by | Aug 9, 2022 2:29 pm | Comments (1)
Thomas Breen photo
Stephanie Thomas outside Edgewood School polls.
The Fairfield County candidate in Tuesday’s Democratic primary for secretary of the state popped into her opponent’s home turf to make her pitch, to greet some supporters, and to take a refreshing sip of homemade honey and mint iced tea, courtesy of Westville resident Jessica Feinleib.
by | Aug 9, 2022 11:50 am | Comments (0)
Thomas Breen photo
State treasurer candidate Erick Russell with husband Chris Lyddy outside their polling station, Davis Street School.
Erick Russell and his husband (and former state representative) Chris Lyddy, who live on Stevenson Road in Ward 26, walked out of the scorching heat and into the air-conditioned gymnasium at Davis Street school to cast their ballots in Tuesday’s Democratic primary elections Tuesday at around 10:45 a.m.
They were particularly familiar with one name on the ballot: Russell’s.
Continue reading ‘10:45 AM: Russell Casts Ward 26's 113th Vote’
by | Aug 8, 2022 3:01 pm | Comments (3)
Olivia Gross Photo
Atkinson with raffle winner Danny.
Tanaya Atkinson braved the heat -– and not the basketball team -– to give back to New Haven kids getting ready to return to school.
by | Aug 8, 2022 2:37 pm | Comments (5)
Paul Bass Photo
Greenspace outside Mitchell Library.
Kimberly Wipfler Photos
URI Intern Justine Phillips-Gallucci at the tour's new Valley Street stop.
Dozens of New Haveners peeled off of yellow school buses and down a pathway toward the Botanical Garden of Healing, nestled in the shadow of West Rock on Valley Street. They were grandmothers, grad students, kindergarteners, actual gardeners, high school friend groups, and everyone in between, who braved the thick August heat for a tour of New Haven’s ever-growing roster of community greenspace sites, including this new one on Valley.
Continue reading ‘Bus Tour Highlights Community Greenspaces Citywide’
by | Jul 27, 2022 12:45 pm | Comments (1)
Jordan Ashby Photo
Alisa Bowens Mercado teaching salsa Tuesday night on the Central Avenue "patio."
While eating a slice of berry treasure pie, Rachel Broderick enjoyed the added sweetness of salsa in her bite.
Salsa music, that is.
Continue reading ‘Salsa Dancing Adds Flavor to Westville Pies’
by | Jul 25, 2022 9:17 am | Comments (2)
Olivia Gross Photo
The main stage at Seeing Sounds.
The concrete made the temperature seem twice as high at Edgewood Park’s skate park Saturday, but skateboards still flew through the crowd — and music filled the air at the first annual Seeing Sounds music festival.
Continue reading ‘Seeing Sounds Heats Up Edgewood Skate Park’
by | Jul 25, 2022 9:17 am | Comments (0)
Moore.
In the middle of his set to close out the day, musician Trey Moore took a moment to be thankful. “I just woke up one day and decided to do this, and here you are, in the flesh.”
He spoke with an air of gratitude, and just a hint of incredulity, that Seeing Sounds — a day-long festival of music, clothing, food, games, and skating that he organized at Edgewood Skate Park — had actually happened.
Continue reading ‘Bands Make Sound Visible In Edgewood Park’
by | Jul 21, 2022 3:44 pm | Comments (15)
Thomas Breen photo
Now (above). Later? (Below.)
Svigals + Partners image
A decades-old eyesore may be reborn as the new eastern gateway to Westville, according to promoters of a a planned 245-apartment complex and public West River walkway that won City Plan Commission approval Wednesday night.
by | Jul 7, 2022 8:51 am | Comments (2)
Susan Clinard
Missing the Mark.
Susan Clinard’s sculptures are an exercise in extreme empathy, even as Missing the Mark represents something more complex as well. It’s hard not to feel the pull of judgment in the juxtaposition of the crying face of the baby, who just needs some attention, with the blank faces of everyone else, staring at their screens. But in a broader sense, they’re all victims, of a specific mode of modernity we’re told we want. Clinard’s pieces forces us to look at ourselves, too. Are you reading these words on your phone right now? What are you missing around you?
