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Orient Lodge ArchitectHunterMcDonnell
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Message From The Presidentby NSA President Douglas York
elcome to the spring edition of o69o3: North Stamford News. We hope you have followed our enhanced
presence on Facebook and frequent updates on our website, northstamfordassoc.org, where North Stamford
Association (NSA) news and action items of importance to our members are posted. Our website includes
answers to member inquiries as well as some of our board’s engagements with elected and appointed officials.
We urge you to visit it regularly.
So how exactly does the NSA board work? Fifteen volunteer residents of o69o3 work collaboratively
almost daily via email and telephone to research, respond and, where possible, propose corrective actions to the
issues brought forth by our members. Once a month, the board convenes to review the month’s activities and
plan for the month ahead. The most recent additions to the NSA board, including myself three years ago, were
recruited through a public canvassing of our membership in which we requested letters of interest from those
who wish to serve. A nominating committee consisting of board members and volunteers from the membership
at large, interviews prospective candidates and makes recommendations to the full board for approval.
How does the NSA organize its work? The NSA organizes its work by seven committees. Our administration,
environment, forum, land use, membership, newsletter, and website committees are staffed by three to five
board members with one designated as the chair. Committee members meet to conduct business and address
issues of concern to their committee that are raised by NSA members. NSA board members usually work
on multiple committees each.
What happens behind the scenes? The primary conduit for new and recurring issues is the NSA information
line at 2o3-329-2498 and our email address, [email protected]. Phone messages are saved and
addressed by me, as well as the appropriate committee. The same flow takes place with email inquiries. This
is a daily occurrence with often many inquiries arriving each day. Since the entire NSA board is comprised of
volunteers, most with full time employment, we do our best to communicate back to the message originator via
email or a phone call. All of our fifteen board members communicate constantly via email to address issues.
We are often very successful and have a long record of success. Other issues are more challenging and require
legal or regulatory intervention to accomplish the desired outcome.
What is filling our plate right now? We are very pleased that real time communication to our members is
taking place via email, Facebook, and our website. As many of you are aware, multiple issues of concern are
unfolding or unfortunately, reoccurring. Some of these issues are the emergency antenna on Aquarion water
company property that New Canaan wishes to build, the proliferation of four bed nursing home-style facilities
in our quiet residential neighborhood, blighted properties in many areas, developer attempts to change current
usage rules for the Long Ridge Club and other large parcels of land, and a range of traffic, public safety, and
litter issues.
What can you do? We appreciate our members’ support for the work we do on your behalf. As issues
arise that concern you, please do three things:
(1) Call the Citizens Service Center at 2o3-977-414o. This is not a dead end phone call. You are
creating a timestamped trail of your concern.
(2) Email us at [email protected] and/or leave us a voice message at 2o3-329-2498.
(3) Encourage your neighbors to join the NSA. There is great strength in numbers and we need every
o69o3 household united in one voice. Thank you.
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rient Lodge was abandoned and in foreclosure when the current owners bought it in 2oo8. The property was overgrown and the house infested with insects and wild animals. Developers were salivating over the 2½ acre wooded site in North Stamford.But soon after the foreclosure, Stamford designated Orient Lodge as a local historic property, protecting it from demolition and allowing for its future restoration. Fortunately, Bill Bretschger was searching for a historic home to restore. In just over a year, he and his wife managed to restore the magnificent historic architectural features that characterize Orient Lodge as one of the finest Arts and Crafts residential properties in Connecticut. The Orient Lodge complex contains a 69oo square foot log and stone main house built in 19o4, as well as a two-story, 3ooo square foot carriage house believed to be the original saw mill built around 1825 which overlooks the mill pond. Many original landscape features have been unearthed at Orient Lodge including a Chinese-style artesian well, rock gardens, and over 1ooo feet of stone walls.
