An update from the Parks & Rec Dept this week said Greenwich First Selectman Fred Camillo, in collaboration with his emergency management task force, announced thateffective November 1, 2020, passes will be required through November 30, 2020.
Access to Greenwich Point Park is subject to the ruleshere.
Drivers, bikers, walkers and joggers must show their 2020 park pass.
The sale of single entry park passes and parking passes continues through November 30, in limited daily quantities.
Anyone caught in violation will be asked to leave immediately and may be subject to a loss of beach privileges. The sale of single entry park passes and parking passes will continue in limited quantities. If the daily allocation of passes SOLD OUT before the scheduled time, the park pass office will resume sales the next business day.
Residents with a valid 2020 parks & Rec account may purchase single entry park passes and parking passes online at www.greenwichct.gov/webtrac through Nov 30. When the daily allocation is sold out, sales will be available online the following day.
The purchase of a pass does not guarantee access on any specific day and is subject to capacity limits due to Covid-19.
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Passes are non-refundable and are valid for a single entry during the 2020 season only. Passes for people 5-64 are $8.00. No charge for 65+ or under 5. Single entry parking passes are $40 for Greenwich Point.
Stefanie Lacoff is a licensed real estate agent with Berkshire Hathaway Home Services New England Properties in Greenwich, CT. Contact Stefanie for assistance selling your home or purchasing a new one. Text/call: 203-536-9403, email: slacoff@bhhsne.com, stefanielacoff.bhhsneproperties.com
The Greenwich RTC Chair Dan Quigley issued a release Sunday night with a request to residents to respect the rules at polling places on Tuesday, and act responsibly regardless of the outcome.
“In light of all that has transpired 2020, the people of Greenwich have shown great resilience. With that in mind, the Republican Town Committee would like to urge everyone to continue to be at their best on Election Day,” Quigley said.
“This is a special day in America,” Quigley continued. “It represents what so many of our veterans past and present have fought to protect, and is a beacon to those around the world not blessed to live in a free, democratic society. America is the standard bearer for Democracy. Let’s do our best to live up to that lofty ideal.”
“This Election Day comes at the tail end of a very difficult year,” he added. “Let’s make it a day where our community rises to the occasion, and makes us all proud.”
Indivisible Greenwich and the Greenwich Democratic Town Committee have tentatively scheduled a “Count the Vote” rally the day after the Nov 3 election.
The rally will be confirmed Wednesday morning if nationwide events are called.
“If Donald Trump interferes with, or refuses to permit, the counting of votes, and/or refuses to abide by election results, Indivisible Greenwich activists and members of the Greenwich Democratic Town Committee (GDTC) plan to gather to demand that every vote be counted and that Donald Trump honor the results of the 2020 election,” the organizations said in a joint release on Sunday.
The release says the event is tentatively planned for Nov 4 at 4:15pm at a location to be provided midday to members of the press and attendees.
Indivisible Greenwich and the Greenwich DTC will join hundreds of groups, including progressive, conservative and voting rights groups, across the country to Protect the Results of the Election.
“We know that we will not have all of the results on election night—it may take days or even longer for states to certify the results. Therefore we need to be ready to respond if Trump or his allies try to prematurely declare victory and to ensure that every vote in every state is counted,” said Joanna Swomley, a founder of Indivisible Greenwich.
“It is imperative that we come together to make sure the voices of the American people are heard,” said Joe Angland, Chair of the Greenwich Democratic Town Committee. “The majority of Americans want to see a fair election where every properly cast vote is counted.”
“As Trump continues to make comments delegitimizing the integrity of our elections and implying that he will not concede, grassroots activists and others across the country will come together to demand that every vote be counted and ensure a peaceful transition of power,” the groups said in the joint release. The sign up link is here.
The nationwide actions are being organized by Protect the Results – a coalition of over 100 groups formed to protect the results of the 2020 presidential election be undermined.
