This obituary was written and submitted by Ronjit Basak-Smith.
Madhumita Basak-Smith passed away at age 61 on May 4th, 2023 at Danbury Hospital in Connecti...
To the Editor:
It’s a shame to see that Washington partisanship has arrived in Newtown, especially on the Board of Education. Our elected officials on the Board...
To the Editor:
I attended the rally against book banning and the BOE meeting on Tuesday, May 16th. It was, in fact, a sad day for Newtown as expressed by the RT...
To the Editor:
I’d like to thank the Republican Town Committee (RTC) leadership for their transparency. Their letter about the book banning Board of Education m...
To the Editor:
This is in response to the letter condemning the behavior of those opposed to censorship by the BOE at the meeting on May 16th.
I now believe tha...
To the Editor:
The illogic of banning books for all students and parents that are neither pornographic, obscene, have won multiple book awards, and the Board of...
To the Editor:
The Board of Trustees of the Heritage Preservation Trust of Newtown, Inc — which administers the Newtown Meeting House — wishes to publicly thank...
To the Editor:
The Supreme Court should allow the States to interpret the 1st and 2nd amendment. States should be allowed to ban or allow guns and books.
States...
To the Editor:
I’m disappointed in The Newtown Bee’s moralizing. Aren’t there untold furies in all directions displayed at other public meetings on topics of st...
To the Editor:
Your editorial to “dial it down” on the Board of Education vote to ban books from Newtown High School completely misses the mark. You run a newsp...
There are many considerations as it relates to the development of the Castle Hill property as noted. I am supportive of the proposal and to approval process as it is sensitive to concerns being raised. The proposal provides another housing and lifestyle option for long time residents and newcomers with great accessibility to town. The developer is a long time resident with a solid reputation and the best interest of town at heart. It is not wise to make gross assumptions but I would think it would be a net positive (will attract empty nesters) to the tax base versus incremental town costs required. Net positive tax base growth supports continued investment in our great school system. Working in partnership with historical groups, bike and trails, the borough and others could actually add another great part of our amazing town.
EDITOR'S NOTE: We do not publish everything that goes into print on our website. We never have. It's a longstanding policy that our print subscribers benefit by being able to read every feature, article, press release, etc, and see every advertisement, thanks to their paid subscriptions. Many stories are posted a few days after each print edition is published but some are never shared online.
The Board of Education vacancy created by a resignation on February 20, which was filled on March 19, was covered in the March 22, 2024 print edition. Sorry you missed those stories.
I am on the Newtown Bike and Trail Committee and we have been promoting and maintaining this trail for years. It literally goes through the middle of 20/60 Castle Hill Rd., and was added to the register of historic places around 2003: https://npgallery.nps.gov/AssetDetail/NRIS/02001679 . That said, I think nearby development and trail preservation could be compatible, depending on the plan.
Its not just this meeting - its pretty much all town meetings. When was the last time you saw an article on the Bee's website regarding P&Z or BOE? Did you know that a BOE member resigned in January and a new one was appointed? These used to be featured articles on the Bee website after they went into the print edition. Unfortunately, things have changed a lot at the Bee since Mr. Voket left.
I have lived in Newtown for over 60 years and this is the first I have ever heard of the Rochambeau Trail. When I checked with the National Park Service and our state only Nationally Historic Site the official records of the Rochambeau Trail administrated by NPS does not travel through this property. If you are arguing it is "Near" the trail then where was the outrage when Big Y was built? The new development on 6 and 25 or even the Starbucks.