The main house is distinguished by a large covered porch with eyebrow dormers containing quilted glass, as well as a river stone and timber porte cochere. The most dramatic interior space is the Great Room, which has a 23 foot high vaulted tongue-and-groove ceiling with exposed rafters, walls of varnished whole logs, large windows with etched glass scenes of the Chinese countryside, Oriental open fretwork, Chinese carved wood moldings, and a massive river stone fireplace with its circular stone stack fully exposed. The stone is said to have been procured from the “Stoney Brook” which flows through the property and feeds the mill pond. The yellow pine logs are believed to have been harvested from the property and milled at the saw mill. Orient Lodge was originally located on a 4o-acre parcel occupied by saw and grist mills. Both were powered by Stoney Brook, dammed at Orient Lodge to create the mill pond. In 19o4, wealthy businessman Terry Walter purchased the property. He built a luxurious Arts and Crafts log home and embellished it with Oriental architectural features. He lived there until 1921 and sold it to General Giuseppe Garibaldi, nephew of the Italian hero. In 1926,
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Orient Lodgeby Lynn Drobbin
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Orient LodgeContinued from page 3
Garibaldi sold the house to Caspar Voorhis, a wealthy insurance executive, who sold it in the 194os to silk manufacturer Ernest Geier. After an extended period of vacancy, the house began to deteriorate. Dead animals, insect colonies, and mold infested the property. The ceilings collapsed in the basement. The property was so overgrown that both the main house and the carriage house were barely visible beyond the strangling vegetation. The bank was reluctant to show the malodorous property to potential bidders. Enter Bill Bretschger. He began restoration of the property in 2oo8. Bill is a local resident who was professionally involved in historic preservation for large commercial projects and was searching for an opportunity to conduct a more personal restoration effort. The restoration was guided by the discovery of circa 19o5 photographs of Orient Lodge. Found in a dumpster, these photographs provided invaluable guidance on the exterior appearance as well as the interior furnishings and finishes.It took Bill three months to make the house habitable. Work included full repair and restoration of the existing water pipes and
steam heating system, a complete rewiring of the electrical system, and re-glazing the existing windows. Restoration also included relocating 14o,ooo Italian honeybees from the south porch floor joists and bats from the Great Room and basement; removal of vermin from the many holes in the logs and foundation walls; and removal of the extremely overgrown kudzu vines which had strangled and suffocated many of the hickories, elms, pines and other trees. The focus of the restoration then shifted to the carriage house which had two coach rooms, two horse stalls, and a saddling room on the first floor, as well as a 15oo square foot apartment on the second floor. The carriage house restoration consisted of repairing the rotted roof and replacing rotted log siding with a stone veneer wainscot on three sides. The carriage house, which was moved to its current location in 19o4, did not have a proper log foundation. These were removed and replaced with a more water resistant stone base. The results of The Bretschgers’ hard work, largess, and love of Orient Lodge is an historic and beautiful addition to North Stamford. Drive by for a delightful experience.
Lynn is the owner of Lynn Drobbin & Associates, which specializes in historic preservation of civic structures. She is chairperson of the Stamford Historic Preservation Advisory Commission.
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by Renée Kahn
ver fifty years ago, my husband and I and our three young children moved into my dream house on Webb’s Hill Rd. I had fallen madly in love with the house a year earlier, a crush so intense that I literally trembled whenever I pulled in the driveway.We had tried to buy it the previous year, but at $48,ooo (a great deal of money in those days) it was out of our reach. A year later, however, the owner put it back on the market and we were finally able to make the numbers work. The house was what realtors call a “Handyman’s Special.” It had been on and off the market for almost seven years. The owner, a fairly well known art deco mural painter, had moved to Mexico. Over the years, a stream of renters trashed the house, stole the historic lighting fixtures, and neglected to clean the gutters which caused water to back up into the house and the horsehair plaster
