Milford's Fort Trumbull Devastated By Irene

Fort Trumbull this morning was guarded by the Milford Police Department. They were asking drivers not to park in areas that could hinder the ongoing cleanup work.

The streets were covered in Sand as far as the eye could see. Beyond this point is the Silver Sands State Park, of which was also guarded by the state DEP, and was closed to the public.

The devastation included flooding of all low lying structures on both sides of the street and as far as the marsh. The local homes and businesses had water lines as far up as two feet and damaged items were being dragged to the curb. residents were out in force working together to restore their neighborhoods.

The city of Milford was still experiencing wide spread power outages that are going into the second day. Many wires and trees are still down and the Utility companies are feverishly working to correct those outages.

The City of Milford has the Public Works out working long hours, cleaning up city streets and public property. The cost of the cleanup is expected to be substantial. The numbers have not been estimated as of yet but budget strains are to be expected.

The new Boardwalk at Silver Sands State Park is reportedly damaged. Onlookers who explored the area said that the Boardwalk has either been destroyed or buried under the sand making it hard to assess there is even a boardwalk there.

Further to the North Gulf Beach was covered in water, and low lying areas of Woodmont were also submerged in several feet of water. Photo (Left) depicts storm surge on Broadway, an area ordered evacuated by the city of Milford.

Fortunately many inland homes did not suffer substantial wind damage. Some residents boarded up their windows, while others taped asterisk style patterns on their plate glass. There are many reports of downed trees but very few reports of serious wind damage to those homes.

It is estimated that power will be restored in the next few days for all homes across Milford, and the cleanup efforts will be ongoing for several months.

Milford's New Boardwalk Promises Not To Plow The Plovers

Milford State Rep. Barbara Lambert announced in her latest press release that work on the 1.6 million dollar boardwalk is set to begin. Many are already crying foul, complaining that this is yet another boondoggle of a project that is sending Milford "to the birds."

Environmentalists at the Audobon Society are concerned that if migrating Piping Plovers return to Milford, the boardwalk may plow through their habitat and damage their nests.

Lambert has indicated that should the plovers return, the builders have instructions to take the animals into consideration. She indicated that there is a "plan" in place not to harm the birds.

While some have called the belabored boardwalk a poorly timed project, the Mayor, former rep Jim Amann and other advocates have called the project necessary if Milford is to boost local commerce.

Property owners on the waterfront have expressed additional concern over increased crime and the noise of an ongoing construction project. Lambert indicated that the noise would be confined to business hours only but made no comment on the propensity for increased crime.

Last election the Republicans held a solitaire fundraiser to raise funds for a security problem that would address the issue of crime in that area of Milford. There has been no comment as of yet as to wether or not they intend to install a security camera.

Rell Gives Milford Green Light To Boardwalk... Again.

MILFORD — Gov. M. Jodi Rell said Friday the state will honor its commitment to Milford and move forward with a boardwalk project to link Walnut Beach and Silver Sands State Park.

Rell Friday ordered the state departments of Public Works and Environmental Protection to lift their suspension of the project and proceed with the $2 million boardwalk.

The project, which had gained approval and funding from the state Bond Commission in 2006, had never made it past the planning stages.

Work almost started in 2008, but nests of piping plovers, a species of bird protected by state and federal statutes, were found in the proposed path of the boardwalk.

The project was redesigned to avoid the plover nests, but still sat on the shelf until last month when the DEP and DPW announced the project had been suspended indefinitely as a way to save money in the midst of a recession.

That all changed Friday with an order from Rell to go ahead with the project.

“Given the state’s budget deficit and the current state of the economy, I appreciate the efforts of the DPW and the DEP to cut costs wherever possible,” Rell said in statement. “But we have made a commitment to the city and people of Milford and it needs to be honored. Bond Commission approvals for this project were granted nearly three years ago — had the work not been held up, it probably would have been completed by now. This project should go forward.”

Rell’s decision came on the heels of a press conference held Thursday by local officials urging her to step in and give the project a green light.

“I had the opportunity to speak to Governor Rell today, and I expressed my gratitude and the gratitude of Milford and the citizens and business owners of Walnut Beach and Silver Sands areas,” Mayor James L. Richetelli Jr. said Friday. Richetelli said based on Rell’s direction, the DPW should solicit bids for the project “immediately. ” A firm time-line for the project should emerge next week.

