benefit for the Carriage Barn Arts Center. The fundraiser is scheduled for May 17 and officials at the arts center (which on Saturday opened a new exhibition, “Absolut Kuba!”) say tickets have sold quickly though some remain.
Mamoune and Alena Tazi, owners of Le Boudoir, a new salon opening April 25 at 160 Main St. in New Canaan.
Business
New Canaan also saw some major news in the world of business this week. Not only did the question of parking for the new Mrs. Green’s market garner additional attention (the question has emerged of what to do with those 15-minute spots left over from the post office), but two new businesses in downtown New Canaan opened their doors.
A young Norwalk couple opened a salon, Le Boudoir, on Main Street across from the library (and marked their launch day by helping Junior Prom-bound teens get ready for the big dance).
New Canaanites Lucy (Saxe 7th-grader), Courtney (NCHS freshman) and Charlie Coutts (East School 4th-grader) said they enjoyed their time at Peachwave on Saturday.
This weekend also marks the grand opening of Peachwave, which saw a steady stream on Saturday of froyo-seeking New Canaanites. Peachwave’s large space, free WiFi, sit-and-stay atmosphere and large-screen TVs proved to be a draw.
Signs of Spring
Surely the rise of taste buds for frozen yogurt is a sign of spring. Even if Peachwave hadn’t opened, several things transpired in a still-chilly town to let us know winter is over:
Bradley Werneburg steals third as Brian Balkun receives the throw.
Canada geese are laying their eggs here (and officials are doing what they can to ensure an unsuccessful hatching, to move the birds along out of town in a Humane Society-approved way).
New Canaan’s restaurants are preparing for the outdoor dining season, while the town marked Earth Day at a nature center event, encouraging residents to plant milkweed for butterflies, and planted a sycamore at Mead Park for Arbor Day.
At Waveny, Irwin and Mead, the boys and girls of summer have kickstarted our national pastime, with youth softball players taking a cue from their heroes (defending FCIAC champs, NCHS Rams) and New Canaan’s varsity baseball team downing Norwalk, preserving their FCIAC-best record.