walls to buckle. The grounds were overgrown and everything needed to be painted. Somehow (and we all know love is irrational) I was determined to make the house mine and my husband was determined to make me happy. An architect friend checked it out and pronounced “it looks worse than it is” but was structurally sound.Our children loved it. It had more than twice the room of our previous house plus a two story studio they could use as a gym. Their one objection was the Pompeian Red (tomato soup color) murals decorated with Grecian-style nymphs capering in togas. How could they bring friends over with half-naked ladies running around? We discovered the house, once cleaned up, was perfectly livable. It was sturdy, warm, and comfortable. Local tag sales and thrift shops provided more than enough furniture. We covered the murals with bolts of beautiful Liberty of London chintz. While cleaning the grounds we discovered brick walks that had been completely covered by weeds, plus a peony garden and dozens of specimen trees the previous owner had brought back from his mural painting assignments all over the world. A title search by my daughter, Eve, and Jean Majdalany of the Stamford Historical Society showed that our home was built in 1831 and couldn’t have been more than a quarter or a fifth the size of the present house. Examination of the dirt basement provided a history of early American building technology including posts made of hand hewn trees. It appears that every two or three decades, the house doubled in size until it reached its present dimensions around 194o when the giant studio was added. If you ask me what style to call the house, I would have difficulty answering. “Faux Colonial”
Webbs Hill Road
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Webbs Hill RoadContinued from page 5
is about the closest. The original structure was little more than a humble cottage in a style we refer to as “vernacular,” meaning no style, just walls and a roof. It was so non-descript that it didn’t make it onto the 1879 map, although we know it was around at the time. Our original deed shows it to be on what was then called Bedford Road at the foot of “Web’s great hill,” probably the highest point in Stamford. It is now called Webb’s Hill Road, which got its name when Long Ridge Road was built in the mid 18oos. The road was named after an early landowner, Nathaniel Webb, who is buried in a small cemetery at the crest of the hill along with his three wives, all named Esther (go figure!) By the late 18oos, the house appears to have doubled in size, with the addition of two rooms with a connecting fireplace and two upstairs bedrooms. From a photo taken around 19o5, we know there was a front porch. Every house of that period, no matter how modest, had a front porch. During its final transformation, somewhere in the 1940s, Alfred Tulk, the artist we bought it from, seems to have come into some money – we heard he had designed several murals for the 1939 World’s Fair in New York. He turned it into a center hall Colonial. Around 194o, he built a two-story, north light studio over a new fieldstone garage. He took off the front porch and built a more fashionable rear porch, creating the house we enjoy today. But here’s the interesting part. In the process,
he “antiqued” the house, bringing down 18th century wide floorboards and circa 179o twelve- over-twelve pegged windows from a family home outside of New Haven. He essentially made it look fashionably older than it actually was and provided a puzzle for us until we ran into him many years later and he explained what he had done. We thought that perhaps the house had actually been built in the 18th century and moved to its present site. And one last item of interest. I recently found a plot plan from 19o5 showing that the property adjacent to us was owned by Leopold Weiss who purchased it for his brother, Erich Weiss, also known as Houdini!
Renée is founder of The Historic Neighborhood Preservation Program and a bedrock of the community.
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n 2o12, I had just completed a masters degree in historic preservation at Pratt Institute and my husband and I were about to move from Brooklyn to Stamford. It was tough finding what we were looking for. We wanted an historic house and needed land for our three English Setters with walking access to a park. Then, one day, we visited a long-vacant house on Guinea Road that I found on the Internet. The view through the gate was like a Bing Crosby film beckoning you to enter Connecticut. The two-story, white cedar shingle house surrounded by 75 foot high oak and beech trees stood behind a low moss-covered stone retaining wall. Japanese Lace Maples narrowed the opening to a bluestone walkway leading to the front door.Inside it was cold. The rooms were all pastels with swagged silk curtains. The kitchen was 2o years old and the bathrooms were smothered in floral fabric. But, as they say, the bones were good. The rooms were spacious and the setting was breathtaking. Whoever designed the house used natural stone outcroppings to make a rock garden. The back of the house looked out onto a gentle slope that curved down to a field. The sun rose behind the house over the tops of the trees of Mianus River Park and set over the hill across the driveway. The day after we closed, I drove up with my own key and explored. I walked into the pine paneled den and, opening the cabinets, found blueprints from 1938. The architect was Hunter McDonnell. I began investigating McDonnell. He graduated from Columbia University School of Architecture in 1919. The Library of Congress had a large collection of black and white photographs of his work from 1941, about five of which were of our house. McDonnell designed more than thirty houses in the tri-state area, many of which still stand including the Scarsdale Public Library.
