ARTFARM announces new summer theater program for young activist women

ARTFARM will be initiating a new Summer Theater Program in 2018 -- the Generative Theater Institute (GTI).

The Generative Theater Institute is a three week, full-time training program in which committed emerging activist artists will cultivate voice, body and breath work, as well as mindfulness, meditation and healing practices, while exploring group generated content and developing original work for performance.

The 2018 GTI will focus specifically on the ideas, issues and concerns of young women. ARTFARM’s Generative TheaterInstitute 2018: The Women’s Movement, will run July 2^nd -22^nd, with public performances the weekend of July 20-22.

Acceptance to the program is by application, and is open to young women between the ages of 17 and 24. Some age exceptions may be made with special permission of the Director.

Marcella Trowbridge, ARTFARM Artistic Director and Director of the GTI program, says “The Generative Theater Instituteserves emerging artists who want to do work that matters. It is for young artists who care about the human condition, yet want to hone their craft- to develop the Self and one’s personal voice as an individual and in community through embodied artistic work. In 2018, the Generative Theater Institute will focus specifically on the energies, ideas, experiences, concerns and inspirations of young women. Our communities are bursting forth with a new generation of dynamic, talented women. I am excited to see where they lead us.”

ARTFARM is a Middletown, Connecticut-based theater company, founded in 2001, which cultivates high-quality theater with a commitment to simple living, environmental sustainability and social justice.

For more information, or to apply, contact Marcella@art-farm.org, call 860.346.4390 or go to www.art-farm.org

Oddfellows looking for summer housing for Circus Artists

The Children’s Circus of Middletown (run by Oddfellows Playhouse) is looking for SUMMER HOUSING for 4– 5 Teaching Artists who will be coming from Out of State this summer to teach at the Children’s Circus. Housing is needed from around June 25 – August 7, either individually or in a group setting. Our budget is limited, but we do need to find appropriate housing for these artists who will be bringing their talents to the children of Middletown. 

Sublet? House-sitting? Extra room?

If you are able to help, or have questions or ideas, please contact Dic Wheeler at (860) 347-6143 or email dic@oddfellows.org.

A Dozen Things That Should Concern You About the Latest DOT Plan For Route 9

COMMENTARY

On Thursday, March 22, the Connecticut Department of Transportation presented it's latest plan for removing traffic lights from Route 9.  The meeting was open to the public, and close to two hundred interested residents attended to listen to the presentation.  About two dozen individuals asked questions and made statements.  Information on the official presentation can be found here, and some dissenting opinions can be found here, here and here.

1. It's only a proposal but the DOT has already begun negotiating property rights.  One would assume, when one is told that the projects presented by the DOT were "only proposals," and had not been approved, that the DOT wouldn't be doing things like negotiating the purchase of property on Rapallo Avenue, where a highway off-ramp would be built.  But they are.  What's more, for two parts of the project, sidewalk bump-outs on Main Street, and intersection improvements in St. John's Square, the start dates are Spring and Summer of 2019.  "We already have funding for those projects," the DOT spokesperson said.  

2. When you spend 15-20 minutes of a presentation explaining anti-discrimination law, you should probably make a decent effort not to appear discriminatory.  As several of the commenters pointed out, solving the problem of traffic lights on Route 9 seems to be borne most heavily by residents of the North End of Middletown, as Izzi Greenberg said in her presentation: "This neighborhood is home to the densest population of People of Color and is the lowest-income census tract in Middletown.  It is no surprise that they bear the heaviest burden, as projects like this typically favor higher-income people over low-income people.  From a social justice perspective, the worst aspects of this plan are that: It prioritizes the safety and health of people in cars over the safety and health of people who live in this dense downtown neighborhood by forcing more traffic on to residential streets. And instead of reducing the already overwhelming crush of cars that cut through North End streets, it appears to be poised to increase the load." Former NEAT leader Precious Price, a North End resident, also noted that the DOT made no effort to speak with any of the organizations that represent minority North End residents.

