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The What

The What: New Grocery Store in East Norwalk, SNAP Reductions, and more

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

The What: New Grocery Store in East Norwalk, SNAP Reductions, and more
Happy last week of October! (Photo by Kelly Prinz)

Monday, October 27

Happy Monday! And happy early Halloween. Let’s see what’s happening around southwest Connecticut. 

Highlights 

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

Spotlight

This section features our main reporting each week.

East Norwalk residents have been saying for years that the area needed a community grocery store. Now their wishes are coming true as Key Foods plans to open a grocery store at the former Rite Aid spot, located close to Exit 16 off I-95. 

Anthony Pena, who—along with his dad—owns the Key Food store on West Avenue in Norwalk, told the East Norwalk Neighborhood Association at its October meeting that this property was “a very proud acquisition for us.” Pena said that they’re looking to bring a “multicultural store,” that they’ll operate with “a discount heart,” to make sure they’re meeting the needs of the community. He said they’ll have hot foods, fresh meats, produce, ethnic items, and some fun extras, like a juice bar and crepes. 

He said the city is reviewing their site plans for the property, but once they’re approved he estimated construction to retrofit the site would take about three to four months, which would allow them to open potentially in early 2026. 

While East Norwalk is adding access to food, thousands of residents across lower Fairfield County will be losing access to it, as the cuts to government assistance go into effect on November 1. 

The cuts to the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, better known as SNAP, were part of the “One Big Beautiful Bill Act" that President Donald Trump signed into law on July 4. The bill expanded work requirements and removed exemptions for people who qualified for the program.  

A July 2025 report from the Urban Institute stated that these cuts will cause about 5.3 million American families, including 58,000 Connecticut families, to lose at least $25 per month in SNAP benefits. According to a policy report from DataHaven, those Connecticut families will  lose an average of $194 in benefits each month.

Learn more about the impact of food access in our region.

This Week at a Glance

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

  • In Bridgeport, the Economic and Community Development and Environment Committee will meet on Wednesday, October 29 at 6 p.m. and hear from the director of the Housing Authority about projects taking place around the city. 
  • In Stamford, the Public Safety & Health Committee will meet on Thursday, October 30 at 6:30 p.m. and continue reviewing the city’s efforts to monitor air quality particularly in the South End and West End neighborhoods. Learn more about air quality challenges in the region. 
  • In Norwalk, the Common Council will meet on Tuesday, October 28 at 7:30 p.m. and vote on a new ordinance that would establish a residential parking permit program.
  • In Fairfield, the Representative Town Meeting will meet on Monday, October 27 at 8 p.m. to vote on appropriating $76.4 million for the Timothy Dwight Elementary School Replacement and Early Childhood Center Project.
  • Also in Fairfield, the Board of Selectmen will meet on Wednesday, October 29 at 4 p.m. to vote to approve spending $570,000 from the Affordable Housing Trust to support a 40-unit assisted housing development at 980 High Street.
  • In Greenwich, there will be a Safe Streets Demonstration at Western Middle School during the school day, which will “showcase temporary traffic and pedestrian safety features” that could be used on Greenwich streets. The event is part of the Safe Streets Greenwich initiative, “which is developing a data-driven Transportation Safety Action Plan to reduce crashes, injuries, and fatalities on Town roads,” according to town officials.
  • In Darien, the Board of Selectmen/Parking Authority will meet on Thursday, October 30 at 7 p.m. and host a public hearing on proposed changes to the town’s parking regulations. 

Plan Your Week

This section includes 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

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