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Architect Hunter McDonnellby Judy Norinsky
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Architect Hunter McDonnell
My research on Ancestry.com turned up some disturbing facts. Three years after the 1941 photographs were taken, McDonnell died. He was only 52 and his death left his wife supporting two daughters. From my research, it appeared that his younger daughter was still alive. Repeatedly in my Internet searches another McDonnell came up: James Smith “Mac” McDonnell, the founder of McDonnell Aircraft Corporation. He turned out to be Hunter’s brother. I located James’ stepson, who confirmed that Hunter’s younger daughter was still alive.I wrote and found her to be very receptive. Like her father, she is an architect. She sent me an issue of a publication called Architecture and Design, which devoted an entire issue to McDonnell’s work. It included something I was missing: the
names of the original owners of each house that was in the Library of Congress collection. I identified each Larchmont house and contacted the current owners. Then I visited one of the homes which had won a House Beautiful magazine award. McDonnell was awarded the
prize primarily for two design elements. The first was for pairing an irregular floor plan with a traditional exterior and for employing the
emerging modern practice of integrating the house within the landscape. The second was for the home’s orientation that captures commanding views while accommodating a narrow lot. The exterior of the Larchmont house incorporates many traditional elements of the Colonial East Coast style, including use of local stone and cedar shingles. Inside, the house has a lot of traditional details, reclaimed knotty pine from a century-old barn to panel the dining room, Dutch tiles in the living room fireplace surround, and even a classical door knocker. Yet, the house has a surprisingly modern, functionally driven floor plan that incorporates a long, horizontally oriented front hall that reaches from the living room to the dining room and is open to the library/guest room in between. McDonnell’s design included a screened-in porch that was first used in the 19th Century. It brought the outdoors in and vice versa. This was an original feature in our McDonnell house, too. By the time we bought our home, however, the screens had been replaced with 1970s era sliding glass doors on two walls. We replaced the glass doors with two walls of picture windows that have screened casement windows on either side. The room now serves as my office. While not providing as much of that being-outside feeling as a screened-in porch provides, I can still get a lot of fresh air, I can watch the squirrelsand birds, the occasional fox and deer and, of course, the dogs. McDonnell also paid close attention to the landscape when designing our house. Even now that we have only four of the nineteen original acres, we have picturesque views from every window, including huge beech trees in the back that look beautiful during every season. My renovation project to my home is done but my research into McDonnell’s work is ongoing. He was a talented architect who would certainly have been better known had he lived longer.
Judy serves on the board of directors of The Historic Neighborhood Preservation Program and as advisor to the Historic Preservation Advisory Commission.
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ife on Jordan Lane seemed more exciting years ago, when our children were young. Almost all the families had little kids when we moved here with our two five year olds. Our next door neighbor characterized the street as “not coffee-klatchy and there’s always someone around to take care of your kids when you have to run to the emergency room.” Our road is lined with ponds, hills and woody areas, all of which invite exploration. The kids went fishing, skimmed stones, chased frogs, and took advantage of every nook and cranny. To this day, our middle-aged children recall the Saturday morning in April when, drawn outside by whoops and cries, we found a bunch of kids and a few parents huddled in a circle, gazing with amazement at something on the road. It was a huge snapping turtle. Its murky shell measured at least two feet from head to tail. Aided by shovels and the children’s cries of encouragement, a couple of the more adventurous fathers managed to hoist the beast on to a little red wagon, from which it protruded on all sides. Accompanied like the Pied Piper, they laboriously transported it down Chestnut Hill Road and into a rushing stream. In those days, there were no leash laws. We all had dogs, and the dogs roamed the neighborhood, romping in one another’s backyards, sharing the affection of all the bipeds. Thus it was that on an Easter Sunday afternoon, a sweet-natured springer spaniel named Cindy decided to visit her friend Arthur, the basset hound who lived next door. His family had conveniently left the back door open, so Cindy sauntered in and checked out the kitchen. Neither Arthur nor his family was to be seen, but the meaty remains of the Easter ham was sitting on the counter. Cindy drooled. It was obviously left out for her enjoyment. Soon after, those of us lucky enough to be outside in the warm spring air were treated to the sight of Cindy racing happily out the door, her chocolate-colored ears flapping and the hambone
