This week we take a look back at 1991, when Hannibal Lecter (a.k.a Anthony Hopkins) uttered the terrifying phrase: “Hello Clarice. A census taker once tried to test me. I ate his liver with some fava beans and a nice Chianti” in the psychological horror thriller “Silence of the Lambs.”
Mariah Carey topped the American music charts with the song “Someday,” while “Should I Stay Or Should I Go” by The Clash is the number one song in the UK. George W. Bush, Sr. is the President of the United States, and the movie “Sleeping with the Enemy” is at the top of the box office.
Here is what was happening in our Valley!
Saturday, March 9, 1991
Clifford Shrugs Off GOP Charges
ANSONIA – A long laugh was the immediate response of Mayor Thomas P. Clifford to charges that he used “strongarm tactics” to convince tax board members to keep the city budget at a level that wouldn’t boost the mill rate more than he wanted it to go.
“Jeff Burkitt should know I can bench press 200 pounds,” Clifford chuckled. “But on a serious note, I have always been willing to provide leadership for this city. Were it not for the involvement of my office and the Board of Aldermen in targeting a 1.8 mill increase cap, Ansonia citizens would have been faced with at least a 5 mill increase this year.”
The charges against Clifford came from Jeffrey W. Burkitt, who is the chairman of the Republican Town Committee, in the wake of last week’s resignation by tax board member and former Republican Mayor James Martin.
Tax Board Assailed
DERBY – The campaign manager for independent mayoral candidate Jack Marchitto today criticized the Board of Apportionment and Taxation for “playing politics” on recent issues that have confronted the city.
“Certain tax board members have made it obvious that politics are interfering with their actions,” said Nick Massaro.
He was referring specifically to the recent rejection by the board of the proposed Fountain Lake Commerce Center and the opposition by tax board members to the proposed trash-to-energy plant.
Bridge Revamp Set To Start In Seymour
SEYMOUR – A Newington contractor will begin preliminary work Monday on major repairs to the Bank Street bridge over the Naugatuck River, although the actual construction will not get underway until about April 15.
Mohawk Northeast Inc., which has been awarded a contract for the project by the state Department of Transportation, is expected to have a crew at the site next week.
Mohawk Northeast, with a bid of $1,025,186, was the low bidder for the contract to rehabilitate the 55-year-old bridge when proposals were opened late last year.
The project will include repairing the reinforced concrete deck and expansion joints, removing and reconstructing the sidewalk and railing and patching the abutments and piers.
50th Celebrated
SHELTON – Henry and Stella Bondos, of Congress Avenue, celebrated their 50th wedding anniversary recently with a party at Rapp’s Grassy Hill Lodge and a Mass of Thanksgiving at St. Michael’s Church, Derby. The couple was married Jan. 25, 1941 in St. Michael’s Church by Rev. Bernard Nislony. Together, they have two daughters and one grandchild.
Alcohol, Marijuana Lead Drug Parade
VALLEY – By the age of 12, nearly 98 percent of all Valley youths will have had their first drink. By the age of 14, 95 percent will have tried marijuana at least once. By the age of 30, half of all Valley residents will have experimented with cocaine.
These figures are best estimates drawn from the experiences of counselors working in Valley schools. There has never been a formal census taken to determine actual use.
But unlike the 1960s when heroin and LSD were the major threats to young people, alcohol and marijuana have emerged as the “drugs of choice” for this generation.
And while the Valley Street Crime Unit reports that cocaine is the major illegal substance in the area, Russell Hicks, a crisis intervention counselor with the Lower Naugatuck Valley Council on Drug and Alcohol Abuse, maintains it is basically an adult drug.
Sunday, March 10, 1991
The Evening Sentinel didn’t publish on Sundays.
Monday, March 11, 1991
Teen Going To U.S.S.R.
ANSONIA – Ebony Gatison is going to the U.S.S.R. for the summer.
Gatison, an Ansonia High School freshman, will participate in a 35-year-old Washington-based American-Soviet Youth Exchange Program.
“It hasn’t really sunk in yet that I’m going to be on the other side of the world this summer – I think I’m still in shock,” she said of her acceptance as a student ambassador.
Gatison will join two Oxford teens, Matthew Blasiak and Kara Cassetti, for the trip, which includes tours of Moscow and Leningrad, meetings with the Leningrad Komsomol (the Soviet’s Young People’s Party) and regional Communist Party officials, as well as visits to a collective farm, a Youth Work Brigade, schools, social service agencies and cultural and ethnic events across the country.
Group Plans Fundraisers
DERBY – Parents for a Better Playground and the Hotchkiss Hose Company are sponsoring fundraisers in the next few months to raise money to build a playground at Bradley School.
The committee has a goal of raising $25,000, which will be needed to build a playground.
Cars Vandalized
DERBY – Six cars parked on Hawthorne Avenue had windows shot out with some kind of pellet gun, police reported.
Break Attempt
SEYMOUR – A Bridgeport man was arrested early Sunday after police said he attempted to break into Ames Department Store in the Tri-Town Plaza Shopping Center.
The 41-year-old man was charged with third-degree burglary, possession of burglar tools and criminal mischief after he was apprehended with the assistance of the police department’s tracking dog, Luke.
When Patrolmen Fred Williams and Ronald Nihill responded to the burglar alarm sounding at the store, Nihill observed a man fleeing into a wooded area behind the store.
The police dog handled by Williams picked up the scent of the suspect and tracked him into the woods where he was found hiding.