A Health Alert on Sunday, Nov 1 from Greenwich Schools Head Nurse Mary Keller and Superintendent Dr. Toni Jones said the district was notified that an elective class teacher was last in school on Friday, October 30 had tested positive for Covid-19 due to exposure from a family member outside school.
The notice to families said that contact tracing determined that 25 students in both GHS cohorts – “Cardinals” and “Greenwich” – plus four teachers, will remain in quarantine for the required 14 days.
Return dates are expected to be during the second week of November depending on the date of close contact.
“In addition, we were also notified that 16 students were exposed during a team sports competition not associated with Greenwich Schools on Friday,” the notice continued.
GHS student center with desks to eat. Photo: Benjamin Shi
As a result, the 16 students will remain in quarantine for the required 14 days at the time of exposure.
The notice said that as of Sunday there was not a confirmed positive case, but that if any of the 16 students tested positive, contact tracing would begin immediately and the district will notify families.
The district has a set of quarantine “Do’s and Don’ts on their website, including using a separate bathroom when possible, not sharing utensils, dishes, cups/glasses, bedding, towels, and other personal items, checking for fever (100.4° and greater), shortness of breath, loss of taste and/or smell, or new onset cough.
The district’s website regularly updates its Covid-19 information. As of Oct 1, the district has made 279 phone calls as part of contact tracing, and five schools are currently affected: CMS, GHS, Hamilton Avenue, New Lebanon, and North Street School. The updates include town and county tracking information.
On Saturday, the results were released of the 2020 Connecticut Student Mock Election, a nonpartisan, educational program to encourage young people to become active voters once they are old enough to vote.
The mock election was held by the Office of the Lt Governor in partnership with the state Dept of Education, with 48 high school districts participating; 3,056 students voted.
The voter education program was the first of its kind provided by the state.
Democratic candidate Joe Biden and the Democratic slate won in 42 of the 48 towns. Republican President Donald Trump took 4 of the 48 towns. There was a tie in East Haven and South Windsor.
“Our youth have the power to change the world,” said Lt. Governor Bysiewicz in a release.
From Oct 19 to Oct 30, students had the opportunity to cast their ballot for their choice of President.
Students voted for the same presidential candidates registered Connecticut voters will choose from on Election Day.
Under this initiative, students were introduced to the voting process and the power of voting. The mock election took place virtually to ensure every student – whether they were learning from home or in the classroom – were able to participate while protecting their health and safety.
The 2020 Connecticut Student Mock Election was an academic exercise and was not designed to predict the outcome of the 2020 Presidential Election.
At a press conference on Monday, Connecticut Governor Ned Lamont announced that because Connecticut was seeing a steady increase in Covid-19 cases, the entire state will roll back to Phase 2, effective midnight on Friday.
CT Governor Ned Lamont, Nov 2, 2020.
He shared the daily summary numbers for the previous three days.
There were 2,651 new cases, 11 fatalities and 11 more people hospitalized.
“There’s no mistake about it,” he said. “The trend line is continuing to trend up.”
Lamont said the main priority will be slowing community spread.
He said just a few weeks ago, the idea was to target responses town-by-town, keeping keep flare ups from becoming wildfires.
“Rather than think about how we respond now on a community-by-community basis, I’m thinking more about how we respond on a statewide basis and,” Lamont said, adding that he would coordinate with New York, Massachusetts and Rhode Island.
“What good is it to say our restaurants are going to have to close at 9:30pm when they stay open til midnight?” he asked.
Asked to clarify, Lamont said New York never opened their restaurants past 25% capacity.
“At 50%, we’ve already exceeded where they are right now,” he said.
Lamont said the rollback was more in conjunction with MA and RI.
“Perhaps this is getting us more in line with New York,” said Commissioner Lehman. “We do expect RI to announce something similar this week.”
As for anticipating health care capacity, he said that must be balanced with necessary procedures that require hospitalization, including non-Covid hospitalizations that had been put off last spring.
