West Haven fireworks set for 9:15 p.m. July 3

Savin Rock Fireworks Spectacular set for 9:15 p.m. July 3

WEST HAVEN, June 28, 2018 — An estimated 100,000 people are expected to flock to the city’s 3 ½-mile shoreline Tuesday to watch the Savin Rock Fireworks Committee launch the region’s largest Independence Day fireworks show at 9:15 p.m. off Bradley Point.

The rain date is July 5.

Before the display, partygoers can shake, rattle and roll to Off the Hook, “Connecticut’s premier party band,” at the Savin Rock bandstand from 6:30-9 p.m.

Craft, farm, food truck vendors sought for farmers market

WEST HAVEN, June 28, 2018 — The city is seeking craft, farm and food truck vendors to participate in the Tony Inzero Farmers Market, which opens its 19th season July 12 on the Green.

Applications are due July 6.

Through Oct. 27, the expanded marketplace at Main Street and Campbell Avenue will feature state farmers selling homegrown fruits and vegetables from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. Thursdays and 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Saturdays.

It will include crafters selling their wares and an internet radio station DJ playing hit music.

The Thursday markets will showcase food trucks galore, dishing up baked potatoes, fried dough, Italian ice, kettle corn, lobster rolls and pulled pork.

Download a Participation Form.

Forms are also available in the mayor’s office at City Hall, 355 Main St., where they should be returned.

Forms can be emailed to market organizer Kristen Teshoney at kteshoney@westhaven-ct.gov or faxed to 203-937-3705.

USAlliance Financial relocates to The Atwood on Route 1

WEST HAVEN, June 28, 2018 — Mayor Nancy R. Rossi cuts the ceremonial ribbon June 16 to celebrate the grand reopening of USAlliance Financial at 1 Atwood Place, off Route 1.

From left, USAlliance Branch Manager Loren Wells, Councilwoman Robbin Watt Hamilton, D-5, USAlliance Consumer Lending Team Leader Hala Urban, Councilwoman Portia Bias, D-7, state Rep. Charles J. Ferraro, R-West Haven, and USAlliance Chairman George Barto, President and CEO Kris Van Beek and Doreen Bjorkman, vice president of branch service and operations.

USAlliance Financial was previously at 502 Main St. and is now with other small businesses and national tenants, such as the soon-to-be-opened Mooyah Burgers, Fries & Shakes, on the ground floor of The Atwood, a new $18 million, four-story, 90,150-square-foot apartment and commercial building.

USAlliance, open since 1966, provides banking services to more than 112,000 members. The federal credit union is a member-owned financial cooperative that provides banking services, including savings, loans and other financial services.

(Contributed Photo/West Haven Chamber of Commerce)

Mexican consul general meets with Rossi to forge partnership

Mexican consul gen meets with Rossi to forge partnership

WEST HAVEN, June 15, 2018 — Mayor Nancy R. Rossi presents Diego Gomez Pickering, consul general of Mexico to New York City, with a framed collage of pencil drawings of West Haven’s most recognizable icons and landmarks June 15 at City Hall as Police Chief John Karajanis Jr. looks on.

Gomez Pickering in turn presented Rossi with a copy of the book “A New Compact History of Mexico.”

Gomez Pickering, who was appointed consul general by Mexican President Enrique Pena Nieto in June 2016, met with Rossi and Karajanis to discuss Mexican nationals living in West Haven and forging a partnership with the city on behalf of the Mexican Consulate in New York.

The consul general is a career diplomat as well as a writer and journalist, having worked for CNN in Mexico City and the Americas edition of The Wall Street Journal.

From December 2013 until arriving in New York in 2016, he served as ambassador of Mexico to the United Kingdom.

According to his official online biography, Gomez Pickering “acknowledges that Mexico must regain the position we had in the international arena two decades ago and considers that the country is coming to the end of ‘a number of difficult years’ focused on internal issues.”

(City Photo/Michael P. Walsh)

High-end lighting showroom opens on Railroad Ave.