Continue reading ‘65 Artists Contemplate What They've "Lost And Found" In KLG Exhibition’
by | Jun 22, 2022 9:52 am | Comments (0)
Karen Ponzio Photos
Leek chard fatayer made by Sanctuary Kitchen
Could 4,000-year-old recipes translate into a feast to tantalize the tastebuds of today’s dining aficionado? At the hands of chefs from New Haven’s own Sanctuary Kitchen, it turns out they more than satisfied. Around 30 diners gathered at RAWA Tuesday night for an International Festival of Arts and Ideas event where a three-course meal prepared by Sanctuary Kitchen was presented in conjunction with Yale Peabody Museum, inspired by writings from tablets that are a part of their Babylonian collection.
Continue reading ‘Ancient Recipes Please Modern Palates At Sanctuary Kitchen A&I Event’
by | Jun 17, 2022 9:11 am | Comments (2)
Lisa Saunders.
Lisa Saunders was working out at Edgewood Park early to get her morning calisthenics reps in using the playground as her personal gym before starting the rest of the day.
Saunders used to weigh 400 pounds and now guides other people of color in weight loss based on her personal experience while taking part in an overeaters anonymous group.
Continue reading ‘Word On The Street: Park Pre-Work Workout Sets The Tone’
by | Jun 16, 2022 5:06 pm | Comments (7)
Gregg Wies & Gardner Architects rendering
Two new apartment buildings and an office-to-residential conversion planned for 446A Blake St.
A plan to build another 144 new apartments in Westville Village moved ahead, amidst praise for a densifying west side and concerns about pedestrian safety on Blake Street.
by | Jun 16, 2022 10:16 am | Comments (0)
Olivia Charis Photos
Security guard Eskarie Tellez, Del Vaani's friend, wearing one of the latest designs at Wednesday evening's fashion show.
Jozif Del Vaani and Paola Salvador with one of their designs.
A budding New Haven fashion designer named Del Vaani brought his latest avant-garde line to a crowd gathered in Westville Wednesday night.
by | Jun 15, 2022 1:42 pm | Comments (17)
Thomas Breen photo
Could this blighted building at 781 Whalley ...
Svigals + Partners image
... look like this two years from now?
A Branford-based developer working with local real estate investors plans to knock down two Westville commercial buildings — including a long-vacant and blighted structure at the corner of Whalley Avenue and Fitch Street — and construct in their stead 245 new riverfront apartments.
Continue reading ‘245 Apartments Pitched For Whalley Eyesore’
by | Jun 14, 2022 11:19 am | Comments (3)
Kids' class at Westville Performing Arts Center.
Friends Latisha Douglas and Samantha Williams brought their children to violin lessons. They waved goodbye to their budding musicians — then, instead of heading home or out for errands, they went down the hallway, into another classroom, for a contemporary dance class.
by | Jun 9, 2022 5:02 pm | Comments (8)
Darryl Brackeen and Pat Dillon.
Darryl Brackeen Jr. won’t be mounting a Democratic primary challenge for a state representative seat after all, but he’s still eyeing the seat. He is now turning his campaign sights to November, after failing to gather enough qualified petition signatures to force an August Democratic primary against State Rep. Pat Dillon.
Continue reading ‘Brackeen's State Rep Primary Petition Drive Comes Up Short; Eyes General Election’
by | Jun 7, 2022 8:52 am | Comments (0)
Brian Slattery Photos
Stephen Julien and cast.
The band room at Mauro-Sheridan Interdistrict Magnet School was full of students getting into their costumes, changing into sailors and spirits, monsters and magicians. They donned robes and fixed their crowns of flowers, then congregated onstage.
“How does everyone feel in their costumes?” asked co-director Justin Pesce.