Keeping schools and childcare open will remain a priority.
“That’s been a real priority for me,” he said. “Social and emotional well being, and schools being an early radar for depression, addiction and other symptoms related to Covid.”
He noted that Europe was 2-3 weeks ahead of the US in the pandemic, and had moved to lock down in many cases in order to keep schools open.
“The understanding in France, Germany and Britain how important that is,” he said.
“It’s worth noting that our universities are open and doing very well,” Lamont continued. “That’s not true in California and other places that closed down their universities.”
“We always anticipated there would be a surge at some point, in November, and colleges, thoughtfully, always anticipated keeping open as long as they could – maybe until Thanksgiving break and then maybe take a break and come back in January or February.”
On the topic of sports, Lamont said Connecticut is in discussions with RI, MA and other neighboring states.
“As we think about ways to keep our schools open and hopefully maintain sports – maybe not a lot of the interstate competition back and forth since that’s proven to be risky,” he said.
Finally, he said, a priority will be to minimize the economic impact to the economy and Connecticut’s families.
“We have more of our economy and more of our GDP open than anybody else in the region, at about 88%,” he said. “That’s good news, helping our budget and helping a lot of families. It’s the service economy that’s a little less impacted by GDP. That can really impact families and employment.”
Mandatory changes that go into effect on Friday in association with RI and MA include moving restaurants from75% capacity back to 50% capacity.
“We did worry that there were some tables that had an awful lot of people at them,” he said. “There were tables acting like parties and less like a restaurant, so we’ll limit to 8 people per table at restaurants.”
Secondly, we want restaurants that serve alcohol, to close by 9:30pm, same as CT’s neighboring states.
“The reason being that at a certain hour, some of restaurants start acting like bars,” Lamont said.
Personal services were at 75% capacity, and we think they can stay at 75%.
“They’ve made enormous efforts. People are wearing masks. They got the plexiglass. They’ve been able to maintain the distancing and I think they’ve not been the source of spread.”
As for event venues, the limit will return to 25 indoor and 50 outdoor.
“Right now people without a mask, even at an outdoor catered event are considered just too risky. Our neighbors are saying the same thing.”
As for religious gatherings, Lamont said that moving into the holiday season with Covid, people are needing the faith community more than ever, but to do it safely, capacity will be maximized at 50% – or 100 people.
“We’ll really emphasize the virtual worship services, especially for your elder parishioners,” he said.
Lamont beseeched employers to let employees work from home where possible, make accommodations, and postpone non-essential travel.
For those over 60 and those with pre-existing conditions, he suggested, “Stay close to home.”
“If you have to ask, wear the mask,” he said. “There is no more important recommendation that we can make.”
“We are putting in these restrictions on a statewide basis now, to make sure that we don’t have to do more severe things later,” Lamont said.
“Acting now is appropriate to avoid the larger shutdown later,” said David Lehman, commissioner of Economic and Community Development.”We’re watching closely what’s happening in Europe, and we want to avoid it.”
Asked about a recent situation at Anthony’s Ocean View in New Haven where college students gathered to party, Lamont gave a shout out to Bridgeport and New Haven officials who closed down establishment for the “near term.”
“They can be fined as needed,” he continued, adding that his chief of staff, Paul Mounds was working with the Dept of Consumer Protection to explore consequences for liquor licenses.
“You can ruin it for everybody by not enforcing these rules,” he said.
The State Dept of Public Health recommends people stay home from 10:00pm to 5:00am.
“As we see infections rising in Connecticut, the chance of someone you are socializing with having an infection that has no symptoms is getting higher,” said Deirdre Gifford, Acting Commissioner CT Dept of Pubic Health. “We can limit the time we spend with persons outside our households – that will help decrease infections.”
Asked about the possibility of unrest on Tuesday, Election Day, or later this week, Lamont said the state was monitoring social media.
