New London Times

An Open Wound: NL’s Homeless Debate Continues

Stephen Chupaska — Thu, 14 Aug 2008 21:31:24 GMT

Lost in all the politics of the past month, it is easy to forget that the questions surrounding the emergency homeless shelter started as an internal debate among parishioners at St. James Episcopal Church.
Earlier this year, the church formed a committee to study the feasibility of keeping the shelter that St. James had hosted for three years. The committee was set to report to the church rector Michel Belt in September. But with astonishing speed that private debate has become the city’s, quite public, open wound.
“We need to slow this horse down,” said Barry Runyon, a member of both the St. James and the city’s Homelessness Working Group (HWG), last week. “It never should have been brought to this level of attention.”
The homeless question, instead, has become one of the most sensitive and emotional issues the city has dealt with since the salad days of Fort Trumbull.
Runyon said the internal discussion at the church is still ongoing.
“In a perfect world, that process would have been allowed to finish,” Runyon said.
Instead, a few members of St. James contacted Councilor John Maynard, who has received both praise and criticism as the lead council voice on the homeless matter, for help.
The St. James shelter was supposed to close on April 30.
“They approached me, and I said I’d look into it,” he said. “It’s what I said I’d do when I got elected.”
But Maynard said last week he was “not 100 percent” on whether the shelter was successful in its mission prior to the issue’s first public airing at the June 24 City Council meeting.
Councilor Rob Pero said last week that he got “the sense that the shelter was not working.” Pero noted he has visited the St. James shelter in the past week.
According to statistics published by the Homeless Hospitality Center in June, 62 out of the shelter’s 116 unduplicated guests stayed less than 10 nights; 25 stayed between 11 and 24 nights; and 29 stayed more than 25 nights.
The report states that the emergency shelter is the earliest and most consistent point of contact with the homeless.
But whether or not the shelter was working has now become a moot point.
In the past week, the City Council voted to force shelter workers to administer Breathalyzer tests to random people seeking admittance to the overnight shelter; those who blow a .08, the state’s legal limit to operate a motor vehicle, will be refused entrance.
The motion was made by Maynard, as a corrective to an earlier law passed by the council requiring the shelter to become “dry” by Aug. 1.
But, initially, the council did not clearly define what it meant by “dry.”
With no set standard, Catherine Zall, the executive director of the Homeless Hospitality Center (HHC), which oversees the shelter, implemented a policy—to allow intoxicated people to spend the night, with the understanding that they would not be allowed in if they arrived at the shelter drunk again.
But as is so often the case in relationships, it’s not what you say, but how you say it.
The council learned of Zall’s interpretation of the “dry” standing by reading about it in the Aug. 2 edition of The Day.
“That was bothersome,” Maynard said.
In the Aug. 4 meeting of the HWG, Zall apologized profusely for not informing the City Council. She said she had returned from a two-week holiday the day before the “dry” deadline and was working to come up with a response.
The Breathalyzer policy, Maynard claims, was adopted to elucidate any confusion over what “dry” means.
The motion passed 4-3, with Councilor Michael Buscetto joining Republican Councilors Pero and Adam Sprecace in the affirmative.
Democrat Margaret Curtin called the policy “an intrusion of privacy,”
“We are picking on a class of people,” she said, and doubted the measure’s legality.
The council voted against sending the proposal to the law director before its adoption.
Deputy Mayor Wade Hyslop called the vote “a step in the wrong direction.”
“We should allow the working group to make a determination,” he said.
Pero was particularly irked that the HHC defied the council’s directive. “The will of the city cannot just be ignored,” Pero said.
Pero said that the Breathalyzer policy will be a stop-gap measure in anticipation of the HWG’s final report to the City Council due at the end of September.
Zall disagreed with the ruling.
“Everything should be on the table, but we should use the working group to talk about these issues,” she said.
David Hayes, a resident and frequent public speaker at meetings, strongly disagreed with the motion.
“Where are people going to go?” he asked.
Also, last week, members of both the HWG and the City Council said the dry issue should affect a small percentage of people who use the shelter.
Milton Cook, a HWG member who is the director of the Montauk Avenue soup kitchen, said, “We are talking about 10 people.”
Runyon, who is also involved in New London Main Street, said that whatever decision the HWG arrives at, he hopes city leaders see the homeless question in the context of other issues in the city.
“Part of the problem in New London is that we tend to look at issues in a vacuum,” he said. “The homeless issue has to be part of a common and shared vision—a set of strategies and goals.
“We’ve got to have that vision,” he continued. “It’s like we have a baseball team with no coach and all the kids want to be the pitcher.”

Trade card collection depicts a colorful Victorian-era New London

Stephen Chupaska — Thu, 14 Aug 2008 21:29:18 GMT

By Jason J. Marchi
Times Correspondent
Long before the advent of radio, television, and telephone directory advertising, a small, illustrated advertising card was used by tradesmen to advertise their wares.
The cards, known today as trade cards, were slightly larger than a standard business card but smaller than a postcard, and they became the rage during the Victorian era once color lithography was introduced to printed ephemera.
Jim Diaz-Saavedra, a New London resident who grew up in Waterford, has been collecting vintage trade cards for the past 17 years, and his collection—which numbers more than 100 trade cards—focuses on businesses that once operated in New London.
“It’s a fun hobby,” he says, which began after years of collecting postcards.
When Diaz-Saavedra attended various postcard and paper shows that operate each year throughout New England, he realized the dealers had trade cards mixed in with postcards. That’s when he spotted the antique New London trade cards.
“I thought, ‘Those are nice,’ so I bought a few of those and I’ve been collecting ever since,” he says.
Unlike the standard, plain business card of today with basic text and no or little artwork, “Antique trade cards have beautiful graphics on them before the era of when telephones came along. When you went into a shop, they’d give you a trade card which told you what the business was and what they had to offer,” Diaz-Saavedra explains.
The heyday of trade cards began with the opening of the 1876 Philadelphia Centennial Exhibition, according to historians, when color lithography became readily available. The popularity of the cards soared through the 1880s and into the 1890s before waning at the beginning of the 20th century, when advertising shifted to color advertising in magazines.
The fine resolution of the graphics when printed on quality card stock yielded a striking image that captured people’s imaginations, and these colorful trade cards were used to advertise countless American products, from soup and soap to pianos and even steamships and clipper ships. The most heavily advertised household product categories included food, clothing, sewing supplies, medicine, and stoves, as well as paint, tobacco, and farm products.
Although trade card collecting was the fashion more than 100 years ago, interest was lost in the early to mid-20th century, and only recently has collecting begun again in earnest. According to trade card historian Ben Crane, trade cards that were bought for 10 cents 30 years ago frequently bring $10 or more in today’s market, and some, the most prized, have sold for more than $1,000.
One of the collector shows Diaz-Saavedra frequents each year operates in Brimfield, Mass., which he says is a “huge antique show that runs a week at a time in May, July, and September—just a massive flea market for antiques dealers. They have paper dealers at the show that deal just in paper products, like postcards, posters, advertisements for movies, all sorts of stuff. People come from all over the world to this show. Another show coming up late this year is Paper Mania at the Hartford Civic Center.”
He also picks up trade cards on occasion at yard sales, flea markets, and antique shops.
“I put them in dust sleeves to keep them clean, and they’re very compact,” he notes.
While trade card collecting might seem like a solitary hobby, Diaz-Saavedra says he has become friends with other trade card collectors, many of them over the Internet, and he searches on e-Bay for others interested in the hobby.
One of his friends on Fishers Island, N.Y.,—where Diaz-Saavedra works as a carpenter—is also involved in the hobby.
“I was collecting before him, then his grandfather gave him a bunch of black-and-white cards and then he got into postcards, so now he’s become my direct competition, but we still communicate and try not to bid on the same cards.”
The age of the New London trade cards can be dated by information on the card, according to Diaz-Saavedra. Cards that were printed before the advent of the telephone are without a phone number. Later cards, issued after the telephone’s popularity spread, will display four-digit local exchange, “and as the years go on more digits appear in the phone number. You can use that to tell the later years of trade cards,” he explains, adding, “There’s a lot of history just looking at what’s on the business trade cards.”
Diaz-Saavedra warns, however, that some of the history can be misinterpreted. For example, the numbering system of the buildings along State Street and Bank Street in downtown New London has changed over the years, so the location of old businesses would not match up with the current numbering system of the streets.
“The city historian, Sally Ryan, would know when the street numbers changed,” for anyone who really wants to know, Diaz-Saavedra notes.
And one bit of history that is missing among trade cards in general is any knowledge of the artists involved, since none of them are signed.
Diaz-Saavedra’s most recent find was via e-Bay; a trade card advertising Brainerd & Armstrong Silk Works of New London with the caption, “A Moonlight Frolic.” The graphics depict a group of silk spools dancing in the moonlight playing drums, a violin, a flute, a tambourine, and one spool is doing a handstand.
While the businesses in New London have changed over the years, the history of many of these once thriving establishments can still be glimpsed in the color, typography, and design of these vintage trade cards.

