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Saturday, November 22, 2008

11/22/08 Greenwich Art Lover Cheated Out Of More Than $120,000



New York Post
By BRUCE GOLDING

A Manhattan art dealer was busted in Florida yesterday for peddling bogus paintings he claimed were the works of famed artists including Henri Matisse, Alexander Calder and Marc Chagall, authorities said.


Giuseppe Concepcion - a dealer at the Park Avenue Armory Art Show who is based in Miami - allegedly employed forgers to copy the originals and then peddled the fakes to unsuspecting customers between 2005 and 2007, according to court papers.


In one case, Concepcion, who is charged with wire fraud, allegedly pawned a rip-off of a 1969 Calder oil "Red Swirl" to a victim from Greenwich, Conn., for $120,000. That was one of 15 forged works the victim bought from Concepcion, according to the complaint.


Defense lawyer Mark Heller said the art works passed through the hands of multiple dealers, and that the feds were using his client as a "scapegoat."
MORE INFORMATION:

New York Daily News
BY THOMAS ZAMBITO
A New York art gallery owner was nabbed Friday for commissioning dozens of knockoffs of Matisse, Calder and others that he passed off as the real thing.

Giuseppe Concepcion was arrested in Florida on charges of trafficking in phony artwork and scheming to dupe clients, Manhattan federal prosecutors say.

Concepcion owns the Proarte galleries in New York and Miami.
The feds say Concepcion purchased authentic works of art by Henri Matisse, Alexander Calder, Tom Wesselman and then commissioned forgeries he sold to victims, complete with bogus documents verifying their authenticity.

In August 2005, Concepcion sold a 1969 oil painting by Calder to a Greenwich, Conn., man who gave Concepcion his 2004 Bentley as partial payment for the $180,000 price tag, FBI Special Agent James Wynne said in legal papers filed yesterday in Manhattan Federal Court.

Experts at the Calder Foundation determined that painting, and 14 others the Connecticut man bought, were fakes, Wynne said.

In November 2006, Concepcion sold a $125,000 knockoff Chagall watercolor titled "Fleurs Rouges Et Bleues," the feds say. The New York-based Comite Chagall determined the painting and its certificate of authenticity were fakes.
tzambito@nydailynews.com

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11/22/08 READER SUBMITTED COMMENTS: No real press


OLD GREENWICH RESIDENT SAVES

FIVE BUCKS A WEEK


Round Up

Our newspapers serve very little of Greenwich, and it keeps serving less. I agree all 3 papers will combine and they will still follow the news of other towns. They are so lacking in local subject matter, it almost seems they do it on purpose.

Merideth Blake and Debra Friedman have no business covering the news in my town.... and they don't. They either cover nothing or they cover insignificant stories. Or, they get it all wrong and probably blame PMS. Gee, that's a new one ladies...

I will take my news straight up. Right here. I save about $5 a week, and I go to work INFORMED. And for me, that's pretty impressive around the water cooler...

J.A. Collins
Old Greenwich

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11/22/08 Town that wealth built starts to feel the pain



JOSEPH A. GIANNONE

GREENWICH, CONN. — As many hedge funds suffer big losses and anxious investors yank out their money, the town synonymous with the riches of their recent glory is now hurting.


In Greenwich, Conn., the luxury car dealers are quiet, the prices of mansions are declining and the retailers who have made a good living serving its wealthy residents are complaining about a sudden drop in business .


“Everything is down. We started to see it in the summer, but October is when the bottom caved in,” said James McArdle, whose family has run McArdle's Florist and Garden Center in Greenwich for 98 years. “Housing sales are down and so that always cuts into our market. Fewer buyers, fewer makeovers.”


.....Visit this town and it soon becomes clear that things aren't quite what they used to be. One recent weekday morning, the only creature strolling the showroom floor of Carriage House Motor Cars was a tiny mouse.


Richard Koppelman, owner of rival luxury dealership Miller Motorcars, did not want to discuss his sales. “We're in a cyclical business. It's obviously down right now. We'll hopefully see things get better soon,” he said.