“Good,” said one student. “Hot,” said another. If they were all still wearing masks due to Covid concerns, it was a detail; what mattered was that, after two years, Mauro Sheridan was mounting its 2022 production of The Tempest, in collaboration with Elm Shakespare Company, in person.
by | Jun 6, 2022 3:00 pm | Comments (1)
Maya McFadden Photo
Monica and Andy Schlessinger: thankful for Chapel Haven.
Chapel Haven crew sings National Anthem on Saturday.
Earth science and basketball classes. Volunteering in the community. And independent living for residents with developmental disabilities.
Mother-son duo Monica and Andy Schlessinger singled out those as just a few of the many highlights of the Chapel Haven Schleifer Center (CHSC) — which celebrated its 50th anniversary in Westville.
by | Jun 3, 2022 9:07 am | Comments (0)
A cluster of paintings on the wall of the gallery all border a central piece, as if feeding it, which in a sense they do. The central piece holds the others together. In it, a yard bordered by trees is the site of some kind of excavation, roped off. Something is being unearthed there, the ruins of a house, or something still older, maybe. But instead of a crew with tools, the only animals in sight are a cardinal and a bluejay, watching over the proceedings in a moment that’s both funny and a little magical, a flight of fancy on the part of the artist, though very much grounded in reality.
by | Jun 2, 2022 9:48 am | Comments (7)
Maya McFadden Photos
Concrete Creations crew at work Wednesday.
Park regulars keep eye on renovations by the "Lyin' Tree."
As a crew repainted the fencing of Edgewood Park’s tennis courts, park regulars like Byron Breland, Ernest Newton, Billy Bostic, and Kerry Ellington watched from a distance cheering on long-awaited renovations to one of New Haven’s communal gems.
Continue reading ‘Court Upgrades Reinvigorate People's Park’
by | May 20, 2022 5:56 pm | Comments (11)
Darryl Brackeen Jr. and Pat Dillon.
At least one Democratic primary contest is brewing in New Haven this year, in the 92nd General Assembly District.
by | May 16, 2022 8:25 am | Comments (2)
Karen Ponzio Photos
Amira and Iman Brown display their art and artistic flair.
ArtWalk brought the heat, both literally and figuratively, to Westville Saturday as outdoor vendors, neighborhood businesses, and a variety of activities in Edgewood Park energized and elated the village and its visitors.
by | May 11, 2022 1:29 pm | Comments (8)
One recent Wednesday morning, before arriving to Whalley Avenue to open his pharmacy business for a day, Victor Fok drove to a patient’s house to teach them how to test their blood sugar levels, free of charge.
At Fok’s previous job at a large corporate pharmacy chain, he would never have had the time and incentive to prioritize patient education. Now, as a co-owner of the recently-opened True-Care Pharmacy in the Amity neighborhood, Fok and his team hope to reach community members where they live with personally-delivered prescriptions, immunizations, and education initiatives.
by | May 4, 2022 8:57 am | Comments (1)
Brian Slattery Photos
When sibling rivalry becomes a little too hostile. When a puppeteer’s puppet refuses to cooperate. When a threesome collides with the cheerful aesthetic of a Disney movie. These and many other wonderfully absurd scenarios were mined for laughter by The Regicides on Tuesday evening, kicking off a week of ArtWalk programming in Westville.
by | May 2, 2022 9:01 am | Comments (1)
Allan Appel Photo
Knights of Columbus units at Sunday's celebration.
When the apostles sent out their nets at the shore of Lake Tiberias, according to the Book of John -– ultimately a metaphor to become “fishers of men” –- there were no real ichthyological prey to be caught. When they came to believe and to give witness, then they filled their nets. And, thanks to God, there was a big catch.
That was the apt homily for how to keep rebuilding the Catholic community in Westville and the heart of the message of Archbishop Leonard Blair as he celebrated mass in front of 200 of the faithful on the occasion of Westville’s St. Aedan’s and St. Brendan Parish’s main building’s 100th anniversary.