WEST HAVEN, June 15, 2018 — Mayor Nancy R. Rossi, center, cuts the ceremonial ribbon June 15 to mark the grand opening of Your Lighting Source, “Connecticut’s premier lighting and home accessory showroom,” at 51 Railroad Ave.

From left, Your Lighting Source manager Jill McKearney, state Reps. Dorinda Borer, D-West Haven, and Charles J. Ferraro, R-West Haven, and owners Joe Trerotola, Mike Bertona, with wife Lisa and daughters Mia, 5, and Tessa, 1, and Karen Muller Trerotola.

In recognition of the special occasion, Ferraro presented the owners with a General Assembly citation on behalf of the city’s delegation.

The new 2,000-square-foot showroom, housed in a rear, brick building across the street from the train station, displays the highest-quality brands in the lighting industry. It offers a wide array of ceiling lights, fixtures, chandeliers, lamps, outdoor lights, pendant lights, wall lights and lighting accessories, as well as ceiling fans.

Your Lighting Source is open 9 a.m.-5 p.m. weekdays and Saturdays.

(City Photo/Michael P. Walsh)

West Haven joins Sustainable CT

WEST HAVEN, June 15, 2018 — On May 29, the City Council voted to join Sustainable CT, an exciting new initiative to support Connecticut’s cities and towns.

The statewide initiative, created by towns for towns, includes a detailed menu of sustainability best practices, tools and resources, peer learning, and recognition.

Read the official Sustainable CT News Release.

Ad book supports overtime costs for July 3 fireworks display

WEST HAVEN, June 12, 2018 — Mayor Nancy R. Rossi has rolled out an ad book fundraising campaign to help cover overtime costs for the Savin Rock Fireworks Spectacular, which is set for 9:15 p.m. July 3.

Rossi said the ad book proceeds will specifically pay for police and public works overtime during the annual fireworks display, which is launched off Bradley Point and presented by the Savin Rock Fireworks Committee.

“Your support of this ad book will directly impact the overtime costs that come along with the city holding the fireworks,” Rossi said.

Ad book forms are available in the mayor’s office at City Hall, 355 Main St., or download a form at July 3 Fireworks.

Four ad sizes are offered: $45 for a business card, $75 for a quarter page, $100 for a half page and $185 for a full page. Checks are payable to City of West Haven.

Send ads by June 29 to the Office of the Mayor, 355 Main St., West Haven, CT 06516. Or, send a business card, letterhead or other information to the mayor’s office, and the office can create an ad. Send PDF files to kteshoney@westhaven-ct.gov.

Corporate sponsorships are also offered: $2,000 for red level, $1,000 for white level and $500 for blue level. For details, call the mayor’s office at 203-937-3510.

Rossi said the city will charge both residents and nonresidents for parking on July 3. The fee is $5 for vehicles with a valid beach sticker and $10 for vehicles without a valid beach sticker. All parking proceeds will also support overtime costs, she said.

The fireworks display, billed as “the region’s largest Independence Day fireworks show,” draws an estimated 100,000 people of all ages to the city’s 3 ½-mile shoreline each year. The rain date is July 5.

Before the patriotic event, partygoers can shake, rattle and roll to Off the Hook, “Connecticut’s premier party band,” at the Savin Rock bandstand from 6:30-9 p.m.

Tax bills payable in 2 installments

WEST HAVEN, June 12, 2018 — City tax bills — real estate, personal property, motor vehicle and sewer — have been mailed and are payable in two installments: July and January.

Each tax bill, which is sent out once a year, has three parts: a payment coupon for July, payment coupon for January and payment coupon for taxpayers’ records.

Taxes are due July 1. Payments after Aug. 1 are considered delinquent and subject to interest, Tax Collector Dorothy Chambrelli said.

The tax office is open from 9 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. weekdays on the first floor of City Hall, 355 Main St.

For the convenience of taxpayers, the city has an ATM outside the office.

Please note that City Hall is closed for business June 29, a furlough day for city employees.

