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Brown sworn in as new UNH police chief
WEST HAVEN, Aug. 24, 2021 — (Pictured): Mayor Nancy R. Rossi swears in new University of New Haven Police Chief Adam Brown at the World War I Armistice Memorial on the Green on Tuesday.
Among those attending the ceremony were Brown’s parents, Bob and Nancy Rakauskas; his girlfriend, Jennifer Cretella; Ronald M. Quagliani, UNH’s associate vice president of public safety and administrative services; and Christopher J. Reed, UNH’s director of safety and training and fire marshal.
Brown, who was promoted to chief after serving as UNH’s deputy chief since June 2020, succeeds former Chief James T. Gilman, who retired in June after two years of service.
A resident of Branford, Brown is a former 20-year member of the Connecticut State Police.
(City Photo/Michael P. Walsh) |
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 Former Connecticut State Police Sgt. Bob Rakauskas pins a chief of police badge on his son, new UNH Chief Adam Brown. (City Photo/Michael P. Walsh)
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Shaded Soul Band set for Friday in Old Grove, followed by Bob Seger and Neil Diamond tribute Saturday
WEST HAVEN, Aug. 24, 2021 — The West Haven Centennial Concert Series will continue Friday with R&B music played by Shaded Soul Band.
The two-hour show is set for 7 p.m. in Old Grove Park. The rain date is Monday.
The Franco’s Fried Dough-Licious and Sultan Kebab food trucks and the Mister Softee ice cream truck will serve concertgoers on Palace Street.
The concert series will continue in the Grove at 7 p.m. Saturday with Main Street performing a Bob Seger tribute and Cherry Cherry performing a Neil Diamond tribute.
The two-hour show is sponsored by the American Colleges of Kombido, the First Congregational Church of West Haven and the City of West Haven Centennial Celebration Committee.
On Sept. 5, the series will culminate in the Grove at 7 p.m. with a two-hour concert by What a Fool Believes, “a Doobie Brothers experience” celebrating the Doobies’ 50th anniversary.
The show is co-sponsored by the West Haven Veterans Council and West Haven Vietnam Veterans. The rain date is Sept. 9.
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Gifts for Madi
WEST HAVEN, Aug. 24, 2021 — (Pictured, from left): Tom Conroy, a program coordinator at the Department of Parks and Recreation, receives a $1,000 check Aug. 10 from Rick Ziegler on behalf of the New Haven Raiders Hockey Club toward the department’s purchase of a tree and plaque in Painter Park in memory of Madison “Madi” Cicarella.
Looking on is Chuck Asarisi, the director of the department’s Painter Park Day Camp.
Madi, of West Haven, died of cancer July 16 at age 13.
In honor of the avid camp participant, Conroy said Park-Rec’s Camper of the Year award has been renamed the Madi Cicarella Camper of the Year award.
(City Photo/Kerri Ruocco) |
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West Haven beaches closed to swimming through Wednesday
WEST HAVEN, Aug. 23, 2021 — Due to possible impacts from Tropical Storm Henri, the Health Department has closed all city beaches to swimming through Wednesday.
Health Director Maureen B. Lillis said the closing is a precautionary measure due to the heavy rain and potential contamination by stormwater runoff to the beaches.
The status of the beaches will be available by calling the department at 203-937-3660.
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West Haven Senior Center luncheon moved to Thursday at 201 Noble St.
WEST HAVEN, Aug. 23, 2021 — Due to inclement weather, Mayor Nancy R. Rossi’s luncheon for city residents 65 and older today at the West Haven Senior Center is postponed to Thursday.
The catered lunch, slated from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. at 201 Noble St., will celebrate the reopening of the center, which had been closed for more than a year due to restrictions imposed by the coronavirus pandemic.
The event will also be a great opportunity for older residents to meet Alyssa Maddern, the new director of the Department of Elderly Services.
In keeping with the center’s current protocol, all visitors and staff members must wear a face mask regardless of vaccination status. Masks may be lowered while actively eating or drinking.
