Date: Fri 07-Aug-1998

By SHANNON HICKS

Published: Aug 13, 1999 12:00 am

Publication: Bee

Author: SHANNON

Quick Words:

Aerosmith-Will's-Coyle

Full Text:

ON THE ROAD/SHANNON HICKS

Welcome to August, which, according to an announcement from Barnes & Noble

Booksellers, is also Romance Awareness Month. I don't know about you, but the

only thing I'm noticing -- or care about noticing, or can't help but noticing!

-- is this awful heat and humidity. Don't give me romance right now, brother.

It's too hot.

UNCLE WILL'S DOGS will be performing on the CityCenter Green in Danbury on

Saturday night. The free performance is part of CityCenter association's

annual Summertime Festival of the Arts, which presents entertainment every

Thursday through Saturday all summer long. Performances are held outdoors, so

they are canceled in the event of rain. Uncle Will's Dogs will be starting up

around 7:30 pm. Band members are from Newtown, and the guys play Grateful

Dead-style music.

The green is the area encircled by Ives Street and Patriot Drive. There is

plenty of parking available in the adjacent Patriot Garage for a small fee.

The AEROSMITH concert at the Meadows that was postponed from August 22 will

now be taking place on October 11. Tickets from August 22 will be honored in

the fall, and seats are still available if you're interested in going. Tickets

are $25.50 for the lawn area, or $40.50 and $52.75 for the pavilion. Los

Fabulous Cadillacs will be opening.

Next weekend, THE LAURA COYLE BAND will be playing a special afternoon concert

at the Harmony Grange in Monroe. The 1 pm performance will be fans' last

opportunity for a while, as Coyle is off to Los Angeles shortly. The

performance will also be special in that it will be recorded for a future

release.

Admission is $5. The grange building is at the intersection of routes 110 and

111 in Monroe; call 800/923-1762 for additional information.

Until next week, I'll be seeing you... on the road.

Questions and comments concerning "On The Road" (or anything music related)

should be sent to Shannon Hicks, c/o Bee Publishing Co., 5 Church Hill Road,

Newtown 06470, or shannon @thebee.com. Include a phone number for

confirmation, please . If you don't have a stamp or a piece of paper or a

writing utensil that works, give me a call! Phone number at the office is

426-3141. Shows listed on the calendar at club locations are for ages 21 and

over unless specified.

UPCOMING CONCERTS

AUGUST 7 -- Burnkit at 11 Library Place, Danbury; Deep Purple at the Meadows,

Hartford, Emerson, Lake & Palmer and Dream Theater opening; Physical Graffiti

at Toad's Place, New Haven, Milestone, Creepin' Charlie & Butterfly Jones

opening;

August 8 -- Uncle Will's Dogs at CityCenter Green, Danbury (7:30 pm);

August 9 -- 28th Annual Reggae Festival at Woodbury Ski Area & Skate Park

(Alpha Blondy & The Solar Circus w/ Babba Seth World Orchestra, Christafari,

Majek Fashek & The Prisoners of Conscience, Afire, Jump Start, et al);

August 10 -- Slaughter at Toad's Place, Solarchurch and St. Tone opening;

August 11 -- Matchbox 20 at the Oakdale Theatre, Soul Asylum and Semisonic

opening;

August 12 -- Seven Mary Three at Webster Theatre, Hartford;

August 14 -- Cinderella at The Webster Theatre (rescheduled from April,

earlier tickets honored); Darik & The Funbags at Toad's Place, Prezens and

Furious Styles opening;

August 15 -- The Laura Coyle Band at Harmony Grange, Monroe ( 1 pm);

August 18 -- Eight to the Bar at Toad's Place, Jitterbug Jane opening (Swing

Night, with dance instruction available); Southern Rock Jam at the Meadows

Music Theatre (Charlie Daniels Band, Marshall Tucker Band, Molly Hatchet);

August 20 -- Machinery at Toad's Place, Beyond Reality opening;

August 21 -- The Tubes (featuring Fee Waybill) at Toad's Place, New Haven,

Milestone, Crucible opening (rescheduled from June 19 & Aug 7, tickets still

honored);

August 22 -- Gasball 5 at CityCenter Green, Danbury (all-day arts & music

festival);

August 25 -- Jimmy Buffett and The Coral Reefer Band at The Meadows;

August 28 -- Max Creek at Toad's Place, Carnival Dogs and The Who's Who

opening (all ages);

August 29 -- Van Halen at the Meadows, Kenny Wayne Shepherd opening;

August 30 -- Anthrax and Life of Agony at Toad's Place, Vision of Disorder and

Grinspoon opening (all ages);

August 31 -- Mercyful Fate at Toad's Place, Simon Barr Sinister and Vicious

Circle opening (all ages).