3. Well, if the DOT didn't meet with North End residents, who did they meet with? If the list of thank-you's at the beginning of the DOT presentation is any indication, the DOT spent the past two years consulting with Mayor Dan Drew, the city's Economic Development Commission, the Middlesex Chamber of Commerce, Director of Planning Joe Samolis, the Middletown Police Department and the Jonah Center's Jon Hall.

4. Okay, so what did the representatives from those organizations say at the presentation to convince city residents that the projects were a good idea. The mayor, in a very short opening statement, thanked the DOT for their hard work, and for listening to residents after the last version of these plans was presented in 2016. He said that the DOT had done a tremendous job on their proposal. While Gerry Daley from the Economic Development Commission was in attendance, he did not speak, nor did the representatives from the Chamber of Commerce. The Chief of Police did not attend, nor did anyone from the traffic department. The Director of Planning did not attend. And the head of the Jonah Center did not attend.

5. Well, then, who from the city government did attend?
- Council member Seb Giuliano spoke strongly against the proposal saying sarcastically that the DOT did not have enough money to do the job right, so they were taking what money they had and doing it wrong.  
                   - Council member Gene Nocera expressed grave doubts about the effect on increased traffic in the North end near Macdonough Elementary School.  
                    - Council member Phil Pessina repeatedly asked DOT presenters to consider the reality that with increased vehicle traffic on Main Street, much of that traffic would find it's way on cut-through streets in the North End, seeking a shorter route to Route 66.  
                   - State Rep. Matt Lesser, a North End resident questioned why the start day was just months away, if the project was not yet approved.  
                    - Chair of the Planning and Zoning Commission, Stephen Devoto spoke and cited the city's plan of development in condemning the DOT plan.  He said: "Because this project negatively impacts economic development and neighborhood vitality, I strongly oppose it. We need to strengthen the businesses around Main Street, not burden them with traffic. And we need to promote the quality of life in our urban residential neighborhoods, not place a highway offramp in their midst." (Devoto noted that he spoke as an individual and was not representing the Planning and Zoning Commission.)

Council members  Gerry Daley, Rob Blanchard and Linda Salafia were present. Chris Drake, Board of Education chair and a North End resident was there.  Council member Bob Santangelo, deputy mayor and North End resident, who is running for the State House of Representatives was absent.  Sean King and Deborah Cain from the BOE were there.  Noticeably absent were our other current legislators, some of whom are seeking re-election, or election to a different seat, and other notable candidates (Doyle, Serra, Bysiewicz, Suzio).  Quentin Phipps, city treasurer and North End resident is running for state repwas there. No other members of the city Planning and Zoning Commission attended.  

In addressing the DOT officials at the presentation Democratic Town Committee member and College Street resident Steve Smith said: "You have a very difficult issue to deal with, but our local elected officials have a very simple one, they need to oppose this plan because it is bad for our city."

6. So, when the DOT met with the Middletown BOE and school administrators to talk about how traffic might affect Mcdonough Elementary School, what did they tell them?  The DOT did not meet with the Middletown BOE or school administrators.

7. So when the DOT met with the Planning and Zoning Commission what did they tell them?  The DOT did not meet with the Planning and Zoning Commission, but they did meet with the Director of Planning.  

8. So merchants on Main Street must be delighted to have more traffic passing their places of business.  Members of the Downtown Business District voted disapproval of the plan.

9. Currently a significant portion of peak morning traffic moving toward Route 66 (Washington Street) from the Arrigoni Bridge and Route 9, and peak afternoon traffic headed in the other direction seeks short cuts through Middletown's North End on "cut-through" streets (Grand, Spring, Prospect, Liberty, High, Pearl).  Was the DOT concerned that additional traffic on Main would force more traffic onto side streets?  The DOT showed no traffic moving through side streets, and representatives said that despite the increase in traffic on Main, the traffic flow would be so good there that no one would seek short cuts through the North End.