He said he had spoken to Commissioner of the Department of Emergency Services and Public Protection (DESPP) James Rovella earlier in the day.
“They’re monitoring social media closely,” he said. “They’re there just in case. I see what’s going on in New York and preventive measures. That’s not going to happen in Connecticut. We’re going to respect the power of the vote and respect decisions.”
A venerable Elm Tree at the corner of Edgewater and Sound Beach Ave in Old Greenwich will be the focus of a public Zoom hearing on Thursday, Nov 5, convened by Greenwich Tree Warden, Dr. Greg Kramer.
The Tree Warden is part of the Parks & Rec Dept.
The tree was posted for removal, giving residents an opportunity to oppose the removal and thereby trigger the public hearing.
“It has been requested that this venerable American Elm at the corner of Sound Beach Ave and Edgewater be cut down due to ‘sight line’ issues,” The Greenwich Tree Conservancy said in a release.
Elm Tree in front of Albertson Memorial Church at intersection of Sound Beach Avenue and Edgewater in Old Greenwich. Photo: Leslie Yager
The Greenwich Tree Conservancy pointed out that the tree has provided beauty and shade for generations of Old Greenwich residents, and with a 61″ girth is estimated to be over 100 years old.
Elms were a favorite street tree before being lost to Dutch Elm disease.
“This tree is a survivor and worthy of being saved,” GTC said.
“Too often these removal requests reflect the view that trees are obstacles to be removed, not assets to be protected. This mature tree cleans our air, cools and shades us, mitigates storm water runoff and increases property values. What beauty it brings to the neighborhood!”
– Greenwich Tree Conservancy
Neighbors say the tree blocks their view of oncoming traffic when turning left (north) onto Sound Beach Ave and impacts the safety pick up and drop off at Old Greenwich School.
Elm Tree at intersection of Sound Beach Avenue and Edgewater in Old Greenwich. Photo: Leslie Yager
The hearing will be held via Zoom on Thursday, Nov 5, 2020 at 12:00pm.
Click the link below to view, listen, and/or participate in this meeting: https://greenwichct.zoom.us/j/82848778161?pwd=Zm1JMTJnZ3J5YkFOcHVoSTNDdGNLZz09 Passcode: 1243666 Or you may listen, and/or participate in this meeting by calling the following: By telephone: 1-646-518-9805 Webinar ID: 828 4877 8161 Password: 1243666
Anyone unable to attend please express their position can send an email to the Town Tree Warden Gregory Kramer at gregory.kramer@greenwichct.org
Update as of 10:30pm: 35,248 voters voted today. Out of 41,560 eligible voters. Turnout: 84.81%
Update: As of 6:20pm 34,767 voters voted. Out of 41,555 eligible voters. Turnout: 83.67%
Original story, 2:30pm. The first of three planned emails from Greenwich Registrars of Voters was sent out at 1:09pm with turnout updates.
They will send a second email Tuesday night when all of the preliminary results have been sent to the State of CT. On Wednesday afternoon or evening, they plan to send a third and final email with the final results after all remaining Absentee Ballots are counted.
At 2:30pm, the Registrar of Voters home page indicates that 76.42% of eligible voters had voted in Greenwich.
That breaks down to 31,748 out of 41,532 eligible voters.
In Person Votes: 16,322 Absentee Votes: 15,440 Supplemental Votes: 738
The votes per hour break down as follows:
Click here for live voter turnout updates on the Town website.
All data sent is subject to re-verification. These results are unofficial. Official results are published approximately one day after tallies are complete, in conjunction with the Office of the Town Clerk.
As of about 9:30pm, though numbers were not final in the race for State Rep in the 149th district or 151st district, Democratic incumbent Steve Meskers in the 150th district received a call from Republican challenger Joe Kelly conceding the race.
“I’m thrilled and elated,” said Meskers, who was at a small gathering at the Old Greenwich Social Club with immediately family, campaign officials and members of the media.
