Business owners, managers, event organizers, et al are encouraged to contact Associate Editor Shannon Hicks at shannon@thebee.com to be added to this ongoing list of changes brought on by COVID-19. Updates to current information are also invited.

Organizations, businesses, and general announcements are listed first, followed by special events by date.

This week we are happy to add a new section: Businesses Reopening.

Businesses Reopening

Bee Publishing Company, 5 Church Hill Road, has resumed printing Newtown’s hometown newspaper. The June 5, 2020 print edition was published on June 4. Look for your copy in the mailbox this week, and purchase additional copies at our 5 Church Hill Road office.

When the weather cooperates, copies of the print edition are sold on a cart outside the front door, alleviating the need for person-to-person contact. Papers are $1 each, and an honor box is on the cart. If it's raining and you'd like a copy of The Newtown Bee without entering the office, call the office and someone will walk one outside.

Visitors must be wearing a mask to enter the building. Connect over the phone (203-426-3141) or through e-mails (start with editor@thebee.com for Editorial or sherri@thebee.com for Sales/Classifieds and all other content if you don’t already have a staff member’s address). All visitors must wear a face mask to enter the building.

To subscribe to The Newtown Bee visit newtownbee.com; to subscribe to its sister paper Antiques & The Arts Weekly visit antiquesandthearts.com.

Koenig FrameWorks, 8 Pecks Lane, announced on May 26 that “a slow, gradual approach is the best, safest plan to re-open.” Its first stage, effective immediately, is to offer all services by appointment. Contact Koenig at 203-270-1887 or info@keonigframeworks.com for full details on current protocols or an appointment.

Newtown Salt Spa also announced on May 26 that is was reopening, with new protocols in place. Among its new procedures: masks are required in the lobby area (they can be removed once seated in the salt room) and all salt sessions are private.

Contact the spa at 203-491-2212 or info@newtownsaltspa.com for full details or an appointment.

Reverie Brewing Company, 57B Church Hill Road, has reopened its outdoor seating patio for parties of five or less until capacity is reached. The local brewery, according to its website, is open Thursdays 3-8 pm, Fridays and Saturdays, 12-8 pm; and Sundays, 12-6 pm. All customers must wear a face mask when entering, exiting, visiting the restroom, and engaging with their service. Masks are available for purchase for those who arrive without one. Cans and growlers continue to be available for to-go purchases daily. Call 203-872-2124 or visit reveriebrewing.com for full details.

New This Week

Caraluzzi’s Newtown Market, 5 Queen Street, has added curbside pickup for essential items, according to its Instagram feed and website. The service is currently only in Newtown, and is “just the essentials for now,” according to the website. Customers use their Care Cards to access the online program, select and pay for their items online, choose a pickup time, and Caraluzzi’s employees load everything into the customer’s vehicle. While there will be a $4.95 fee for curbside pickup in the future, the fee is currently being waived due to COVID-19, according to the store’s website. Visit caraluzzis.com/curbside-pickup for details.

Stop & Shop launched same-day Pickup & Delivery service on June 3 at its Newtown store, 228 South Main Street (Sand Hill Plaza). Visit peapod.com and select Delivery/Pickup Times at the Newtown address. Customers can then head to the store at their chosen pick-up time, park in a designated pick-up spot, then call a phone number to let the store team know they have arrived. Stop & Shop team members will then deliver the order right to their car. There is a $2.95 fee for this service and a $30 order minimum.

Newtown Community Center, 8 Simpson Street, will offer a modified summer program schedule beginning Monday, June 22. A summer brochure can be found on the center's Facebook page.

Businesses & Organizations

Big Y World Class Market, at 6 Queen Street, is opening at 7 am for senior citizens, 8 am for everyone else, and remaining open until 8 pm daily, until further notice.

C.H. Booth Library remains closed. All programs have been canceled, postponed, or rescheduled through the end of June. All borrowed items in good status have automatically been renewed until July 1. Those with items that were already overdue prior to the library’s closing should contact the library to have fines waived.

Library cards that were due to expire have been renewed until July 1. If a card had already expired, the card holder should e-mail the library and it will be renewed.

The library has also created a new e-mail address for the current closure. Notes should be sent to help@chboothlibrary.org.

Friends of Booth Library are not accepting donations of books, CDs, DVDs, or any other materials until the library reopens. The Friends recently announced that the 2020 Summer Book Sale has been canceled.

Curbside service for the library is underway. Use any of the library's means of communication to ask for materials, Monday through Friday, 10 am to 4 pm. Text 475-215-2754 or call 203-426-3141, or e-mail the library or visit the website for details. Pick up is under the tent set up in front of the library.

Caraluzzi's Newtown Market, 5 Queen Street, is open from 6:30 until 7:30 am daily for shoppers age 65 and over, and then from 7:30 am until 8 pm for all, until further notice.

Cornerstone Ministry at Newtown Congregational Church is closed until further notice.

Edmond Town Hall is closed until further notice. Building staff will continue to work on cleaning and special projects throughout the building, and administrative staff continues to work including answering calls (203-270-4285) and e-mails (manager@edmondtownhall.org).

ETH is now offering virtual movies — which management notes are an alternative to the usual offerings at the local theater — and drive in movies; for information on streaming and details about the offerings visit edmondtownhall.org.

EverWonder Children’s Museum is closed until further notice. Visit its Facebook page for activity suggestions.

FAITH Food Pantry is operating by appointment only. Call 203-426-5604 or 203-837-0816 to make an appointment to pick up food, toiletries, pet supplies, etc.

Those who wish to donate to the pantry also need to call for an appointment.

FISH of Newtown, Inc, the volunteer medical transportation service, has canceled service until further notice, for the protection of clients and drivers.

