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The What

The What: This Week in Southwest Connecticut

The What is your look around southwest Connecticut for the week of May 30.

The What: This Week in Southwest Connecticut
Happy last few days of May! (Photo by Kelly Prinz)

Tuesday, May 30

Hope you all had a lovely long weekend and unofficial start to the summer. Before jumping in, I wanted to take a moment to remember all who gave their lives in service to our country.

Due to the holiday, there aren’t as many meetings this week, but there’s still a lot going on around the region and the state.

This week, we dove into the approved budgets for southwest Connecticut, with a goal of providing the highlights both for the region and for each community’s budget. Check out our five main takeaways from this year’s budget process, as well as our update on the budgets across the region.

Speaking of budgets, as the state works to finalize its budget, one of the items that’s caught people’s attention is potential cuts to rail service in the state. Metro North officials and transportation advocates are warning that Connecticut’s proposed budget includes cuts to New Haven Line service that will affect residents across southwest Connecticut—both those who use the train and those who don’t.

“If those Connecticut budget cuts, which are being discussed in Hartford do go through, there would be consequences to how much service is run at least in the Connecticut portion of the New Haven Line and it would be felt in the peak as well as throughout the day,” said Janno Lieber, chair and CEO of the Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA) at the May meeting of the MTA.

The discussion around potential service cuts comes as more people are returning to the office, and as the state has been emphasizing transit-oriented development and a need for rail service.

“Things have been going in the right direction recently with the New Haven Line—I’ve seen it with my own eyes,” Edward Valente, a conductor and chair of the Association of Commuter Rail Employees, said. “There could not be a worse time to make these kinds of cuts. The fact is more and more people are depending once again on commuter rail.”

Learn more.

Let’s see what else is happening around the region.

Stamford

On Wednesday, May 31, there will be a Board of Finance Special Meeting at 7 p.m. to discuss the proposed South School and funding process for it. The proposed plans call for a new K-8 school to be built across two sites, with up to 60% reimbursement from the state. The first site is at 83 Lockwood Avenue and the second site is at 19 Horton Street. The estimated cost for construction—and some demolition work—is about $165 million, of which about $99 million would come from the state and $66 million would come from the city.

Other meetings this week include:

Norwalk

The Economic and Community Development Committee of the Common Council will hear an update on the waterfront Study and the overall zoning rewrite at its meeting on Thursday, June 1 at 7 p.m.

Other meetings this week include:

  • Thursday, June 1: Mayor's Water Quality Committee at 6 p.m. | Shellfish Commission at 7:15 p.m.

Fairfield

The Economic Development Commission will hear a presentation from Nick Tamborrino of Green Thumb Industries to provide an overview of new state laws and potential business opportunities related to cannabis at its meeting on Thursday, June 1 at  8:30 a.m.

Other meetings this week include:

Greenwich

The town announced a $270,400 recreational trails grant that “will be used to design a new multi-path trail connecting Greenwich with Stamford for both pedestrians and bicyclists,” according to First Selectman Fred Camillo.

“The trail itself is a few years away but this grant money for design is a huge step forward and one that we were all happy to celebrate in Binney Park,” Camillo wrote in a statement. “Here in Greenwich we are very proud to show our focus on living healthy lifestyles, preserving open space, adding trails, working to make sure we have a bike path and pedestrian safety.”

Other meetings this week include:

Darien

Meetings this week include:

Westport

The  Planning & Zoning Commission Affordable Housing Subcommittee will meet on Wednesday, May 31 at 12 p.m. to discuss progress on the town’s affordable housing plan and receive a status report on affordable housing developments under construction.

Other meetings this week include:

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.

Thank you for reading!

If you are interested in being a part of our reporting or just want to share your thoughts, please reach out at coastalconnecticuttimes@gmail.com.

Have a great week,

Kelly Prinz

Founder, Reporter at Coastal Connecticut Times

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