50 Years of I-95

Stephen Chupaska — Wed, 06 Aug 2008 17:37:57 GMT

I-95 in the summer.
Normally, that’s something that a meteorologist would mention when describing say, the average temperature of Phoenix.
Here, though, “95 in the summer” is usually accompanied by a grumble and one’s go-to profanity.
Every summer in Connecticut, Friday afternoons from Greenwich to Clarks Falls, exits 3 to 93, are a procession of hiccupping cars, trucks, and SUVs with New York and New Jersey plates all slouching toward Rhode Island.
Then, on Sunday, the same hodgepodge of hybrids and gas hogs go back from whence they came, like a school of steel-plated salmon.
There has got to be a better way, you think, sitting in your car, wondering what the kids in the back seat of the Escalade to your left are watching on their airplane-style flip-down TV screens.
“There must be a better way,” you say out loud, after wondering what possesses people to get vanity license plates.
Nope. As it turns out, when confronted with our nutmeg-flavored stretch of I-95, there isn’t a better way, just a longer way.

From Turnpike to Interstate
I-95, or, as it was once called, the Connecticut Turnpike, has been part of life on the shoreline for 50 years.
The turnpike, with tollbooths erected to help pay down the bond on the highway, opened on Jan. 2, 1958 with Gov. John Davis Lodge doing the honors.
In fact, after the state removed the tolls in 1985 two years after a lethal tractor trailer pile-up at a booth in Stamford, the legislature renamed the turnpike after the governor.
Actually, Lodge faced a revolt among Fairfield County Republicans over the construction of the road, and it eventually led to his ouster from
office.
The turnpike stretched from the New York line in Greenwich to the state’s town with the best name—the near-adverb Killingly.
Why Killingly? Because originally, the Connecticut Turnpike was meant to link up with U.S. 6, the route that connects Hartford with Providence. Long-term plans called for a highway between the two state capitals, but that was only partially constructed. You can see the vestige of the interchange, as I-395 north veers off toward the Massachusetts line, Route 6 then heads east.
Similarly, the entrance to I-395 at Exit 76 near the East Lyme-Waterford border is where the turnpike took its northward bend toward Montville and Norwich. That’s also why the exit numbers jump from 76 to 80 when continuing on I-95 toward New London.
The prodigal Route 11 was also supposed to spill out near there, but let’s all breathe regular on that one.
The Connecticut Turnpike was, as most people over age 35 will recall, a toll road, with booths all along the route.
It was 15 cents to pass through each booth, or you could purchase tokens with the rather spiffy looking CT Turnpike logo. My parents kept a stash of them in a little drawer in their old brown Oldsmobile station wagon.
And tolls are perhaps the reason for the little compartments near steering wheels that are now de rigueur in cars.
The fact that drivers had to pay to use the turnpike ran headlong into a classic Yankee trait—our, shall we say, parsimonious nature.
That’s right, we’re cheap.
The tolls led to the practice of shunpiking, that is, finding free roads in order to avoid shelling out the 15 cents.
Now, bringing the tolls back has been a political shuttlecock in Hartford; just last month former Speaker James Amman, who has his eye on Jodi Rell’s job, criticized any plan to charge for use of I-95 in the state, using the accident nearly 25 years ago as the linchpin in his argument.
He did not, however, mention there have been significant improvements in toll collecting since then, such as E-Z Pass express lanes.
State Sen. Andrea Stillman, who represents New London, Waterford, and Montville, has discussed reintroducing tolls at the Connecticut borders. For the sake of argument, let’s say the legislature brings back the tolls on I-95; what would the new shunpiking look like?
I decided to take a road trip to Greenwich from my home in New London without using 95, on a Friday.

The Road to Greenwich
Despite the fact I’m an ardent believer in mass transit who thinks it is shameful there is no commuter rail in southeastern Connecticut, I am a sucker for the road trip.
In the same way I get weak-kneed for all the saccharine romanticism of baseball, the same American-boy humor over-secretes at the thought of getting on the road.
I’ve done the cross-country trip on both I-40 and I-10.
I went up the California and Oregon coasts and have driven around the Mojave.
I spent two weeks a few summers ago driving around Ohio and Pennsylvania checking out Major League ballparks.
A week after my 30th birthday in 2006, I flew to Las Vegas, rented a Mustang, and drove at unmentionable speeds to San Francisco, a sort of preemptive strike on a midlife crisis.
And despite some guilt over the price of gas, I’m writing this after driving two days to a townhouse near Tampa where my girlfriend and I are spending a week.
But this would, in fact, be my first road trip in my native state.
Instead of ticking the “avoid highways” box on Google Maps, I decided to wing it and count on my sense of direction.
I started out on Broad Street in New London, or Route 85, headed toward Route 82.
Why not just follow Route 1, the Boston Post Road, and the colonial-era path that the Connecticut Turnpike replaced? Well, Route 1 and 95 are the same road in certain places, such as over the Baldwin Bridge.
I took 85 to Salem Four Corners, and then went west on 82 until it splits off to a lane that ends at the Hadlyme ferry landing.
It is $3 for a ride across the Connecticut River. How is it shunpiking if there is a fee to cross the river, you might ask.
Well, I decided not to be so pedantic and enjoy the excellent view of Gillette Castle and the even better one of the British racing green Maserati in front of me on the ferry.
I asked the Maserati guy how he would get to Greenwich without using 95. “Take Route 80 into New Haven, then take the Wilbur Cross,” he said.
Why argue with a guy with such a gorgeous automobile?
After disembarking the ferry, you get a quick peek into Chester, which recalls the fictional Connecticut town of Stars Hollow from The Gilmore Girls. (Nine out of every 10 boyfriends have seen at least one episode of The Gilmore Girls, and I’m not ashamed to admit I have a crush on that jittery Paris chick.)
I then headed west on Route 148, thought about going south on 145, but kept on until the intersection with 80 in Killingworth, a close second in the best-Connecticut-town-name sweepstakes.
I know the state has taken the trouble to note “Scenic Roads,” but Route 80 doesn’t get enough credit.
From Killingworth to East Haven, the road is an abstract expressionist painting of yellow blotches of sunlight along the asphalt. There are all sorts of deciduous trees to see in full summer glory.
The scene changes when you get to East Haven, as strip malls and intimidating intersections return.
But even then you get a splendid view of New Haven, which looks so much more inviting as a distant cluster of buildings viewed from a stoplight, rather than zooming by after surviving the Q Bridge.
I picked up Route 1 in the Elm City, and then promptly lost it.
I found myself on Church Street, with its wonderful collection of 19th-century homes, going toward
Hamden.
Once in Hamden, the hometown of Scott Burrell, the UConn basketball star who passed the ball to Tate George in the greatest moment in the history of Nutmeg State sports, I found, through sheer luck, the Wilbur Cross Parkway.
The Wilbur Cross is the warm-up act for the Merritt Parkway. Though they are both Route 15, the Wilbur Cross does not have the same cool-looking road signs, but does feature some of the same lovely overpasses that mark the state’s most famous road.
I exited back onto Route 1 through Milford, Stratford, and into Bridgeport, where I drove for a while on Route 113.
This was the first time I’ve driven through Bridgeport on surface streets. I never had any reason to go to Bridgeport before.
Like all of the state’s cities, it looks like it could really be something one day. Like New London, it has potential on one corner and crushing poverty on another.
I thought about stopping in South Norwalk, or, ahem, SoNo, but decided to keep on trucking through Stamford, where there seem to be condos going up at every street corner and commuters coming in from New York.
I stayed on the Post Road until it dumped me off in Greenwich.
The journey took me about three and a half hours.
I wanted to go shopping for Ferraris while in Greenwich.
“Do you have one in metallic gray?” I would ask. “How’s the resale?”
But I needed to get back to New London to run some errands.
So, my challenge over, I hopped onto 95.
There was a delay getting onto the entrance ramp to the northbound lanes.
Once on the highway, the electronic signs said there was traffic from exits 7 through 17.
I began to scan my fellow motorists to commiserate.
They looked like they had already said their favorite swear word.
Nearly four hours later, I limped into New London, after avoiding traffic near the old Turnpike-95 fork in East Lyme, by hopping onto Route 1, like maybe a disgruntled motorist would have 50 years ago. I stayed on Route 1 until it morphs into Bank Street, where there are signs reminding you
“To 95.”
The Connecticut Turnpike, or 95, is like the state itself. It was once the future, paving the way for what became representative government, and with the mills a jump-start to American industry.
But now the highway, with its quaint and congested two lanes each way, is a relic.
The future, as it happened, changed.
Now 95 is a problem, not a solution.
It must be strange for those who remember the gung-ho optimism that greeted this most modern way of moving people and goods, to see the highway as a stumbling block, a political minefield.
As the state plans on investing more into rail infrastructure and gas stays at a permanent high, I-95 looks like a road taken and an idea forsaken.