The Gimlet &the Sad Swede
by Sally Sacks
L clenched tightly between her teeth. Off she went to a secluded spot in her own backyard to luxuriate on her own Easter dinner. Jordan Lane then included several IBM families (the acronym obviously standing for “I’ve Been Moved”). Eventually it came to pass that Arthur and his family were transferred to Cincinnati. It was a sad time. We were all fond of Bob, Shirley, their kids – and Arthur. We all cooked and baked for a neighborhood farewell party. It was summer. The temperature was rising on the night of the party, and many gimlets were being consumed. Perhaps we drank to stave off dehydration. Bob certainly was being careful to maintain a healthy liquid level. He rose to make a farewell speech. Gazing about with tearful eyes, he began to tell how his grandparents arrived in this country from Sweden at the turn of the century, only a few dollars in their pockets but determined to make a success of their lives. He related their struggle as virtual slaves to make an honest buck. Tears streamed down his cheeks as he described their long days of labor on the farm, their dismal living conditions, their work-roughened hands, and their meager pay. Bob helped himself to yet another gimlet to bolster his spirits as he elaborated the sacrifices his grandparents had made. As a gesture of sympathy, we all had a few more gimlets. Bob’s speech continued for quite a while and he became increasingly emotional. Our eyes filled as we nodded in commiseration. Oddly enough, few of us remembered how that party ended. One woman found herself lying across her bed the next morning, fully clothed, with no recollection of how she got home, no less up the stairs. Her husband assured her that she had, indeed, fed the children and put them to bed, but the only proof she could find was a bunch of pork chop bones in the garbage pail. Others of us had vague memories of crossing the road to our own homes, where we spent the rest of the night filled with lurid dreams of Swedish slaves.
T ed Jankowski is Stamford’s Director of Public Safety, Health, and Welfare. During a recent interview, he provided the following information of interest to North Stamford residents.
Water
The public drinking water supply emergency is still in effect. Stamford’s reservoir capacity is only about 55 percent and rainfall is down more than six inches in the past 365 day period. Mayor Martin and Jankowski are in regular contact with the Connecticut Department of Public Health (DPH) and Aquarion Water Company (AWC). Just to remind residents of the history of our water problem, in August, our strategy was to encourage AWC customers to conserve water by limiting lawn irrigation. The drought worsened so in September, AWC instituted a mandatory outdoor water ban for Stamford, Greenwich, Darien, and New Canaan. As the drought got even worse, DPH declared a 3o-day public water supply emergency for Stamford and the three towns. (By that time, Aquarion’s water issues were also affecting several towns in Westchester.) The emergency
Water and Coyotesincluded prohibiting AWC from adding new customers without prior approval of DPH, continuing mandatory outdoor watering bans, requiring AWC to provide weekly public notifications on water supplies for the affected towns, requiring AWC to perform a water audit of its twenty largest water users to assist them in identifying ways to reduce usage, and reporting the success and failure of these efforts to govern-ment bodies on a weekly basis. In October, AWC obtained permission from the State to build about 8000 feet of twelve-inch diameter above-ground piping in order to transfer additional water from Aquarion’s southwest regional pipeline to Stamford’s reservoirs, which serve Stamford and the other three towns. The temporary pipeline was built. You can see it at various locations throughout Stamford. Later in October, an additional water source was added to the pipeline. Concerned about the ongoing drought, Mayor Martin performed a detailed analysis of water usage in the area, which we shared with DPH, Aquarion, and other town officials. He also required that a resolution establishing
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emergency water regulations be developed and implemented as necessary and tasked the Office of Public Safety, Health and Welfare with developing an ordinance requiring moisture and rainfall sensors and notification of shut off instructions for irrigation systems. This is intended to address the common situations of automatic irrigation systems that do not shut off during rainy days and residents who are unaware of how to manually shut off their irrigation systems. The following websites may be helpful to North Stamford residents:http://www.stamfordadvocate.com/local/article/ Stamford-mayor-City-bests-Darien-Greenwich- in-1o848776.php