10. Were there any surprises in the presentation of the projects?  There were two, actually.  For many years, residents of Bridge Street have complained that their access to the city is cut off, and that entering and leaving their neighborhood using Route 9 is very dangerous. They have been told that opening the intersection at Bridge and Portland Streets, where there is a railroad crossing, would be impossible because the train crossing at street grade level is too dangerous.  On Thursday night DOT presenter Will Britnell said that to make the plan they were presenting work, Bridge Street would have to be closed off from Route 9, and that the intersection at Bridge and Portland Streets would be opened, because there didn't seem to be anything obstructing such a re-opening.  Britnell expressed astonishment that he had never considered how school buses had to access Bridge Street from Route 9 on a daily basis.  "I never considered that," Britnell said.  

Britnell was also responsible for one other surprise.  After citing statistical evidence for accidents and traffic loads, he said that because of current traffic patterns "people avoid Middletown."  That must be news to all those folks on Friday and Saturday nights filling up the restaurants on Main Street.

11. How many times was New Britain cited as an example of how DOT highway planning can ruin a city's downtown.  Twice. 

12. Why you shouldn't count on the ten o'clock news for accurate reporting in your town.  Fox 61, and other broadcast stations were at the DOT presentation, but only Channel 61 stayed to the bitter end. The Fox reporter did a live shot from Fox 61 after the meeting and said that "the plan is expected to cost $3 million."  She was only off by $72 million.

This Weekend at The Buttonwood Tree

Radial Points Music & Poetry

Stephen Campiglio - Author of two poetry books, "Cross-Fluence" and "Verbal Clouds through Various Magritte Skies", and a manuscript of translations, "The Ringing Bones: Selected Poems of Giuseppe Bonaviri.

T. L. Hine - Director of Music at the Universalist Church of West Hartford, and instructor of private lessons in saxophone, music theory and composition, and piano.

 

Peter Van Siclen - M.M. in jazz composition from UMass Amherst, Composes orchestral funk for the Capital City Symphony in Washington D.C., and performs widely on saxophone and wind synthesizer. 

Max Schwimmer - M.M. from the Hartt School of Music, has performed with Asylum Quartet, Juiliard Orchestra, and International Opera Theater, and serves on the faculty off Camp Encore/Coda in Maine, and Music and Arts East Hartford.

Markus Centola - M.M. from the Hartt School of Music, performs with Argentine Tango Ensemble InfiniTango, and the gypsy jazz group Chat Noir, and teaches private lessons in accordion, piano, and violin.

May Erlewine Duo

May Erlewine - Some people might call May Erlewine “Michigan’s Songbird”, but her songs have traveled far beyond her home state. One of the most prolific and passionate songwriters of her generation, May’s music has touched the hearts of people all over the world. Her words have held solace for weary hearts, offered a light in the darkness and held a lot of space for the pain and joy of being alive in these times. When she starts to sing, there’s no way around it. Welcome to the moment, everyone.
Raised in a family rich with art and music, May began writing songs and playing them for the people at a very young age. Her journeys have taken her all over the world, from street corners to renowned stages, May has performed for all walks of life. In her travels Erlewine came to know the land and the pulse of the people. Her songs show a very real connection and concern with everyday folk.

Anand Nayak - picked up the guitar at age fifteen, after years of piano lessons and choir singing. He discovered his mother’s classical guitar collecting dust under a table and realized he had to figure it out. Before too long he had McCartney’s Blackbird down, but it wasn’t until some friends of his started a rock band that things really started moving. He got a beat up Squire electric guitar and a Peavey Bandit amp and was soon a lost cause, playing all day, trying to learn Jimmy Page and Hendrix riffs by ear, falling in love with the infinite tonal possibilities, often falling asleep on his guitar. After 25 years of performing and learning how to make records, Nayak is now an player with a style that encompasses a century’s worth of folk, blues, jazz and rock. He is a multi-instrumentalist with a yen for anything with strings, most recently falling for the lap steel. First and foremost he is a harmonist with a knack for blending his voice and instrument into the music. Nayak is a Grammy-nominated producer, performer and writer, with numerous other awards in family music.