“I wish my colleagues – I want to be there in Hartford with both of you,” he added, gesturing to Hector Arzeno, candidate for State Rep in the 151st district, and Kathleen Stowe candidate in the 149th district. And I think it would be the most meaningful thing for me to have people who represent our values as a community and a country. And I’m routing for both of you.”
“I don’t know if I’m going to share the ride with you every day,” Meskers joked. “But I’d love to have you come up with me.”
“We can go half and half on the gas,” joked Arzeno.
“We couldn’t be more proud of our father and we’re so grateful he’s having his second opportunity to represent his district,” his Meskers’ son Christian, 27.
“I wasn’t here the first time he won, so this is special for me. I was in school the last time. I was home this time for the campaign,” said Isabelle Meskers, 23, who returned to Old Greenwich from California in the spring. “We got to see him campaign, pivot, and figure out how to get in touch with people. And we got to talk to him about the issues our friends care about. We had intense dinner conversations all summer summer.”
“Steve did a great job for Greenwich in his first term,” said DTC chair Joe Angland. “I’m proud the voters in Greenwich recognized that and sent him back to Hartford to continue his good work.”
The other races were inconclusive by 10:00pm but at Republican headquarters Harry Arora, Republican incumbent in the 151st district and Kimberly Fiorello, Republican candidate for State Rep in the 149th district were both optimistic, thanking their families and their teams.
Arora was challenged by Democrat Hector Arzeno and Fiorello was challenged by BOE vice chair Democrat Kathleen Stowe.
“I think it’s still a case of ‘We will see tomorrow,'” Fiorello said. “I don’t want to be presumptuous, except to only say that I am proud to be a Republican. I am proud to be an American and to go through this process of doing more than just voting but to seek an office has been incredibly humbling.”
Fiorello said she was grateful to the Greenwich Police union for their early support, as well as the Stamford Police union, the realtors, the small business association and FIB.
“Let’s celebrate tomorrow,” she said.
As of 11:00pm, the preliminary numbers from the Registrar of Voters had not been emailed. This story will be updated when those numbers are available.
The third and final set of numbers will be released some time Wednesday afternoon or evening.
In the race for CT’s fourth Congressional district, Jim Himes, a Greenwich resident, declared victory early in the evening against challenger Republican Jonathan Riddle, though the vote totals were not available. This will be Himes’ 7th term. The fourth district includes Bridgeport, Darien, Easton, Fairfield, Greenwich, Monroe, New Canaan, Norwalk, Oxford, Redding, Ridgefield, part of Shelton, Stamford, Trumbull, Weston, Westport and Wilton.
As for the Presidential race, Connecticut, as predicted went for Democrat Joe Biden. The Secretary of State’s website reported unofficial results: Biden Harris 302,397 (53.55%) and Trump Pence 253,340 (44.86%).
Around 12:12am on Wednesday the Registrars of Voters sent an email saying the preliminary election results had been sent to the Secretary of State and were available on her website.
The results are preliminary and are unofficial.
These results do not include Stamford which comprises part of the 36th district for State Senate, State Rep in 149th district.
The Registrars of Voters will send out what they expect will be the final email Wednesday afternoon or evening after all remaining absentee ballots are counted with the final results.
