Wilton Patch: Latest Articles

Advocate: Wilton Woman Arrested For Hitting Man in Crosswalk

2010-03-18T15:34:24-04:00

JoAnn Ceasrine faces charges of drunk driving and second-degree assault with a motor vehicle following the January incident.

By Christian Camerota

March 18, 2010

The Stamford Advocate is reporting that JoAnn Ceasrine, 55, of Wilton turned herself over to police and was charged with drunk driving and second-degree assault with a motor vehicle after allegedly hitting and severely injuring a man in a crosswalk in January.

According to police, the victim, Eric Peterson, was walking across a street in Stamford when Ceasrine failed to yield and struck the man, sending him to Norwalk Hospital with head trauma, a broken pelvis and both legs broken in several places.

Read the full story: Wilton Woman Arrested for Striking Man in Crosswalk.

Hetherington: Question CL&P

2010-03-18T13:38:52-04:00

State rep. John Hetherington asking for federal agencies to look into CL&P's conduct during the recent storm.

By Christian Camerota

March 18, 2010

State Representative John Hetherington (R-125) has joined Governor Jodi Rell in asking the CT Department of Public Utility Control and the Department of Emergency Management and Homeland Security to examine the actions of CL&P in responding to the power outages resulting from the storm that struck southwest Connecticut over the weekend of March 13 and 14. He asked specifically that hearings be held locally to accommodate citizens in the towns that were most severely impacted.

"We pay the highest electric utility rates in the U.S. and what our people experienced is just unacceptable at any price," Hetherington said. "We need real answers delivered in person."

Acknowledging that even a vigorous investigation is small satisfaction to residents who went without lights, water and refrigeration for days, the legislator emphasized that there has to be accountability and credible assurance that we won't see a repeat performance. While critical of CL&P, Representative Hetherington praised local officials "for literally protecting lives and avoiding a far worse situation."

Teens Explore Limitless World in Poetry in Motion Contest

2010-03-18T13:10:29-04:00

The library's fourth annual poetry competition will take place March 26 and 27.

March 18, 2010

Though popular culture depicts teenagers as interested in only their own worlds, Wilton Library's fourth annual Poetry in Motion performance event powerfully dispels that myth in the two-night event on Friday and Saturday, March 26 and 27, from 7:30 to 9 p.m.

"In A World Without Limits" is the theme for this year's poetry initiative in which kids in grades 7 through 12 created their own original poetry. The students will read or perform their works based on "a world with no restrictions, where anything's possible – good or bad." Many of the pieces will be performed with music and dance, and highlighted by photography.

According to Susan Lauricella, the head of Teen Services, "This is our fourth year of giving students this creative outlet, which means we have kids who have come up through their freshman year participating, and we have a whole new 'farm team' joining us from Middlebrook. The kids are enthusiastic and are very much looking forward to expressing themselves." The students have worked since the beginning of the school year in September, first crafting their poetry, then going through edit sessions, and this winter taking performance direction from Regie Gibson, a nationally-recognized poetry slam winner. To prepare for their Friday and Saturday performances, the teens are being directed by Nancy Ponturo, choreographed by Brenda Froehlich, and will have musical direction by Tony Burnett.

In addition to the performances, a book of the teens' poems will be available for purchase. Tickets are on sale now at the circulation desk and are $5 per person for each night. A limited number of tickets will be sold at the door, based on seating availability. Proceeds from the sale of the books and the tickets benefit future teen programs. A reception follows each evening's performance. The Poetry in Motion program is sponsored by Wilton Library and made possible by funding from a generous patron. Wilton Library is located at 137 Old Ridgefield Road in the heart of Wilton Center. For information: 203-762-3950 ext. 243.

Pulling the Plug on Trackside?

2010-03-18T15:36:22-04:00

In the second tight budget year in a row residents and town officials have been analyzing the teen center's long term financial viability.

By Christian Camerota

March 18, 2010

The sad truth of lean budget years is that even beneficial town entities come under scrutiny. This year the Trackside Teen Center is enduring that unpleasant honor from residents and town officials alike.

Founded in 2004, Trackside's mission was and is to serve as a hub for "age-appropriate" teen activity in the community. But its difficulties in fund-raising, coupled with an increasing percentage of its operating costs being supplied by municipal funding, is leaving some unsure of its long-term financial viability.

"The thing that bothers me about their budget this year is that the percentage of funding coming from the town, as a percentage of their total, is up," said Board of Finance Lynne Vanderslice during a meeting between the Board of Finance and Selectmen last week. "I made the comment last year that they needed to do more fund-raising...and I'm disappointed that we're not seeing that."

