Joggers And Walkers Wonder What They Will Run Into As Fairfield Hills Evolves

By Nancy K. Crevier

Early in the morning, stillness engulfs Fairfield Hills. It attracts motion — in the form of runners and walkers.

The runners stretch, some in groups, many alone, then begin their ritual patterns that follow mostly empty roads and trails, and snake between buildings inhabited only by memories. It is a peaceful place that calls to those longing for solitude or the quiet camaraderie of fellow joggers. Even as the day wears on and the fields become home to various soccer and softball teams, an air of serenity prevails.

It is a serenity that will soon be breached by the growl of machinery, as soil remediation and demolition of selected buildings begins. Still, says Maria DeMarco, Fairfield Hills facility manager, the management group remains sensitive to the desires of those who use the grounds, and says that the impending project will try to safely accommodate them as best they can.

“Where can you go to walk your dog, or walk your children?”

That is the question Dan Shea, Sr, has in regard to Newtown. A resident of the town for 37 years, Mr Shea is a regular runner at Fairfield Hills, and he is concerned about the future of the hospital grounds.

“People want places to walk safely,” says Mr Shea. “Commercial enterprises up here [Fairfield Hills] will add to traffic. Traffic deteriorates the quality of life.”

Mr Shea has watched the Queen Street neighborhood where he lives change considerably over the past five years, due to increased traffic. With no safe place to run near his home, he finds Fairfield Hills an ideal setup for him. His companion on his daily runs, a 13-year-old golden retriever named Abby, appreciates the quiet roads and grassy lawns where she can rest her weary bones, as well.

Mr Shea ran occasionally up at Fairfield Hills before the hospital closed, but it was not always as uneventful as it tends to be these days.

He recalls, “Once I was out running here and a patient came out and was running with me. He was trying to escape. Police cars surrounded both of us. The police asked me to wear a cap if I was going to be running up here — and I always have since then!”

In his bright yellow windbreaker — and baseball cap — Mr Shea is a familiar figure to other runners.

Joan Velush runs at different times of the day at Fairfield Hills, and she recognizes Mr Shea and his dog, although she does not know his name.

“I recognize other runners by their gaits,” she says, and has been told by other runners that they can tell her gait, as well. She feels a connection to the walkers and runners that she sees regularly, and is concerned when she does not see one of them for a while.

Ms Velush lives on Route 34, a dangerous running route, as are the side streets that feed into it.

“I used to run at the high school track,” she says, “but I can’t during the winter. They plow the roads up here [Fairfield Hills] all winter, which makes it safer to run.

“Fairfield Hills hooked me,” she says of her favorite route. “It’s beautiful here. In the morning the clouds are so lovely.”

Although Fairfield Hills is largely abandoned now, Ms Velush does not worry about her safety there. She says, “It’s more open than a wooded park, close to civilization.”

Frank Krausz, a regular walker, also appreciates that while the hospital grounds are peaceful, there are still enough people around to assist should a problem arise. Mr Krausz walks three miles each day, weather permitting.

He is cautiously optimistic about the upcoming alterations to the hospital grounds, saying, “Obviously, I’ll have to change my route. But unless they do something drastic, I’ll still find somewhere to walk.”

Fairfield Hills is a little isolated, agrees Marie Jensen, but she still comes three to four times each week to walk. She enjoys seeing the other walkers and runners, but like Ms Velush, does not actually know them by name.

“It’s renewing and peaceful here,” she states. “It’s so beautiful — the buildings and the architecture.” She laughs and adds, “I like all aspects of the place. I don’t want it to change.” Her hope is that at the very least, the new land use will include a walking park.

Not all joggers worry about upcoming changes to the hospital campus. Jessica Remitz, a senior at Newtown High School and a swimmer, likes to run at Fairfield Hills in the off-season to keep in shape.

“Fairfield Hills is pretty — and flat,” she says. “I definitely run by a lot of the same people. I see a lot of moms, and a lot of people when I come up here during my free period.”

Admittedly, life will soon take the Newtown High School student far from the town in which she has grown up. Perhaps because of that, she thinks, she has less vested in the upcoming changes. She appreciates the solitude running through Fairfield Hills offers, yet finds it sad that the buildings and space are not utilized. She would like to see Fairfield Hills put to good use.

Even when there are soccer games and activities on the grounds now, Ms Remitz finds that traffic remains minimal, and expects that any future development would leave enough open space for runners and walkers to be comfortable.

While the exact dates that major demolition at Fairfield Hills will begin is yet undecided, Ms DeMarco says that regular users already may notice hints of the future work. Yellow caution tape cordons off access to certain roads and buildings, a step that she says has been taken for the protection of the public. Falling bricks and deteriorating cornice work on some of the architecture pose a hazard to those on foot, or parked cars.

“Safety,” says Ms DeMarco, “is our utmost concern.”

Black, wrought iron gates clang shut at dusk each day now, closing out any latecomers to the tranquil setting.

Dan Shea jogs off, shaking his head and adding, “A beautiful park up here would only enhance Newtown.”