For now, there are fewer people able to splurge on cars like the 2009 Bentley Continental GTC, which Miller's website lists at more then $212,000 or a “base” 2008 Ferrari 612 Scaglietti coupe for just $263,500 and change....


....“I think everybody is cautious. There's a high level of uncertainty,” said Peter Tesei, the town's first selectman, an elected post akin to mayor.


For years, Greenwich benefited from hosting these funds, he said, but now these benefactors have less to spend. One tree service firm suffered a 30-per-cent decline, Mr. Tesei said, while local charities and cultural centres expect donations to fall.


The town's top-notch Bruce Museum, which is operated by a private non-profit organization, recently postponed a $16-million expansion in light of the market downturn, Mr. Tesei said.....


“There are fewer people buying $10-million, $20-million homes. We're seeing an adjustment, a correction taking place,” said Roxana Bowgen, an estate agent at Engel & Volker, an international broker of high-end properties. “These things have to happen. After a while, things need to be cleaned up.”


Ms. Bowgen, a former commodities trader at Phibro, stressed that houses are still being sold, but the pace has slowed. Banks demand two appraisals rather than the one or even none asked for in the past, she said. Mortgages are harder to get.


“People are in a wait-and-see mode. Buyers are not ready to jump in without asking a lot of questions. They're taking their time – there's a lot more inventory,” Ms. Bowgen said.


Realtor David Ogilvy of Ogilvy & Associates noted that many managers he knows have weathered the financial storm, some by holding big piles of cash or correctly betting markets would fall, but they are being discreet about buying big homes.


Still, “We're definitely slower than we were,” Mr. Ogilvy said. “Some people who have taken it on the chin, they were heavily leveraged. We don't know who they are yet.”......


.....Terry Betteridge, whose family has run Betteridge Jewelers on the Avenue since the 1940s, said the fall of Lehman has hurt a business where customers spend $10,000 to $50,000 at a time.


“Business was phenomenal in the first quarter. When Bear Stearns fell apart, things began to get a little wonky but were still up. But when Lehman went under, there was a precipitous fall in business,” Mr. Betteridge said.


Another sign of the times is that a third of Greenwich High School's 2,700 students – most raised in affluence – are seeking jobs through a school-sponsored placement service and the number of new students registering for the service jumped to 230 in September from 170 Last Year......


......“My clients are being a little more cautious. They're not doing everything at once. They're being more thoughtful,” said Cindy Rinfret, who owns an interior design and decoration business that carries her name. “Before, it was ‘How quickly can you get it done?'”


Ms. Rinfret, who wrote a book on style featuring Greenwich's colonial, Tudor and English country style houses, said her business has held up well. Some clients who cannot sell their houses are spending to improve their surroundings, she said........


.....“Given everything going on, things are good. But I won't lie to you: Are we feeling it? Of course,” said Scott Mitchell, a co-owner of Mitchell's. The family-owned department store sells high-end jewellery and clothing from brands such as Brunello Cucinelli and Hermes, and even Ralph Lauren sweaters costing $1,000.


Business has remained strong, though the store is adapting to the environment, he said.


“We are keeping our inventory in balance. That's our biggest expense. We're cutting expenses that don't touch the customer. We are trying to reach out to our customers, one-on-one, and thank them for their business,” Mr. Mitchell said......


.....“You're talking about a town that historically has housed some of the greatest wealth in the world,” said Ron Cavalier, who sells artwork at Cavalier Galleries. “My guess is that, of all the towns, Greenwich is going to be affected the least.”


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11/22/08 READER SUBMITTED COMMENTS: An apology


To the Editor:

Please post this apology to Mrs. Sullivan regarding my recent post.

I obviously missed (or didn't realize) she was writing as a person with first hand knowlege of the term "handicapped".


I have no excuse for criticizing her informative and sincere letter.

This issue in Greenwich is so unnecessary and so beyond what should be going on in 2008....I cannot help but wonder why people with so much, just can't be thankful for what they have. But they are not thankful. They are either indifferent to others, or blatently mean, ALL TO PROVE A USELESS POINT.