COA Welcomes New Alternate, Discusses Senior Alliance

BOE Recognizes 2026 Profiles In Professionalism Honorees

C.H. Booth Library Hosted Another Successful Volunteer Fair

Fire Reports | April 28-May 4, 2026

Well that is some spin. The Democrats have a super majority on the LC and passed the Education Budget without serious consideration of if the voters could afford the multi million dollar increase. "Was the request justified?" rather than "is this needed?" and "can the voters shoulder yet another large increase?" The voters rightly sent it back. Then for some reason all the discussion around reductions to the increase seemed to be coming from the classroom, rather than administration and overhead costs. Is this a coercive tactic to manipulate parents into supporting the budget like tacit threat of cutting freshman sports was two years ago? Who believes the Democrats did not caucus privately before the meeting and came in with a number already worked out? This is the Dems budget, they own it.

Education Cuts: Who Voted For What

I think it is important that we do not villainize every black box seen around a home, business, farm, or municipal property. A black exterior station does not always mean rat poison is being used. These stations can hold a number of different products, including monitoring blocks, snap traps, non-toxic bait, anti-tick bait stations, organic salt- or cornmeal-based control products, and newer fertility-control approaches intended to reduce rodent populations without traditional poisons. The better conversation, in my opinion, is not simply “black boxes are bad,” but rather: what is inside them, who is maintaining them, and whether the rodent issue is being managed responsibly. Exclusion, sanitation, trapping, habitat reduction, and careful monitoring should all be part of a responsible IPM strategy. To be fair, on my own property I do use rodenticides, including Bromethalin and Bromadiolone, in secured bait stations. But that is a choice I make for my property, based on my circumstances and the risk I am trying to manage. I also believe property owners should understand the tradeoffs and be encouraged to use the least harmful effective method whenever possible. I support protecting Newtown’s wildlife. I also support giving residents accurate information and not assuming that every black box represents reckless or unsafe pest control. The goal should be responsible rodent management, not fear of the box itself.

Discusses Policy Against Rodenticides

Debora, thank you! I accidentally doubled the project prices by adding the bond to the appropriation. Thank you so much for catching that and pointing it out. With the corrected numbers, the voters approved a combined $1.32 million for a salt shed ($600k) and library pavement ($720k), while rejecting the $1.12 million replacement turf. Regarding the 80s, I truly respect the hurdle of 14% mortgage rates. My point is simply that the math has shifted: in 1980, while the rates were higher, the price of a home relative to earnings was significantly lower. We are facing a different, but equally crushing, financial wall. Ultimately, it is disheartening that voters who recognized safe sidewalks and parking lots as essential, dismissed a playing field in the exact same condition. The turf has passed its life cycle and is just as much of a liability as the library’s pavement, the only difference is that this safety concern affects thousands of children who, coincidentally, cannot vote. These are apples-to-apples needs. I was hopeful our community would agree that all Newtown residents deserve safe conditions, regardless of which facility they utilize. Again, I would be remiss not to mention that when 82% of residents don’t show up, we have to deal with the interests of those who did. Hopefully, the next referendum will have a bigger turnout.

The ‘Me’ Generation

Thanks for the reply. I meant the numbers you presented in your letter. I found one place where other numbers were listed: https://www.newtownbee.com/04232026/get-out-and-vote-on-the-2026-27-proposed-municipal-and-school-budgets/?q=\\\%22advisory%20questions\\\%22. In that article, the numbers were cited as: Treadwell field: $1,125,000 Library: $720,000 Salt Storage: $600,000 As one who started out in the early 80's when inflation was double digits, my 1985 mortgage rate was 14%, and child care costs were comparable (in present value), I shared your grief but never considered the voters ironic or shameful. PS. I agree college tuition is ridiculous. Thankfully, universities are offering (or considering) waiving all or most tuition for middle class families (upwards of $200,000 incomes). Hopefully, they'll also reconsider their need for those funds in the first place.

Sure! Child care costs: https://www.ffyf.org/2022/10/13/data-child-care-prices-continue-to-rise-ahead-of-midterm-elections-outpacing-inflation/ (also from 2021-2025 we had 2 children in a local daycare in Newtown and it cost us $3200 a month, so that's a number I am very familiar with) Home price / median price vs income source: https://www.jchs.harvard.edu/home-price-income-ratios Tuition increase vs inflation: https://feed.georgetown.edu/access-affordability/noting-a-decline-in-middle-class-students-colleges-provide-more-aid/ Hope this helps :)

<< May 2026 >>
S	M	T	W	T	F	S
26	27	28	29	30	1	2
3	4	5	6	7	8	9
10	11	12	13	14	15	16
17	18	19	20	21	22	23
24	25	26	27	28	29	30
31	1	2	3	4	5	6

Log In

Date: Fri 07-Aug-1998

Leave a Reply Cancel reply