The fourth annual Newtown Arts Festival continued its month-long celebration of events and performances last weekend with the Rooster Ball Dinner & Dance on Friday, September 18, and its original even...
The Spay and Neuter Association of Newtown (SNAN) recently donated 15 books about animals to C.H. Booth Library’s Children’s Department in memory of Penelope Meek, who was president, treasurer, Ways a...
The Farmers’ Market at Fairfield Hills continues every Tuesday, from 2 to 6 pm, through October 23 — rain or shine. Jim Shortt of Shortt’s Farm and Garden reminded me that this is prime time at market...
September 21, 1990
A handful of Borough residents expressed resistance to the idea of building sewers here and anxiety about the $113 million cost at an informational meeting hosted by the Burges...
Occupation: I am a construction project manager.
Family: I have been married to Maribeth for 33 years. We have two daughters. Sarah is 28 and Maggie is 26.
Pets: Until very recently, we ha...
A breeze tugged at Sharon Saunders’s hair where she stood at dusk beneath an awning, crating a silhouette against Holcombe Hill Preserve’s horizon.
Decorative white lights twinkled as daylight fell, c...
RIDGEFIELD — The opening night of Tim Firth’s Calendar Girls at The Ridgefield Theater Barn was met with laughter, tears, and a rousing standing ovation. I would advise you to drop everything and orde...
Newtown resident Jan Brookes was so moved last fall, after reading in The Newtown Bee about the loss of The Comfort Quilt, one of more than 250 received by the Town of Newtown after 12/14, that she de...
Edmond Town Hall (ETH), at 45 Main Street, continues to add new offerings to its calendar. This weekend in addition to its regular movie screenings — including the return of a free Saturday night scre...
September 14, 1990
A plan to expand the Quest program throughout the Middle School sixth grades has met with opposition. The Quest program was piloted by Wendy Bowen and John Ventresca, teachers ...
A quick fact check easily debunks the claims in this letter.
Rep Bolinsky was instrumental in getting Exit 11 fixed which has greatly alleviated traffic at our most previously most dangerous intersection. He worked to get the light put on 34 at Bennetts Bridge which has prevented many accidents. He has pushed DOT for many of the bridge widening and onramp improvements we have seen on the highway, along with advancing legislation for 84 traffic studies, rear-seat seat belts laws, DUI legislation, wrong way signaling, distracted driving and more - working with Vision Zero, CTDOT, NTSB and AAA. He also opposed tolls on 84 which would have shifted even more congestion from the interstate onto local roads. He has been a champion of public transportation efforts for our seniors. Mitch was instrumental in passing the 2017 bipartisan budget with fiscal reforms that protected Newtown's funding, the loss of which would have been passed onto property tax payers. He has proudly never supported a tax increase and opposed and killed many "bad bills" that would have worsened the issues the author is focused on.
We can and should hold our representatives to account, but lets be factual when making such claims.
Another police search in a Newtown neighborhood. Did I miss the notification from the First Selectman’s office, or are we still using the “read about it afterward” emergency communication system?
I raised this same concern after the April police search. How many times do residents have to ask for timely information? At this point, perhaps it’s the First Selectman’s office that needs a welfare check. Anybody home, Bruce?
Thank you to Newtown Police for doing their job. Wake up, Bruce. Keeping residents informed is part of yours.
This strikes me as a pretty one-sided assessment. Let me add some context.
You highlight that his opponent has lived in Newtown for only two and a half years, yet leave out that Rob Blanchard moved here in July—roughly two and a half months ago. If residency matters, apply the same standard to both candidates. Isn't there a name for someone who moves to a town to run for election? Something like a rug or carpet, something?
I also question the mortgage-struggle framing in advertisements he approved and appears in. The public payroll figures put his household gross earnings at roughly $300,000—nearly twice Newtown’s median household income of $155,110. That doesn’t mean they have no financial pressures, but it is fair to question how closely that portrayal reflects the circumstances of a typical Newtown household.
Both candidates deserve scrutiny. Highlighting one candidate’s short residency while overlooking the other’s much more recent arrival is a double standard.
An incredible event... again. Thanks so much to Leslie and the entire gang who make this gathering of friends, family and classmates happen every year! And thanks to Devery Stickles for his generous support. This event is truly the Heart & Spirit of Newtown!
Michelle Embree Ku raises valid concerns about local property taxes, but ignores a basic political reality: Representative Mitch Bolinsky serves in the minority in a legislature dominated by a single-party supermajority where minority-party proposals are routinely sidelined. Suggesting that a single minority representative could rewrite the state's ECS formula is politically unrealistic and disingenuous to Newtown voters.
Despite those odds, Mitch’s CGA track record speaks for itself. He led the charge to protect special education funding, preserve Drug-Free School Zones, safeguard school safety drills, advance science-based structured literacy, and defend homeschooling choices for families.
If Ms. Ku knows how to fix the ECS formula, what has she done to convince her own party—the same party that controls the House, Senate, and Governor’s office? If the supermajority has the votes to fix ECS today, why hasn’t it happened during the 13 years she cites?
Adding another seat to a supermajority that made Connecticut one of the highest-taxed states won't help Newtown taxpayers. If the current majority hasn't delivered relief with absolute power, expanding that majority won't change the outcome.
Newtown’s interests are best served by keeping Mitch in the House and increasing Republican margins to provide real checks and balances. When one party holds every lever of power, accountability disappears. Strengthening the minority ensures our town’s voice is heard, not drowned out.
