What’s going on in your part of Greenwich
The second phase of Greenwich Communities' major revitalization project for Armstrong Court was unveiled July 16 to great fanfare.
A ribbon cutting ceremony took place at Building 6 inside the complex, showing off the work that has been taking place there and in Buildings 1 and 3 to transform the previous one and twobedroom apartments into threebedroom and two-bedroom units with new kitchens with stainless steel appliances and completely renovated bathrooms along with other improvements.
The three-bedroom units range between 1,200 and 1,300 square feet and the two-bedroom units are between 900 and 1,000 square feet.
The improvements follow the construction of 18 townhouses at Armstrong Court which made up Phase 1 of the multi-phase project. Greenwich Communities has announced that Phase III's funding has been secured and there is expected to be similar work to Phase II in Building 2.
“I want to thank our residents for allowing us to do this construction while they were still living here,” Greenwich Communities Executive Director and CEO Anthony Johnson said at the event. “We were able to create enough space with the construction of Phase I and buying other buildings in town, so we were able to maintain residents on site during construction. That's amazing. Try moving 84 people around. With their cooperation, we were able to do that.”
The ribbon cutting had nearly 100 people attending including U.S. Rep. Jim Himes, D-4, a town resident; First Selectman Fred Camillo; Selectwoman Lauren Rabin; Selectperson Janet Stone-McGuigan; Seila Mosquera-Bruno, the commissioner of Connecticut's Department of Housing and Board Chair of the Connecticut Housing Finance Authority; Alanna Kabel, Director of Community Planning and Development at HUD; State Sen. Ryan Fazio, R-36; and State Reps. Kimberly Fiorello, R-149, and Harry Arora, R-151.
Greenwich Communities said that the buildings are “unrecognizable from the previous structures.”
“If you put a thermal camera on the older buildings during winter, they appear red hot on camera, which indicates significant heat loss revealing a very energy inefficient building,” Anthony said. “Additionally, exterior balconies were enclosed which added additional living space to the apartments.”
Renovations at Armstrong Court are part of major plans for Greenwich Communities' properties across town, officials said.
“Moving forward after Armstrong Court, we own properties that can accommodate another 300 units into our housing inventory,” Sam Romeo, chair of Greenwich Communities' board of commissioners, said. “We're going to continue to strive for great housing opportunities here in the town of Greenwich.”
Central Greenwich
The town will mark the signing of the Americans with Disabilities Act with a special ceremony on July 26 at the renovated Cardinal Stadium at Greenwich High School.
Placing the celebration at the stadium has extra significance because the improvements that were made there include accessible seating in the stands and more accessible parking. Previously, disabled people often had to stand by the fencing around the field.
A proclamation will be read by First Selectman Fred Camillo at 11 a.m. The accessible parking is available people with disabilities at the stadium; anyone else coming to the event is asked to use the GHS south parking lot by the black box theater.
The Americans with Disabilities Act was signed into federal law on July 26, 1990. The law prohibits discrimination against people with disabilities in all areas of public life, including jobs, schools, transportation and all public and private places open to the general public.
“This is a significant anniversary,” Alan Gunzburg, chair of the First Selectman's Advisory Committee for People With Disabilities, said. “The ADA is a law that brings civil rights to people with disabilities. These are civil rights that weren't there prior — like the ability to access buildings, the ability to go to work and the ability to go before government. These were not codified prior to 32 years ago. People with disabilities were second class citizens prior to the ADA.”
Downtown
Greenwich Hospital has earned another honor for its patient care.
The stroke program program has been recognized by the American Heart Association/American Stroke Association for “…providing up-tothe-minute scientifically based care to ensure patients are treated quickly and safely to prevent brain loss.”
The recognition came through the association's Get With The Guidelines hospital-based quality improvement program that provides hospitals with tools and resources to diagnose and treat stroke patients, especially those with diabetes. The Target: Type 2 Diabetes Honor Roll Award recognizes hospitals that meet quality measures for 12 consecutive months. More than 34 million Americans have diabetes, a potentially fatal disease, which often leaves patients vulnerable to stroke.
According to the hospital, “Stroke care is particularly relevant during the pandemic because studies show COVID-19 patients are at increased risk for developing blood clots and stroke, and patients with diabetes are at high risk of complications if they contract COVID-19.”
Stroke is the fifth-leading cause of death in the United States and a leading cause of adult disability, according to the American Heart Association/American Stroke Association. It is estimated that someone has a stroke every 40 seconds. A stroke occurs when a clot or a rupture prevents blood flow to the brain.
“We are committed to improving the quality of care for our stroke and diabetes patients by implementing evidenced-based clinical guidelines that help patients live longer, healthier lives,” said Diane Kelly, president of Greenwich Hospital. “The Greenwich Hospital Stroke Center integrates the most updated medical knowledge and a specialized team approach to provide patients with the best outcome.
Riverside
The Riverside Garden Club celebrated another year of accomplishments at its luncheon on June 8 at the Riverside Yacht Club.
During the luncheon, the club's co-president, Madeleine DeVries, spoke about the work done to improve the Riverside Train Station's gardens. A major clean up was done this past April in connection with Earth Day with Riverside members joining volunteers from the community, including the Garden Club of Old Greenwich and Athleta, a local store for women's activewear.
As part of the cleanup, pollinator beds were pruned, weeded and mulched. The station's north side beds were weeded, the red twig dogwoods were pruned, petunias were planted and additional chippings were added to the beds. The work was done in collaboration with the town's tree warden Gregory Kramer and Eversource Energy— the utility replaced dead trees that had been removed earlier in the year with native trees and shrubs that were planted along Oval Avenue.
“The gardens were established to bring beauty and serenity to an area which welcomes both residents and out of towners alike on a regular basis,” the club said in a press release.
The club recognized several of its members for their work during the year both for the club and the community. Martha Marquand won the Goodchild Award for her work in design; Elaine Hjelte won the Bombeck Award for her work in horticulture; Terry Lubman won the Outside Flower Show Horitculture Award; Linda Porter won the Outside Flower Show Design Award; Laura Petit won the Fran Tarbox Award for her work in design, horticulture and civic activities; Patty Roberts won the Helen Lovett Civic Award for her work on an important community program; and DeVries won the Pagenstecher-Dolph Award for making an overall significant contribution to the club.
The club is now working to expand its efforts with local students and will continue its planting and maintenance of seasonal planters at Hill House Senior Residence in Riverside.
“This is a great club with a lot to offer” Debbie Krautheim, the club's new vice president, said. “We are looking forward to a great year when we meet again in September.”
People who want to join can go online to www.riversidectgardenclub.org/ and send an email to riversidectgardenclub@ gmail.com.