I know this discriminatory behavior from another view. I can't get into it, but I understand the hurt involved.

I guess I can't read comprehensively, though. And I reacted too quickly. So, again, I'm sorry I didn't understand Ms. Sullivan's letter.

ME
Please send your comments to GreenwichRoundup@gmail.com

11/22/08 READER SUBMITTED LYRICS:: Oh Brian- here is a better ymca song for you


Greenwich Roundup:

OK, Does anyone else think this GREENWICH VILLAGE PEOPLE editor has a little too much time on his hands?

Ok, round up on this VILLAGE PEEPS-



Bad Boys


Bad Y
Bad Y
What ya gonna do?
What ya gonna do?
whatchya gonna do when the judge rules against you?


Donors wont give you no money
Cause your acting so loony


Bad Y
Bad Y
What ya gonna do?
What ya gonna do?
whatchya gonna do when the judge rules against you?

Bad Y
Bad Y
Reporter Merideth Blake playin sides,
Gonna keep the Handicaped off da streets,
yo the Greenwich Time always lies.

Bad Y
Bad Y
What ya gonna do?
What ya gonna do?
whatchya gonna do when the judge rules against you?.

Bad Y
Bad Y
wanna take a swim?
wanna take a swim or
play some hoop in the Gym.

Yo- we have some serious discrimination against the handicaped in this affluent town of Greenwich.

Merideth Blake, are you a reporter or do you just like to DENY EQUAL OPPORTUNITIES to the handicapped, and everyone else....


......what is wrong wth you?


Do you have a problem with wheelchairs? Are you for real, girl????

Oh my GGGGOOOOSSSSHHHHH.....this aint no disco, this aint no party this aint no foolin around....this is (sadly) Greenwich newspapers in 2008!!!!!!


Ms. Blake should try to go from her office in Riverside in a wheel chair to interview the new director of the YMCA. Let her wait for a bus with a lift to take her to the YMCA. Then she can wait outside on the street in the cold for the interview.

PLEASE SEE:
PLEASE ALSO SEE:
For What Its Worth

Look: if there are no good reasons not to build a temporary ramp, then the Y should say so and go ahead and do the right thing......If there are, then the Y should point them out. It’s already angered half of its (now former) members and jeopardized its financial support in town by a series of blunders
P&Z to review YMCA proposal

Commission Chairman Donald Heller said he expects the body to approve the extension, based on the five-year deadline.

"Tomorrow night looks like a relatively simple evening," he said Wednesday.......
YMCA committed to finishing project

...The YMCA has also had to contend with members and the public who have expressed frustration that the facility was not made wheelchair accessible during the first phase of the project, Fretty said.

"Am I horrified and sad that it is not accessible?.....

.....The Greenwich family of Luis Gonzalez-Bunster, who is in a wheelchair, has requested the facility build a temporary ramp until the rest of the facility is complete.....
Greenwich YMCA requests more time.
.....ADA requirements have come into sharper focus recently as the family of a man who uses a wheelchair has fought to get a temporary ramp installed while renovations are carried out. On Monday, YMCA officials announced that the facility will not be handicap accessible until renovations are complete.

The YMCA has completed some of its renovations, such as the new Olympic aquatics center, which opened in November 2007.
A new basketball court also opened Monday. YMCA officials also expect a warm-water therapy pool, new spin and aerobics studios, a teen fitness center and childcare classrooms completed by June 2009, according to an e-mail sent Wednesday by Ashleigh Rowe, communications director for the YMCA.....

.....Calls were not returned from Greenwich Family YMCA officials or their attorneys Wednesday.

Rebecca Fretty Is Making Sure ThatThere Will Be No Wheelchair Basketball Games At The Greenwich YMCA

To Rebecca Fretty,apparently "headless and brain dead"Head of theGreenwich YMCAs Fretty:

Obviously you don't belong running any town facility if you ignore the LAWS REGARDING HANDICAPPED ACCESSIBILITY. Not only are you violating a mandated code, you can/will be sued....

