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THE WAY WE WERE FOR NOVEMBER 6, 1998

NOVEMBER 9, 1973

The Board of Selectmen Tuesday evening turned down the Boyle property petition

in the form it was presented, but agreed to put the matter on the agenda for a

November 28 town meeting if a new petition is presented in an acceptable form.

The main objection expressed by Town Counsel Robert Hall was that the petition

did not make provision for the town to recover the $68,000 already paid for

the property on Boggs Hill Road and it didn't deal with how the lawsuit

brought against the town would be settled. The town has condemned the property

to use it as the site of a new elementary school but the owners of the land

are fighting it in court. Mr Hall said a petition of 75 figures is sufficient

to require the Board of Selectmen to call a town meeting, but after the call

is published, a second petition of 200 signatures would be needed to bring the

matter to a referendum vote.

At the invitation of the Board of Education, about 150 residents came to the

high school on November 5 to hear a status report on the Boyle site for the

proposed elementary school and also reports on why a new school is needed in

town. Board Chairman Dr Russell Strasburger moderated the meeting. Because

dollar figures were not available at the meeting, the board held a press

conference later to release a statement about the costs. The town already has

lost a gift of $80,000 promised by the late Otto Heise for purchase of the

site because it was good for one year only. The argument over the Boyle site,

and the condemnation process, have now dragged on for three years. The costs

include more than $7,000 for soil tests and preliminary plans, $15,000 for

legal fees, $68,000 in a deposit based on a 1972 appraisal, and $1,500 for an

earlier referendum in which voters agreed to purchase the site.

An approaching crisis in the disposal of Newtown's septic waste, similar to

that already faced by New Milford, was disclosed by First Selectman Frank

DeLucia at the Board of Selectmen meeting Monday evening. Mr DeLucia said

there is at present no site in Newtown for the treatment or disposal of the

waste pumped from septic tanks, and in the past the town has depended on

facilities in neighboring towns for the purpose. However, some of these

facilities have recently been closed to Newtown because the burden on them

became too great. Mr DeLucia said he plans to meet on November 14 with a

representative of the State Department of Environmental Protection and members

of the Planning & Zoning Commission to see what future planning can be done

about it. He said future planning will involve considering how far Newtown is

away from building its mandated sewer system.

First Selectman Frank DeLucia and the town's consulting engineer proposed at

this week's Planning & Zoning Commission meeting that a section of Black

Bridge road be made into a bicycle path and park. Earlier this year the old

bridge on the road was closed to traffic because it was rotting away and

unsafe for vehicular traffic. There are no houses on a half-mile stretch of

Black Bridge, which is a narrow, dirt road, and the section was closed off to

traffic. Because only about five persons used to travel on the bridge with any

regularity, Mr DeLucia proposed making the closed-off section a scenic

pedestrian and bicycle park. Replacing the bridge would cost $20,000 for a

one-lane bridge, and $180,000 or more for two lanes.

Newtown Sanitation Officer Jack Goett issued a warning to people purchasing

summer homes in town with the intention of converting them to year-round

residences. According to the Public Health Code, wells must be located not

less than 75 feet from any septic system (including those of neighbors). Many

of these summer homes have only minimal sewerage systems and receive water

from temporary lines which are operative only from May to October. Many

properties in Pootatuck Park, Sandy Rest, Riverside, Cedarhurst, and Lakeview

Terrace are too small to meet the regulations and therefore may not be

converted into year-round dwellings. The regulations will be rigidly enforced

to protect the public health, Mr Goett said.

The Newtown Police Department, suffering under last spring's budget cuts and

an increase in overtime work and sick leave, carried its battle for more

manpower to the Board of Selectmen Tuesday evening. George McLachlan, chairman

of the Police Commission, resented figures showing that a total of 1,922 hours

of overtime had been done since July 1 compared to 594 in a normal period. Mr

McLachlan said he needs an additional six men, which would allow one patrolman

to be promoted to sergeant. The cost of the additional manpower would be

$29,000 for the first six months in 1974, he said, because overtime costs

would be reduced. The selectmen said they would study the matter and come to

the Police Commission meeting on November 12 for further discussion.

Vitramon, Inc., of Monroe celebrated its 25th year with a banquet on November

8. Four Newtown residents were among 20 employees honored for service to the

company. They include Josephine Macey, 20 years; Eugene Wrabel, 20 years;

Harold Hasse, 10 years, and Vincent Voccia, three years.