Tough Task: The Homelessness Working Group has its work cut out

Interactive Desk — Mon, 04 Aug 2008 13:53:53 GMT

Though they may have different opinions, members of the newly formed Homelessness Working Group are saying, at the very least, one thing with one voice—they are not part of a debating society.

“We are not here to just talk about homelessness,” said Barry Runyon, a local businessman and member of New London Main Street. “We’re here to get something done.”

The Homelessness Working Group (HWG) held its first meeting last week as an ad-hoc committee that will gather facts and views from those all over the region on New London’s homeless question, and by Sept. 30 present a report to the City Council.

The nine-person group drew members from the City Council, homeless advocacy organizations, parishioners at St. James Church, and the local business community.

“It’s a really good group of people,” said HWG member Reid Burdick, a former city councilor. “It runs the gamut of opinion, and they are all reasonable people.”

The group, chaired by City Councilor Adam Sprecace, includes fellow councilors Wade Hyslop and Margaret Curtin; Catherine Zall of the Homeless Hospitality Center; Milton Cook, the board chair of the New London Community Meal Center; Alma Peterson of St. James Episcopal Church; Carl Lee, a member of the neighborhood watch group Citizens on Patrol; and Runyon and Burdick.

“People seem comfortable speaking their minds,” Sprecace said, “and we are hopefully going to keep it that way.”

Burdick, after just one meeting, was impressed with the group members’ candor.

“It wasn’t the warmest, fuzziest meeting, I’ll tell you that,” he said, “but people said what they thought.”

Cook called the first session “a good meeting because there are a lot of myths and innuendos about the homeless.”

“We’ve come to the conclusion that we need to put it all out on the table,” he added.

And it is, for that matter, a pretty full table.

The homeless question has become, as Sprecace put it, “the hot issue in New London.”

While the issue has lingered in New London for many years, it leapt to the front pages in late June when Councilor John Maynard inquired at a meeting why the emergency homeless shelter at St. James—which has been a shelter of last resort during the winter months for three years—was still open.

Under a directive from the City Council, which employed its “police power,” the shelter was supposed to close at the end of April.

On July 7 the council voted to keep the emergency shelter open through April 2009 but handed down the dictum that the shelter be closed to those who are intoxicated.

On the same night, the council authorized the formation of the working group.

In interviews, the group’s focus is on three issues: the location of the emergency shelter; the role neighboring towns and the state are to play in curbing the problem; and the wet/dry conundrum.

But Where?

The city of New London’s zoning laws do not allow for an overnight homeless shelter, but in the name of public safety the council may allow shelters to operate, as the St. James shelter now does.

Over the course of the last several years, the emergency homeless shelter was bounced around from church to church in the city, before it opened at St. James Church in 2005.

Separate attempts to move the shelter to locations on Jefferson Avenue and Federal Street were opposed by neighborhood groups.

For a while, the shelter was located on the third floor of the church’s community center.

Peterson said the setting up of the nightly shelter would often conflict with church events, such as community meals.

The shelter has since been moved to the center’s basement, and features bunk beds for 49 people, where Peterson said it makes more sense.

“They’ve added security cameras and alarms,” Peterson said. “We hope that will help.”

But Peterson is not convinced the shelter belongs at the church.

“It might not be the best place for the shelter,” she said. “For instance, it is a long walk to the soup kitchen [on Montauk Avenue].”

Runyon stressed the need for compromise between the continued economic development of downtown and compassion for the homeless.

“It does affect the way New London is viewed,” he said.

Burdick expressed concerns that the shelter is in proximity to two schools, the Multicultural Magnet School and the ISAAC school.

“I also think the people who go to the shelter would like a better space,” he said.

‘A Regional Problem’

Burdick also offered a suggestion for a new homeless shelter.

“How about the old Uncas-on-Thames Hospital site in Norwich?” he inquired.

Others have suggested the former Big Y supermarket on Boston Post Road in Waterford would make sense, and a former sports bar on Willetts Avenue.

Curtin said she will be inviting mayors and first selectmen from the surrounding towns to the HWG meetings.

“This is a regional problem,” she said. “We’ll see what they can do to help us.”

Many in the city have expressed consternation at the fact that New London has been bearing the brunt of the homelessness issue.

“New London has been doing a heck of a job,” Cook said, “but the other communities need to understand the fact that homelessness is not going away.”

Curtin noted that many of the homeless population in the city are here because it is a hub of transportation and services, such as the Homeless Hospitality Center on Jay Street, where people can go to shower and receive pamphlets on services.

Peterson pointed out that while the surrounding governments do not contribute money to the shelter—for that matter, neither does the city—many individuals from neighboring towns do work with the area’s homeless.

Runyon noted, “There are plenty of good people out there.”

Lee suggested the state become more involved.

Sticking Point

Maynard’s “dry only” amendment for the St. James shelter, which goes into effect Aug. 1, is, according to Sprecace, not going to change for the time being.

“No action has been taken to change what has been done,” he said.

But Sprecace said the HWG will debate the controversial measure.

Curtin and Hyslop voted against the measure, while Sprecace voted for it; the amendment passed 4-3, but there are a variety of views on the working group.

“We might have two shelters, wet and dry,” Cook said.

Lee said he favors a dry shelter, but “there are pros and cons to both.”

Burdick favored a wet shelter.

The HWG plans on meeting in the City Council Antechamber every Monday at 5 p.m. in August, then twice in September.

By Stephen Chupaska
Senior Staff Writer

Drama At City Hall; Movies at the Hygienic

Stephen Chupaska — Thu, 24 Jul 2008 20:37:10 GMT

The City Council’s Public Welfare Committee appointed a nine-person ad-hoc committee to study the homeless issue in New London.
The committee, which will report back to the city in late September, was formed in response to the council’s authorization of the emergency homeless shelter at St. James Episcopal Church to operate through April of next year.
While the committee will examine ways to improve services and relations with the city’s business community, the most pressing issue—whether intoxicated people would be allowed to stay at the shelter—has already been decided.
On July 7, the City Council, in a 4-3 vote, forced the shelter to become “dry” by July 31. While the homeless committee appointments passed 3-0, Democratic Councilors John Maynard and Michael Buscetto, neither of whom sit on the Public Welfare Committee, harshly criticized a member of the public who alerted the committee that a dry shelter might be in violation of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA).
Laura Natusch, a small business owner who served as the Green Party’s campaign manager in the 2007 municipal election, opined that the city would leave itself open to a lawsuit.
Buscetto indicated he was disappointed that litigation was mentioned at the start of a community dialogue about homelessness.
“It’s not the way to start off this committee,” he said.
Buscetto added that the council allows the shelter to operate out of the kindness of its heart, even though it is in violation of zoning laws.
Maynard lashed out, saying that Natusch should “be ashamed of herself.”
“If this is the way we are going to dialogue, then I need to rethink what I am doing,” he said.
Councilor Margaret Curtin, a Democrat, defended Natusch.
“I don’t think Laura was threatening a lawsuit,” she said. Curtin added that the council allowed the homeless shelter not out of magnanimity, rather “because it was the right thing to do.”
Republican Councilor Adam Sprecace informed Natusch that the city attorney will rule on any possible violation of ADA.
Outdoor Movies Downtown
The Hygienic Art Park will be screening films every Wednesday night for the remainder of the summer.
And admission is very un-multiplex-like—it’s free.
“It’s where art meets culture and community,” said Andrew Bell, one of the Outdoor Movie Series’ organizers.
The movies began earlier this month with a showing of the 1958 popcorn thriller The Blob, a New London in-joke referring to the public art piece hanging off a Bank Street building.
Bell said the Hygienic installs a large screen onto the Art Park stage, onto which the films are digitally rear-projected.
Upcoming movies include My Fair Lady, The Manchurian Candidate, and perhaps some European cinema, Bell said.
Bell encouraged people to bring their dinners and a bottle of wine and spend the evening watching a movie.
Doors open at 7:30 p.m. with the films starting at 8:30 p.m. Call 860-443-8001 for more information.