Girl Scouts of Connecticut including Girl Scouts of Newtown has suspended all activity and meetings.

The Newtown Bee offices, 5 Church Hill Road, have reopened. Visitors must be wearing a mask to enter the building. Connect over the phone (203-426-3141) or through emails (editor@thebee.com for Editorial or sherri@thebee.com for Classifieds, Sales, or other help if you do not have a staff member’s address).

When the weather cooperates, copies of the print edition are sold on a cart outside the front door, alleviating the need for person-to-person contact. Papers are $1 each, and an honor box is on the cart. If it's raining and you'd like a copy of The Newtown Bee without entering the office, call the office and someone will walk one outside.

Newtown Bridge Club is hosting virtual games at 10:15 am daily, at bridgebase.com. Master points are awarded. The club, which meets at Edmond Town Hall, will not meet until the building reopens. The Longest Day event will also be held virtually.

Newtown Community Center will open for a modified schedule beginning June 22. Community Center staff is available to answer the phones (203-270-4349) between 8 am and 4:30 pm.

Newtown Continuing Education programs have been postponed. Contact NCE Director Jennifer Arnold at continuinged@newtown.k12.ct.us with questions.

Newtown Municipal Center is open by appointment only.

Residents and other potential visitors should contact a department they wish to do business with before going to 3 Primrose Street. Contact information for each department is available at the Town website (newtown-ct.gov).

In addition to those based at 3 Primrose Street, Town offices include Newtown Community Center, Parks & Recreation, and Newtown Senior Center, at 8 Simpson Street; and Newtown Police Department, at 3 Main Street (see additional PD notes below).

Newtown Public Works & Engineering departments, at 4 Turkey Hill Road, are also open by appointment only. Call 203-270-4300 to schedule an appointment, including arrangements for compost bags or recycling bins.

Newtown Parent Connection has suspended in-person meetings of its support group. Virtual meetings continue to be held: the Bereavement group is meeting monthly, and the Milford/Fairfield Hope & Support virtual meetings are Wednesdays at 7 pm, and Newtown Hope & Support meets Thursdays at 7 pm. The online meetings are scheduled to at least the end of June.

Visit newtownparentconnection.org for sign-in information for each of the groups; the links and passwords will remain the same for the full series of group meetings. Those who need individual assistance should call 203-270-1600.

Newtown Park & Bark is closed.

Newtown Police Department has adopted its own social distancing protocols, including asking residents and others to not visit 3 Main Street unless it is an emergency. Call 911 in the event of an emergency, but use the department’s routine phone line (203-426-5841) for all other calls.

Those who do go to the station will be directed to an internal phone in the lobby, from which they will be connected to an officer.

The Records Window is closed until further notice; requests can be done over the phone, via email, and via USPS. Fingerprinting and Car Seat Installation services are suspended until further notice.

The department is also asking that the public hold off on visiting with gifts and/or treats until further notice.

The Newtown Public School buildings are closed through the end of the 2019-20 academic year.

Newtown Senior Center has also closed until further notice.

Through CW Resources, the senior center’s meal provider, two days worth of prepackaged lunches can be picked up Monday and Wednesday, with advance registration. Suggested donation is $3, cash only.

Those who are not yet registered for the congregate meal program at Newtown Senior Center, which is required by CW Resources, can do so at the same time they pick up their first meal.

Contact the senior center, 203-270-4310, to place an order for a lunch.

Newtown Youth & Family Services has closed its offices, but staff remains available for non-emergency calls. Contact NYFS's answering service at 203-791-7332. Call 911 in the event of an emergency.

NYFS has begun offering virtual and tele-health appointments, according to NYFS Executive Director Candice Bohr.

NYA Sports & Fitness Center is closed until further notice.

Parks & Recreation programs and activities have been canceled until further notice.

All organized sporting activities are postponed indefinitely. Scheduled field use will resume when schools reopen.

Parks reopened on May 20, with limited use to prevent overcrowding. Pavilion rentals remain suspended.

Pole Bridge and Orchard Hill preserves remain open for hiking.

The Resiliency Center of Newtown is open by appointment only; call 203-364-9750.

Stop & Shop stores, including the one in Sand Hill Plaza, 228 South Main Street, have special and curtailed hours.

Customers age 60 and older and anyone with a compromised immune system are welcome between 6 and 7:30 am. The store is then open for all customers from 7:30 am until 8 pm. Online pick-up has resumed; see notes at the top of this week’s column.

The VNA Thrift Shop at Edmond Town Hall is closed until further notice.

Weaving Newtown sessions, Monday evenings at Newtown Congregational Church, are canceled until further notice.

SPECIAL EVENTS

Friday and Saturday, June 5-6: The 2020 Sandy Hook LobsterFest, scheduled for this weekend, has been postponed; new date TBA.

Saturday, June 6: The 6th Annual Catherine’s Butterfly Party, planned for today, has been rescheduled to Saturday, August 22.

Tuesday, June 9: The Garden Club of Newtown 65th Anniversary, first planned for March 24, and then postponed to June 9, has been rescheduled once more, this time to Tuesday, September 22. Tickets are $55, which includes full lunch at Rock Ridge Country Club, ten tickets for a raffle, and a program. The club is still hoping to welcome Ellen Ecker Ogden, a landscape designer based in Manchester, Vt. Ecker Ogden is planning to present “The Art of Growing Food: Designed for Cooks Who Love to Garden.” Contact Garden Club Co-President Peggy Jepsen (peggyjepsen@frontier.com) for details and reservations. Tickets from March and June will be honored.

St Rose of Lima Church Vacation Bible School has been canceled this summer.