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The What

The What: Flooding in SW CT, Manresa Wilds Hearing, and more

The What is your look around southwest Connecticut for the week of July 27.

The What: Flooding in SW CT, Manresa Wilds Hearing, and more
Summer is flying by! Hope you all enjoyed the lovely weekend after the mess during the week. (Photo by Kelly Prinz)

Monday, July 27

Happy Monday! Hope everyone made it through last week’s storm OK (see below for more on that.) Truly how is this the last week of July?! As someone who loves summer I always start to get a little sad when August is around the corner. But there’s a lot happening around lower Fairfield County, so not a ton of time to be sad. Let’s dive in.

Highlights 

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

Spotlight

This section features our main reporting each week.

Flooding in Norwalk following the July 21 storm (Courtesy of the Norwalk Police Department)

It was mid-afternoon over lower Fairfield County on Tuesday, July 21 when the skies opened up and rain came pouring down. Some parts of the region experienced more than four inches of rain in just a few hours. The downpour overwhelmed local roads, left drivers stranded, and prompted multiple rescues from local law enforcement. 

And some of the worst conditions took place in areas known for flooding—parts of South Norwalk (particularly Water Street and Meadow Street), Fairfield along the Rooster River, and many spots across the region that have low-lying roads underneath railroad bridges. 

While the day was filled with on and off thunderstorms, the storm that rolled through just as the evening commute was starting a little after 4 p.m. inundated the region, prompting severe thunderstorm and flash flood warnings from the National Weather Service. 

Parts of Norwalk and Stamford recorded more than four inches of rain, while parts of Darien and Fairfield saw more than 3.5, according to the Community Collaborative Rain, Hail, and Snow Network, a nonprofit organization that uses volunteers to measure and map precipitation.

Let’s explore what happened on July 21 and what can be done to help improve conditions in these areas.

You can check out our full piece or watch our video highlights.

This Week at a Glance

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

Bridgeport

Featured Meetings: The Board of Education will meet on Monday, July 27 at 6 p.m. and hear a presentation on a sustainability plan for the district from the audit committee. Also on Monday, July 27, the Planning and Zoning Commission will meet at 6:15 p.m. and review multiple applications including a plan to convert the former school at 1376 Stratford Ave into a 33-unit residential apartment building. 

Stamford

Featured Meetings: There will be a Coastal Flood Resilience Plan Public Presentation on Tuesday, July 28 at 6 p.m. where residents can get a look at the plan and provide feedback. Officials say the plan aims to establish an understanding of current and future coastal risk along the waterfront, develop a roadmap to resilience with site-specific recommendations, and prioritize nature-based solutions to reduce coastal flooding risks. Also on Tuesday, July 28, the Legislative and Rules Committee will meet at 7 p.m. and vote on repealing the Appointments Commission. The committee will also host a public hearing on a proposal to require the mayor’s office to report on appointees to local boards. 

Norwalk

Featured Meeting: The Planning and Zoning Commission will meet on Wednesday, July 29 at 6 p.m. and continue the public hearing on Manresa Wilds. You can check out our reporting on the hearing so far and what the proposed plans for the property entail. 

Fairfield

Featured Meeting: The Town Plan and Zoning Commission will meet on Tuesday, July 28 at 6:30 p.m. and vote on a settlement agreement for two projects from Shapiro Commons (19 units and 60 units) as well as review a proposal that includes demolishing two one-story buildings and building two three-story mixed use buildings in its place at 2131 Black Rock Turnpike. 

Greenwich

Featured Meeting: No featured meeting this week. 

Darien

Featured Meeting: The Board of Selectmen will meet on Monday, July 27 at 7 p.m. and discuss providing input to the 10-year master plan as well as discussing and voting on participating in the pathogen monitoring network. 

Westport

Featured Meeting: On Monday, July 27 at 6 p.m., the Planning and Zoning Commission will conduct a preapplication review of a proposal for an all residential development at 34 Imperial Avenue as well as discuss proposed traffic mitigation districts, which stem from the new state housing law.

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

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