605 Main Street | PO Box 71 | Middletown, CT 06457
(860) 347-4957 | thebuttonwoodtree@gmail.com

Residents To State Transportation Engineers: We Don't Like Your Plans

About two hundred residents spent their Thursday evening at Middletown High listening to the Department of Transportation present its plans to route traffic from Route 9 to Main Street via a highway ramp ending on Rapallo. When given a chance to comment on those plans, none expressed support.

Mayor Drew introduced the presentation, praising them for taking into account comments on a previous proposal. Principal Engineer Will Britnell in turn thanked the mayor for facilitating the work of the DOT.

Britnell highlighted the financial costs of congestion and accidents caused by current conditions, and then presented the changes that would reduce these. He used data from traffic simulations to show that travel times would be reduced by the redesign.

Britnell's numbers indicated that the new design would put almost 500 extra cars per hour on Main Street at peak travel times. Britnell said that this was not a large number for traffic engineers, and indicated that changes in Main Street would allow for the traffic to flow smoothly.

But these extra cars were  a big concern to residents of the city.

Over 30 people expressed their strong opposition to the plan, none spoke in favor.

Residents expressed grave concerns that the the increased traffic on Main Street would cause drivers to cut through residential areas in poor neighborhoods, with many minorities. Izzi Greenberg said that the plan prioritized commuters in cars over residents on the sidewalk and in their houses.

John Basinger spoke passionately about the importance of the neighborhood, "The North End is where people really live... they leave their shoe leather on Main Street."

Mayor Drew did not speak about the merits of the plan, but councilmen Gene Nocera, Phil Pessina, and Seb Giuliano expressed their opposition.

Opinion: Main Street Must Not Be a Highway Armature

Submitted by Catherine Johnson, former member of the Planning and Zoning Commission.
-----------------
As a city, we should make clear to the DOT that solutions for Route 9 need to guarantee 3 things.

1. First, that the downtown streets are to remain intact as places for business and living, and not to be used as an armature of the highway system.  Dumping traffic onto a small side street is an invasion of thru traffic into a cohesive neighborhood, however humble it may appear. It will tear apart yet another walkable quarter of the downtown. Any traffic management technique that will take a slow-speed, robust street as Rapallo at different times of day, and turns it into a hostile place we have to defend ourselves from, is a proposal that we shall reject.
2. Second, we need to make certain we never build anything that would preclude us having transit connections within the next 10 years. A great number of the disadvantages of traffic passing through downtown Middletown can be alleviated if we re-established regional train service. Every tiny town in Fairfield County has had their rail service re-ignited in the past 10 years with new stations built along historic rail lines. Why is central CT treated like a undeserving backwater not entitled to join the rest of the modern world and the east coast rail system? Taking that Rapallo Avenue parcels for a flyover lane will remove the  chance for us and the state to connect east/west to north/south, Waterbury to Willimantic and Old Saybrook to the Airport.
3. Third, any discussion of RT 9 - whether it's about the lights or anything else - cannot take place without a discussion of what the whole length of river-adjacent RT 9 should look like, from Cromwell to the Silver Street exit. We are never invited to talk about a long-range vision for re-establishing connection across the great divide of the highway, even though Middletown is one of the few cities right on the bank  of the CT River. It is rare and special and connections from Main Street to the water need to be reinforced, not further pushed apart. We don't want artificial, overly complicated solutions, nor high-speed connections or anything else with highway vocabulary. 

We are a city first, and a city with a highway passing through it second. The correct hierarchy needs to be understood so when making decisions, more weight is given to the comfort of the person walking or biking, maintaining commerce on local streets, and extending the DNA of the downtown to the water, before the ease of accommodating large volumes of traffic.

Traffic passes through other cities within a minimal dimension, while inviting local enjoyment of their riverfronts. So can we.

Here’s one example of how they do it. The highway is kept very narrow so the riverfront park is maximized, people can cross from one side to the other easily and buildings can be close by. Through-traffic runs below the key intersections, which require no lights. Narrow lanes slow the traffic for the length of the city, so fatal accidents are reduced.

s

Free Yoga Class at Russell Library this Saturday March 24

Jeff Hush teaches a monthly "Standing Yoga" class at Russell Library.

