Park & Rec Hears Proposal for Two Caffeine & Carburetors Events at Waveny

If approved, twice-yearly Caffeine & Carburetors gatherings at Waveny could require advance registration from participating antique and specialty car owners, as well as a donation of non-perishables to the New Canaan Food Pantry by exhibitors and attendees—a voluntary option last fall.

Park & Recreation Commissioner Rick Kilbride said during the group’s regular meeting Wednesday night that making charitable giving a part of Caffeine & Carburetors would be “directionally an extremely appropriate balance for a community like this.”

“I think it could go a really, really long way if everybody participated in that way—in terms of being aware and supporting some of these or one of these specific charitable efforts,” Kilbride said at the meeting, held in the Douglass Room at Lapham Community Center. “I don’t know how to make that mandatory, but I think there is an implied obligation for every exhibitor and attendee.”

Caffeine & Carburetors founder Doug Zumbach is seeking approval for four events this year—April 19 and Sept. 13 on Pine and Elm Streets, and May 10 and Oct. 18 at Waveny.

Zumbach, who pays for Caffeine & Carburetors out of pocket, acceded last summer to town officials’ call to scale back on an original plan for six events in downtown New Canaan—holding fewer downtown events and trying Waveny instead.

With data and feedback from the Waveny trial, the commission now is weighing whether to approve events at Waveny for this summer. Its decision is seen as important, in that it likely will set a gameplan for Caffeine & Carburetors in future years (the show started five years ago as a small gathering of auto enthusiasts at Zumbach’s coffee shop on Pine and Grove).

Prior to Wednesday’s meeting, Zumbach had mailed a formal proposal to commissioners—including a strong letter of support from First Selectman Rob Mallozzi and signatures, too, from business and public safety leaders.

The commission is expected to vote at its March 11 meeting.

Commission Chairman Sally Campbell said her major concern was that Zumbach in the past had no way of knowing just how many exhibitors would come to Caffeine & Carburetors at Waveny.

Zumbach during his presentation said he would create an online advance registration system that would tally participants as they signed up, and that he’d be able to get a final figure to Park & Rec two weeks in advance.

He reviewed the history and popularity of Caffeine & Carburetors, outlined the event’s operational plan and logistics, listed benefits to the business community and assured the commission that he is mindful of Waveny.

“My wife and I use the park a lot, we walk here with our dogs,” Zumbach said. “I take great pride being a citizen of this community and having this facility, and I would never damage it. I just want you all to know that.”

Zumbach said that in addition to directing exhibitors toward the business district after the show (it runs 8 to 11:30 a.m.), that he’d heard from a Realtor who suggested Caffeine & Carburetors also spotlight a handful of open houses around New Canaan for the Sundays it runs.

New Canaan Chamber of Commerce Executive Director Tucker Murphy said that she’d surveyed merchants in town, and that among those who responded, feedback was overwhelmingly in favor of Caffeine & Carburetors.

Following the October trial run at Waveny, Murphy said she returned to her Elm Street office and could see many of the cars from the show parked there, meaning they were either dining or shopping.

“From a business perspective, one of the roles that I have at the chamber is always trying to find things that will draw people to our town—yes, to the village district—but also to our town,” Murphy said. She added, referring to Zumbach’s proposal: “I noticed one of the things Doug referenced is ‘creative place-making’ and that is a new buzzword and a concept that we work with every single day, and that is something we try to do with efforts like the Pop Up Park and with events like this.”

Several commissioners had questions for Zumbach.

Commissioner Joan Guzzetti said seemed dangerous at the Waveny show to have families with kids and dogs walking around while many exhibitors appeared to leave the event midway, driving near pedestrians on their way out. Zumbach said he could require that all exhibitors stay to the end.

Commissioner Francesca Segalas asked Zumbach to clarify why he couldn’t have the two shows not in Waveny but instead in the Lumberyard parking lot by the train station. Zumbach replied that Lumberyard was not an aesthetically pleasing location, that the “streetside” feel of downtown was much better and that he loved Waveny as a location. He added that traffic flow would be very bad at Lumberyard and it’s never been seen as an appropriate place for events.

Commissioner Jason Milligan commended Zumbach for his organization and community focus, and added that his decision regarding the proposed Caffeine & Carburetors gatherings in Waveny is complicated because the commission has no firm criteria to apply in deciding whether to allow an event in the popular park. Under Article 5 of the New Canaan Zoning Regulations under “Special Zones” (see page 87 here), Park & Rec sets criteria for events and shows in the “Waveny Zone.”

Zumbach

“It’s a little bit arbitrary on our part,” Milligan said. “And then I feel like it’s nature, and we have old cars that are not the most environmentally friendly and they’re loud and it’s not a mix of what I normally would mix with this park. In my mind. And I’m just one person, but I feel like it is such a good event downtown. I feel like that is what some of us are wrestling with.”

Zumbach said he has thought about all of the events held in Waveny—for example, the summer outdoor concert series—and asked whether that is necessarily “healthy” and “environmentally friendly.”

“I think you can argue any point,” Zumbach said. “The theater production—they use the park. The airplanes are flown every Sunday. I think there are variances on every usage of this park. Guys hitting golf balls. I look at you, a commission, to think creatively and use this resource. And if I felt I was damaging this park, I wouldn’t do it.”