Boys & Girls Club of America sets up at Thames River Apartments

Stephen Chupaska — Thu, 24 Jul 2008 20:34:11 GMT

Joe Abrams, the executive director of the New London Housing Authority, keeps a plaque from the Boys & Girls Club of America in his office on Colman Street.
He named the national organization in his vision statement, and now it’s no longer a vision, it’s a reality since the Boys & Girls Club of Southeastern Connecticut opened a branch in New London in June.
“From the moment I became the director of the authority, I’ve wanted bring the Boys & Girls Club here,” Abrams said.
“Here,” specifically, is the Thames River Apartments, the public housing unit near the Gold Star Bridge.
The NLHA, which manages the complex, held a celebration late last month to celebrate the opening of the Boys & Girls Club. The event featured local luminaries such as Mayor Kevin Cavanagh, City Councilors Adam Specace and Michael Buscetto, along with Board of Education Vice President Elaine Maynard Adams and City Manager Martin Berliner.
State Sen. Andrea Stillman, D-Waterford, also praised the work of the NLHA and the Boys & Girls Club.
U.S. Rep. Joe Courtney sent two American flags that had been flown over the Capitol dome to fly over the complex.
“This will be a summer of celebration at Thames River,” Abrams said.
Tracy Sutton, the president of the complex’s tenants’ association, was nearly moved to tears when talking about the Boys & Girls Club, which almost filled up its allotted membership a day after it took applications.
“The kids are ecstatic,” she said. “They can’t wait. Everything we are doing here, we are doing for the kids.”
Shirley Gillis, the president of the NLHA board, said she’s seen Boys & Girls Clubs work wonders in other cities.
The celebration took place as the paint on the walls of the new activity rooms was still drying.
The Boys & Girls Club of Southeastern Connecticut also operates programs in Groton, which run out of the schools; the New London branch of the club will be based in former storage space in the complex’s Building A.
“We are very excited about this,” said Ellen Roman, the director of Boys & Girls Club of Southeastern Connecticut. “Our mission is to provide programs to the youth to assist them to be responsible, caring, productive members of society.”
Shantice Grant, the director of operations at the Boys & Girls Club and a Whaling City native, is “glad [the club] is in New London.”
“It will be a positive thing,” she said.
The programs the club is offering this summer include art classes in conjunction with the Kente Cultural Center and trips to the Mystic Aquarium.
Roman said the club will host Smart Moves, a program designed to curb drug and alcohol abuse through “good decision-making and setting goals.” The club, which already has a waiting list, will also offer computer classes and fitness programs.
The past year has seen a turnaround at Thames River; in the past it had been cited as a relic of 1960s social policy, a Great Society mistake, and a failure. But instead of taking steps to knock down the 33-year-old complex, as some in the city have suggested, Abrams had a better idea.
“There was a few out there that thought Thames River would never make it,” he said, “but good management trumped that.”
Abrams noted that the addition of the Boys & Girls Club to the complex is the latest quality-of-life improvement at Thames River. Last year, the building opened a new food bank and the Front Porch Early Childhood Center.
Abrams said in the future the NLHA hopes to address the state of the recreational equipment at Thames River.
“This is about the future of the city,” Abrams said. “It’s going to take some passion, some teamwork, and some love—anything is possible.”

Sailfest 2008

Stephen Chupaska — Fri, 11 Jul 2008 12:24:21 GMT

It’s 11 days before Sailfest 2008 kicks off and Barbara Neff’s State Street office is, in a word, nuts.
Neff is in the Sailfest “War Room” making last-minute edits to the program for the 31st edition of New London’s annual summer weekender.
“Sean!” Neff yells to Sean Murray, local music promoter and designer of the Sailfest program. “You forgot to add the New London Firefighters Pipes and Drums.”
Murray, at a computer in the main office, answers that he didn’t see any information on the bagpipe-playing firefighters.
“There’s a Web site,” Neff shouts, as more phones ring, and a secretary enters the office, carefully not stepping on the large banner unfurled on the floor.
This is the 11th year Neff has organized Sailfest, which will begin on Friday at 4 p.m. and end on Sunday at 7 p.m. with the reliably brilliant New London-Groton fireworks display on Saturday night at 9:20 p.m.
Despite the madness before the festival and the hand-wringing from some in the city after it, who don’t find much charm amid the fried dough and meat on a stick, Neff still likes putting on Sailfest.
“The promoters and bands and the vendors,” she said. “They are all great to work with.”
Neff, though, makes a point to talk to the downtown business owners, some of whom see meager sales during the three-day festival that draws 300,000 to the city center.
“We’ve addressed some of their concerns,” she said.
For instance, there will be less outside food vendors this week, offering downtown restaurants a chance to cash in on the crowds.
Also, some wanted to see more sails in Sailfest, as the nautical aspect of the event will this year emerge out of the horse latitudes.
“We are going to have a tall ship,” Neff said, “and a boat show.”
While the schooner Virginia is docked at Custom House Pier, there will be a boat show put on by Bassett Boat Company.
Plus, there will be tour boats and guides offering rides to view Thames River’s two historic lighthouses, Ledge Light and New London Light.
And for the day after, Neff has secured commitments from the Department of Public Works to make sure the last remnants of Sailfest are swept from the downtown streets.
Neff usually gets plenty of help with the cleanup, and, indeed, last year Jack Cochran, the New London High football coach, could be seen power-washing State Street.
As for the entertainment, Neff and Murray hit upon a theme: to celebrate New London’s diversity.
In addition to The Reducers’ traditional post-fireworks rock ‘n’ roll fireworks at the Foxwoods Union Plaza Stage, there will be Latin and soul acts on Custom House Pier and the City Pier stages. The Hygienic Art Park will feature an array of folk music.
Murray is most excited about up-and-coming alternative urban singer Alice Smith, who should go over very well with fans of Jill Scott and Floetry.
“I think plenty of traditional rock ‘n’ roll [fans] will be interested and impressed by Alice Smith,” Murray said.
New London’s music scene will also be in full force during the Friday night local music show at Custom House Pier. Murray is especially excited by two acts: the psychedelic garage trio Suicide Dolls and a new local band, Gone For Good, who sound like a mix of the Jam and the Stray Cats.
Saturday will also see the final New London appearance of longtime local favorites Incognito Sofa Love, as the freak-jazz band will split later this month.
Neff said this year will also feature a graffiti competition as well as the Hygienic Gallery’s annual Bizarre/Bazaar art sale.
And just because Sailfest is in its 30s, it’s not too late for a dash of contemporary culture; there will be a Wii hooked up to a large-screen television.
But from Neff’s vantage point, Sailfest is still more than a week away, and there is plenty to do, and ever-changing circumstances.
The Hoolios just called to cancel.
“Sean,” Neff said. “Did you hear that?”

