Good morning,
The City of New London has become only the second city in Connecticut — after New Haven — to be awarded a Clean Communities Leader Award for its work towards cleaner and more sustainable transportation. The award comes from Clean Transportation Communities of southern Connecticut, which is a partnership with the US Department of Energy.
The city developed a micro-transit system similar to ride share services like Uber to help residents leave their cars at home, and installed 77 electric vehicle charging ports.
“It’s probably among the highest number of EV charging opportunities per city resident of anywhere in the state,” said Paul Wessel, director of Clean Transportation. “So, go New London!”
Here’s a bite-sized look at what else we’re hearing:
A federal trial against Suffolk County police ended with a hung jury. The lawsuit filed by Brian Garcia, of Commack, argued Suffolk officers humiliated him over an alleged strip search during a 2016 traffic stop. The trial was delayed for nearly three days before reaching a unanimous verdict. Garcia's attorney said the officers' story was inconsistent so they will pursue another trial.
A West Babylon homeless shelter will close. The Town of Babylon has ordered the nonprofit Family Service League, which provided emergency housing for the homeless residents at Our Lady of Grace Roman Catholic Church, to close by June 30. After receiving several complaints, the town discovered the shelter housed more than three times their legal capacity.
A Shelton family files $15 million wrongful death case against a teen. Fairfield Prep student James McGrath was stabbed to death at a house party in 2022. His father argues teenager Raul Eliah Valle was malicious, and names in the lawsuit 17 defendants, including Valle’s parents, for negligence and parental liability. The lawsuit also said that other minors and their parents should be at fault for the attack, because they were aware Valle had a knife.
Port Jefferson Starbucks employees vote to unionize. Starbucks workers voted 10 to 1 in favor of unionizing, joining over 400 store locations in a nationwide organizing effort. The Port Jefferson shop is the eighth Long Island location to unionize since 2022. The union aims to give the necessary resources and encourage other stores to support Starbucks Workers United.
Check out this new app to explore New London. The New London Cultural District has launched a mobile app that offers a resource to visitors and residents to learn about the city’s businesses, restaurants, shops and community events, including the Black Heritage Tour, Custom House Museum, Hempsted Houses, and Monte Cristo Cottage. Officials hope the app, Explore New London, will provide businesses with a tool to promote themselves, edit their listings, update hours and more.