To Vanderslice's point, Wilton will fund $143,963 or 53 percent of Trackside's expenses in fiscal year 2010 as of data from November of last year. In its 2011 budget request, Trackside has asked for the same amount of town funding but forecasts its income to decrease around $5,000, increasing the percentage to 54 percent.

Perhaps more troubling is the longer term trend evident here. In 2007, the town contributed 37 percent of Trackside's operating income ($103,747). In 2008, that number rose to a high of 56 percent ($134,268) and then fell to 42 percent in 2009 ($134,842). To see it rising again in '10 and '11 is not encouraging, though not entirely unexpected due to the effects of the country's ailing economy.

"This is a tough environment and all I can say is that they are doing their best," said First Selectman Bill Brennan. "They know better than anyone else that the pressure's on...we don't have a lot for kids to do in this town and it fills a need...I'm reluctant to pull the plug prematurely and then be regretful later."

Brennan indicated that he has been encouraged by Trackside's new leadership and also pointed out that the surrounding towns that have had success with their own teen centers had to wait around ten years before they caught on and started becoming self-sufficient. Selectman Ted Hoffstatter, the board's new representative to Trackside, also said that the value the town receives from the center far outweighs its price tag.

"I think for what we spend on Trackside, we get a lot back," he said. "The fact that it is student-run, I can say as an educator, is very important...and as much as I want to see money trimmed everywhere we can, I just don't want to go to them because I think they're improving."

Wilton's monetary contribution to Trackside covers the center's two full-time and one part-time employees, as well as its cleaning staff. In the 2011 budget proposal, for instance, the town's $143,963 will cover salaries of $60,160 for Trackside's executive director, $38,493 for its program manager, $22,422 for its development director and $16,800 for the cleaning staff, plus another $5,000 for event staffing, payroll and tax filing fees, and worker's comp insurance.

The center's total projected expenses for fiscal year 2011 amount to $315,404, the highest they've been since 2007, while its gross profit is projected to fall around $45,000 to $258,673 in 2011 from a 2009 high of $303,414 (as of November, the center's gross profit for 2010 was on pace to end the year around $228,000, about $45,000 below the budgeted total).

Trackside's greatest sources of income in 2011, outside of Wilton's municipal contribution, are anticipated to be approximately $40,000 from donations and grants and $46,500 from special events. It is the former of these two figures that concerns some, considering that from 2007 on, Trackside has raised around $93,000 ('07), $33,000 ('08), $123,000 ('09), $44,000 (estimated '10) and is budgeting for only $40,000 worth of revenue coming from grants and donations in 2011.

"I've long been a proponent of Trackside and I've always thought as a town that we needed to err on the side of giving it whatever time and resources it needs to be successful," said selectman Jim Meinhold at the two boards' meeting. "But it doesn't seem to me, and certainly they're trying hard and trying different things, but they're not having much success, outside of band nights at least."

The caveat to Trackside's revenue struggles, of course, is that with many residents dealing with tight finances and no wage increases (and with others losing their jobs altogether), most charitable organizations have had difficulty fund-raising. And to the center's credit, they counted around 6,000 teen visits last year (for perspective, the 2000 census indicates Wilton as having somewhere between 2,000 and 2,500 teenagers in its ranks), it had open hours after 180 school days, seven band nights, two dance parties, five movies nights and hosted a variety of sports team banquets, board meetings, rehearsals, blood drives, you name it. So, there is certainly no paucity of Trackside activity.

But to have grant and donation income fall from a 2009 high of $123,000 to about a third of that two years in a row has given many pause when considering the center's future. Meinhold asked both the Boards of Selectmen and Finance if there were certain benchmarks or measurements that the town could put in place that would indicate when it might be time to pull back municipal funding if Trackside wasn't meeting goals.

No one had a specific answer and most members conceded that, considering the large investment the town and certain community members have already made on its behalf and the extenuating economic circumstances, Trackside should be given leeway. Brennan echoed these sentiments.

"I don't think that this is the type of decision where you say 'at this number, we're out of here,'" he said. "If we see the trend not picking up in the future, then perhaps we'll have to revisit the issue."

Don't Be Too Eager For the Census

2010-03-17T00:24:40-04:00

The Wilton Police issue a warning to citizens about being too liberal with their personal information around census time.

March 17, 2010

Beginning in March the U.S. Census Bureau will send out a short questionnaire to every household in the U.S. and Puerto Rico in an effort to collect important demographic data. As a citizen, you are required by law to respond to the 10 short questions. From April to July, those that haven't completed their census will receive a visit at their home address from a census taker.