Entertainment
Friday
Foxwoods Union Plaza Stage
5:45 to 7 p.m. - J.J. Appleton (pop/soul)
7:15 to 7:30 p.m. - Sara Buscetto (country)
7:30 to 9 p.m. - Mind, Body and Soul (soul/R&B)
9:30 to 11 p.m. - Alice Smith (soul/R&B)

Custom House Pier
5 to 5:30 p.m.- Thick Thieves
5:45 to 6:35 p.m.- TBA
7 to 7:30 p.m. - Wonderlust
7:50 to 8:30 p.m. - Fatal Film
8:50 to 9:30 p.m. - Suicide Dolls
9:30 to 11 p.m. - Lo–Fi Radio Stars

Hygienic Art Park
5 to 5:15 p.m. - Richard Auber
5:25 to 5:55 p.m.- Sue Mead
6 to 6:30 p.m.- Mike Ball
6:40 to 7:10 p.m.- Peter Magrane
7:15 to 7:45 p.m.- Bernadette Golden
8 to 8:30 p.m.- Catharsis

Saturday
City Pier
6:30 to 7:30 p.m. - Hand Grenade Serenade
8 to 9 p.m. - Chasing Trinity
10 to 11 p.m. - Hempsteadys

Foxwoods Union Plaza Stage
1:30 to 2 p.m. - 3rd annual Hot Rods Wing Eating Contest
2 to 3 p.m. - Recur Occurrence
3:30 to 4:30 p.m. - Gone For Good
5 to 6 p.m. - Incognito Sofa Love
6:30 to 7:30 - Quiet Life
8 to 11 p.m. - The Reducers

Custom House Pier
2:30 p.m. - Gabrieles Karate demonstration

Hygienic Art Park
11 to 11:25 a.m. - Pat Daddona
11:30 a.m. to 12:15 p.m. - Kay Pere, then Bill Pere, then together
12:30 to 1 p.m. - Barnacle
1:10 to 1:40 p.m. - Maggie’s Guitar
1:45 to 2 p.m. - Stone Eddy
2:05 to 2:20 p.m. - Bé ît Göd (Hugh Birdsall and Jim Fitzgerald)
2:25 to 2:55 p.m. - Kevin Kane
3:10 to 3:40 p.m. - Sour Grapes
3:45 to 4:15 p.m. - “Sandman” Sandy Allen
4:30 to 5:30 p.m. - Village Jammers
5:45 to 7 p.m. - Hellbent & Heartbreakin’
7:15 to 8:15 p.m. - Rivergods
8:30 to 9 p.m. - Paul Brockett Road Show
Mike Bailey and Friends (after fireworks)

Sunday
Foxwoods Union Plaza Stage
9 a.m. - Sailfest 5K Road Race
2 – 3:15 p.m. - Rivergods (Americana/folk rock)
3:30 p.m. - New London Firefighters Pipes And Drums (bagpipers)
4 – 6 p.m. Enter The Haggis (Celtic/rock)

City Hall Stage
Old School Block Party, sponsored by Q105. Presented in association with Muse.
11 a.m. to 4 p.m. - Graffiti artists on Green Street
Noon to 1:30 p.m. - DJ CHUM
1:30 to 2 p.m. - The Pouncing Panthers (Double Dutch)
2 to 2:30 p.m. - DJ Contest with Q105
2:30 to 3 p.m. - Break-dancing with B Boys
3 to 4 p.m. Flowers and Kain
4:30 p.m. - Presentation graffiti contest winner
4 to 4:30 p.m. - Jon Concept and DJ Frank Lo

Hygienic Art Park
11 to 11:25 a.m. - Kat Wyand
11:30 a.m. to noon - Marc Worthington
12:05 to 12:30 p.m. - Woody
12:45 to 1:15 p.m. - Lauren Agnelli & the Big House Band
1:30 to 2 p.m. - L’Esperance (followed by a mandolin clinic)
2:15 to 2:45 p.m. - Jim Lampos
2:45 to 3:15 p.m. - Curse
3:30 to 4 p.m. - Phil Newland & Chuck Davis
4:15 to 4:45 p.m. - Blonde Furniture
5 to 5:25 p.m. - Bruce McDermott
5:30 to 6 p.m. - The Crew

Tips and Suggestions

TRAFFIC: Traffic updates can be obtained from the New London Police Department at 447-5269 or by tuning to 102.3.FM or 530 AM.

PARKING: Available in two parking garages: Water Street Garage, across from the train station, and on Gov. Winthrop Blvd. across from the Radisson Hotel. Arrive early to avoid fireworks traffic jams.

ANCHORAGE: Available south of the U.S. Custom Pier between Shaw’s Cove railroad bridge, with dingy dock also available. Moorings available (white floats) for 24-hour stays south of City Pier.

ROAD CLOSURES: Bank Street and South Water Street: Saturday from 7 a.m. until 7 p.m. Sunday

State Street from Union Street to Bank Street: Friday starting at 4 p.m. until 7 p.m. Sunday

Green Street starting Sunday at 11 a.m. until 7 p.m.

RAIL, BUS, AND FERRY CUSTOMERS: Due to the volume of people in New London this weekend, it is highly recommended to allow yourself extra travel time if you are dropping off departing passengers or picking up alighting passengers at the New London transportation center during Sailfest.
Contact the New London Police Department at 447-5269 with traffic queries and instructions on how to get to the transportation center.

Not So Fast: GOP accuses Dems of needlessly rushing decisions

Stephen Chupaska — Wed, 02 Jul 2008 21:41:25 GMT

Last week the minority Republican city councilors criticized the manner in which the ruling Democratic majority is proposing and passing policy for the city.
GOP Councilor Rob Pero said the Democrats have abandoned the process the City Council uses to enact laws.
“There has been no consistency,” Pero said in an interview last Wednesday. According to the City Council’s rules, councilors normally propose matters during regular meetings, then send them to one or more of the body’s seven committees for further debate. If the matter passes in committee, the action is brought before the whole council for ratification.
But, it doesn’t always have to work that way. Often, if there is a pressing, time-sensitive matter, the council will discuss the issue during the course of a regular meeting. Pero claims the Democrats have been rushing through agenda items on issues that have not been thoroughly debated.
The disagreement, which Pero said has been brewing for several months, came to a head at the June 23 meeting over two agenda items. The first is a new ordinance requiring contractors to hire minority laborers, as well as workers who are residents of New London County and affiliated with a certified apprenticeship program. Contractors must also offer prevailing wages.
The second item was the dissolution of the Redevelopment Authority. Both measures passed 5-2 along party lines, after attempts by Pero and Councilor Adam Sprecace to put both matters in committee.
According to Mayor Kevin Cavanagh, who sponsored the ordinances along with the four other Democrats, time was of the essence in passing both motions, as companies soon will be bidding on contracts to undertake the reconstruction of Nathan Hale and Winthrop elementary schools as magnet schools.
“That was an urgent thing,” Cavanagh noted.
The Board of Education just last week passed the educational programs for the new magnet schools that will be sent along to the state for approval. School board Vice President Elaine Maynard Adams said if all goes according to plan, the projects would be put out to bid “sometime during the summer.”
Maynard Adams also said the prevailing wage condition would have been met regardless of the council’s vote because there are federal funds in the project, and it is a national law to pay the standard union wage to unaffiliated laborers.
The Democrats passed the ordinance even though the director of law Tom Londregan admitting during the meeting that he was “confused” about some of the language in the motion. The law director’s unease spurred Sprecace to suggest the council put the matter to the Economic Development Committee, a motion that failed along party lines.
“How is this any way to do business?” Sprecace asked during the meeting.
The council also did away with the nearly 50-year-old Redevelopment Agency that in the 1960s and ‘70s presided over the destruction of many of the city’s architectural gems in the name of urban renewal.
Councilor Michael Buscetto said the dissolution of the Redevelopment Agency, which has only two properties at its disposal—the vacant lot on the Bank Street side of Shaw’s Cove office park and an industrial parcel under the Gold Star Bridge—would help “streamline” development of both pieces of land.
“Developers can come directly to us,” Buscetto said.
Pero, again, asked that the matter be put into the Administration Committee to make sure there are not any federal funds the city could be eligible for that would be channeled through the agency. Economic Development Director Ned Hammond said at the June 23 meeting that he is “unaware” of any federal funds being directed toward the agency.
Cavanagh said the city had to deal with the Redevelopment Agency issue before the start of the 2009 fiscal year. Echoing Buscetto, the mayor said the city wanted to “streamline” the process.
The Democratic proposal to ax the Redevelopment Agency comes on the heels of the June 10 announcement that a major company is planning to shift 150 workers to Shaw’s Cove but needed more parking.
Two members of the four-member Redevelopment Agency, Barbara Goodrich and Richard Frederick, expressed doubts that a 92-space parking lot is the best use for the 3.23 acres.
Buscetto, in a recent interview, denied that Goodrich’s and Frederick’s apprehension about a parking lot played a role in dismantling the agency.
“I asked the law director to research it during the budget process,” he said.
Buscetto noted that he has not yet decided about the best use of the property either.
Cavanagh said the Redevelopment Agency’s dissolution would take place over the coming weeks, as the city needs to examine its records.

A Working Class Hero: Is It Something To Be?