Tuesday, March 12, 1991
Counsel Favors Owners Of Condos In Trash Dispute
ANSONIA – Corporation Counsel James E. Sheehy has recommended that the residents of Applewood Condominiums be provided with city garbage collection, but in a legal opinion filed at the city clerk’s office Monday, has ruled that the city is not obligated to plow snow on streets in the condo area.
The legal opinion is a result of a request by the Applewood residents that the city provide them with garbage collection and snow plowing services. Representatives of the condo association attended aldermanic meetings in November and December, insisting that the developers of the condo promised those services when the units were being sold. They requested that the aldermen investigate and then make good on the developers’ promises.
Promoted
DERBY – John J. Mitchell has been promoted in the U.S. Air Force to the rank of colonel.
The Deputy Commander of Operations for the 89th Military Airlift Wing at Andrews Air Force Base, Md, Mitchell is the son of John A. Mitchell of Derby.
He is married to Mary Jane Mitchell, the daughter of Mrs. Mae Brennan of New Jersey,
Mitchell graduated from the National War College, Washington, D.C. in 1987 He is a 1959 graduate of Fairfield Preparatory School and in 1990 received his master’s degree from Auburn University, Montgomery, Ala.
Koski Budget Gets A Lukewarm Reception
SEYMOUR – The Board of Finance chairman wants to hold the line on taxes in preparing a budget for 1991-92.
“I’d like to keep the present 48.8 mill rate,” Norman Franzis told other members of the finance board Monday as they began the task of drawing up a tentative spending plan at Town Hall.
Franzis said he would push for a budget totaling about $20.95 million, the amount of revenue he said would be generated by a 48.8 mill levy on the 1990 Grand List and the anticipated treasurer’s income,
Franzis’ plan would reduce a budget proposed last week by First Selectman Robert J. Koskelowski totaling $21.4 million and requiring a tax hike of 1.8 mills.
Library Cracks Down On Borrowers
SEYMOUR – In an effort to control the loss of library materials and to save money, new procedures will be implemented at the Seymour Public Library for encouraging borrowers to return overdue material.
Those who fail to return books, magazines and other articles in a timely manner will have their borrowing privileges suspended, Wayne L. Gudzinskas, head librarian, said.
“Anyone who has overdue library materials will receive one written reminder to return them,” he said. “After three weeks, if the materials have not been brought back to the library, a letter will be sent to the borrower informing him or her that if the items are not returned in 10 days, borrowing privileges will be suspended.”
Wednesday, March 13, 1991
Kids Have Their Say In the Design Of Dream Playground
ANSONIA – Ninety schoolchildren sang their hearts out for about 300 parents on Monday night in a ceremony that capped Design Day – the first step in the process of eventually leading to the construction of the city’s Hometown Playground.
Those kids and hundreds more all over the city took part during the day, when an architect from a New York-based firm asked what they always wanted for a playground of their own.
Window Damaged
DERBY – Susan Hemmock of Division Street reported that someone had damaged a window in her place of business. Police reported that some kind of pellet gun was used to break the window.
Three Charged
SEYMOUR – Three motorists were charged with exceeding the posted speed limits by a radar surveillance patrol unit monitoring traffic Monday on Cedar Street and Maple Street.
Gaelettes’ Banquet
SHELTON – Shelton High School’s 1990-91 girls’ basketball team will be honored at a banquet, sponsored by the Gaelette Sports Club, Wednesday, March 20 at 6:30 p.m. at Lauretti’s Restaurant. The Gaelettes posted an 11-10 overall record and qualified for the CIAC State Class LL Tournament.
Thursday, March 14, 1991
Rally Set For Homecoming Troops
VALLEY – U.S. Rep. Gary A. Franks of Waterbury, 5th District Republican, will join with Valley veterans’ organizations at a rally at 2 p.m. March 24 on the Derby Green to honor the troops who served in Operation Desert Storm.
“There has been a great deal of enthusiasm shown throughout the Valley for the event and we expect a big turnout, not only by members of the veterans’ organizations, but the general public, as well,” said Frank Berlinger, of Ansonia, publicity chairman for the event.
Window Broken
DERBY – For the second time in a month, a large plate glass window at Derby Savings Bank on Elizabeth Street has been broken. The matter has been referred to the detective bureau.
Derby’s Egg Hunt Scheduled March 30
DERBY – Mayor Richard A. Grande’s sixth annual Easter egg hunt has been scheduled for 10:30 a.m. March 30 at Coon Hollow Park.
Prizes will be awarded to the children who collect the most eggs, including the top three in various age categories. An Easter bonnet contest also will be conducted during the festivities and prizes will be awarded.
“Each year, we have gotten a large turnout,” Grande said. “We had about 350 kids that participated last year and we expect at least about the same number this year.”
Seymour Student Heads For Jamaica
SEYMOUR – Katie Macko of Seymour and nine of her classmates at Johnson (Vt.) State College will be heading for Jamaica during their spring break from classes.
But it won’t be for 10 days of fun and frolic.
The students will be participating in Johnson College’s volunteer international program, Students Enriching and Responding Through Volunteer Efforts.
They will leave March 29 for Portland, Jamaica, where they will work with a 4-H club on several projects to improve conditions for the schoolchildren in that community.
“Portland was hard hit during Hurricane Gilbert several years ago,” said Macko’s mother, Joanne Macko, of Seymour. “In addition to going down there to work, Katie and her classmates will be taking ‘friendship packages’ to the Jamaican children.”
The friendship packages will include letters, drawings, cassette tapes and creative items.