Saturday, March 24, at 11:00am, Jeff Hush will be teaching a free "Standing Yoga" class in the Hubbard Room of the Russell Library.

"Standing Yoga" requires no mat, since most of the poses are done on your feet. The class is geared for people of all ages and levels. You can move at your own pace.

Jeff Hush is a founder of Food and Movement Therapy, and lives in Middletown.

The class meets on the last weekend of the month, and is sponsored by the Friends of the Russell Library.

William Corvo: Route 9 Proposal Is Bad For City

Opinion submitted by former Common Council member William Corvo. The Eye welcomes all signed opinion pieces.
-----------------
I have completed a review of the latest proposed designs to remove the traffic signals on Route 9 and the “Intersection Improvements along Main Street”. It is my understanding that the key issue driving the need for these changes is the traffic congestion on Route 9 at rush hour caused in part by the lights located on that highway. At the time the highway was designed and built the reason the lights were included at the current locations was to make sure that access to downtown Middletown would be maintained. Middletown merchants made public comments about the need to keep downtown Middletown accessible. The concern was that a freeway without lights would basically end up bypassing Middletown, which at that time was the commercial center for northern Middlesex County as well as the County seat.

The proposed modifications to the traffic signals on Route 9 proposed in Project 0082-0218 proposes to improve safety and improve access to downtown Middletown by removing the two traffic lights. The modification of access to Middletown from Route 9 South eliminates the exit at Washington Street while leaving the Hartford Avenue exit and the exit into DeKoven Drive at the foot of Martin Luther King Drive intact. This works well for vehicles moving on Route 9 South to go down county. It creates a myriad number of problems for people wishing to access downtown Middletown and who are seeking to head west in Middletown and towards Middlefield and Meriden.

The Route 9 South exit at Hartford Avenue remains unchanged so that it will provide access to the Arrigoni Bridge and the northern part of Main Street. In order to go west towards Washington Street traffic will have to run the gauntlet of traffic lights and crosswalks heading south on Main Street to Route 66. Nothing really changes here because that is the current situation. Most drivers have avoided using this route to access Washington Street for these reasons.

The Route 9 North exit proposed for Rapallo Avenue results in a “fly-over” design from Route 9 North over Route 9 South landing in the former “railroad yard” and crossing over tracks running parallel to Route 9 South and the railroad tracks heading west. Route 9 North’s exit dumps into a revised Rapallo Avenue which will become a one-way street heading west but will remain a two-way street heading east into DeKoven Drive. Street parking will be maintained on both sides of Rapallo Avenue. The Rapallo Avenue area has had major improvements to housing on the southern side of the street. Homeowners in these newly remodeled homes will now be directly across the street from a major Route 9 highway exit into Middletown.

In order to move west drivers will come to a halt at Main Street where Rapallo Avenue has a right turn only lane to head north towards the Arrigoni Bridge and St. John’s Church. In order to head south onto Main Street drivers will be confronted with oncoming traffic from Grand Street which is slightly offset to the South of Rapallo. Current conditions at this intersection are dangerous because of the “offset” situation with Grand Street being slightly south of Rapallo at the Main Street intersection.

This proposed design change I believe only exacerbates an already dangerous situation and will create major traffic congestion problems for those coming into Middletown from Route 9 North at this location.

The heavy concentration of both Route 9 South and Route 9 North traffic funneling into Middletown’s North End at this location will result in a “ball of traffic congestion” at the intersection of Hartford Avenue near St. John’s Church and O’Rourke’s Diner. The most current design does not appear to show the new development of a major office building at Grand Street in proximity to Main Street. This should be reviewed for impact on new traffic flow from Route 9 North’s exit with traffic heading south onto Main Street.

In order to help reduce congestion on Main Street heading south from Rapallo Avenue Project 0082-0319 proposes building “sidewalk bump-outs” and eliminating existing parking spaces on Main Street.

