Groton The Groton school district is getting ready to shift to all intradistrict, themed magnet elementary schools next school year in a plan the district says will help the school communities mirror the community at large and engage students in new ways of learning.
Families are deciding whether to send their children to the school they are zoned for, or to apply through a lottery process to one of the schools in a different part of town.
Under the Groton 2020 plan, the district will open two new intradistrict magnet schools in September on the sites of the former West Side and Cutler Middle Schools and transform Charles Barnum Elementary School into a themed magnet school. Northeast Academy Arts Magnet School and Catherine Kolnaski STEAM Magnet School will continue as intradistrict magnet elementary schools, while Claude Chester, S.B. Butler and Mary Morrisson elementary schools will close at the end of this school year.
Groton Two sailboats that were blown ashore on a beach at Bluff Point State Park and Coastal Reserve during a storm last October remain abandoned months later.
The vessels, named Waypoint and Motivation, on the sandy shore have piqued the interest of passersby, such as Stephanie Belser, who walks the Bluff Point trails every two or three days.
Belser said she first noticed the boats, located pretty far down what is officially called Bushy Point Beach, a day or two after a nor easter in October. She called the state Department of Energy and Environmental Protection to report them and was told the agency had received a lot of calls about the vessels.
Stonington The proposed Mystic River Boathouse Park project, which has made little progress since residents approved a $2.2 million bond to buy and develop the Route 27 site in 2016, has now taken two major steps forward.
On Wednesday, the Board of Selectmen voted to sign a memorandum of understanding with the Stonington Community Rowing Center that delineates the obligations of both parties in the development and operation of the public park. The agreement is expected to help the rowing center raise funds as it formalizes its ability to use and develop the town-owned site, as well as the town s responsibilities to create the park.
Waterford The town’s Planning & Zoning Commission is seeking input from residents on topics related to housing diversity and affordable housing.
The housing survey, at bit.ly/wtfdhousingsurvey, began this week, and people can respond through April 16. The joint effort by the town’s Planning Department and Planning & Zoning Commission is meant to gauge what people are looking for in housing types and ranges of cost.
“Based in part on the results of this survey, the Commission will evaluate housing options available today and begin planning for the kinds of housing our community may need in the future. Ultimately, the town will generate a plan that addresses housing choices for residents of all ages and income levels,” the survey reads. “We want to make sure that our town has the right amount and types of housing so people of all ages, backgrounds and incomes can live here.”
Swiss firms hold out hopes in US infrastructure upgrade
The $2 trillion (CHF1.89 trillion) infrastructure investment programme unveiled by Biden on Wednesday is intended to help improve the ailing national power grid, water systems, schools, bridges and road networks. Copyright 2021 The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved
US President Joe Biden’s major infrastructure plan is raising high hopes for Swiss firms in the construction and building industry. Although first contracts are expected to go to local firms, experts believe Swiss firms could score opportunities thanks to their specialisation and presence in the US market.
This content was published on April 1, 2021 - 16:38