Back Issues

By CURT CLARK

Published: Mar 20, 2001 12:00 am

Back Issues

Did you know that the library circulates past issues of all of the magazines the library subscribes to? Catch up on some of your favorite back issues. Magazines can be checked out for three weeks.

Lost And Found

The libraryâs âlost and foundâ is overflowing with a great assortment of winter hats, mittens, and even coats. Please stop by and check to see if we have something of yours. The box is located in the childrenâs department.

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Exhibits

Come be inspired! March 16 through May 6 the library will be displaying a lovely collection of kites made by Charles Hunt. The kites will be on exhibit on the first and second floor and will help get you

ready to enter Park and Recâs kite flying contest that will be taking place at Ramâs Pasture on Sunday, May 6.

The Newtown Scrapbaggers have an exhibit of art quilts on display titled âElements of Architectureâ from February 24 through April 6 on the main floor of the library during regular library hours.

Childrenâs Programs

Story Hour Registration: Story Hour Registration will be taking place from March 21 to 30. Toddler Time is for two-year-olds and their caregivers and Story Time is for 3-5-year-olds. There are four seven-week sessions for each of the two age groups. Please call the library at 426-3851 with any questions. Registration forms complete with dates and times are available at the library beginning March 21. Please come to the library to register as we do not accept registrations over the phone.

Book Discussion: Grades 4-6. âMan, bird, or angel? Who or what is Skellig?â Check out this mystery-adventure story at the library and join Liz Arneth on April 6 at 3:30 for a lively discussion.

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Adult Programs

Book Discussion on Family Relationships: âSo You Think Your Familyâs a Mess?â Gordon Williams and Liz Arneth will be leading a new discussion series on four great American plays that all deal with family relationships Thursdays at 7:30 pm. On March 29: The Little Foxes by Lillian Hellman; April 5: Fences by August Wilson; April 26: Long Dayâs Journey into Night by Eugene OâNeill. Along with discussing the plays they will show a movie or two, and also have plans to see The Glass Menagerie in Hartford.

Intermediate Internet Class with Bob Brand on Saturday, March 24, from 10 to noon. Mr Brand will discuss how to get the maximum performance out of your Internet connection â modems, cable modems, DSL, browser techniques, top level domains and more. There is a $10 materials fee and registration is required. Please call the library at 426-4533.

Tax Help: Ken Wilkinson is at the library on Tuesday afternoons from 1:30-4 pm during tax season to help with tax related questions. No appointment is necessary. Mr Wilkinson can be found in the Large Print Room, which is located next to the circulation desk on the main floor of the library.

Gardening Talk: Garry Ober, a popular speaker on gardening issues, will speak on Wednesday, March 28, at 10 am on the interesting topic of Ecological Gardening in the meeting room. Many common garden plants such as Japanese barberry, Asiatic bittersweet, and purple loosestrife are non-native, invasive plants that establish easily here in Connecticut. They compete aggressively, leading to the local exclusion of native plants. Invasive plants can disrupt entire ecosystems by changing the makeup of plants in native communities. Come learn how to identify and help eliminate these pesky invaders. This is a topic of great importance here in Connecticut. This program was rescheduled due to inclement weather so please make note of the new date.

Free Blood Pressure Screening: The fourth Wednesday of the month Ashlar sponsors a blood pressure screening in the Genealogy Room at the library from 10 am to noon. The next screening will take place on Wednesday, March 28. No appointment is necessary.

NEW Daytime Book Group: For all of you unable to make the evening book discussion please consider joining us at the library for a new daytime group. On April 9 at 1 pm the group will be discussing Plainsong by Kent Haruf. The group will also be putting together a list of books to read in future months, so if you have a recommendation weâd love your input.

Mystery Author to visit the Library: Marcia Talleyâs talk originally scheduled for March 6 has been postponed until April 10 at 7:30 pm. Along with discussing her book Sing It to Her Bones, Ms Talley will talk about how she got started writing mystery novels, how she develops characters, as well as answering questions. Marcia Talleyâs second book, Unbreathed Memories, came out in 2000, and her third, Occasion of Revenge, is due out in August. Please join us for this very special evening. Books will be available for purchase at the talk.

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PD Open House Planned

Thank you for pointing out the trail access provisions included in the BOS motion—it’s an important clarification that deserves more attention in this conversation. If the development is, in fact, required to provide permanent free public access and commit to ongoing maintenance of this section of the Rochambeau Trail, that is a remarkably beneficial outcome for the town. oIt’s not every day that a private project shoulders the long-term burden of preserving and caring for a public historical corridor at no taxpayer cost—especially one that previously had no formal access, upkeep, or visibility. Let’s be honest: the idea that the only way to protect history is by preventing any development nearby is a rigid and unworkable standard. What’s being proposed here appears to strike a rare balance—historic preservation, public access, and smart development all rolled into one. That’s not a loss its a win. So rather than allowing a handful of voices to derail progress under the banner of “historic purity,” maybe it’s time to acknowledge the reality: this trail is better off with structured stewardship and visibility than remaining an overgrown ghost on old maps. Let’s move forward. Bring in the easement, bring in the public access—and yes, bring in the bulldozers!!! Progress and preservation can coexist. Let’s not let the NIMBY use fear or nostalgia keep us stuck in the past.