Because the center has reached its COVID-19 capacity, city officials will accommodate additional reservations for a luncheon at a later date.
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Family Day at farmers market postponed to Thursday
WEST HAVEN, Aug. 23, 2021 — Due to inclement weather, Family Day at the Tony Inzero Farmers Market on the Green is postponed to Thursday.
The farmers market, in collaboration with Sustainable West Haven and the West Haven Prevention Council, will now present Family Day, an inclusive and interactive day filled with fun activities to celebrate the city’s families and community, from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. Thursday on the Green at Campbell Avenue and Main Street.
The semiweekly market features a variety of farm-fresh goods, such as honey, flowers, fruits and vegetables, from longtime Connecticut Grown farmers Mary Ann Borrelli, the owner of Borrelli Farms, and John Marcucio, the owner of Marcucio Farms.
The Family Day market will showcase many additional guest vendors alongside seasonal vendors that will offer a range of different goods, including homemade artisan vegan pet treats, palm wax candles, handcrafted soaps and much more.
There will also be a variety of jewelry vendors, ranging from precious metal and wire works to resin creations and crystal jewelry.
Alongside farmers and vendors, Gateway Christian Fellowship will have games and activities for kids.
Along with games like jumbo Jenga and tic-tac-toe bean toss, the Prevention Council and Sustainable West Haven will have arts and crafts and activities, such as “Chalk the Walk.”
In addition, the West Haven Community House, PosiGen Solar Power and the United Way of Greater New Haven will have resource tables to raise awareness of their programs.
While enjoying the market and festivities, join in on the fun with family karaoke and add your favorite song to a family-friendly playlist by texting it to the market’s manager at 860-903-7660.
Stop by the Franco’s Fried Dough-Licious food truck for fresh fried dough and Whisk Together Catering’s booth for fresh-grilled street corn. Grab a treat or two at the Mister Softee ice cream truck. |
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Southern Connecticut Gas relocating some employees, operations to city
WEST HAVEN, Aug. 19, 2021 — Avangrid Inc., the parent company of Southern Connecticut Gas, is in the process of selling its 104,000-square-foot SCG headquarters at 60 Marsh Hill Road in Orange and relocating employees and operations to new and existing facilities in the area, including West Haven.
“Employees now working at SCG’s facility will be moving to facilities with generally superior amenities, including a new operations and office facility on Frontage Road in West Haven and satellite field locations in the Bridgeport and North Haven areas,” according to a company letter by Frank Reynolds, the president and CEO of UIL Holdings Corp.
UIL is the Avangrid subsidiary that oversees its natural gas and electric companies in Connecticut and Massachusetts.
Mayor Nancy R. Rossi welcomed the “great news.”
“West Haven is fortunate to be the beneficiary of Avangrid’s relocation plan,” Rossi said. “Avangrid is well known for their efforts to build and maintain a diverse workforce, so they are a good fit for our city.
“West Haven professionals who are thinking about new employment possibilities would be well served by taking a look at the various job offerings now open at SCG. And I encourage our college students and recent college graduates to consider the internship opportunities that Avangrid offers.”
According to city officials, SCG has occupied a portion of the former Sears Outlet at 190 Frontage Road since January 2020, when a lease was signed by Avangrid.
The Frontage Road space, near the West Haven train station, houses meter-reading trucks and other equipment, according to a SCG spokesman.
Avangrid shares space in the building with American Freight, which merged with Sears Outlet in 2020.
The SCG relocation will consist of three phases, with the latter two benefiting West Haven and occurring by mid-2022.
Reynolds said phase two will include relocating about 130 SCG field operations personnel to the new locations on Frontage Road and in the Bridgeport and North Haven areas. The final phase will include relocating about 85 SCG office employees to the new office space on Frontage Road, he said.
Reynolds said the SCG building sale and relocation is expected to significantly reduce operating costs while passing savings on to customers.