Taxpayers can see their tax bills, make a payment, and print their payment history for income tax purposes at Tax Collector. Sewer bills are on the same page but under a separate heading.

In July and January only, current taxes can be paid by mail to a tax office lockbox, P.O. Box 150461, Hartford, CT 06115-0461. When paying by lockbox or the drop box outside the tax office in City Hall, the canceled check is the receipt.

After Aug. 1, taxes with interest can be paid by mail to the Office of the Tax Collector, P.O. Box 401, West Haven, CT 06516. Payments can also be made in person.

Anyone needing a motor vehicle clearance must pay in person with cash, credit card, bank check or money order.

City Hall, municipal buildings closed June 29 for furlough day

WEST HAVEN, June 12, 2018 — Working with the unions that represent city employees, police, Allingtown firefighters and wastewater treatment workers, Mayor Nancy R. Rossi has instituted a furlough day for all union and nonunion personnel, including the mayor and her staff, on June 29.

The furlough day means that City Hall and other municipal buildings are closed for business June 29. All affected buildings will reopen July 2.

As a labor cost-cutting measure, all union and nonunion employees of the city, Police Department, City of West Haven Fire Department Allingtown and Water Pollution Control Plant will give up a day’s pay, Rossi said.

The one-day move will save the city $73,000, she said.

Only employees of the city and non-sworn employees of the police and fire departments will not report to work, Rossi said.

Members of the Police Department, Allingtown fire department and wastewater treatment plant — departments that operate 24/7 — will give up a day’s pay instead of the furlough day, she said.

Rossi pointed out that the city’s two independent fire districts, the West Haven and West Shore fire departments, are not affected by the furlough day. The West Haven Fire Department serves the First Fire Taxation District, also known as the Center District.

The Board of Education is also not affected by the day, but it will close for business because board offices are in City Hall.

The city’s three public libraries are not affected as well.

Rossi said the furlough day of June 29 was discussed with union stewards and Personnel Director Beth A. Sabo.

“I appreciate the financial sacrifice our employees are making,” Rossi said. “I know this is not easy for anyone, but I also know our taxpayers expect everyone to share the burden of budget cuts.”

The mayor is informing residents ahead of the furlough day to give them ample time to plan accordingly.

The furlough day will affect the following city programs and services:

Senior activities, including the senior fitness class at 9:30 a.m., and the senior shuttle service are suspended.
The West Haven Child Development Center, based in the Robert A. Johnson Community Center at 201 Noble St., is closed.
The compost site and all public restrooms, including those at the beach, are closed.
Day camp programs are suspended: Jr. C.I.T., Painter Park; Summer Camp, Painter Park; Jr. Day Camp, Mackrille Elementary School; and Tiny-Tot Camp, Pagels Elementary School. Refunds will be given.
Aquatic programs at the West Haven High School pool are suspended: Sunrise Swim, 6:15 a.m.; Aqua Zumba, 7:15 a.m.; Afternoon Swim/Laps, noon; and Public Swim, 7:30 p.m. Refunds will be given.
Beach lifeguard service and athletic field maintenance are suspended.

Register for tai chi, yoga classes

WEST HAVEN, June 12, 2018 — The Department of Parks and Recreation is registering residents and nonresidents 16 and older for six-week tai chi and yoga programs.

Tai chi classes, instructed by Jonathan Davis, meet 1-2 p.m. Tuesdays, July 10-Aug. 14, at the Johnson Community Center, 201 Noble St., and 6-7 p.m. Thursdays, July 12-Aug. 16, at the bandstand on the Green. Bring a portable chair.

The fee is $50 for residents and $55 for nonresidents.

Yoga classes, instructed by Mary Beth Colleran, meet 6-7 p.m. Tuesdays, June 19-July 31, at the bandstand on the Green and 6:50-7:50 a.m. Thursdays, June 21-July 26, behind the Savin Rock Conference Center, 6 Rock St.

The fee is $48 for residents and $58 for nonresidents.

The programs are for participants of all levels. Register at the department’s Painter Park office, 190 Kelsey Ave., or at www.whparkrec.com.