What’s going on in your part of Greenwich
Cos Cob
Six monoliths salvaged from a local estate will soon be added to the landscape at Pinetum Park in Cos Cob.
The RTM gave the green light for the town to accept the monoliths, which weigh 10,000 pounds each. They were once part of a 200-seat marble amphitheater designed and built in the 1930s by Horton O’Neil and his father David
O’Neil for their property, known as Lia
Fail. The amphitheater was used for private performances and events.
The project to find a home for the monoliths has long been a priority for Bea Crumbine, who serves as the town’s goodwill ambassador, and Frank Di Vincenzo, a member of the town’s Board of Parks and Recreation. Di Vincenzo said he wants them installed before winter. An exact date may be set by the board’s next meeting on Sept. 26.
“It’s been a long process, but we’re almost there,” he said.
When Lia Fail was recently cleared by its new owner, the original marble was salvaged and removed for future preservation. But there was still a question about what would happen to the six monoliths.
Last Monday’s vote by the RTM will allow for them to be taken out of storage and placed in the park as a historic Cos Cob monument.
“This is going to be a beautiful place for people to go to,” Crumbine said. “This will be a place where there can be chamber music performed or poetry readings or it can be simple and quiet and meditative. It can be used for weddings or recommitment ceremonies. So many things can happen here.”
The monoliths will be placed in a semicircle in the park like they were at Lia Fail, and decorative shrubs will be added to the landscape. According to the Parks and Recreation Department, the monoliths will “provide a beautiful spot for reflection and will save an important piece of Greenwich history.”
The $350,000 gift to the town, all of which was raised privately, will include a reserve for maintenance. Crumbine said the donors prefer to remain anonymous for now but more will be revealed at a later date.
The marble removed from Lia Fail is being cleaned and restored and will eventually go to Sarah Lawrence College.
Glenville
For more than a decade, the popular Pemberwick Glenville Day filled Pemberwick Park. But it’s grown so big, a larger space was needed. The community event is now moving to the Bendheim Western Greenwich Civic Center.
The annual Party in the Park will now be known as the Valley Jam. The event from noon to 7 p.m. Sept. 29 will include games and activities for kids, four live bands, food trucks, a showcase of everything offered at the civic center and information on how to get involved in community activities.
“We’re really excited about this,” said Vince DiMarco, vice chair of the Pemberwick Glenville Association. “It’s a bigger place for us, which means we can have a much bigger event and hopefully get in a lot of people there . ... This location is going to allow us to do a lot more things.”
Thanks to local sponsors, admission will be free. Donations to the Pemberwick Glenville Association are requested to help fund new water fountains for the playgrounds at the civic center and Pemberwick Park.
Total access fountains have long been on the wish list, DiMarco said. They would be fully ADA accessible and also provide water for pets.
The event brings together different groups across the community, he said. “This unites everyone in a big celebration,” DiMarco said. “We’re really showcasing the neighborhoods here and showing everyone what Pemberwick and Glenville are all about, with everything happening at the civic center and with the community organizations.”
With limited parking at the civic center, residents are encouraged to walk, ride bicycles, car pool or use shuttle buses, which will go back and forth to the civic center. More information on shuttle bus stops and how to donate can be found at www.valleyjam.org.
Downtown
One more taste of summer is still on tap — literally. The second annual Last Taste of Summer Craft Beer Festival is set for Sept. 29 at Roger Sherman Baldwin Park.
The festival will open at noon for VIP ticketholders and then at 1 p.m. for general admission, lasting until 4:30 p.m. Brews and pours from more than 30 of Connecticut’s top craft breweries will offered. The festival, cofounded by Scot Weicker and Daphne Dixon, will raise funds for Live Green CT!’s Start In Your Own Front Yard Program, a nonprofit organization striving to keep plastic from ending up in the ocean.
“It’s a popular kind of event that will bring attention to our goal of helping the environment,” Weicker said. “It will be a lot of fun for adults.”
Nearly 1,000 attended last year, and he expects a bigger crowd this year.
Participants will include Asylum Distillery, Bad Sons Brewery, Charter Oak, Down The Road Beer Company, Fairfield Craft Ales, Guinness, Long Drink, Owl’s Brew, Nebco, New Belgium, New England Brewing Company, Mike’s Hard Lemonade, Stony Creek, The Finnish Long, Tito’s and White Claw Hard Seltzer. Wine from Oyster Bay will also be available. A VIP tent will offer exclusive pours and brews.
Popular local food trucks, including Lobster Craft, Wendy’s Weenies and the Melt Mobile, will be on the scene. Milkcraft will dish up ice cream, and there will be flavored water from Savor Asari, kombucha from Om Champagne Tea, and Rise Brewing’s nitro cold brew coffee.
The Wilton Steel Community Band, Fingersleeve and Doghouse will perform live. Lawn games and art exhibits will round out the fun.
“Our goal is to provide a fun experience while underscoring the importance of supporting local businesses, providing environmental education, and supporting our program that keeps plastic out of the ocean,” Dixon and Weicker said.
Tickets can be purchased at www.livegreenct.org.