“I’m so ecstatic right this minute I think I’m going to celebrate,” Walnut Beach Association President Joe Garbus said when told Rell had ordered the project to go forward.

The boardwalk has long been sought to reconnect Walnut Beach to Silver Sands State Park and city officials and residents are hopeful increased foot traffic will drive revitalization in the Walnut Beach and Silver Sands areas.

Original Article

Soon After Opposing Law Construction, Richetelli And Lambert Condemn Boardwalk Cancellation

Just a few short days ago I was at city hall fighting for the Jonathan law expansion with Peter Spalthoff, and the city Alderman agreed with us that education is important. The Alderman Voted in favor of the Bonding and the kids of Milford scored a small victory.

This Boardwalk story today is a parody of this subject, and in lieu of those events has brought me a smile with some great irony. The irony here is that Lambert was absent at the Jonathan Law Meeting, she made no known comment on the school cutbacks, while Richetelli said the city is struggling and this is not the "right time" to be spending money on fixing up our schools.

Jonathan Law's Principal along with a platoon of concerned citizens asked for our kids to have proper facilities built including one Law student who said the condition of the restrooms are of grave concern and somewhat of a "joke" with the student body.

Still yet these important issues, (and after a few short days) are long forgotten, because Lambert and Richetelli would rather ignore the issue of Jonathan Law students being educated on carts, and "fly" down to the beach to demand our financially strapped state build Milford a giant Boardwalk.

Lambert has been heavily favored by the elderly here in town, as she herself is a volunteer and a senior at the Milford senior center. It is no secret that seniors in Milford are Anti-Education as they have made their voices heard loud and clear during the last tax increase. Lambert also received much needed support from seniors and has done little to push for a world class school system here in Milford. Lambert appears to support much of what seniors want.

While I must sit back in awe, as I watch this politically motivated beach spectacle take place, I must also stand dumbfounded that our leaders actually believe the state is going to build us a boardwalk ahead of fixing this states health care fiasco.

Rell already vetoed two bills, and CT has a 9 Billion Dollar Budget gap that is growing every day. One really has to wonder if our Lambert and Richetelli have any basis in reality on this boardwalk issue. While they both enjoyed some free press, I must sadly say... "Sorry Ms. Lambert and Mr. Richetelli if we cant afford schools, than it stands to reason that Milford cant afford a luxurious boardwalk."

READ MORE AT THE MIRROR

RELATED POST

Milford's Boardwalk Project Suspended Indefinitely

The long-delayed boardwalk to connect Silver Sands State Park and Walnut Beach has been indefinitely suspended, state officials said Monday.

About $1.5 million for the roughly $2 million project had been approved by the state Bond Commission, according to city officials.

But the work never made it past the planning stage before being suspended by the state departments of Environmental Protection and Public Works in the latest round of cost-saving measures.

At this point, due to budgetary constraints on the two agencies, work on the proposed boardwalk has been indefinitely suspended,” DEP spokesman Dennis Schain said in an e-mail message.

The news was a shock to city officials Monday, who were last told construction would occur in autumn.

“This really comes as a surprise,” said Mayor James L. Richetelli Jr. “They gave us no clue that they were considering this. I have not heard anything more since months ago, when it was a go.”

The project has been mired in years of delays with repeated announcements that funding had been secured and work was about to begin, only to have a projected start date pushed back.

About a year ago, the project was delayed when piping plovers were found nesting where the boardwalk was proposed to be built.

Plans were altered to avoid the federally and state protected species of birds, but in the meantime the economy turned sour and the plans for the boardwalk were put on hold by the DPW and DEP.

“Money was approved for this project, but before any action was taken with regards with the funds that were allocated, a decision has been made to suspend the project,” said Kevin Kopetz, managing attorney for the DPW.

“We began, unfortunately, to experience the economic circumstance that everyone is aware of.”

The latest news was frustrating to Walnut Beach Association President Joe Garbus, who has long worked to revitalize the Walnut Beach area.

The boardwalk was expected to draw foot traffic to Walnut Beach to breathe new life into the businesses in the area.