State Senate 36th District GREENWICH: D Alex Kasser 17,142 votes (49.70%) R Ryan Fazio 17,347 votes (50.30%) NEW CANAAN D Alex Kasser 2,719 (44.29%) R Ryan Fazio 3,420 (55.71%)
State Rep in the 149th district: D Kathleen Stowe 4,057 votes (45.62%) R Kimberly Fiorello 4,651 votes (52.30%) I Kimberly Fiorello 185 (2.08%)
State Rep 150th district D Steve Meskers 6,608(54.91%) R Joe Kelly 5,150 (42.79%) I Joe Kelly 277 (2.30%)
State Rep 151st District D Hector Arzeno 6,388 Votes (46.97%) R Harry Arora 7,212 Votes (53.03%)
Registrar of Voters D Mary Hegarty 16,789 votes (50.47%) Fred DeCaro III 15,779 votes (47.43%) I Frd DeCaro III 697 (2.10%)
Statement from the Democratic Town Committee on Alex Kasser’s Re-Election:
We are thrilled that Alex Kasser has once again secured the seat for the 36th Senatorial District, which includes all of Greenwich and portions of Stamford and New Canaan, with an even stronger showing than she had in 2018. Alex Kasser’s result in Greenwich stands as a watershed moment in our Town’s electoral history.
She lost this once Republican-dominated town by only 238 votes, which is the lowest margin of loss in Greenwich for a Democratic senatorial candidate that we can recollect.
Kasser herself lost in Greenwich by 970 votes in 2018 and the prior Democratic candidate for this seat lost in Greenwich by 6,175 votes in 2016.
This shrinking margin reveals two important realities: The first is that Greenwich is evolving politically, away from GOP extremism and toward centrist Democrats. The second is that Kasser gained substantial ground in Greenwich – and moved us to within a fraction of a point of the overall vote count.
Kasser earned this seat with hard work and grit. Her campaign had an unprecedented field operation of over 100,000 voter contact attempts – which are calls made and doors knocked.
By proving herself to be a leader across multiple policy areas, Kasser garnered unprecedented support as a Democrat in Greenwich.
While Kasser ran an issue-centric campaign informed by voter input, her opponent ran a campaign of baseless attacks on her character. Fazio’s personal attack ads clearly failed.
And going forward, we sincerely hope the GOP will change course and have the courage to run on substantive policy solutions and facts, not fake videos and false and defamatory stories cooked up by right-wing bloggers and campaign advisers.
Three men pleaded guilty this week to a federal charge related to the scuttling of several sailboats and motor boats between the Black Rock Harbor and the Pennfield Reef Lighthouse in Long Island Sound. The trio were John Magness, 71, of Southbury; Peter Albrecht, 70, of Norwalk; and Carlos Santos, 60, of Westbrook,
Magness, pleaded guilty on November 2, and Albrecht and Santos each pleaded guilty on Friday.
According to court documents and statements made in court, Magness was the owner of Bluefish Cove Marina in Bridgeport. While preparing to sell the property in 2018, Magness and Albrecht, who worked at the marina, engaged Santos to sink several abandoned vessels in the Long Island Sound without a permit. Magness agreed to forgive Santos’ unpaid dockage fees in exchange for his help sinking the vessels.
Investigators identified as least five vessels as having been scuttled at Magness’ request between October 2018 and April 2019.
The three defendants each pleaded guilty to one count of obstruction of navigable waters by sinking a vessel, an offense that carries a maximum term of imprisonment of one year and a fine of up to $100,000. They are released pending sentencing.
The guilty pleas were announced on Friday by John H. Durham, US Attorney for the District of Connecticut.
This matter is being investigated by the US Coast Guard Investigative Service and prosecuted by Assistant US Attorney Lauren Clark.
Alan Gunzburg, Chair of the First Selectman’s Committee for People with Disabilities, shares news that the Parks & Rec Dept has reimagined accessible parking at the Susie Baker Pavilion at Tod’s Point.
Photo courtesy Alan Gunzburg
In an open letter thanking Parks & Rec director Joe Siciliano, Gunzburg said, “We have transformed an accessible spot at Greenwich Point Park and made it to an even more attractive spot for people with disabilities.”
The parking improvements follow the recent addition of a ramp to the high water line and a beach wheelchair, making a trip to the beach and a swim possible for people with disabilities.