Identity criminals may take advantage of the census law and target unsuspecting victims in an attempt to steal sensitive information. The scams perpetrated may range from fraudulent emails designed to obtain sensitive information to attempts to impersonate census collectors.

Most citizens don't think twice about sharing personal information with a census worker, and that's why these scams can be very effective. It's important to remember there are distinct differences between a real census worker and an identity thief posing as a census worker.

U.S. Census workers will have identification, a handheld device and a confidentiality notice. But these things can be easily fabricated, so it's important to know what census workers will not do:

They will not ask for your Social Security number or financial information, e.g. bank or credit card accounts.
They will not ask you for money or say that you owe money.

They will not harass or intimidate you.

They will not contact you by email- only by phone, by mail, or in person.

Wilton Woman's Club to Hold Fashion Show

2010-03-17T00:17:30-04:00

The April show will be sponsored by Saks Fifth Avenue.

March 17, 2010

Planning is underway for the Wilton Woman's Club's Third Annual FASHION FUNdraising Fashion Show.

Saks Fifth Avenue will provide the clothing and accessories for the show which will take place from 10 a.m. to 1:30 pm on April 30 at Saks Fifth Avenue in the Stamford Town Center.

In addition to the fashion show, attendees are eligible for a free makeover, 15 percent off merchandise purchased on that day, a box lunch, wine and dessert. There will also be a silent auction.

The funds raised will be distributed to the Americares Free Clinic of Norwalk and the Norwalk Emergency Shelter.

Founded in 1966, the Wilton Woman's Club is dedicated to community improvement through volunteer service, and to strengthening women.

Tickets to the event are $60 and may be reserved by sending a check payable to the Wilton Woman's Club to WWC, P. O. Box 414, Wilton, CT 06897 by April 16. Call 762-7114 with questions or to check ticket availability after April 16.

Letter to the Editor: Modern Day Know Nothings

2010-03-17T00:42:02-04:00

Wilton resident Kelly Franklin responds to an earlier article on the Tea Party Movement in Wilton.

March 17, 2010

A little over a week ago, Wilton Patch ran an article on the tea party movement.

While I take issue with some of the unsubstantiated claims in the article indicating that there is a growing interest in this movement in Wilton, and with the assertion that it is a grass-roots organization, my reason for writing today is Steve Symonds' comment on that article that asked town Democrats and Republicans to stop speaking in code, and be clear about their stance on this issue.

Mr. Symonds is right to ask for that clarity, and as a registered Democrat in Wilton, I'd like to make my position clear. I think the tea party movement is both dangerous and misdirected. It is also not unique. After almost every period of economic upheaval or social change in American history, we have seen the rise of these sorts of groups.

For example, the 1850s nativist Know Nothing movement also had no centralized organization or cogent platform, and was spawned by fear of "the other." Today's inchoate tea party movement, which laments taxation (despite the fact that taxes have gone down in the last year, and are lower than those imposed by Ronald Reagan), and boasts anarchic, but ill-informed citizens who loudly demand that the "government keep its hands off Medicare" certainly echoes its predecessor.

The primary difference is that the Know Nothing movement grew organically, playing on reactionary fears and fueled by the influx of immigrants to the United States and evolution in culture and voting patterns that that trend engendered.

Conversely, the tea party movement, while feeding off a real anger shared by the left and the right at citizens picking up the tab for Wall Street's bad bets, got its start as an astroturf (fake grass roots) movement, funded by Republican-led PACs like Freedomworks, and fostered by "news" outfits like Fox which seek to make a cage match out of public discourse.

While not all that identify with this movement are conspiracy theorists and bigots and anti-government extremists, many are. That these people, who hold up signs of our president defaced with a Hitler mustache dare call themselves "patriots" cheapens the achievements of our founding fathers and denigrates the sacrifices of generations of Americans who have given up their lives in service to our country. That they disrupt public discourse by hijacking town halls robs their fellow citizens of our right to engage in reasoned discussion and debate with our representatives.

This town, this state, and our nation have serious challenges - problems that require intelligent and thoughtful debate, and willingness on the part of our elected officials to take unpopular stances and make tough decisions.

Unfortunately, many Republicans at every level of our government seem more interested in fanning the flames, just saying "no," and playing political games than they do in living up to the responsibilities we've entrusted them with to help govern thoughtfully, and make tough choices.

A cynical donor presentation for the Republican National Committee was made public last week (http://www.politico.com/news/stories/0310/33866.html) and revealed just how eager this political organization is to stir up fear in order to co-opt and channel the anger of those who affiliate themselves with the tea party movement.