Discusses Rochambeau Trail And 6 Commerce Road

I've heard that several people are under the impression that the public might be banned from the Rochambeau Trail. Points 2 and 3 from the BOS motion (included in full below) make it clear that public access to the trail is part of the requirements for the developer. From what I understand, it requires free public access to the trail in perpetuity. Technically, this could be argued to be a "payment-in-kind," that attempts to balance public good with overall town growth. We can argue about weather that balance is acceptable and how the trail may be affected, but with the understanding that the trail is expected to be maintained as a publicly accessible trail regardless. July 15, 2024 Board of Selectmen approved motion: Discontinuance of Reservoir Road: Selectman Cruson moved the resolution: Resolved, that the Newtown Board of Selectmen, in accordance with Section 2-115(d)(8) of the Town Charter and Conn. Gen. Stat. §13a-49, and subject to the conditions set forth below, hereby discontinues an unimproved portion of Reservoir Road described as “Portion of Reservoir Road to be Discontinued “on that certain survey map which will be recorded on the Newtown Land Records titled “Map Showing Portion of Reservoir Road to be Discontinued” dated August, 2023 and revised September 15, 2023, and certified substantially correct by Gregory Szyszowski of SLR (the “Survey Map”), said discontinuance contingent and effective only upon the completion of the following: 1. The approval of an application for the development of land in the manner described in a letter from Attorney Thomas W. Beecher to First Selectman A. Jeffrey Capeci and Members of the Board of Selectmen dated May 30, 2024, pursuant to the “Residential Open Space Development” regulations of the Borough of Newtown by the Borough of Newtown Zoning Commission, and construction of that approval project within the timeframes required for special exception approval; 2. The inclusion of the discontinued portion of the road as part of the final Declaration of Conservation Restriction; 3. The conveyance of a mutually agreeable public easement to the Town of Newtown for pedestrian, bicycling, equestrian, and all other passive recreational uses (to exclude the use of motorized vehicles except as may be necessary by the Town or its designee to effectuate the purpose of the easement), and for municipal utility purposes; Be it further resolved, that Castle Hill Real Estate Holdings, LLC., its successors and assigns, shall not use any portion of the discontinued road as a vehicular road or access way to and from any developed portions of the property. Be it further finally resolved, that should any of the foregoing contingencies not occur, then the discontinuance contemplated herein shall not become effective and this resolution will become null and void. From: https://www.newtown-ct.gov/sites/g/files/vyhlif12216/f/minutes/bos_7-15-24_min-_att_final.pdf

Discusses Rochambeau Trail And 6 Commerce Road

Is this paper road (roads that only exist on paper map but not in reality) even owned by the Town? Many roads that predate the Town's road standards are privately owned and were never accepted by the Town, such as many of the nonconforming roads around the lake communities where the property owners own right to the center line. That is something we had to deal with when working on the Roads Ordinance a few years back. We also had to deal with a private road to run the utilities to the new SHS.

Discusses Rochambeau Trail And 6 Commerce Road

For anyone who wants to know, I cant post a link here, but Housatonic Resources Recovery Authority has an entire website. Look up "HRRA whats in whats out"

I Get It!

It’s important to clarify that while public process matters, so does the right of a property owner to reasonably develop land they legally own—especially when they follow the rules and engage with the town in good faith. The Board of Selectmen (BOS), whether one agrees with their decision or not, did not “give away” anything. The land in question was part of a road that had been unused and undeveloped for generations. There was no public access, no signage, and no infrastructure—just an overgrown path most residents never knew existed. Mr. Ackert calls the discontinuance “illegal,” but state law grants municipalities the authority to discontinue roads, subject to procedural requirements. The fact that this matter is in litigation shows that questions of law are being properly addressed in court—not in letters to the editor. If the court finds procedural flaws, they’ll be corrected. That’s how the legal system works. Real solutions are found through public process and the courts, not through social media outrage. What’s missing from this conversation is a recognition that towns need to balance many interests: history, environment, public access, private property rights, and economic development. And while the newly championed Revolutionary War heritage is important, there are also pressing modern realities: towns need housing, economic vitality, and responsible development. These things don’t happen in a vacuum—they require compromise, planning, and often, yes, change. If residents truly wish to preserve this trail as public space, the appropriate path is through purchase, conservation easement, or formal designation—not by expecting private landowners to bear the burden of public sentiment. If the writer believes so strongly in its value, perhaps they might consider investing in its preservation themselves. We can honor our history without freezing our town in time. Development and preservation aren’t mutually exclusive—but vilifying one side of the conversation only deepens division. Let’s focus on solutions that balance respect for the past with the rights and needs of those who live here now.

Discusses Rochambeau Trail And 6 Commerce Road

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