http://www.ct.gov/dph/cwp/view.asp?A=482o &Q=58682o
http://www.ct.gov/dph/lib/dph/communications/ pdf/declaration_and_order.pdf
http://www.ct.gov/dph/lib/dph/drinking_water/ pdf/first_amended_order.pdf
http://www.boardofreps.org/Data/Sites/43/ userfiles/committees/publicsafety/items/2o16/ ps2973/ps2973_r3824_16125.pdf
http://www.boardofreps.org/Data/Sites/43/ userfiles/committees/publicsafety/items/2o16 /ps29o72/ps29o72_16113o_clean.pdf
Coyotes
There have been over thirty coyote sightings since 2o16. Coyote families are dominated by an alpha male and a female who form a breeding pair. The
pack can also include this year’s pups and offspring from the previous year, along with accepted individuals from other packs. Coyotes are not new to Stamford. There have been no reports of injuries to humans by coyotes in our area. However, a pack near Sterling Farms Golf Course was determined to pose an increased risk so a certified trapper was hired to cull it. We looked at trapping and relocating the animals but the Connecticut Department of Energy and Environmental Protection recommended against it since no rabies vector species can be relocated, coyotes included. We are in contact, and work with the Connecticut Humane Society to coordinate educational event with the Ferguson Library to educate Stamford residents about how to live with coyotes. For most residents, the best form of coyote control is prevention. Avoid conflicts with coyotes by keeping cats indoors and dogs leashed or under direct supervision whenever outside. Residents living near coyote populations may want to consider installing a six foot tall fence to protect pets and keep coyotes out of yards. Eliminating attractants, such as pet foods, bird feeders, and garbage, as well as reducing dense vegetation and high grass that provides coyotes with shelter or a habitat for small rodents, is also recommended. For more information, visit the Connecticut Department of Energy and Environmental Protection website at http://www.ct.gov/deep/site/default.asp.
I arrived in o69o3 in 1998 and I know I am not the only newcomer to be shocked by the amount of ambient noise in what I thought was going to be a sedate rural environment. Of course, I understand the need to mow lawns and have spring and fall clean-up. Houses need to get built and remodeled. Still, the methods and machinery employed are often excessively and unnecessarily disruptive. What would help lower noise levels in North Stamford? Local ordinance 164-5 offers some protection against building noise. Construction activities may not commence before 7:oo a.m. Monday to Friday, 8:oo a.m. on Saturday, or 1o:oo a.m. on Sunday. If you notice a breach of this ordinance you can call the Stamford police non-emergency number at 2o3- 977-4444. They will send a police car to investigate. I have twice called about noisy construction that started too early. The police dispatcher was polite and a patrol car was there within thirty minutes each time. While there is an overall limit on decibel
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Noisome Neighbors by Stuart Downie
output from our properties (55 dBA) there is an exception ordinance 164-5 E (3) for domestic power equipment like mowers and leaf blowers. You can successfully prosecute a contractor in small claims court for exceeding dBA limits but it is not a simple process. If you need to measure sound you can use “Decibel Pro Noise Meter,” which is a downloadable app, or buy a sound level meter for about fifty dollars. However, in a small, relatively civilized community like ours, it seems like a defeat when you have to resort to the law to get something sorted out. My first step would be to raise any noise issue with the homeowner in a calm and constructive manner. Here are some other suggestions for addressing excessive noise in North Stamford. 1. Use quieter machines. If you are getting new equipment, check Consumer Reports to see which models are quietest. If you are only going to blow your driveway, then an electric device might
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suffice instead of a super strong gasoline blower. Maybe we should come up with a list of “approved” quiet machines that homeowners and contractors can choose. 2. Audit your contractors. Are you happy with the noise they make on your property? Should they use more modern equipment? (I think a lot of owners are not home when their contractor arrives and have no idea that their house sounds like a heliport). Are they doing too much? Does every last leaf have to leave the property? I have seen some crazy things. One guy mows the lawn while two guys with blowers follow blowing the almost invisible clippings to the edge of the lawn! Choose the quietest guy and remember that contractors have a different agenda. They want to use big machines so they can get done quickly and move on but have no special interest in keeping our community quiet and livable. 3. Switch to a two-week cycle for lawn mowing. I did and hardly notice the difference. It cut the noise output from Chateau Downie in half.
