Good afternoon — While today was sunny, start bracing for temperature in the teens and a bit of snow later in the week! Here's a bite-sized look at what we are hearing:
- A Woodbridge, Connecticut teenager was indicted Monday for allegedly threatening multiple classmates on Instagram in the Amity Regional High School district. The 14-year-old’s name was not released due to their age. The Amity district serves students from Bethany, Orange and Woodbridge.
- A 35-foot whale that washed ashore at Lido Beach on Long Island overnight has died. The humpback is the 10th large whale to be stranded on an Atlantic beach since Dec. 1, most of which were in New York and New Jersey. Environmentalists blame the unprecedented number of deaths on survey boats that emit pulses to map the ocean for the offshore wind industry.
- The plan to move dozens of Bridgeport students Monday from the Wilbur Cross to Thomas Hooker school because of a lack of teachers has been canceled. Parents protested the potential negative impacts on students.
- The Town of Madison has received $1 million to move its emergency shelter from the town campus gym to Polson Middle School. The town was also awarded a $2.5 million grant through the latest federal spending package to build an emergency operations center.
- Electric Boat may begin building affordable housing to attract more employees near Groton. Close to 2,000 employees participated in a study that found that 4-out-of-10 workers favored renting, instead of homeownership, to deal with the state's high cost of living.
- The City of Norwalk will roll out its final COVID-19 grants for small businesses. Norwalk has awarded $520,000 to nearly 70 local businesses — of which 75% have been women-owned or businesses of color.
- Connecticut and three other states will be part of an initiative from the Environmental Protection Agency to remove and replace lead pipes. The state is already slated to get about $150 million over the next five years to replace lead pipes. Connecticut has some of the country’s oldest infrastructure and high lead levels in cities, like New Haven and Bridgeport.
- The West Haven Fire Department has received almost $1 million to upgrade its communication system. Upgrading the department’s portable, mobile, and base radios will also benefit the West Shore and Allingtown fire districts.
- The University of Connecticut’s Sea Grant received $125,000 in federal funding to protect communities from the effects of climate change. The funds support the UConn’s Climate Corps, which provides students with learning opportunities that aim to preserve coastal habitats and wildlife.
- As part of the latest federal spending package, $5 million will provide public water access to 98 homes from Manorville to Calverton. The Suffolk County Water Authority will extend 21,000 feet of water main supply. Another $5 million will be used to construct sanitary infrastructure including a sewage treatment plant for Riverside. And $3 million will provide upgrades for sewer hook-ups and sewer connections in North Bellport.