Family pushes YMCA for wheelchair ramp

The family of the town man who could not access the Greenwich Family YMCA because the building is not wheelchair accessible, is now pressuring the nonprofit organization to install a temporary ramp or face the possibility of being shut down.

Luis Gonzalez-Bunster's family contacted Greenwich attorney Frank Peluso, who said the facility is in violation of town, state and federal laws for not providing access to people with disabilities, according to the Americans with Disabilities Act and the Town of Greenwich building code.

YMCA wrong to deny access
To the editor:
Once again, we can see the discrimination that continues in town against people with disabilities ( "Man fighting for YMCA access, Greenwich Time, Oct. 20). We have been the silent minority, but things are about to change.

We recently formed the First Selectman's Advisory Committee for People With Disabilities. The mission is to advise town officials on matters pertaining to the rights and needs of citizens with disabilities. We will also advocate for improvements to make the town more accessible for people with disabilities.

The YMCA building expansion should never have been given a temporary certificate of occupancy. Why should some people be allowed to use this facility when others are turned away?.....I hope that the YMCA will find some way to make this area accessible immediately, and that the town will consider whether its temporary certificate of occupancy should be withdrawn.

Carol Kana
Riverside

The writer is a member of First Selectman's
Advisory Committee for People With Disabilities.
PLEASE ALSO SEE THESE LETTERS
TO THE GREENWICH TIME EDITOR:

Or Read What Greenwich Residents Are Saying
On The Internet Message Boards.....

"I would think a temporary ramp (however inconvenient) has to be cheaper than a lawsuit. I don't get their thinking at all. "

"That is pathetic - how hard would it be to put in a temporary ramp. Sounds like the YMCA is just too damn lazy. "

"How is it that the Greenwich YMCA gets to take its own time to obey what is LAW? I'm thinking of how society would be in general if every institution said "I"m working on it" when told to obey the law. A prisoner is declared guilty--or not guilty--and the judge says we'll put you in prison, or let you go, just as soon as we get a good bid on fixing the computer that does the proper paperwork. Doing the right thing should not HAVE to be a legal mandate, especially for a "Christinan" organization, but unfortunately, it has to for the YMCA, who isn't even obeying the legal mandate. As I said on another post, a bumper sticker I saw read, "I'll trade your legs for my parking space any day"' A person who does not have the legs most of us take for granted--and who would not give up our legs for the "reward" of filing a lawsuit, as this family has been forced to do--should not HAVE to go through all this just to gain lawful access to a public institution. "Get over it"?????? Most of us can walk "over" a sidewalk step, but we should make sure those who cannot walk can get "over" these steps also. "

"Every member of the Y should be at the door of the Director and every Board Member demanding minimal compliance with the law. The Y is not exempt, and "later" is inadequate.

In fact, if damages are ordered by a Court,(I hope this never gets that far,) the Board members and staff that charted and supported this ill-advised stand-off should be held personally responsible by the membership at large. This could not be covered by any "errors and omissions" policy, that's for sure. "

"Wow! That really tells us what a great bunch of guys you are! Shame on all of you. "

"The American's with Disabilities Act was supposed to address situations like this. It is illegal not to have handicapped access, not just morally wrong. How difficult could it be to put in a temporary access? "

"Isn't it amazing that there are still people in this country who look down on the disabled. Well we now have a black president. We had a disabled President about 50 years ago, but we are still being discriminated against. The Y is now asking for a 5 year extension. Are we supposed to wait another 5 years. Not if I can help it. "

"Doesn't YMCA stand for Young Men's Christian Association? There's nothing "Christian" about denying people with disabilites the same access that non-disabled people enjoy every day."

" Are the Planning And Zoning Board Members mentally disiabled. It sounds as if the members are "handicapped": by stupidity and ignorance."

"The timbre of the Y in this matter has been abominable. It has come across as loutish. "




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11/22/08 Greenwich Time News Links For Saturday



Though it deals mainly in open space, the Greenwich Land Trust has convinced the state to add a local building to its Register of Historic Places.