The concept of the “bump-outs” is supposed to improve the visibility for the pedestrian and motorist using the street. The actual result of the bump-out will be an increased cost of maintenance for the City of Middletown since it will require snowplow operators to maneuver around the bump-outs located at the intersections. Currently the snowplows are able to move freely up and down Main Street to remove the snow from the parking spaces. The removal of the parking spaces at Main Street and Washington Street and at other locations proposed by this “bump-out” methodology provide no new parking spaces for customers of Middletown’s stores and restaurants.

I believe the Route 9 South design will also result in intense congestion in the DeKoven Drive corridor as drivers will use this road as a way to get back to Washington Street to head west towards Middlefield and Meriden.

SUGGESTED ALTERNATIVE ROUTE 9 NORTH 

EXIT INTO MIDDLETOWN 

I strongly suggest that an alternative Route 9 North exit be examined by DOT. It should be located at the southern entrance to Middletown in proximity to the harbor area. By using this alternative the congestion in the North End would be eliminated. The area I am suggesting for the 9 North Exit would cross over a former municipal waste dumping area that has been partially remediated. It would avoid proximity to housing and would improve access to the Harbor Park area from Route 9 North. Drivers would have several options to head west including Union Street and DeKoven Drive. The Union Street intersection would enable drivers to use a number of alternative routes to head west which include Main Street at the South Green or heading west on Pleasant Street into Broad Street or Church Street to High Street. The result would be that providing alternative routing would lower congestion.

To summarize, I believe the proposed designs work well for elimination of traffic lights on Route 9 for those interested in heading north and south. I also believe that the design does not work well for drivers interested in heading west of Route 9 into Middletown and towards Middlefield and Meriden. The proposed modifications to Main Street will result in an intense increase in congestion in Middletown’s North End at Rapallo Avenue and Hartford Avenue. The proposed “bump-outs” and elimination of parking spaces will result in a negative impact on the maintenance of Main Street during inclement winter weather and will impact negatively on consumer access to Middletown’s stores and restaurants.

Middlesex Land Trust: Hike at Upper Pine Brook Preserve Saturday

March 24th, 10am  – Hike at Upper Pine Brook Preserve, East Hampton, CT

Please join the Middlesex Land Trust on Saturday March 24th at 10 am for a hike at the Upper Pine Brook Preserve in East Hampton, CT. On this two mile hike you will see cascades on Pine Brook, foundations of quarry structures from the late 1800's, and learn about a mysterious lyestone.

The trail is gently sloping with good footing.

Participants should wear sturdy shoes or sneakers and bring snacks and water as desired. Steady rain or snow cancels.

The preserve  is located at 187 Chestnut Hill Road in East Hampton, however, due to limited parking we will meet in the commuter lot at the junction of Rt 16 and Rt 66 just east of Cobalt center. To register, or for additional information, call the Middlesex Land Trust at 860-343-7537 or send an email to info@middlesexlandtrust.org.

Upcoming Events with Wesleyan's Allbritton Center for the Study of Public Life

Interested in breaking issues in public life and joining a gathering of academic and nonacademic speakers and audiences to consider ideas and events that are of pressing importance? Consider attending an event with Wesleyan's Allbritton Center for the Study of Public Life. All events are free and open to the public.

The Proof is in the Pudding: Putin's Pivot to Asia
March 26, 4.30 pm, Public Affairs Center 001, 238 Church St.
Dr. David Abramson, Senior Analyst in the Office of Analysis for Russia and Eurasia at the U.S. Department of State will discuss the drivers of Russia’s outreach in Asia and its prospects for success.

Politics, Policy and Social in Social Justice in Venezuela
April 02, 12:15-1:15, Center for Global Studies, Fisk Hall, 262 High St. A conversation with Antonio Machado Allison, Professor, Universidad Central de Venezuela. Come to learn about what is happening on the ground in Venezuela.