“It’s extremely disappointing,” he said. “They made a plan, made a second plan for the piping plovers and each time we were told the money was in hand. It was OK then, but we wait a year and now we can’t continue with the project? I don’t think it’s fair.”

Kopetz said there is a chance the project will be revisited if the state’s fiscal situation improves.

By James Tinley, Register Staff

ORIGINAL STORY POSTED HERE

Milford's Lambert Speechless on Losses

Jim Amann touted in his 2007 legislative update the great progress he made in Hartford. One of those accomplishments was the court house annex, and another was the boardwalk connecting the beaches together in Milford.

These are all eerie reminders of the past, and a true testament that our new State Representative Barbara Lambert is holding true to her word. This is something she said to to the Milford paper a few months ago. Lambert was quoted and used the word "intimidating" when referring to the atmosphere at the state capitol.

Should we be surprised that she has not spoken out against the very things that her predecessor Amann touted as his successes? For one I am personally thrilled that the courthouse suffered a defeat, as I see the downtown courthouse project as being minimally beneficial to local business. The downtown courthouse is little more than a hang out for angry, depressed miserable people. This is something I would love to see replaced with a Maritime Museum or something more happy. Perhaps the courthouse can move to an industrial area where misery will not negatively impact our community.

That digression aside the defeat of the courthouse and the boardwalk was certainly to be expected in these financially troubled times. What was not expected is Lambert's Silence on this issue. Her silence suggests to me that she is making a defacto statement that she, is either asleep, or does not see this loss as worth commenting over. Whatever the case I believe she needs to make a statement about her position and what she intends to do about it.

These Amann achievements now undone or "shelved" for a while what next for the future development of Milford? What legacy, or accomplishments will she bring in these lean times? and What should we expect her to deliver to Milford?

Certainly more than the undoing of what previous Democrats have touted as accomplishments for our town. This blog is a reminder that a hypocritical silence exists at the state level in Milford, a silence that is "intimidated" and remains silent as her parties accomplishments are being all snatched away.

While I say "good riddance" to the "court house annex" and the "Boardwalk" what say those who must feel betrayed by the ease of which they were reneged from our community? Do Democrats even bother to criticize or fight to hold on to that which they deem a success? Apparently not because Lambert appears to too scared to fight for her constituents!

Milford Smart Growth abuses now in the form of a Boardwalk.

Having lived in New Jersey for several years I have come to enjoy the boardwalk. By the estimates put forth in the CT Post article it will be the largest boardwalk in the state.

My first inclination about this boardwalk was glee! Than of course I remembered I do not live near the water. While I love to hike I also have 2 small dogs that would really enjoy a long walk between beaches.

Boardwalks are awesome especially when you are young; they are great places for the youth to congregate at night. I have not seen the official plan but usually after a few misdeeds and random crimes the local homeowners will probably start to scream for lights as if that will improve things. It will drive up the city’s cost of maintaining and policing the boardwalk for certain. It may even warrant hiring more police!

The cost of lighting is amazing, and if these lights come from UI the city will be leasing them for life in addition to an outrageous electric bill. This boardwalk is an ill fated attempt that ultimately results in abuse in the name of "Smart Growth." If this boardwalk was done by the “defacto” autocratic smart growth rules, my guess is that no one who lives on the waterfront was given the courtesy of a phone call or a respectful opportunity to object to it in a zoning court.

This boardwalk will be running right next to people’s property and will have an unknown effect on the type of element it will attract. Hopefully this boardwalk, now that we are apparently stuck with it, will not attract the same elements that the West Haven Boardwalk has attracted.

My last visit to that boardwalk, included a vicious dog fight, Drunks littering, Ill placed Bocce courts, and a circus of people skating, jogging and parading in every direction.

Thank God I do not live on the waterfront, because at my age the pristine view from my back window would not include a public "Smart Growth" pandemonium... unless of course I was 16 again and on vacation at Long Branch N.J. than it might be a blast.

Once again Amann shame on you for redesigning peoples back yards for your "Smart Growth Agenda." What gives you the right to redesign peoples back yards? With all of your spending challenges I find it amazing that you were even able to bilk the state of CT for this ridiculous project. Perhaps you would rather spend this money helping our needy state schools and reconsider.

Rocco J. Frank Jr.