The tower on Shell Island, visible from Byram Harbor, is now one of 50,000 historically significant properties in Connecticut recognized by the Connecticut Commission on Culture and Tourism. The distinction makes the 83-year-old tower eligible for certain state restoration funds, as well as providing potential exemption from building codes and protection from demolition.


"This is an exciting step for the Greenwich Land Trust as we seek to preserve and protect this beautiful granite tower," said Trust President Bill Boysen......


....Originally owned by Colonel Henry Huss, a German immigrant who served in the 17th Connecticut Infantry during the Civil War, Shell Island was purchased by the Eimer family in 1910 for use as a summer compound.
The children of other German immigrants, the Eimers built the tower in 1925 as a family museum and tribute to their dead son, Gus Eimer II. New York architect Charles Calhoun designed the structure, built to resemble the Summerfield United Methodist Church tower in Port Chester, N.Y., with stones made of local Byram Blue Point granite. The same stone was used during the construction of the Empire State Building in Manhattan.....


....Mary Eimer Leinbach, sold the island in 1961 to Julius Silver, who donated it to the trust in 1990.


Today, the island is a wildlife preserve. The tower, which is boarded up, retains only an iron staircase and railing from its days as a family museum.
Gwynn said the Trust has no plans to open the tower, the only of its kind on Long lsland Sound, to the public.


There are five other Greenwich locales on the state's historic register: the John Addington House on West Putnam Avenue; the Benedict Building at Greenwich Hospital; the Cos Cob Firehouse; the Montgomery Pinetum Conservatory in Cos Cob; the O'Neill Outdoor Theatre, also in Cos Cob; and the Tomac Burying Ground in Old Greenwich.


Importer wins victory on accurate olive oil labeling
STAMFORD - Luciano Sclafani knows the terror of an allergy attack firsthand - the swelling, the labored breathing, the ambulance ride.


When his 10-year-old son had such an attack after eating walnuts, Sclafani saw how helpless allergy sufferers could be without proper food labeling.


So the president of Norwalk's Sclafani Importers set out to ensure olive oil, the food closest to his heart and his 97-year-old family business, would never cause allergy sufferers to feel helpless.


Now, after more than a year of work by Sclafani, the North American Olive Oil Association and the state Department of Consumer Protection, Connecticut is the first state to enforce International Olive Council standards for all olive oils and olive oil products sold in the state. California has adopted the regulations, but they won't be enforced until January.


The Department of Consumer Protection announced the victory and outlined the new guidelines at a 10 a.m. Friday news conference at La Fontanella Restaurant on High Ridge Road with Lt. Gov. Michael Fedele, Consumer Protection Commissioner Jerry Farrell Jr., and state Reps. Carlo Leone, D-148, and Joe Miloli, D-136....


Comment:


Was The Above Story Even Remotely About Greenwich?????


Where Is The News About Greenwich?


Despite multiple trips to the World Series, Tommy John never took part in a championship parade, but he will experience a sampling of that Sunday in Stamford, when he will lead the annual big-balloon parade as grand marshal.


"It's nice to be back," said John, 65, who is entering his third year as manager of the Bridgeport Bluefish minor league team. "When you've played up here with the Yankees and all that, you get used to the people and the ambiance. It's like a second home."


John, who lives in Charlotte, N.C., but moves to the Bridgeport area during baseball season, said the former owner of the Bluefish, Mary Jane Foster, asked him to serve as grand marshal.


"I told her I would do it if Bobby Valentine would be right next to me," John said with a laugh. "I'm really looking forward to it."


John, a pitcher with 288 career wins, is in Tampa Bay, Fla., for Yankees Fantasy Camp and will head north Saturday night. He'll arrive in the area about 6 a.m. and come straight to Stamford for the parade. John said it is the first time he will be grand marshal since a Christmas parade in Los Angeles in the 1970s.


COMMENT:


Another Story That Is Not About Greenwich.


What's Up With All Of This Regional News In The Greenwich Time?