Joe Dowling is a wheelchair athlete familiar to those who frequent Greenwich Point where he rides a special three wheel bike that he operates with his arms. Sept 21, 2020 Photo: Leslie Yager Joe Dowling tries out the new Water Wheels wheelchair at Greenwich Point. Sept 21, 2020 Photo: Leslie YagerBeach access mat was in good use on Saturday, June 22, 2019 Photo: Leslie Yager
The number of new listings has consistently decreased each week over the past month, with only 28 new listings this past week. This is the lowest number of new listings to market that we have seen in Greenwich since March of this year. This is not surprising considering that Thanksgiving is less than three weeks away and the Coronavirus infection rate is slowly increasing.
Due to the increased demand and low of inventory, homes have been selling quickly while days on market are lower than they have been in years. We are experiencing a true seller’s market. Most real estate professionals agree that we do not expect a slow down when it comes to demand but the inventory is not there to meet the needs of buyers.
Come tour this fabulous new listing, 50 Vineyard Place, at the public open house this Sunday from 1:00-3:00.
50 Vineyard Lane, Greenwich – Click on photo for details50 Vineyard Lane, Greenwich – Click on photo for details
This tastefully renovated 7 bedroom, 8.2 bathroom brick home sits on 2 landscaped and fenced acres on a quiet, private road only minutes from Greenwich Avenue, the train and schools. The sophisticated interior features extra-height ceilings, oversized windows for maximum light, 5 fireplaces & elegant rooms with clean finishes & beautiful details opening out to the heated pool and terrace with pergola. The over sized master bedroom suite boasts an office, multiple walk-in closets and 2 luxurious baths. The finished lower level has an additional 2500-3000 square feet, it includes a playroom, gym/bedroom & bath. The gated driveway leads to the parking courtyard and a 3-car heated garage. This truly special Roger Ferris-designed home is a private retreat abutting a pond and protected land.
There are 71 public open houses this weekend. Please bring a mask and gloves and plan to social distance.
Stefanie Lacoff is a licensed real estate agent with Berkshire Hathaway Home Services New England Properties in Greenwich, CT. Contact Stefanie for assistance selling your home or purchasing a new one. Text/call: 203-536-9403, email: slacoff@bhhsne.com, stefanielacoff.bhhsneproperties.com
On Monday Greenwich Tree Warden Greg Kramer issued his decision on the fate of a century old Elm Tree on Sound Beach Ave at the corner of Edgewater.
Last Thursday, 81 people attended a Zoom public hearing on the fate of the tree, with residents testifying both in favor of chopping down the tree and in favor of preserving it.
Elm tree at corner of Edgewater and Sound Beach Ave. Nov 5, 2020 Photo: Leslie Yager
Those in favor of keeping the tree agreed it was in decline, but said its canopy contributed habitat, shade and CO2 absorption.
Steve Gospodinoff from the tree department said he had prodded the tree and discovered decay, and that a tree climber on his crew had described “heavy decline.”
Representatives from the Greenwich Tree Conservancy noted that if the tree was actually a hazard, the tree warden wouldn’t be required to post it.
She argued that if the tree was a hazard the town would remove it without posting it first.
Greenwich Tree Warden, Dr. Greg Kramer via Zoom Nov 5, 2020
Neighbors in the Edgewater community said the tree blocked sight lines for people turning left (north) on Sound Beach Ave. Marc Ducret recalled accidents going back many years, and provided a list of three recent crashes in which the tree was noted as a factor.
On Monday Dr. Kramer announced he had approved the removal of the tree.
He cited its declining health and close proximity to high risk targets including a school, a church, sidewalks, busy roads and utilities.
“This decision is based upon professional inspections of the tree that have deemed it a hazard due to severe trunk and crown decay,” Kramer wrote. “Additionally there is historical documentation of large limb failure.”
Kramer also said that sight line obstruction was taken into consideration in his final decision.
“However he said, (sight line) would not supersede the potential risk the tree current poses related to declining health warranting its removal,” he added.
Any party aggrieved by the decision may, within 10 days, appeal the decision to state superior court.