It is perhaps worth noting that the Know Nothings' largest legacy was that it killed the dying party of no ideas that was the Whigs, while forming the basis for what we today know as the Republican party. Perhaps history will repeat itself.

-Kelly Franklin, Wilton

Police Log: Sledding Hill Territorial Dispute Leads to Charges

2010-03-16T15:38:42-04:00

An altercation on a sledding hill leads to charges for two minors, among other weekly police activity.

By Christian Camerota

March 16, 2010

Tuesday, March 9, 2010

Jewelry and electronic items were stolen from an unlocked residence on Marvin Ridge Place between 8:45 a.m. and 2 p.m. The burglary is still under investigation and a neighbor reported seeing a "boxy, white-colored sedan with tinted windows" in the area around the time of the incident

Thursday, March 11, 2010

A female pedestrian was injured when Stanely Mokwski, 57, of Wilton accidentally hit a parked vehicle with a maintenance tractor he was driving. The impact drove the parked vehicle into the pedestrian, striking her in the right knee. She was taken from the scene of the accident, which occurred on the property of the Schools Sister's of Notre Dame, to Norwalk hospital. No charges were filed as a result of the incident.

Saturday, March 13, 2010

Eric Heidinger, 45, of New Milford was observed traveling on Westport Road and straddling the center line with his vehicle. Upon stopping him, police found him to be under the influence of drugs or alcohol and not to be in possession of his license. He was transported to the Wilton Police Department and processed on charges of failure to drive right, operating under the influence of alcohol or drugs, and failure to carry a license, and later released on a PTA. He has a March 25 court date.

Sunday, March 14, 2010

Jennifer Cardoso, 24, of Danbury was observed traveling on Danbury Road while straddling the center line with her vehicle. Upon stopping her, she was found to be under the influence of alcohol or drugs. She was transported to the police department, and processed on charges of failure to drive right and operating under the influence of alcohol or drugs. She was assigned a March 25 court date and released on a PTA.

Monday, March 15, 2010

Two thirteen-year-old Wilton minors were charged with breach of peace resulting from an incident on Feb. 26 at Rolling Hills Country Club. The two minors were involved in an altercation with three other 12 year-olds on a sledding hill at Rolling Hills, where the children were playing on a snow day from school. The incident escalated to the point where one of the victims ran home and reported the altercation to his parents, who then relayed it to police. Lieutenant Don Wakeman said the altercation involved a series of serious verbal threats and some physicality. Police then had to track the two 13-year-olds through the snow and ultimately charged them each with one count of breach of peace for their roles as aggressors in the incident. The two minors have March 25 court dates.

And the Winner Is...

2010-03-17T00:51:55-04:00

The Wilton Police Department hosts its annual awards ceremony, naming its Officer of the Year.

By Laurel Tuohy

March 16, 2010

Chief Michael Lombardo regaled the crowd at the Wilton Police Department Annual Awards Ceremony with tales of honor, valor, hard work and good service on Monday night.

About 50 citizens, as well as most of the police force, gathered in the library's Brubeck room to applaud the officers for a job well done.

Among the awardees were:

Officers Frank Razzaia and Robert Cipolla for shutting down an ongoing, 5-person drug sale operation being run from a home in Wilton.
Detective Peter Trahan for solving a series of car burglaries in the High Field Road area. GPS units, iPods and other small items had gone missing on more than a dozen occasions. Through careful work, the detective was able to track down a seller on the internet peddling the stolen items and return many of them to their rightful owners while the thief admitted to 12 nighttime burglaries.
Officer Arnault Baker for responding to a drug overdose and keeping the victim alive via rescue breathing until EMS arrived. The victim still has full brain function thanks to the officer.
Detectives Kip Tarrant and Christopher Isidro for helping to solve 12 bank robberies throughout Fairfield County, two of which happened in Wilton and Georgetown.
Officer Frank Razzaia for finding a suspect while off-duty and working with the Danbury Police to have him apprehended. The suspect was convicted of driving a stolen car and committing many small thefts from cars of purses, wallets and credit cards in Wilton that had been later used for illegal purchasing.

Officer Razzaia received three awards and will receive a bar pin reflecting these honors for his uniform.

The Officer of the Year is the Ceremony's greatest honor and was awarded to Officer Robert Cipolla.

The patrol officer has been with the department since 2006 and graduated first in his class from the police academy, as well as from Marist College.