Stephen Chupaska — Thu, 26 Jun 2008 22:33:49 GMT

I am a devout viewer of Meet The Press, a Latin Mass for Those Who Fancy Themselves Informed.
So, like many others, I was glued to NBC News last week when it broke the news that Tim Russert, the 58-year-old moderator of Meet the Press, died of a heart attack while at work.
A constant theme throughout the subsequent Russert tributes was his working-class background.
Russert was the son of an Irish-Catholic garbage man from South Buffalo, an upbringing that was the polestar during his rise to the pinnacle of broadcast journalism.
Or, as Tom Brokaw put it, “...even though he rose to the heights, being one of the most important journalists in America, a guy who could drive a political debate in this country [and] had all the good fortune that goes with the success that he had, he never forgot his Buffalo roots.”
Russert’s biographical arc is a familiar one in American life: A kid from the sticks moves to the city and makes good.
But once you get to the city, if it’s New York, Los Angeles, or D.C., there is the nagging aspect of your roots. People who grew up in working-class towns or cities are often compelled to “remember their roots” and “where you came from.”
This seems to me a romantic, if not pernicious, expectation.
There are plenty of people who view the life they lead now, outside from where they grew up, as a true escape.
I have gay friends who grew up in less-than-cosmopolitan New Hampshire and who fled to the loving arms of West Hollywood. Are they expected to celebrate their roots?
I know writers from nowheresville suburban San Jose, Calif., who are happy as ever in Chicago. Are they obligated to pay homage to home?
Or, am I expected to pretend that my hometown, Montville, was the most nurturing place for someone with a less-than-mainstream temperament?
I don’t know how life in Montville is now, but I can recall the funny looks I would get because, as a youth, I opted to play soccer as opposed to God-fearing, star-spangled football.
Perish the thought.
Last week’s high school graduation speakers no doubt told graduates to “remember what they learned here.” What they learned, however, might be that they need to get out because “here” just won’t do.
The tether we are expected to have to our roots is a psychologically powerful and, for some, a financially lucrative prospect.
Consider, for instance, how many cornpone hit country songs there are celebrating the virtues of small-town life.
Just now, I spent an hour of my life that I will never get back listening to a duo called Montgomery Gentry, who play a cloying, polished brand of country music that, if you have any soul, will have you scrambling for Steve Earle albums.
Montgomery Gentry have a sugary new single called “Back When I Knew It All,” that arrives at the revelation that hick antics such as jumping pickup trucks over mud puddles isn’t so bright when you are all grown up with the kids.
An older MG song, “My Town,” takes place in a burg where the singer “was born...raised...and celebrates the packed church on Sunday and his uncle who lowers the Canadian [just kidding] flag at the courthouse.”
Here’s hoping there’s a kid living in these country-music towns who can’t wait to bust out, move to New York City, and take some art classes.
What Montgomery Gentry are saying is that the simple, uncomplicated life is preferable. But it is a lie to equate the simple life with an authentic one. Real working-class towns, not the ones in these sub-mental country songs, can be suffocating for some. Because as any student of American culture can tell you, sometimes you have to leave it all behind and light out.
Some of you might say it is pointless to be bitter about where you grew up, but to paraphrase Russert’s favorite singer Bruce Springsteen, that bitterness can lead you to “case the promised land.”
This is the opinion of senior staff writer Stephen Chupaska.

Area musicians organize tribute shows to Agins

Stephen Chupaska — Thu, 26 Jun 2008 22:32:13 GMT

The unexpected death of Royale Brothers guitarist Phil Agins in April left a large hole in the hearts of many of New London’s band of musicians.
This Friday, several members of the local underground rock scene will be filling that hole with music as the city will see back-to-back tribute concerts.
Organized by Paul Brockett Roadshow drummer Meghan Killimade and Roadside Attractions singer Daphne Glover, the tribute concerts will take place Friday evening, first at the Hygienic Art Park and then the Oasis Pub.
“Phil’s family gave him a beautiful service in April,” Killimade said. “This, though, is from New London; he really touched us.”
Killimade said the city’s tight-knit group of local musicians have had “mixed emotions” about putting on a tribute concert.
“Everyone has their own way of mourning,” she said. “We wanted to put on a rock show in his honor.”
The first concert will be all-ages. A “tribute band” dubbed The Phil Harmonic, featuring members of the Royale Brothers, Incognito Sofa Love, Paul Brockett Roadshow, and The Big Nasty, will play covers of some of the songs that influenced Agins. Also, Wonderlust and The Weird Beards will play.
Killimade said between performances, Liz Larson, Matt Gouette, and Glover will perform songs they wrote about Agins.
Starting at 10 p.m., the tribute moves to the Oasis Pub, where Fatal Film headlines a show along with Mustache and the Electric Noise Act.
“We’re excited to do this for him,” Killimade said. “We really miss him.”

If You Go
Hygienic Art Park
79-83 Bank Street, New London
Show starts at 6 p.m. (All gges)
Featuring: Weird Beards, Wonderlust, and The Phil Harmonic
Oasis Pub
16 Bank Street, New London
Show starts at 10 p.m. (age 21 and
older)
Featuring: Fatal Film, Mustache, and Electric Noise Act

New London High School conducts 56th commencement

Stephen Chupaska — Thu, 26 Jun 2008 22:30:43 GMT

The New London High School Class of 2008 speaker Shiniqua Flanders looked at her 168 fellow graduates and reminded them that through four years they have matured from juveniles to adults.
“You’re still family,” she said, “and we are getting together one last time.”
The 56th commencement at NLHS took place last week at a packed Scanlon Auditorium, as the latest class of Whalers for life sat on the stage with local school administrators and dignitaries.
Board of Education President Alvin Kinsall reminded the class of their unique bond as NLHS graduates.
“Next year you may be Huskies or Camels,” he said, “but you will always be Whalers.”
Around 7 p.m., Superintendent of Schools Christopher Clouet led members of the NLHS administration clad in academic regalia down the middle aisle.
Shortly thereafter the graduates began the march to the stage to thunderous cheers, masking the actual thunderstorm that raged outdoors throughout the ceremony. University of Florida-bound basketball player Alan Cheney, who is also an honor student, stopped to hug someone sitting in an aisle seat, sending his mortarboard to the ground.
After all the graduates took their places on the stage behind the curtain, the lights dimmed and a curtain drew back revealing the class of 2008.
NLHS Principal Daniel Sullivan welcomed the audience and asked graduates to think to around the time they were born, in the early 1990s.
“A George Bush was in the White House,” he said, to not a few boos. “The Soviet Union collapsed, and Buster Douglas knocked out Mike Tyson.”
Sullivan, like the other speakers during the ceremony, was difficult to hear due to a crowd that insisted on talking throughout the commencement.
Sullivan then introduced class president and valedictorian Norman Harrison, who told his classmates there was “nothing to be sad about.”
“We have had happy memories,” he said.
Sullivan then welcomed commencement speaker Roger Christiansen, a member of the NLHS class of 1970, who now directs the Hannah Montana television series.
“At NLHS, Roger was member of the A/V club and also led a May Day walk-out to protest the dress code,” Sullivan said.
Christiansen, who grew up on Winchester Street but now lives in Los Angeles, freely admits he was not the best student.
“I was happy riding my motorcycle, hanging out at Ocean Beach, and listening to the Reducers,” he said. “But you can come from New London and go on to have a career in Hollywood.”
Before the ceremony, the class of 2008 assembled in the cafeteria to sign yearbooks, take pictures, and share some hugs.
A native of the Dominican Republic, Kisbel Corniel, 18, said she is “very happy” to be graduating.
“It’s been a lot of hard work,” she said. “I feel I’m ready for more responsibility.”
Maria Moises, 17, came to New London in the eighth grade and said that time “has gone by really fast.”
Casey Davis, 19, said he is looking forward to attending the New England Institute of Technology next year to begin his architecture degree.
“I feel like I’ve come a long way,” he said.
Jordan Chappelle, 17, was thankful for her time at NLHS, as she was a transfer from Norwich Free Academy.
“People here were so welcoming,” she said. “I can’t believe this day is here.”

