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Thursday, December 18, 2008

12/18/08 Greenwich Post News Links




Written by Sara Poirier, Assistant Editor

Updated for the Web
Dec. 18, 2008


A main that conveys wastewater from Old Greenwich, Riverside, North Mianus and Cos Cob was back in service as of 1:30 p.m. Tuesday, following four days of repairs and cleanup. The main broke on Friday on Sound Shore Drive, just outside the Cos Cob Power Plant site.


Department of Public Works officials had asked residents in the area to conserve water throughout the repairs. This was intended to minimize flow to the Old Greenwich, Chapel Lane and Cos Cob pump stations while repairs were conducted, which meant less wastewater being discharged to the environment.


It had also been reported that during repairs, raw sewage was dumped into the Mianus River. One neighbor complained, off the record, of sewage smell in his Riverside neighborhood.


Dan Warzoha, emergency management director for the town, said the bypassing of the pipes into the river stopped around the same time the main was back in service. He added that no cleanup is necessary because the wastewater had been diluted by rainfall, the river was at a high volume during the pumping and there were "astronomical" high tides.




With safety cited as a main concern, the Board of Selectmen unanimously approved a six-month test program for residents-only parking on Josephine Evaristo Avenue on Dec. 11.


This is necessary,” Parking Services Director Allen Corry told the board. “We have a narrow street here and there are safety issues when vehicles are trying to pass through.”


Mr. Corry said eliminating the parking congestion on the street would eliminate the safety worries because cars would have more room to travel, which is especially a concern for school buses going to Hamilton Avenue School and emergency vehicles.


The selectmen also approved Mr. Corry’s suggestion that there be 300 feet of two-hour parking, from the Post Road onto Josephine Evaristo Avenue. Mr. Corry said this will provide room for six to eight cars for people using the nearby businesses. To further help the businesses, Mr. Corry said, he will issue decals for employees who will park in the residents-only spaces while at work.


Mr. Corry first proposed the program last month, but the board held off on a decision to further evaluate options and reach out to nearby car dealerships about freeing up spaces. Complaints have long been heard about dealership employees parking their cars in the neighborhood before going to work, making it hard for residents and those who work at small businesses nearby to find spots. First Selectman Peter Tesei said he sent letters to the four nearby dealerships and that dialogue is ongoing.




The 2009-10 school budget is set for a vote tonight, but the Board of Education has not finished tinkering with it.


The approximately $127-million budget will have at least two additions and could undergo several cuts to bring it within guidelines suggested by the Board of Estimate and Taxation (BET), which will consider the budget for approval next year. The board is considering several cuts to the budget, and dozens of parents attended last Thursday’s public hearing to urge members not to reduce the magnet program proposed for Hamilton Avenue School.


Previously the school’s kindergarten through second grade foreign language program had been cut, but more cuts could impact the physical education program, specifically off-site programs of skating at the Dorothy Hamill Rink and swimming at the Boys & Girls Club. The programs were put in place for Hamilton Avenue students, who are still taking classes in the modulars, but they could be cut when students go into their new building with their own gymnasium. The board considered cutting the school’s Suzuki music education program, but did not appear to have enough support from members last week.


According to district estimates, cutting the skating program would save the district $20,525, and the swimming program, $32,610.


Board of Education Chairwoman Nancy Weissler said the board remains committed to remaining below the BET’s guideline of a $127-million budget, and several parents spoke out at the public hearing, urging the board to find other solutions besides eliminating parts of the magnet program. Linda Cambareri, reading a note written by another parent, said eliminating the program “will only undo any progress the Greenwich school system has made in creating a balanced and diverse student population and erasing gaps in achievement for our children.”


Caroline Russell, a Glenville School parent who enrolled her children in the Hamilton Avenue magnet program, said making the cut now after the board promised the programs is “false advertising.”


“We’ve put up with disappointment after disappointment in terms of our new state-of-the-art school, and whether you’re going to cut one or all of these programs, it truly makes no difference to me,” Ms. Russell said. “It is a bait and switch, and now I am left with a very difficult decision — stay in Hamilton Avenue, where we’ve all made friends and found a fabulous, diverse community we all enjoy being a part of, and keep our children in a potentially marginalized program or go back to Glenville, our district school where are kids can get solid programs and hop on the bus with their neighbors or, better yet, explore the private schools in our area, which, too, are struggling with cutbacks but would never, ever cut anything affecting the children.”


While most parents did not offer alternatives to where the money could be found outside of the magnet program, Bob McIntyre suggested salary cuts for Superintendent of Schools Betty Sternberg and other district cabinet officers. He said his suggestion was a serious one and not a personal attack, because cutting the educational programs at the school is “unacceptable.” He also suggested canceling any consulting contract that would be used to search for a new superintendent.......




Minnie Peggy Quatrone-White, a lifelong resident of Greenwich, died of a massive heart attack on Sunday, Dec. 14. She was 68.


Ms. Quatrone-White was an avid collector of antiques and collectibles, which family and friends said she “enjoyed in so many ways.”


“She was a source of strength and security to her family and loved ones,” they added. “She will be greatly missed and cherished by those who loved her for the special moments they shared.”


The daughter of Frank D. Quatrone Sr. and the late Irene Belanger-Quatrone, Ms. Quatrone-White is survived by her children, Patrick D. Quatrone of Norwalk and Wade M. White III and Tonya L. White, both of Greenwich; her sister, Margaret A. Pirrotta of Port Chester, N.Y.; a brother, Frank D. Quatrone Jr. of Greenwich; her grandsons, Wade M. White IV, Matthew A. White and Zachariah L. White; and many nieces and nephews.


Calling hours were on Wednesday, Dec. 17, at the Castiglione Funeral Home, 134 Hamilton Ave. Family and friends will gather at the funeral home today, Thursday, Dec. 18, from 11 to 11:30, at which time a procession will leave for a graveside service in St. Mary Cemetery.
Online condolences may be left at Castiglionefh.com.


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