Mayor Neil O'Leary Will Not Seek Re-Election In Waterbury

Waterbury Mayor Neil O'Leary and his wife, Kathy, after he was sworn in for his 4th term in 2019.

Story and Photographs By John Murray

Waterbury Mayor Neil O’Leary announced this afternoon that he will not seek re-election for an historic 5th term in office. O’Leary made the announcement at the Greater Waterbury Chamber of Commerce’s annual Mayoral Luncheon in front of 400 business and community leaders.

Magic In Waterbury

A stunning shot of a double rainbow captured Friday afternoon from Waterbury Hospital by Kris Johnson Markham. Really spectacular. Thank you for sharing Kris.

Elected Officials Urge Opioid Settlement $$ Address Crisis Now

   

Governor Ned Lamont and Attorney General William Tong are urging the Connecticut General Assembly to adopt legislation the governor filed as part of his 2022 package of legislative proposals that will take the share of funding Connecticut is receiving from the recently approved $26 billion multistate agreements involving several pharmaceutical companies over their roles in creating and fueling the opioid epidemic and dedicate it towards evidence-based strategies that fight to eradicate the crisis.

Governor Lamont Takes Aim At Gun Violence

   Governor Ned Lamont today announced that on the first day of the 2022 regular session of the Connecticut General Assembly, which begins on Wednesday, February 9, he will introduce a comprehensive package of legislative proposals aimed at eliminating gun violence in Connecticut through a series of targeted initiatives, including the enhancement of efforts to stop the illegal flow of guns to the state, providing millions of dollars in additional funding to law enforcement to strengthen their work, and closing loopholes in gun safety laws, among others.

Amazon Eyeing Distribution Center In Waterbury

Aerial view of the wooded property in the South End of Waterbury.

Waterbury Mayor Neil O’Leary and Naugatuck Mayor Pete Hess announced on January 25th that Bluewater Property Group has been selected to develop a plan for the Waterbury/Naugatuck Industrial Park into a state-of-the-art distribution facility with the potential to create up to 1,000 new jobs.

“I am proud of the collaborative work done here by the State, the City, the Borough, and the Naugatuck Valley Regional Development Corporation,” said Mayor O’Leary. “Much work is left to be done but this could be an amazing win for our region and the entire state.”

Pizzuto Announces Run for 71st District House Seat

Dr. William “Bill” Pizzuto, the retiring Director Of UConn -Waterbury and longtime public servant in the Greater Waterbury area, has announced that he intends to seek the 71st District House Seat made vacant by the retirement of his long-time friend and political colleague Rep. Anthony D’Amelio during a special election that will be held in early 2022.

Waterbury Hospital Honored For Heart Care

Waterbury Hospital is the recipient of the Healthgrades 2022 Coronary Intervention Excellence Award™, among the top 10 percent of hospitals in the nation to receive this distinction, and a Five-Star Recipient for Treatment of Heart Attack in 2022, according to new research released by Healthgrades, the leading resource that connects consumers, physicians and health systems. Every year, Healthgrades evaluates hospital performance at nearly 4,500 hospitals nationwide for 31 of the most common inpatient procedures and conditions.

Out Of The Cold

Investigation Into Unsolved Murders

Since 1988 eight women have been killed along the Route 8 corridor north of Waterbury. Six remain unsolved, and a seventh is shrouded in unanswered questions. Clockwise from top left is Karen Everett, Mildred Alvarado, Frederica Spinola and Jessica Muskus.

Story By Robert Muldoon

   In April 2020 I was in pandemic-lock down in my Boston apartment and surrounded by unopened boxes, some that had not been peeked into for decades. After my mother had died, we sold our family home of 50 years and I had a lot of boxes to rummage through.

   Buried deep in one box was a folder I hadn’t touched since 1993, the year I left my career in journalism. Printed in faded ink on the tab was the word, “Waterbury”. I had no idea that I still had the files and notes from a huge story I had been working on when I left my job as police reporter at the Register-Citizen newspaper in Torrington, Connecticut. A sudden surge of memories hit—followed by pain, regret and shame that the story was never published.

   I had to call John Murray (the Publisher of The Waterbury Observer) immediately. He’s the only one in the world who could possibly understand.

UConn Scholarship Program Will Eliminate Financial Barriers

UConn Interim President Dr. Andrew Agwunobi

Waterbury students who maintain strong academic performance will receive substantial financial aid to support their academic careers at UConn if they are offered and accept admission at any of the school’s campuses, UConn and city officials announced Wednesday.