“A new, decentralized operations model will allow us to reduce overall service travel and improve response times,” Reynolds said. “Reducing travel will also help us deliver on our commitment to the environment by lowering vehicle emissions and reducing our carbon footprint.”
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 State Rep. Dorinda Borer, D-West Haven, and West Haven Mayor Nancy R. Rossi speak during a groundbreaking ceremony announcing a 24-hour 7-Eleven store at 480 Sawmill Road on Aug. 10. (City Photo/Louis P. Esposito Jr.)
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7-Eleven breaks ground on new Sawmill Road store
WEST HAVEN, Aug. 19, 2021 — Mayor Nancy R. Rossi and state Rep. Dorinda Borer were among a contingent of West Haven leaders who touted the announcement of a 24-hour 7-Eleven store during a groundbreaking ceremony at 480 Sawmill Road on Aug. 10.
Rossi and Borer, D-West Haven, were joined by father and son developers Jed and Jack Hayes to herald the convenience store giant’s new West Haven location at the former site of Staples, which was recently demolished after sitting vacant since 2006.
Those attending the ceremony included City Council Chairman Ronald M. Quagliani, D-at large, Majority Leader Robbin Watt Hamilton, D-5, and members Chrystal Fanelli, D-8, Gary Donovan, D-at large, and Colleen O’Connor, R-at large; Planning Director Christopher Soto; Economic Development Commission Chairwoman Christine Gallo; and mayoral Executive Assistant Louis P. Esposito Jr.
The future 5,635-square-foot store, under construction off Interstate 95’s Exit 42, will feature 20 gas pumps for passenger vehicles and two counter-service restaurants owned and operated by 7-Eleven Inc.: Laredo Taco Co., an authentic Mexican quick-service eatery, and Raise the Roost Chicken & Biscuits.
Jed and Jack Hayes, the representatives of project co-developer SullivanHayes of Farmington, chose West Haven for a 7-Eleven store because of Sawmill Road’s dense population and high visibility from I-95. |
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West Haven ‘strongly’ recommends people wear face masks indoors
WEST HAVEN, Aug. 19, 2021 — The city departments of Health and Emergency Management strongly recommend that all people wear face masks indoors in areas of high or substantial COVID-19 transmission regardless of vaccination status.
All eight counties in Connecticut are considered areas of substantial transmission.
Read the full News Release.
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Watch Centennial Savin Rock Festival on YouTube
WEST HAVEN, Aug. 5, 2021 — Watch the Centennial Savin Rock Festival on the city’s YouTube channel.
Amid a weekend of fabulous weather and crowds 5,000 strong, the festival, presented by the City of West Haven Centennial Celebration Committee, paid homage to the enduring legacy of “the Rock” while marking the community’s 100th anniversary.
The festival, held in historic Old Grove Park on July 30-31, was part of a six-month series of free events commemorating West Haven’s 1921 birth and its incorporation by the General Assembly as Connecticut’s youngest town.
The shoreline festival showcased West Haven’s past 100 years and the time-honored recipe — musical groups, rides, games, mouthwatering food — that made the 20th-century Savin Rock Park so storied as “the playground of New England.”
Watch the festival on West Haven YouTube. |
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Every Friday is #FunFactFriday on W. Haven centennial Facebook page
WEST HAVEN, July 29, 2021 — The City of West Haven Centennial Celebration Committee has launched a new series called #FunFactFriday to promote the community’s 100th anniversary this year.
Every Friday, the committee will post tidbits celebrating historical events, people and places in West Haven from the past 100 years on its official Facebook page, City of West Haven Centennial Celebration - 1921-2021.
The page is administered by the city and edited by Dan Shine, one of the foremost authorities on West Haven history. Like the page on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/CityofWestHavenCentennialCelebrationCommittee.
The historical facts are compiled from various West Haven Library references by staff members Taylor Cordova and Kiana Arevalo under the supervision of Executive Director Colleen Bailie.
The committee is planning a number of commemorative events, starting this month, to observe the 1921 birth of Connecticut’s youngest town.
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