By Colin Gustafson

Staff Writer
Posted: 11/22/2008 02:31:58 AM EST


The Board of Education is considering delegating much of its authority on school disciplinary matters to an expulsion hearing officer that would make final decisions on how to punish students.


At a meeting Thursday at Central Middle School, school board member Marianna Ponns Cohen gave a presentation on hiring a hearing officer to stand in for the board at expulsion hearings and make decisions on its behalf.


The hearing officer would preside over expulsion cases for a part-time compensation that could reach $350 per hour, when not enough board members are present to vote on a disciplinary measure.


Currently, school board members meet in groups of three or more, twice a month throughout the year as needed, to hear expulsion cases, which can involve violations such as selling drugs or possessing a weapon on or near school grounds.


Under current guidelines, three members must be present at the hearing to approve a disciplinary measure.


Because of scheduling conflicts, however, the board sometimes has been unable to muster enough members at these hearings to cast a vote within the mandatory 10-day time-frame after a student is suspended, said board member Susan Ellis said.


A hearing officer, in such cases, would act as a proxy for board members, supporters said.


"We have had problems of students being suspended for a 10-day period, and because we couldn't schedule fast enough, they're back in school" after 10 days, she said. That can be problematic when the student has been accused of a violent infraction, such as fighting or threatening peers.


COMMENT:


This Same Story Has Been Re-posted At The Greenwich Time For Two Days Now. Can't The Greenwich Time's Cub Reporter Colin Gustafson Find Any "NEW" News?


PLEASE SEE:




BEHIND THE TIMES:


Greenwich Time's Online News Readers Are Treated
Like Red Headed Step Children


Today's Entire Greenwich Time Newspaper Was Sent Digitally To The Connecticut Post Production Plant Bridgeport Last Night To Be Printed About 7 Hours Ago.


Once Again The Lazy Greenwich Time Webmaster
Can't Seem To Get It Up In The Morning.




By Colin Gustafson
Staff Writer

Posted: 11/21/2008 01:00:00 AM EST


Winklevoss Day
First Selectman Peter Tesei read his proclamation declaring Monday as Cameron and Tyler Winklevoss Day in honor of their achievements during the 2008 Olympics in China......



When the Holiday Inn Select in Stamford was built in 1984, it was a key contributor in the city's renaissance, and now, after spending $20 million in renovations, its new operators are touting it as the region's most desirable destination for the business and leisure traveler.


Davidson Hotel Co., Tennessee-based manager and joint venture owner of the 380-room hotel at 700 E. Main St., with Ohio-based RockBridge Capital, joined with more than 300 invited guests Thursday to celebrate its reconstruction.


The renovation included a redesign of the hotel's public spaces, facade, meeting facilities, guest rooms and suites. The lobby lounge, front desk and pool were relocated, and the atrium lobby, with marble floors and soaring ceiling, was enhanced.


Also new to the hotel is a health club with an indoor lap pool. Guest rooms have new bedding and 37-inch LCD high-definition televisions. DiLeonardo International was the design firm, StudioAD was the architect and Shakman Construction was the primary contractor.


To commemorate the event, Stamford Mayor Dannel Malloy participated in a ribbon cutting ceremony. Joining him were officials of Davidson and RockBridge Capital and InterContinental Hotels Group, the franchisor.


"This is a wonderful moment for Stamford. Here we are sitting and standing on the site of the old Scalzi Paint store," said Malloy, recalling his days as a youth. "Stamford is a business capital of the world. We now have another world-class property to partner with. This level of investment is a great testament to Stamford." ......Blah ...... Blah ...... Blah ....... Blah .......


COMMENT:


Since When Is The Holiday Inn Select in Stamford Considered A "LOCAL" Greenwich Hotel Or Luxurious.


What Does This Greenwich Time Story Have To Do With Greenwich?





By Robin Stansbury

The Hartford Courant


Janice Perkins bought a bedroom dresser more than a decade ago, but it never made it into her bedroom.


Instead, the versatile dresser has been useful for
Perkins in three places in three houses. Once it held a television set; another time it served as an entry table coupled with a mirror.