The Waterbury Promise program’s partnership with UConn was unveiled Wednesday at the University’s Waterbury campus in an event that included Interim President Dr. Andrew Agwunobi, Mayor Neil O’Leary, Superintendent of Schools Dr.Verna Ruffin, and many local, state, and UConn officials.

State To Distribute COVID Tests and Masks

Governor Ned Lamont today announced plans to distribute three million COVID-19 at-home rapid tests and six million N95 masks in Connecticut in an effort to help curb the spread of COVID-19 during this heavy travel and holiday season.

The first allocation will include the distribution of 500,000 iHealth kits – each containing two tests for a total of one million tests – that will be designated for the general public. Distribution of these kits is scheduled to begin on Thursday, December 30, 2021, and is expected to run through the following week. The Connecticut Department of Public Health, Connecticut Division of Emergency Management and Homeland Security, and Connecticut National Guard will oversee the distribution of the kits, with support from regional and local emergency management teams. This initiative also will include the distribution of N95 masks. State officials stress that details of the distribution of the kits and N95 masks are still being finalized and are subject to change this week.

Scovill Superfund Site Funded For Cleanup

   

Decades after being identified as a Superfund Site by the EPA, the Scovill Industrial Landfill in Waterbury is about to be cleaned up. Waterbury Mayor Neil O'Leary, who serves on EPA’s Local Government Advisory Committee, is delighted at the development.

   “EPA’s announcement of infrastructure funding to kickstart the Scovill Landfill cleanup is welcomed news for the residents of Waterbury,” O’Leary said. “This infusion of money will kick start the superfund cleanup, bring local jobs to our community, and continue our work to cleanup, and redevelop contaminated property across our city.”

CT Enacts Paid Family & Medical Leave Program

Connecticut is now the eighth state in the nation to enact a paid family and medical leave program  Governor Ned Lamont announced yesterday that applications are now being accepted for Connecticut residents who want to participate in the state’s new paid family and medical leave program. Claims are being accepted for qualifying events that are happening on or after January 1, 2022.

Palace E-Pass for Season Concerts On Sale June 14th

KENNY BRAWNER as RAY CHARLES, in RAY ON MY MIND

The Palace Theater in anticipation of re-opening for an exciting 100th Anniversary season, is offering its E-Pass for sale beginning June 7, ahead of the June 14 general public on-sale date for all concerts booked to date.  E-pass holders can purchase ahead of the general public on-sale date to secure their seats of choice.  The E-Pass 100th Anniversary price is $50 (regularly $75). To purchase an E-pass call the Box Office at 203.346.2000, go online at www.palacetheaterct.org or visit in-person 100 East Main Street.  Current Box office hours are Monday – Thursday 9:00AM – 3:00PM.

Hayes Leads Hearing on SNAP Food Assistance

Congresswoman Hayes led her first subcommittee hearing as Chairwoman, co-led the Stop Child Hunger Act and challenged the Biden Administration to embrace working towards permanent solutions to end hunger by 2030 

On Wednesday, May 26, Congresswoman Jahana Hayes led her first hearing as Chairwoman of the House Agriculture Subcommittee on Nutrition, Oversight, and Department Operations. The hearing titled "The Future of SNAP: Moving Past the Pandemic”  was held to recount the lessons learned about food security and nutrition access during the COVID-19 crisis –and also to use those lessons as a roadmap for closing policy gaps which left so many Americans food insecure.  

Sterling Bancorp Merges into Webster Financial Corporation

Webster Financial Corporation (NYSE: WBS) ("Webster") and Sterling Bancorp (NYSE: STL) ("Sterling") jointly announced today that their boards of directors have approved by unanimous vote a definitive agreement under which the two companies will combine in an all-stock merger of equals transaction with a total market value of approximately $10.3 billion.

Waterbury Health Names C.E.O.

Lester P. Schindel, has been named CEO of Waterbury HEALTH network.  Schindel served as interim CEO of the network for the past 12 months leading the organization through the COVID-19 pandemic, a particularly challenging year for the organization and healthcare in general.   

Snagging An Interview With Joe Biden

Column By David Howard

  When Joe Biden’s voice came out of my phone, I wasn’t thinking much about how he sounded, or how surreal it was that I was about to start talking with the soon-to-be leader of the free world from a desk in the corner of my living room. 

   I was just trying to draw a breath and say something coherent.

   It was the early evening of November 24, and I was working on a story about Biden for Delaware Today, a monthly magazine. The assignment was to write a kind of hometown-hero piece that spanned Biden’s career up to the present tense. The former senator and vice president from Delaware winning the White House was a very big moment for a tiny state. The piece was supposed to be at least as personal as it was political, and for that reason, I didn’t expect it to be a particularly challenging interview.