10/11/09 Comment On These Greenwich Time News Reports At The Greenwich Topix Forum

School board weighs cost savings in GHS auditorium project
The school board faces some difficult decisions over the next two weeks as members assess a menu of cost-saving options that could significantly change the scope of the high school auditorium project.

The Board of Education will consider eliminating or reducing some key features of the renovation and expansion project, while potentially adding other features, in an effort to come up with the most cost-efficient plan.

The effort comes after preliminary cost estimates showed the overall price would be more than 20 percent higher than projected under the original building specifications. According to that estimate, construction costs would reach more than $28 million, up from the earlier projection of less than $23.5 million.
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Susannah Chase remembered at annual run
One day after what would have been her 35th birthday, about 300 runners, family members and friends gathered at Greenwich Point for an annual fundraising run to remember Greenwich High School graduate Susannah Chase, who was murdered in Colorado 12 years ago.

Joining her parents, Julie and Hal, at the 12th annual 5k Susannah's Run, were her four siblings: Carrie, 45, Christy, 43, Stephen, 42, and Doug, 39, and their 10 children.

Christy, who lives in Providence, R.I., said the event brings people together who shared in Susannah's life.....
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Verdict overturned in age discrimination lawsuit
Several months after a jury awarded a former town employee $50,000, finding that her contract had been breached, a state Superior Court judge has overturned the verdict and handed a victory to the town.

Bernadette Welch, the town's former deputy human resources director, sued the town in 2006, alleging she was the victim of age discrimination and gender bias. The lawsuit also claimed her contract was breached during her termination.

While a jury did not find evidence of age or gender bias, it did award Welch damages in July, finding there was a breach in her contract due to the town not placing her name on a re-employment list.
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Immigration officials: August 'human smuggling' incident was fabricated
It was described as a "human-smuggling bust" and a "botched ransom," but one week after Greenwich police and immigrations agents detained four people stemming from a August melee in Riverside, officials determined the incident was neither.

In fact, the dispute in the Riverside Commons parking lot -- an episode that sparked national media attention -- turned out to be an argument over money between three illegal immigrants who had just entered the country and a driver who requested more money to continue the trip to Willimantic where the passengers' relatives lived.

"Agent Davis (from federal Immigrations and Customs Enforcement agency) advised me that the entire kidnapping story was completely fabricated and that the three reported victims had actually just entered the United States illegally," states an Aug. 12 Greenwich police report written by Officer Martin O'Reilly. "After entering the country, family members of the three reported victims made arrangements via legitimate transportation companies to have them driven to Connecticut. An additional fee of $60 per person was requested "¦ the family members refused to make the additional payment when the van arrived, at which time an argument ensued...."

....Greenwich Police Chief David Ridberg said it is his policy not to comment on other agencies' investigations, but wanted residents to know they had no reason to fear the incident.
"I can say that the incident at the (shopping center) had no connections at all to Greenwich other than the fact the involved parties happened to come together just off Exit 5 of I-95," Ridberg said. "There is absolutely no reason for residents to be concerned about any fallout from this incident or similar activity in the future."

One person involved in the August dispute, described as a friend to the driver of the van, fled after hearing police sirens and was not captured. ICE officials did not comment on whether they are actively looking for that person.
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Local locks shorn for a good cause
Sisters Shannon, 12, and Olivia Rubin, 9, had thigh-length blond hair when they walked into the hair salon Sunday morning.

"It feels weird," Olivia said to her parents Jeff and Laura as she held her shortened hair. "I don't know if my friends will recognize me."

"It feels so much lighter," Shannon said after the sisters took part in a charitable event Sunday at Hopscotch, at 10 Railroad Ave.

The event was dubbed "Locks of Love," and the goal was to collect hair that can be later used to create wigs for children who have suffered hair loss due to medical conditions or as a result of chemotherapy, Hopscotch co-owner Hisao Oe said......
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Letters from our Readers - Safety first
It is completely irresponsible for Lin Lavery to criticize Superintendent Freund for declining to have Greenwich Schools participate in the state walk or bike to school contest ......

.....Thank you Superintendent Freund for caring more about the safety of our kids than making grand political statements!
Peggy Heppelmann
Greenwich
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Eight is enough
As Frank MacEachern reported on Oct. 8, I told our Planning and Zoning Commission that a ninth bank in Cos Cob will make Cos Cob a banking center for all Greenwich residents, who will increasingly drive here for convenience and free parking.....

....A second Peoples Bank in Cos Cob does not increase variety. Greenwich does not need more criss-crossing traffic. Cos Cob does not need nine banks.
Peter E. Berg
Cos Cob
The writer is a member of the RTM Land Use Committee.
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Nino Sechi - Greenwich needs more affordable housing, but Byram not the answer
In the past two years, I've attended at least four community meetings on the subject of affordable and workforce housing in Greenwich.

As a senior citizen, a resident of Greenwich for more than 80 years, a homeowner and taxpayer for 50 of those years, I think I know this town fairly well. My own conclusion, from the very introduction of this issue, has been that we need this form of housing -- desperately.

We're almost at a critical stage in this area. Selectman Lin Lavery's recent comment keeps popping up in my head: "By 2020, our 65-and-over population will make up about 30 percent of the town's population." That could present a very serious housing drought for Greenwich seniors and service personnel if we don't arrive at a positive decision and proceed with the construction of affordable housing in our community.

The Byram Neighborhood Association sponsored a meeting last Wednesday evening at St. Paul Episcopal Church to hear what the candidates for the Board of Selectmen had to say about the shortage of senior and workforce housing in Greenwich......

Nino Sechi is a Greenwich native and a former newspaper reporter and public relations executive. He welcomes your comments via his e-mail address, nsech@aol.com.
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