The New London High School
Class of 2008
T. Robert Acosta
Justo Emmanuael Aquino
Amandda Lee Asher
Anthony C.Basilica
Genesis M. Bell
Berny Bernadeau
Jona Bernadeau
Vanessa Gabriela Blanco
Justin Bleau
Marie Claudine Bossa
Eleazar Jeremiah Braboy
Mya C. Brooks
Ian Brown
Tasheenah Brown
Travon Brown
Calan Jarrell Bryant
Arnold Campbell
Kenneth Capers
Jonathan Jose Carrasco
Jessica Cartagena
Johanna Estefania Chacon
Allan Chaney
Jordan Taylor Chappelle
Landon M. Clarke
Kisbel Corniel
Miguel Costas
Krystal M. Cruz
Kwinie Cupidon
Casey Davis
Mia Lashae Davis
Jose Alberto De La Cruz
Christopher Deltoro
Agam Pal Dhir
Carlos Y. Diaz
Jocelyn Diaz
Ronelle Lavon Drayton
Johrdyn Chrystine Eckard
Brittney Renee English
Jetzayra Jeannette Escalera
Stacey Ann Fearon
Miguel Angel Figueroa
Jesse D. Fitzpatrick
Shiniqua Allanana Flanders
Austin K. Free
Shan Gamble
Yessenia Gerena Jimenez
Mark Allen Giesing
Matt Goldstein
Diana Milena Gomez
Ana Noemi Gonzalez
Dominique Justin Griffin

Elijah Griffin
Sheala Guess
Samuel Guiney
Jaime Junior Guzman
Julio A. Guzman
William Harris
Norman Harrison
Contessa Camiel Hernandez
Quarshivikia Shontel Hill
Rashad Hill
Liandra Marie Hodge
Paul Hodge
Rayshawn Hudson
Rakieem Kareem Humphrey
Kerwin Irizarry
Fabiola Jean-Louis
Kristy Lea Jennetta
Howard Keith Johnson
James Kevin Jones
Zara Lane
Ruz Nereyda Linares
Shanequa Nicole Littlejohn
Manuel Lucena
Robert Maldon
Shanice Malloy
Melanie Enid Martinez
Joshua McArthur
Grover L.McClenathan
Darryle McClinton
Charles C. McDonald
Kevin L. McKinnon
Janay Nicole McLellan
Maria Moises
Justine Antonia Monte
Daniel S. Morgan

Nigel Dashaenne Moses
Rosangela Mota
Nashawn Dell Muller
Taylor Renee Nicholson
Tatiana Pamphile
Mason B. Peabody
Rahmel W. Perry
Angel L. Reyes
Roxana Rivera
Kurt Robinson
Jared A. Roderick
Hector Rodriguez
Adelina Josefina Rondeau
Jose Rosario
Leonardo Miguel Sanchez
Rafael Santiago
Victoria Seliger
Erika Leslie Shaw
Chemire Kalet Singleton
Jasmine Ysenia Stakley
Grecia Suriel
Muhammad Tahir
Jerome Merrell Taylor
Shadai Terry
Jahmarrah Thomas
Yajaira Yanise Vega Rivera
Jennifer Marie Verde
Herbert Villarini
Ashley Marie Welch
Tyron White
Kenneth Michael Williams
Rasean Williams
Brendalyn Wilson
Earl Stephan Wilson
Adam Wrighten
Jessica Yanez
Jose Javier Zurita

NL Main Street at a Crossroads

Stephen Chupaska — Fri, 13 Jun 2008 15:20:16 GMT

After a decade in NL, are Parsekian and co. up to the task?

Amid bottles of modestly priced domestic wine and hors d’oeuvres nearly 175 of New London’s movers and shakers crowded the Oasis Room at the Garde Arts Center last month to commemorate 10 years of New London Main Street.
But there was more to celebrate than just the success of Food Strolls past and historical plaques in front of the city’s architectural gems.
Just a few days before, the City Council gave the organization $77,000 from City Hall coffers and a new mandate: become the go-to group for downtown economic development.
“The city has committed to Main Street,” said Councilor Michael Buscetto, who emceed the event. “It will benefit the community, and its effects will be long term.”
The next day, NLMS Executive Director Penny Parsekian was in good spirits after the 10th anniversary celebration in which she was roasted by Steve Segal, director of the Garde.
Sitting at a cafe table in the atrium outside of NLMS’ offices, Parsekian was visibly excited about New London Main Street’s new role in the city’s economic development.
“If not Main Street,” she said, “then who?”
To hear Parsekian tell it, New London Main Street is a very different organization than the one she inherited when she assumed the executive director’s chair in February 2000.
“There was a lot of turnover in this job,” she said.
Parsekian is the third person at the helm of the organization formed from the rib of Connecticut Main Street, an arm of the National Trust For Historical Preservation.
The group was first sanctioned in 1995 but did not garner enough funding to begin work until the spring of 1998.
The Main Street Board of Directors hired a “program manager” that July who stayed only three months on the job.
In February 1999 the board hired Tana Parseliti to head the organization that had been tasked with coordinating downtown’s businesses in preparation for OpSail, the tall ships festival in the summer of 2000 that brought one million people to the city.
But in March of that year, just three months before OpSail, Parseliti resigned to take a similar position in Manchester.
That was when Parsekian, who hitherto had never headed up a nonprofit, came on board.
“When I took over we had to train 600 volunteers for that event, so I hit the deck running,” she said. “It was a make it or break it time for Main Street.”
Parsekian, who moved to New London in the early 1990s, already had an illustrious career in publishing with Scholastic and was a well-known, national award-winning photographer in her Greenwich Village neighborhood in New York.
Upon arriving in New London, Parsekian was part of a group that attempted to build a walkway from the colleges in the northern part of the city to downtown.
“OpSail was a blur for me,” she said, “but afterward we looked forward to doing some strategic planning.”
Parsekian then began to secure funding from the “major players in New London,” such as the banks, Pfizer, Electric Boat, and The Day Publishing Company, which owns this newspaper.
In the coming years, Parsekian was able to hire full- and part-time staff to assist in the promotion of events such as the wildly popular Food Strolls, a Valentine’s Day celebration, and the Christmastime “Living History” play.
Now, both the City Council and the city at large will have higher expectations for NLMS.
Buscetto said in an separate interview that the council and NLMS will draft a “memorandum of understanding” concerning New London Main Street’s expectations.
“We want to lay out their goals so it’s clear,” he said. “It’s not like we said to them, ‘Here’s $77,000, happy birthday.’”
The city investment in NLMS came on the heels of Democratic councilors’ vote to eliminate the head of the office of Development and Planning, Bruce Hyde, who will vacate the job he has held since the early 1980s in September.
The Democrats, who hold a 5-2 majority on the Council, also voted to eliminate the job of downtown development coordinator, held by Joseph Celli, who is held in very high esteem among New London’s cadre of underground musicians and artists, many of whom live in the city center.
While debate over Hyde and Celli getting the ax raged across the city, Main Street kept notably quiet.
“It was a political hot potato,” Parsekian said. “Maybe some change would help.”
Parsekian, nevertheless, praised Buscetto’s leadership on this apparent sea change in who would be responsible for marketing the downtown area.
“We have a lot of faith in Mike Buscetto,” she said. “He is smart and insightful and knows we have the capacity to do this.”
But the budget drama in New London is hardly over.
Last week, members of Looking Out For Taxpayers began circulating petitions to cut the $80 million budget.
“We’re not counting our chickens just yet,” Parsekian said.
While in the past NLMS has occasionally appeared before the City Council to apprise the councilors of upcoming events, its presence in City Hall will become a more regular occurrence.
Frank McLaughlin, the president of the NLMS board, appeared before the City Council last week to inform them that NLMS will provide regular updates on its progress this year.
Although NLMS received a boost in funding from the city, it did not get any money from the City Center District, a special tax zone in downtown New London.
In past years, NLMS had received as much as $15,000 from City Center District, though this year its commissioners voted to redo its budget and, for the time being, not fund Main Street.
Barbara Neff, the former Parade News owner, who now runs a festival promotion company, said she and two other New London stalwarts, Rick Rubenstein and Reid Burdick, were elected from the floor to the commission at CCD’s recent meeting.
Neff said the new commission then voted to “rework its budget.”
Neff noted that CCD is interested in lobbying for increased Shore Line East rail service to the city.
CCD is slated to vote on its budget June 12.
McLaughlin said it was “unfortunate” CCD did not vote to allocate funds at its last meeting. Nevertheless, both Parsekian and McLaughlin are already making plans for the next year.
McLaughlin said first and foremost NLMS wants to create and maintain a Web-based database of vacant storefronts and buildings for sale in the city center.
The injection of funds, McLaughlin said, would allow Main Street to reorganize the office to see how to get the most value out of its budget. “There might be some functions we can do in-house,” he said. “Others could be farmed out.”
McLaughlin, a downtown property owner, said NLMS will take a different approach to marketing the city than ODP.
“[ODP] was, in a way, conservative with marketing,” he said. “We want to put more of a commercial spin on it.”
Parsekian said downtown New London’s main competition are the malls, and NLMS is competing against not only the mall stores but their business models.
“They have a manager who is the go-to person for space, store hours, displays, keeping the parking lots clean,” she said. “If there is problem, businesses can go to the mall manager. What we have to is 10 times more difficult.”
It is unclear if the City Council’s boost to NLMS will become an annual occurrence.
“They have this year to prove themselves,” Buscetto said. “It’s not a guarantee they’ll get this next year; no line item is a guarantee.”

