The What: All Aboard East Norwalk Train Station, Reapportionment in Norwalk, and more

The What is your look around southwest Connecticut for the week of October 7.

The What: All Aboard East Norwalk Train Station, Reapportionment in Norwalk, and more
Happy first full week of October! (Photo by Kelly Prinz)

Monday, Oct. 7

Happy Monday! It’s a busy week across southwest Connecticut.  

Highlights 

This section will give a brief overview of the key items in the newsletter.

Spotlight

This section will feature our main reporting each week.

East Norwalk’s train station is at the heart of plans at both the city and state level. The station itself is in the process of a makeover to better serve more residents and commuters. But the area around the station is also seeing more development and change—some of which is being welcomed as an improvement to the area, but some of which has current residents raising concerns about traffic and infrastructure in the area. 

“There’s lots of stuff going on around the station,” Jim Travers, Norwalk’s director of Transportation, Mobility, and Parking told the Parking Authority in January, “For the people who live and work there, it’s been a long time so it’s good to see that the work’s starting.”

East Norwalk  is located along the main New Haven line of Metro North, between South Norwalk and Westport and served by trains going to Grand Central and New Haven. The station is also at the heart of the Walk Bridge Replacement Project—a $1+ billion project that involves replacing the 122-year-old swing train bridge that spans the Norwalk River and connects South and East Norwalk, as well as multiple other bridge and road replacement projects in the area.

The state is also working with the city on related infrastructure improvements to roadways in the area, particularly East Avenue. 

East Avenue is one of the busiest roadways in the city, serving as the “main corridor connecting I-95 to East Norwalk” and “is comprised of disjointed development and non-complementary uses, and uninspired site design and architecture,” according to a 2020 East Norwalk neighborhood plan.

Learn more about the area around the East Norwalk train station or watch our video.

This Week at a Glance

This section aims to highlight the most important meetings and news taking place each week.

  • In Bridgeport, the City Council will meet on Monday, October 7 at 7 p.m. and review multiple grant applications as well as a proposed censure of Councilman Aikeem Boyd for inappropriate language against his fellow council members. 
  • In Stamford, the Board of Representatives will meet on Monday, October 7 at 8 p.m. and vote to fund a number of important projects, including improved roads, sidewalks, and bike lanes around the Springdale Train Station, electric vehicle chargers at the Government Center, and homeless warming shelters this winter. 
  • Also in Stamford, the Planning Board will meet on Tuesday, October 8 at 6:30 p.m. and review the plans from the Ferguson Library to build a new library branch on the East Side. So far, a $3 million grant has been secured for the approximately $10 million project with a request to use $5 million in American Rescue Plan Act funds to close the gap.
  • In Norwalk, the Common Council will meet on Tuesday, October 8 at 7:30 p.m. and take a look at the proposed new council districts that aim to make the districts more even by population. It will also receive a presentation on the city’s Solid Waste Strategic Plan.
  • In Fairfield, the Town Plan and Zoning Commission will meet on Tuesday, October 8 at 6:30 p.m. where residents can weigh in on the proposed 10-year plan for the town, called the Plan of Conservation and Development. 
  • In Greenwich, there will be a North Street Bridge Replacement Project Public Meeting on Tuesday, October 8 at 7 p.m. to discuss the replacement of the North Street Bridge.
  • In Westport, the Board of Education will meet on Thursday, October 10 at 6 p.m. to review and discuss its redistricting and strategic plans.

Plan Your Week

This section will include a list of meetings, events, and programming happening around southwest Connecticut each week.

Bridgeport

Stamford

Norwalk

Fairfield

Greenwich

Darien

Westport

Stay in touch!

As we continue to grow and evolve, please join us! You can do that by:

Please note: All of these agendas and information here are current as of Sunday night. Meeting times and agendas may get adjusted throughout the week.

Have a great week,

Kelly Prinz

Founder, Reporter at Coastal Connecticut Times