Newtown's new Committee on Aging has begun signing up volunteer drivers for

its Meals On Wheels program. Volunteers will be asked to give about an hour at

least once a month to pick up packaged meals from Buckingham Gardens on Toddy

Hill Road or Edmond Town Hall and deliver them to elderly shut-ins who have no

one to cook for them. The program is to start on Monday, December 3.

NOVEMBER 12, 1948

Work on the widening and grading of Walnut Tree Hill Road has been finished

and a layer of gravel will be applied this week. The road has been widened to

22 feet from 15 feet. A wide gutter has been crated to eliminate the water

which used to form a sheet of ice on the road each winter. This improvement

has been possible because of the donation of land by H.C. Honegger. If the

current warm weather holds, the road will be oiled. If the weather turns cold,

the road will have to stay a gravel road through the winter.

Bryant Edgerton, a resident of Great Quarter Road in Sandy Hook, has sent up

his men and equipment to repair the flag halyards on the flagpole. First

Selectman W.W. Holcombe said the town should be grateful to Mr Edgerton

because he has refused to render a bill for this service.

Reckless hunters were blamed Friday for the failure of electric current in

Newtown and parts of Brookfield between the hours of 10:15 am and 1:24 pm and

in some sections until 5 pm. An investigation conducted by Danbury & Bethel

Gas & Electric Light Company revealed that insulators were shot off a number

of poles on the high tension line and the wires, swinging free, shorted and

set fire to some of the poles. When the short circuit occurred, the entire

supply of current for Newtown was cut off. The cost of damages has been

estimated at approximately $700, not including the considerable loss to

factory employees who were unable to work. Similar incidents have been

reported in Bethel and other nearby towns and an investigation is being

conducted by state police, Newtown and Brookfield officials to ascertain the

identity of the hunters.

In this week's Parker House Paragraphs column, Mrs Parker apologized to

Josephine Wright (Mrs Frank Wright) for saying that she now lives in Stamford.

Mrs Wright has lived on The Boulevard for many years and has not moved.

Mrs Parker also reports that Tommy Tomlinson, who operates the taxi service in

Newtown, took his wife to shop in Danbury last week and parked behind the

Market Basket. They left their little dachshund, Heidi, in the car with the

windows rolled part way down. When they came back after shopping, Heidi was

missing. Mr Tomlinson immediately went to the police station and an officer

accompanied him back to the place where the car had been parked. By

questioning people in the area, it was learned that a man took Heidi and put

her in a nearby shed. When the police officer confronted the man and demanded

the dog back, the man had the nerve to ask for a reward, Mrs Parker said.

In SAC Notes, the Sandy Hook Boys' Social and Athletic Club reports the

much-anticipated arrival of two laceless basketballs this week, which the Big

and Little Sack teams will save for game balls. This is the first year SAC is

trying to organize the smaller members into a real team, the Midget Sacks.

Most of the boys have chores after school and odd jobs on week-ends such as

setting up pins for bowling or riding on a milk route so it has been difficult

to organize a team. But a dozen new uniforms arrived this week, and these are

expected to be a real incentive.

The Raymond L. Pease post, American Legion, conducted an Armistice Day service

this Thursday morning at the Soldiers and Sailors Memorial at the head of Main

Street. The second annual ball of the post is being held in the Alexandria

Room this Thursday evening at 8 o'clock. Bob Hatch's orchestra has been

engaged to furnish the music. Joseph Tani, George May and Richard Lane are

members of the committee in charge.

Classified Ad: Here is an opportunity for a man who is handy and wants a

country home without a large investment. Colonial house and 10 acres; with

brook; fronting on macadam state highway; in good neighborhood. House is sound

but needs modernizing. Beautiful central hall staircase; four fireplaces,

cranes, Dutch oven, etc. With some work and additional money, house would be

worth over $20,000; for immediate sale; will sell for $10,000; one-third cash

and take back mortgage for the balance. Contact, J.H. Thomas.

American Art Week which was such a success in Newtown due to the fine show

staged at the Cyrenius H. Booth Library all last week and this week, gives way

at week's end to make way for another national observance, Children's Book

WEek. Starting on Monday, November 14, and continuing through November 20, the

library will carry special exhibits of interest to children.