4. Don’t use a blower to move a leaf from one end of the property to another. I use a blower sparingly, round up leaves in the far corners, and drag them on a tarp into woods or the road. 5. Be thoughtful about timing. I think there should not be any machine use after 6:oo P.M. on Friday, lunchtime on Saturday, or any time on Sunday. That way we could read a book on the deck, have a quiet beer, or entertain friends without having to wear ear protection. Finally, an observation. Noise seems to travel a long way. So one aged noisy blower or mower has a negative impact on tens of surrounding properties. I really hesitate to suggest more laws so let’s start by giving a bit of constructive thought to being better neighbors, taking responsibility for our contractors, and fostering a sense of community. What do you think? Let NSA know at [email protected].
T he huge success of the North Stamford Association’s Shredding and
Recycling Day last June, which over 2oo people attended, has encouraged
NSA to run the event again this Spring. A mailing will go out to members in
advance. Bring us your huddled masses of tax records for shredding,
broken bicycles for recycling, and other wretched refuse yearning to breathe
free from the nooks and crannies of your ancient homes. As before, the
event will be free for members and not free for everyone else.
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NSA Shredding and Recycling Event
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To the Editor:My odyssey with Stamford residents in the 149th District began 26 years ago when I campaigned door-to-door with my predecessor, Janet Lockton. At my first meeting of the North Stamford Association, members were angry that 14.6 acres of open space on Riverbank Road, close to Tree Tops, was being sold to a developer. I convinced the department of transportation and Governor Rowland to reverse the sale, return the developer’s check for one million dollars, and convey the land, at no cost, to Stamford to be designated open space, forever wild. Over the years, we have worked tirelessly to preserve and protect Erskine Road and Fox Hill Road from inappropriate commercial development; promote the testing of well water; oversee the construction of the Guinea Road Bridge; and address traffic issues on Long Ridge Road. We have collaborated to renovate Wright Tech, build an extension to Rogers Magnet School, and provide a residence dormitory for UConn Stamford. There is still a lot to be done including redesigning Connecticut’s education cost sharing, repealing the estate tax, and improving transportation including the parking garage at the Stamford train station. The Stamford delegation in the general assembly consists of eight Democratic and Republican legislators who work as a bi-partisan team to get things done for our City. With that said, this job calls for teamwork and regular feedback from constituents. Please reach out to me any time you have ideas or concerns.
Livvy FlorenConnecticut State [email protected]
To the Editor: On average, an American disposes of 4 ½ pounds of garbage every day. That’s almost one ton per year! If every person on earth consumed like an American, it is estimated that we would need four Earths to feed our needs My company makes composting very easy. Stamford residents separate their food scraps and we take care of everything else. We provide clean buckets and when they would like compost, we drop that off, too.We diverted (and composted) roughly 4ooo lbs of organics from waste to energy plants and landfills this year and have delivered over one yard of compost to support local gardens. We compost organics in Danbury and can take meat, bones and dairy; those things which are harder to compost at home. We come once a week and cost as little as $5 per week for organics pick-up. We started in Ridgefield, where we now live, and have expanded into New Canaan, Darien, and Stamford.