And, although it was built to hold clothes, its three wide drawers now comfortably store Perkins' table linens, napkins, candlesticks and napkin rings in an area near her dining room.


"It's just a nice piece of furniture. It comes with me wherever I move. I always seem to find a place for it," says Perkins, who recently moved herself and her bedroom dresser into a new condominium in Farmington. "It's a classic piece. It will stay around forever." Even if it never makes it into the bedroom.


Furniture can get a second life, serving an entirely new function. Experts call this "repurposing" furniture, and designers say they use this trick often, to add surprise and uniqueness to a room.


Amateur decorators, though, have a harder time and are less likely to make use of furniture in this way, afraid of breaking an unspoken design rule or unable to remove the name of the furniture from its purpose.


But just because it's called a dining room hutch doesn't mean it needs to reside in a dining room. The same is true for sofa tables, which don't need to be near a sofa. And as Perkins proves, bedroom dressers ..... Blah ..... Blah ..... Blah ...... Blah ......


COMMENT:


Once Again This Greenwich Time Story Has Nothing To Do About Greenwich.


It Seems Like The Greenwich Time Editor Is Trying To Get The Town's News Readers Used To Regional News Before His Paper Is Folded With Others Into The Connecticut Post.


There Are Some In Greenwich Who Do Not Believe The Rumor That Hearst Newspapers Is Not Going To Consolidate Their Multiple Fairfield County Newspaper Holdings Into One Regional Newspaper.


They Argue That Greenwich Will Not Stand For It And There Will Always Be A Distinct Division Between Hearst Newspaper's Other Properties And The Greenwich Time.


These Are The Same People Who Now Bank At Chase And Used To Say That Greenwich Will Never Accept The Loss Of The Putnam Trust Name. These Same People Argued That There Will Always Be A Distinct Division Between The Bank Of New York And Putnam Trust.




The growing number of homeowners in foreclosure is pressuring Congress to step in and provide assistance.


We have to hope our lawmakers will be smart about it, but the early signs are not encouraging.


Connecticut Sen. Christopher J. Dodd, chairman of the Senate Banking Committee, said last week he would push for legislation to allow people facing foreclosure to seek protection in bankruptcy court.


Even if we hadn't seen the tightening in bankruptcy laws that has occurred over the past few years, this would not be the greatest idea. Bankruptcy is a terrible injury to a person's credit history, taking years to heal and essentially forcing the downtrodden individual into a cash-only world.


But today's economic world is constructed on credit, much of it in places people don't often think about.


Businesses use short-term credit to fund inventories and payrolls, especially when gearing up for times like the coming holiday season. Banks use short-term credit to balance the books overnight or for a few days while awaiting payments on loans and charge cards to clear. And even if a personal credit card user pays in full every month to avoid interest charges, he or she is still using credit to get by for a few weeks. ...... Blah ...... Blah ......Blah ...... Blah ....... Blah ......


Why Arn't The Greenwich Time Editors Brave Enough To Take A Stand On A Local Issue Like Making The Greenwich YMCA ADA Compliant Now.


These Are The Kinds Of "LOCAL" Issues That Their Readers Are Interested In.....



To the editor:


I congratulate Rita A. Sullivan on the remarkable job she has done raising and advocating for her two grown mentally retarded children ("Greenwich has been outstanding for the disabled," Letters from Readers, Nov. 11).


I too am disabled, but my story is a little bit different.


I have a hereditary retinal disorder that has robbed me of 95 percent of my daytime vision and all of my night vision.


Two years ago, I received the gift of a Fidelco Guide Dog. Until that time, although I was disabled I had not yet faced any discrimination. But since my guide dog entered the picture, there have been multiple times where my entrance to certain establishments has been blocked by people who either are not familiar with or are uncaring about the laws of access.


I face the hazards of fall with leaves stacked high and wide so my guide dog and I have to walk far into the street, or not at all. I face the hazards of winter when homeowners or the town do not shovel sidewalks, and once again I cannot leave my home.


At Greenwich Point, employees are constantly trying to bar my entrance, forgetting about the laws of access.