Promotoras and New London Cyclone

Stephen Chupaska — Thu, 05 Jun 2008 20:59:18 GMT

Last month, Ledge Light Health District and Centro de la Comunidad announced the formation of a new group designed to inform Latino women and their families about the dangers of heart disease.
Funded by a $100,000 grant from the Connecticut Department of Health, Latino Preventative Health Partnership of Southeastern Connecticut hopes to curb the alarming statistic that Latino women are 30 percent more likely to die of heart disease than white women.
“We are thrilled to be part of this partnership,” Cindy Barry, assistant director at Ledge Light, said.
In order to help implement the program, Ledge Light hired Laura Silk, a local nurse who also helps translate for Spanish speakers at municipal meetings.
“This is a very exciting program,” Silk said. “I appreciate the outreach by the state.”
Silk will be assisted by promotoras, or volunteers who will venture into the Spanish-speaking community to help inform women of health risks.
“Getting information out there is the most important thing,” Juana Castro, a promotora, said. “We need to tell our community they need to work out more, and be stronger women.”
Baker Salsbury, the executive director of Ledge Light, said in a prepared statement that the goal “is to save the lives of women who might otherwise die unnecessarily and prematurely due to cardiovascular disease.”
Meetings will take place at Centro at 109 Blinman Street on the third Thursday of the month at 5:30 p.m.
For more information, call Cindy Barry at 860-448-4882, ext. 302.

Cyclists in Fort Trumbull
Something is finally moving in Fort Trumbull—bicycles.
On June 22 the former site of the Fort Trumbull neighborhood will host the New London Cyclone, a day-long bicycle race that will whip around the streets of the as-yet-unbuilt redevelopment.
In order to promote the race, organizer and U.S. National Team coach Bill Humphreys asked three-time Tour de France winner Greg LeMond to lead a group of riders from the course to Old Lyme.
Riding along were a group of junior members of the local race team Mystic Velo.
“This was a thrill of a lifetime for those kids to meet Greg,” Humphreys said. “That is like Pele working with a youth soccer team.”
LeMond said Fort Trumbull “looks like a great course.”

City’s Memorial Day parade draws record crowds

Stephen Chupaska — Thu, 05 Jun 2008 20:57:25 GMT

From politicians to priests, from cops to kids, from Little League to the American Legion, nearly all of New London was on display at this year’s Memorial Day parade. More than 1,000 people participated and even more lined the route that began at the intersection of Broad and Williams streets, moved east on Broad Street, zigged onto Huntington Street, then zagged onto State Street, made a right onto Bank Street, before finishing near Fire Headquarters.
“It’s a great annual thing,” said John Norman of New London “It’s a nice getaway from the hustle and bustle.”
Norman and his son, Denzel, found a spot on the sidewalk near the beginning of the parade, where they could see co-
organizer and former Mayor Wayne Vendetto directing traffic.
Vendetto helped to put the parade together along with Val Tamano, the assistant to the superintendent of schools.
The parade was also the kickoff to the public schools’ Hope Week, a series of activities designed to bring the schools and the city closer together.
Superintendent of Schools Christopher Clouet was one of the first city luminaries in the parade, as he joined New London Teacher of the Year Ann Miller in a green, two-tone Rolls-Royce.
Members of the Board of Education walked behind board President Alvin Kinsall, who rode shotgun in a Honda convertible.
The loudest cheers came for members of the Connecticut Army National Guard, who paraded along with one of their military vehicles.
Also, Korean War veterans marched with signs proclaiming “The Forgotten War.”
The City Council engaged in some bipartisan candy-throwing as they followed Mayor Kevin Cavanagh, who was marching with Rep. Betsy Ritter, D-Waterford.
Also, throwing sweets was Rep. Ernest Hewett.
Waterford was well-represented by the high school Lancer Marching Band as well as First Selectman Dan Steward and the Waterford Police Department’s yellow Corvette.
Various religious groups also marched, such as the Faith Fellowship, whose members held signs that read “Repent For The Kingdom of God is at Hand.”
The Islamic Center of New London also participated, with one of the marchers wearing a Palestinian flag as a cape.
The honor students at Bennie Dover Jackson Middle School were on a float, and all of the elementary schools participated as well.
Some of the students from the Jennings School performed songs from their upcoming musical The Pied Piper of Hamelin and carried placards that read “Down with Rats.”
New London High’s marching band performed patriotic music, and the NLHS Junior ROTC marched in time.
City Clerk Michael Tranchida donned an “I Love NL” shirt and marched with the New London Elks Club,
Save Ocean Beach had longtime shoreline advocate Louise Fabrykiewicz, Ms. Fab to most people, sitting in a trailer made up to look like a day at the beach.
“I would have walked,” she joked.
The New London Housing Authority and the Front Porch Foundation joined forces for a float, with a group enjoying soft drinks on some patio furniture.
“This is fun,” Bill Krajewski, a life-long New Londoner, said. “I’ve been coming down since I was a kid.”

Bicycles, Rockers, and Republicans

Stephen Chupaska — Wed, 28 May 2008 20:33:03 GMT

At a New London coffeehouse, a local rock musician and a Republican city councilor have found some common ground on, of all things, bicycles.
Earlier this month Sean Spellman, the guitar player and lead singer in Quiet Life, a local folk rock group, started a petition to persuade the City Council to find ways to make New London more conducive to bicycle travel.
After all, with gas costing so much they might as well sell it at Bergdorf Goodman, bikes are no longer just for recreation and fitness, they are a legitimate mode of transportation.
And while biking destinations such as Barn Island in Stonington and Bluff Point in Groton are lovely and scenic, compact, dense New London is the most sensible place on the shoreline for increased bike use.
New London is walkable; it’s not a stretch to see it as bikeable.
Spellman placed the petition on the counter at Bean & Leaf, a cafe on Washington Street in downtown where he and other members of the local music scene often congregate.
In addition to serving its own coffee roasts, Bean & Leaf actively promotes all the environmentalist boilerplate, from recycling to sustainability. I’m not exactly sure what sustainability is, but most of my bearded friends in loose-fitting clothes assure me that it’s a good thing.
It’s the sort of place that has different recycling bins for the stirrers, cups, and the lids, as well as the bottles and cans.
Suffice to say getting the Bean & Leaf crowd to support more bike paths in New London is a relatively easy sell.
But it’s not just those who are saving up for their first Prius who are interested in promoting bicycle use in the city.
One of the signatories to Spellman’s petition is GOP City Councilor Adam Sprecace.
“I think it’s a good idea to make New London more accessible to cyclists,” he said in a phone interview last week. “It’s worth a look.”
Nationally speaking, the GOP tends toward policies that leave a Shaquille O’Neal-sized carbon footprint on the Earth, but local politics are different—you’re not expected to toe the party line as much.
So, funny enough, bike paths could be an issue that a Republican will get behind.
Only six months into his first term on the City Council, Sprecace has gained a reputation for pragmatism and a low-key demeanor.
And right on cue Sprecace told me that “there will be costs associated, obviously.”
“But it never hurts to ask some questions,” he said.
It’s a small thing, but seeing Sprecace’s signature on Spellman’s bike petition is a sign of what a different place New London is becoming.
Older generations from around the region always talk about how “New London used to be” and wax on about shopping at Woolworth’s.
But there is a growing group of people who revel in New London’s history but don’t know what the hell a Woolworth’s is and frankly don’t care. They love New London now and they want to love it tomorrow.
Improving New London’s bike-ablity is not going to be a cold glass of water for the city’s hiccupping economy, and neither Spellman nor Sprecace would argue that point.
But the fact that a hirsute rocker and a Republican in chinos are literally on the same page is a good blend for New London’s future.
This is the opinion of Times senior staff writer Stephen Chupaska.