Nick [email protected]://www.facebook.com/CurbsideCompost
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To the Editor:The Stamford Historical Society (SHS, also known as Stamford History Center) has a new digital exhibit that is available on the Center’s website and Facebook page. It is a video of the move of the Hoyt-Barnum House from downtown to its new home at the Society in North Stamford. Stamfordites will also be able to view original documents of this, the City’s oldest home. To access the virtual exhibit, go to www.stamfordhistory.org or to
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facebook.com/stamfordhistoricalsociety. Photographs showcasing the historic move can also be accessed at stamfordhistory.org. Hoyt-Barnum House was built in 1699 by Samuel Hait (or Hoyt) whose grandfather, Simon Hoyt, settled in Stamford after 1649. The home’s original Bedford Street property was deeded to Samuel’s father, Joshua, in 1668. The land was recently sold to the City of Stamford for construction of a new police station. Bringing the historic home to the Stamford History Center was an opportunity to preserve the home, run new programs and exhibits, and create a more viable History Center for Stamford. Moving a historic house 100 feet is challenging, but not unusual. But moving a building that is more than 3oo years old five miles is a rarity. Traffic lights, overhead wires, and the Merritt Parkway bridge at High Ridge Road conspired against the move. In the early stages of the project it was feared that the house would have to be completely disassembled and then put back together again on its new site. Chris William of Christopher Williams Architects and HNPP advisor Wes Haynes suggested that the roof be removed and the house transported in three sections: the main house, the kitchen addition, and the roof. This we did and it allowed the building to fit underneath the Merritt Parkway. November 6 was the scheduled move date. Unfortunately, the bracing designed to keep the old house intact during its peregrina-tion substantially increased the weight of the building. The state police would not allow the trucks to move the house up High Ridge Road. So we moved the roof on a huge dolly run by a generator that day and the main body of the house in the same fashion the following evening. The historic home arrived in North Stamford, patriotically, on Election Day.Pam ColemanPresident, Stamford Historical Society
To the Editor:I just wanted to make you aware that someone is opening mail. I went to my box when I got home from work and a package from Express Scripts had been opened with a box cutter. The bottom of the package had been sliced. The meds weren’t taken or tampered with. Guess they were looking for jewels!! I filed a police report so they would have a record of it. If this should happen to anyone else, they should file a report so the police can keep track.Deb DeNardo~~~~~Dear Editor:My daughter Alexandra wanted to share this original poem with ourneighbors in North Stamford:
amber eyes
emitting wisdom
glinting with intelligence
exuding brilliance
twin golden lights
(my own eyes are set ablaze)
the flowing, melodic voice
a timbre that caresses the soul
the clear pool in a secluded forest
serene and bright
the small, soft moth with satin wings
slowly emerges from a silken blanket
rises to join its brethren
erratically fluttering within
that empty cavity
an increasing pulse
with every sidelong glance
the susurrations stir
an agitated heart
Elizabeth Ortiz-Schwartzproud mother
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The purpose of the association is to protect, preserve and enhance the quality of life in North Stamford, identified as all areas north of the Merritt Parkway and within the limits of the City of Stamford. The mission of the Association shall include, but not be limited to:
~ Seeking to ensure a fair share of city services commensurate with the taxes paid for North Stamford;
~ Protecting the integrity and seeking to ensure the appropriateness of land use requlations and decisions, including but not limited to, the regulations and decisions of the Planning, Zoning, Zoning Appeals and Environmental Protection Boards of the City of Stamford;
~ Encouraging the enhancement of the quality and availability of educational opportunities in North Stamford;
~ Promoting communication among the residents of North Stamford;
~ Maintaining the natural beauty of North Stamford, and:
~ Advocating the need to preserve, protect and defend the natural resources and environment within North Stamford and its surrounding communities.
MISSION STATEMENT
NSA Membership
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working to help the community.
Please complete the membership
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If you would like more information,
phone us at
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Please send your
Letters to the Editor to:
NSAP.O. Box 16830Stamford, CT 06905www.northstamfordassoc.orgor
Mark Diamond at [email protected]
NSA Membership — Year 2017North Stamford Association Membership Dues
Please complete this form and mail it to:
P.O. Box 16830, Stamford, CT 06905
or join/renew online at northstamfordassoc.org
Name
Address
Membership per Household
Gifts $ 25 Sponsor $ 50 Patron $125 Benefactor $125+
Phone
Spring 2o17Newsletter
Steve ColeAsst. [email protected]
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Jack Halpert2nd Vice [email protected]
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Mark DiamondEditor
Bob CallahanDesigner
Published by theNorth Stamford
AssociationPhone: 2o3.329.2498
Douglas [email protected]