I have worked very hard to understand the needs of other disabled children and adults, and as wonderful as Ms. Sullivan's personal experience has been, she has been very lucky not to face the hardships of others.


Letter writer Carol Kana can't find out what the YMCA has to offer because she is in a wheelchair and cannot enter the building.


There are some houses of worship in Greenwich that may preach inclusion, but still lack ramps or the doors wide enough to accommodate a wheelchair.


Town Hall until September did not have an accessible bathroom for people in wheelchairs.


A student in a wheelchair who would like to enter Greenwich High School must either travel with someone or have someone open the front door because there is no automatic door for the disabled.


I applaud Ms. Kana's hard work as an advocate for the disabled. I appreciate that she is part of our community, and I hope she continues to fight for inclusion.


Alan Gunzburg
Cos Cob


The writer is a member of the First Selectman's Advisory Committee for People With Disabilities


HERE ARE OTHER GREENWICH RESIDENTS
WHO ARE BRAVE ENOUGH TO TAKE A STAND ON

"LOCAL" CURRENT EVENTS



To the editor:


Why am I not surprised that state Sen. William Nickerson, the sponsor of the $750,000 grant to the Bruce Museum, and Peter Sutton, the director of the museum, defend the grant and the borrowing that it takes to pay for it?


That aside, let me answer the points they made in their letter.


That the grant was vetted and approved by many legislators is correct. That the same is done for all grants is also true, which seems to support my point that almost all legislators willingly spend our money on nonessentials even in times of scarcity.


That the Bruce is partially an educational facility, and that it brings in $1.2 million to the town is correct, but not relevant. The $1.2 million does not add one cent to our town's coffers, but the state does get its 6 percent sales tax, and some merchants make more money.....


.....Every time I hear that the state contributes to something, I understand that to mean that we, the taxpayers, pay. We are the state.


If the Bruce is all that Sen. Nickerson and Peter Sutton say, all the more reason for our local government and private people to pay.


But then the proponents would have to convince our local Board of Estimate and Taxation, and the Representative Town Meeting, which is a lot harder than convincing other state legislators to go along with our dip into the trough in exchange for approving their dip.


Donald Landsman
Greenwich




To the editor:


This newspaper reported in its Nov. 13 edition in a Page One headline, "Gay couple gets first license. The "couple" is described as "from Queens, N.Y." Given the Connecticut Supreme Court ruling allowing same-sex marriage, it is not surprising that Greenwich would issue a license, as Connecticut does not have any residency requirement for marriage between any persons otherwise qualified by age and mental capacity.


Unlike the past, when there were impediments to marriage ranging from racial prohibitions in the South to blood tests almost everywhere, most states today have relatively little in the way of requirements to marry, and so there is little reason for residents to cross a state line, except for persons of the same sex whose options are quite limited. Judging by the outcome of the referendum in California that rejected same sex-marriage, Connecticut is likely to remain one of a very few places where same-sex couples can marry.....


..... I strongly suspect that many people in Connecticut do not welcome visits of "same-sex marriage tourists" taking advantage of the state's administrative resources.


Steven J. Stein
Greenwich




To the editor:


The recent decision of the school board to meet as a "committee of the whole" to nominate a new superintendent, and the apparent desire to expedite the process, is in my opinion not in the best interests of the community. As a parent of two second-graders, I am going to have a long investment with whomever is appointed, and I want the board to make absolutely sure makes the kind of hire that is not the result of an over- compromise by eight board members who may place too much weight on internal politics and comity, as many decisions of this kind in all walks of life are made....


.....If we are waiting for the right hire, we might want to wait for a new school board and see who might want to step forward as new members with potentially strong new ideas.


Frank Farricker
Cos Cob


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11/22/08 Greenwich DTC Votes to Censure and Repudiate Joe Lieberman


The other night the Greenwich Democratic Town Committee voted overwhelmingly to "publicly censure and repudiate the words and actions of Joe Lieberman and to ask that he resign from the Democratic Party of the state ...


Full Story: My Left Nutmeg


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