Chief Lombardi commended Officer Cipolla on his professionalism, thoughtfulness, thoroughness and for his volunteer efforts. He also noted that Officer Cipolla now, "gets his own parking spot in back of the station," with a laugh.

Officer Cipolla thanked his parents and family as he took the podium to receive his award.

He referred to his co-workers as his other family and said, "Some of you are like the annoying older brothers," with a chuckle, "Some of you treated me like family even before I got out of the academy. You guys make it worth it to come to work every day and to know that we have each other's backs."

He also noted that, "It's an honor that the award is being passed down to me by [last year's winner] Detective Peter Trahan, who was my training officer and who made me into the officer that I am today."

The awards ceremony was followed by refreshments provided by the Rotary Club including a beautifully decorated cake from the Village Market.

The full list of 2009 Awardees follows:

Meritorious Police Service:
Detective Kip Tarrant
Detective Christopher Isidro
Sergeant Robert Kluk
Officer Shawn Frendt
Officer Gregg Phillipson

Citation of Commendation:
Officer Frank Razzaia (2)
Detective Kip Tarrant
Detective Christopher Isidro
Detective Scott Sear
Lieutenant Stephen Brennan
Officer Stephen Sisenstein
SRO Richard Ross
Detective Peter Trahan
Captain John Lynch

Life Saving:
Officer Arnault Baker

Letter of Recognition:
Officer Joseph Calorossi
Officer David Hartman (3)
Sergeant Robert Kluk (2)
Officer Robert Cipolla
Officer Frank Razzaia
Officer Robert Nosal
Detective Christopher Isidro

Assessing the Storm's Toll

2010-03-16T01:32:42-04:00

Wilton avoids the worst of the weekend's storm, but still faces a serious clean up and sets its sights on helping neighboring towns.

By Christian Camerota

March 16, 2010

Though Governor Rell has declared a state of emergency for Connecticut, it appears Wilton escaped the worst of the weekend's storm.

At their highest total, power outages affected 14 percent of CL&P customers in town (around 1,000 residents) and while that may seem high, it amounts to not even half of the 50 and 60 percent of customers in towns like New Canaan, Darien and Westport who suffered the same fate and many of whom remain without power. As of 1 a.m. Monday night, only around 450 (six percent) were without electricity in Wilton.

"Saturday's storm was among the most destructive to ever hit Fairfield County and the damage is simply astounding," Governor Rell said of the weekend's events in a news release.

According to First Selectman Bill Brennan, who spoke about the storm at Monday's Board of Selectmen meeting, most of the damage done to the town occurred in the southern part of Wilton, saying this was "consistent with all the problems along the coastline." He added that town officials could not yet put a dollar amount on the damage that Wilton had sustained, but would compile such data in the coming days in efforts to qualify for federal relief funds.

As reported by Westport Patch, Fairfield County would need to have sustained a minimum of $2.85 million in damage to qualify for federal disaster assistance. For state government's expenditures to qualify for federal reimbursement, the state would need to incur $4.39 million in costs.

Many of the Wilton's roads remained closed Monday night (for an interactive map of the closures, you can go here), though Brennan said Public Works and Parks and Recreation crews were working hard to restore order to messy town thoroughfares and fields.

The biggest challenges now lie in removing obstructions in a timely fashion (the widespread effects of the storm have thinned area resources and have necessitated work crews coming to help from as far away as Vermont, New Hampshire and Canada) and disposing of all the debris.

"We have limited space at the Transfer Station," Brennan said. "So we're trying to identify a possible site to bring all this stuff to."

Brennan received a call from Governor Rell around 4 p.m. Monday inquiring about the state of the town. By his account, he reported that, comparatively, Wilton had not sustained any severe damage and simply needed help finding locations to dispose of all the felled trees and branches.

CL&P, meanwhile, expected power to be mostly restored to the region by 8 p.m. on Wednesday and Wilton, unlike many of the surrounding municipalities, was not forced to cancel a single day of school. Once the clean up nears completion, Brennan said the town will turn its attention toward its neighbors in need.

"When we get all our stuff cleaned up and if we can help some of the other towns, like Westport, we're going to do that," he said.

Of those residents who did lose power in town, many headed to the Wilton Library to charge phones and electronic devices, sip coffee and enjoy a warm respite from the wet, blustery weather. According to Janet Crystal, the library's publicist, they recorded in excess of 50 wireless hookups per hour (well above average) and cell phone and iPod chargers "were plugged in everwhere."

"The library has truly lived up to its calling as the living room of the community," Crystal wrote in an email on Monday, "a mission that was set out by the Building Committee when the expansion was completed in 2005."