Hamden developer nearly completes Ansonia blight remediation

 Moustapha Diakhate stands next to a Farrel Corp. property on East Main Street in Ansonia in January 2013. Peter Hvizdak — New Haven Register file photo

By Jean Falbo-Sosnovich
Register Correspondent
ANSONIA >> The Hamden developer who faced stiff fines for failure to clean up the blighted eyesore he bought in 2013 has nearly completed remediation of the property, just days before a city-imposed deadline.
Moustapha Diakhate of Washington Management Co. LLC. told city officials Thursday he plans to be finished with his remediation plan by the Jan. 31 deadline.
“He said everything will be done by the weekend,” said Economic Development Director Sheila O’Malley. “We would consider an extension due to weather-related issues if he asks, but it appears he may not need one.”

Advertisement

Diakhate and the city reached an agreement last month that required Diakhate to button up the 10-acre abandoned Farrel property he purchased downtown in January 2013. The blighted eyesore was riddled with graffiti, overgrown brush and broken windows, and city officials feared the property would become home to squatters, as the perimeter wasn’t fenced.

Read more here. 

St. Mary-St. Michael School Honor Roll for second marking period

DERBY >> The St. Mary-St. Michael School Honor Roll for the second marking period is announced by Mrs. Linda Coppola, principal.

Grade 4 High Honors:                                                           Grade 7 High Honors:                
Matthew Capiral                                                                      Elizabeth DeCrisanti                      
Selena Hescock                                                                     Gabriela Soriano
Jenna LaBranche                                                                   Sofia Soriano
Grade 4 Honors:                                                                   Joanna Wypasek
Sibe Doci                                                                               Grade 7 Honors
Emily Foley                                                                              Joshua Celentano                          
Anton Rusu
Jacob Weiler

Grade 5 Honors:                                                            Grade 8 High Honors:
Tennyson Delos                                                                     Emily Lucke
Teresa Joseph                                                                       Igor Poliwoda
Rosa Rizzitelli                                                                        Alexis Pudimat
Max Shuart                                                                             Michael Rizzitelli
Brandon Sibilia                                                                       Alexys Ryan
Brooke Sobolisky                                                                    Emily Tokash
Emilia Wypasek                                                                      Shirley Torres

Grade 6 High Honors:                                                            Grade 8 Honors:
Theresa Kardos                                                                        Genesis Brito
Cassidy McNeil                                                                        Cristina Carloni
Grade 6 Honors:                                                                    Maja Cuprys
Maria Ahmed                                                                          Jan Mazan
Dylan Bellinger                                                                        Makayla Naranjo
Bridget Calderon                                                                     Isabella Tufaro
Nico D’Ambrosio
Isabella Hescock
Aryanna Ryan      
Daria Wakulczyk

'In Love & Chocolate' event to benefit Spooner House, Turtle Shell Fund

Tickets are $40/Couple and $25/Per Person. You can purchase them at:

Liquid Lunch - 6 Research Drive, Shelton
Marks of Design - 500 Howe Avenue, Shelton
Spooner House - 30 Todd Road, Shelton

or Purchase Tickets Online HERE

Current Exhibitors Include:

Bricks & Barley Tavern
Common Bond Market
Courtyard by Marriott
500 Degrees
Focaccia's Cafe & Eatery
Liquid Lunch
Nikki's Candy Boutique
The Pink Cupcake Shack
Rotk'n Chocolates
Royal Bakery
Seasonal Sweets & Catery
Starbucks
Stone Gardens Farm
Taste & See Gourment Cupcakes
Tea With Tracy
Tidmarsh Home Bake Shop
Wildflour Confections

Sponsors: Valley Community Foundation, Charter Arms, The Glass Source Stained Glass Studios, Marks of Design, and STAR 99.9 WEZN radio.

Ansonia pays tribute to late employee

By Jean Falbo-Sosnovich
Register Correspondent
ANSONIA >> The city recently paid homage to the late Claude Perry Sr., a longtime public servant who served Ansonia in many capacities for more than three decades.
During a ceremony last week at City Hall, Mayor David Cassetti along with Perry’s widow, Virginia, unveiled a plaque and portrait of Perry that now hangs in the main hallway of the building.
“We are here today to pay tribute to a dedicated public servant, Claude Perry Sr.,” Cassetti said during the event, which was attended by members of Perry’s family, along with his fellow City Hall co-workers. “Claude was a devoted and loving family man and civic minded individual whose priorities were rooted in the community and the residents of the Valley.”

Advertisement

Perry, the father of eight children, died Sept. 19, 2011, at the age of 68.

Read more here. 

Derby opens new preschool at high school, program to accommodate 54 children

By Jean Falbo-Sosnovich
Register Correspondent
DERBY >> Preparing children “socially, emotionally and academically” for their educational careers is exactly what a newly expanded preschool program at Derby High School aims to do.
That’s according to Superintendent of Schools Matthew Conway, who along with other school officials will unveil the new preschool at 7 p.m. Thursday at DHS, 8 Nutmeg Dr.
Derby used $94,000 in state Alliance District Grant funds to renovate a former art wing at the high school, and transform it into the preschool space.

Advertisement

Currently, Derby has a small preschool program with 23 children enrolled that is run out of Bradley and Irving schools. The newly expanded program will accommodate 54 children, Conway said, in its first round, and ultimately another 30 seats will be opened up.

Read more here. 

Raymond G. Allen Jr. named Derby’s Citizen of the Year

By Jean Falbo-Sosnovich
Register Correspondent
DERBY >> At nearly 90 years old and a volunteer firefighter with Hotchkiss Hose Co. No. 1 for more than six decades, resident Raymond G. Allen Jr. was honored Thursday as Derby’s Citizen of the Year.
Allen, who will celebrate his 90th birthday Jan. 25, had no idea when he was asked to attend Thursday’s Board of Aldermen meeting that he’d be the star of the show.
Allen was coaxed to City Hall by his family, who told him his son, Ross, a birding enthusiast, was going to give the aldermen a special talk on birds. The jig was up when Mayor Anita Dugatto rose from her seat in Aldermanic Chambers and presented Allen with the Citizen of the Year plaque, lauding him for his many years of volunteering and dedication to Derby and its residents.

Read more here. 

Ansonia’s ‘smart move’ nets city $10k

By Jean Falbo-Sosnovich
Register Correspondent
ANSONIA >> Efforts by both the city and residents to become more ‘green’ and reduce their energy footprint are paying off in a big way.
To that end, officials from United Illuminating presented Mayor David Cassetti this week with a $10,000 Bright Idea grant.
The city signed a pledge last year with U.I. to participate in energy savings projects through the company’s Energize Connecticut’s Home Energy Solutions program.

Advertisement

Cassetti kicked off the initiative by having an energy audit conducted in his own home. Last March, New England Smart Energy visited Cassetti’s Hilltop home, built in 1985, and conducted various tests to check for energy deficiencies. Cassetti made some simple changes, like switching the traditional light bulbs in his home to energy-efficient LED bulbs to help cut his personal electric bill.

Read more here.