              The 27th Annual Hugo L. Black Lecture on Freedom of Expression
              April 05, 8:00 pm, Memorial Chapel, 221 High St.
 Join Wesleyan alumni, parents, faculty and students for a lecture entitled “GUN NUTS & SPEECH FREAKS: A Guide to the Alt-constitution” by John E. Finn, Professor Emeritus in the Department of Government at Wesleyan University, where he taught courses in constitutional theory and public law, as well as in cuisine and    popular culture.

 Haiti: Migration and Globalization
April 11, 12:00-1:00, Center for Global Studies, Fisk Hall, 262 High St. Alex Dupuy will focus on the domestic and global political and economic factors that transformed Haiti into an exporter of labor to the United States and other countries in the hemisphere in the twentieth century and beyond.







To stay up to date, follow us on Facebook and Twitter. If you have any questions, email engage@wesleyan.edu

Highway and Main Street Plans: Public Presentation Tomorrow

Removal of Traffic Signals on Route 9 and Main Street Improvements

A PUBLIC INFORMATIONAL MEETING 

MARCH 22, 2018 AT 7:00 PM

MIDDLETOWN HIGH SCHOOL, 200 LA ROSA LANE 

Tomorrow the Connecticut Department of Transportation will present its new plans for traffic through our downtown.

The plans would lead to the most significant change in traffic in our city for at least a generation. All of the Route 9 northbound autos and trucks that currently pass through downtown on Washington Street would instead enter the city via a new elevated highway ramp ending on Rapallo Avenue; if heading west the DOT believes they would travel 3 blocks south on Main Street, and turn right onto Washington. In order to handle the increased traffic downtown, the DOT proposes to narrow Main Street at cross-walks, allowing for shorter and safer pedestrian crossings and consequent shorter stoplight cycles. 

The full description is HERE.

The Eye has published two opinion pieces opposing this plan (The DOT Plan: Bad for Middletown, and William Corvo: Route 9 Proposal Is Bad For City), we welcome any other signed opinion pieces, or comments, and encourage all to voice their opinion at the meeting.  If you can't attend the meeting, send written testimony to erik.jarboe@ct.gov

Below are computer graphic images of the proposal (click on images to enlarge)

Overview of the project (click to enlarge)

Main Street, with narrowing at cross-walks

Re-design of St. John's Square, and the Rapallo/Main/Grand intersection

At the intersection of Main and Washington Street, crosswalks remain long

Most Main Street pedestrian crossings would be shortened from 85 feet to 55 feet

An elevated highway offramp puts all northbound traffic onto Rapallo Avenue

The highway offramp might have a parking lot

The highway offramp, viewed from Rapallo

Aerial view of elevated highway offramp ending on Rapallo

Southbound highway is elevated to allow northbound traffic
to pass under and enter without stoplight

Southbound entrance to highway from Washington Street

  

Northbound highway.
All of the southbound traffic is elevated, to allow a northbound on-ramp

Aerial view of highway 

Left lane exit is elevated, Northbound. This ends on Rapallo

Comfort Zone Next Film in Free Environmental Series

The next film in The Elements: An Annual Environmental Film Series will be Comfort Zone, about what climate change means locally, in our own backyards. The film will be shown on Monday, April 2, 2018, 7 pm at Chapman Hall on the campus of Middlesex Community College, 100 Training Hill Road in Middletown, CT (maps, directions and public transportation). All films are open to the public and free of charge.

"Is climate change a scientific problem? An engineering problem? A psychological problem? All that, and more?"

As described on the film's website, Comfort Zone takes an in-depth look at global climate issues in our backyards. Though set in upstate New York, it illustrates the types of effects that can happen anywhere. The three residents and filmmakers each provide their own perspective. Kate worries about her children growing up in a different, more challenging world than the one she grew up in. For Dave, the climate problem is an internal crisis that each person must approach from the inside out. And Sean focuses on the science behind the greenhouse effect, and looks at possible solutions.

Please save the date and join us for this engaging, consciousness-changing, and often funny film that presents climate change from a personal perspective, and challenges us to confront our own connection to this global problem.

After the film, we welcome you to stay for an informal discussion.  

We hope you can join us! Phone our office at 860-346-3282 for more information.