TheLaurelCT.com is reporting that although the Citizen survives, it won’t be based in North Haven.

Click here for the story.

On Monday, November 30, 2009, North Haven’s Inaugural Ceremony for all newly elected members of the Town’s boards and commissions will take place. These elected officials will hold office as representatives of both the majority and the minority parties beginning December 1, 2009, in accordance with Town Charter.

The Inaugural Ceremony is scheduled for 7 p.m. and will be held at the North Haven High School. The public is welcome to attend at no charge, encouraged to use the high school parking lot on Elm Street and advised to arrive early as seating is limited in the auditorium.

Michael Freda will be sworn in as the Town’s First Selectman, while Timothy Doheny and Stephen Fontana will take the oaths of office representing the Board of Selectmen. In addition, the newly elected Town Clerk/Tax Collector and Town Treasurer and the newly elected members of the Board of Finance, Board of Education, Board of Assessment Appeals, Planning & Zoning Commission, Zoning Board of Appeals, Police Commission, Fire Commission and Constables will be sworn into office.

Those attending the ceremony are encouraged to bring non-perishable food items which will be donated to the Town of North Haven’s food bank in honor of the approaching holiday season.

Official results from the 2009 North Haven town election:

First Selectman
• Michael Freda (R) – 4,873
• Janet McCarty (D) – 3,232

Selectman
• Tim Doheny (R) – 4,404
• Steve Fontana (D) – 4,591

Town Clerk-Tax Collector
• J. Stacey Yarbrough (R) – 4,499
• Brian Cummings (D) – 3,258

Treasurer
• Laurie-Jean Hannon (R) – 4,274
• William Gambardella (D) – 3,528

Board of Finance
• James Lianos (R) – 4,276
• Dyann Vissicchio (R) – 4,392
• Michael Hallahan (D) – 3,380
• Martin Piccirillo (D) – 3,236

Board of Finance (two-year term)
• William Pieper (R) – 4,503
• Dean Volain (D) – 3,162

Board of Education
• Stephen DiCapua (R) – 4,494
• Wesley O’Brien (R) – 4,115
• Ruth Bryant (D) – 3,198
• Alicia Clapp (D) – 3,501

Board of Education (four-year term)
• Bert Mozealous (R) – 4,122
• Carole Franceschet (D) – 3,498

Board of Education (four-year term)
• Anita Anderson (R) – 4,494
• Gerald Feinberg (D) – 3,144

Board of Assessment Appeals
• Ralph Ricciardelli (R) – 4,633
• Norman Juniewic (D) – 3,005

Planning and Zoning Commission
• Vern Carlson (R) – 4,067
• Theresa Ranciato-Viele (D) – 3,636

Planning and Zoning Commission Alternate
• Curtis Andrews Sr. (R) – 4,454
• Richard Wilson (R) – 4,356
• Edward Homa (D) – 3,085
• William Kohlhepp (D) – 2,969

Planning and Zoning Board of Appeals
• Caren Genovese (R) – 4,461
• Robert Hannon (R) – 4,286
• Alan Sturtz (D) – 3,011
• Joseph Villano (D) – 3,193

Zoning Board of Appeals
• Donald Clark (R) –4,368
• Michael O’Connor (D) – 3,110

Police Commission
• David Monz (R) – 4,006
• Lawrence Lazaroff (R) – 4,667
• Christopher Longley (D) – 3,159
• Bernard McLoughlin (D) – 3,208

Fire Commission
• Pasquale Nuzzolillo (R) – 4,536
• Michael Zuccarelli Jr. (R) – 4,455
• Walter Spader Jr. (D) – 2,926
• Daniel Fleming (D) – 3,045

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
OCTOBER 12, 2009
RICHARD MONICO
CAMPAIGN CHAIRMAN
(203) 772-2420

Richard Monico, Campaign Chairman, for the Mike Freda for First Selectman effort in the Town of North Haven, announced that Mike has won the endorsement of the Construction and General Laborers’ Local Union 455. This organization is comprised of approximately 1200 members. Business Manager and Secretary-Treasurer, Anthony J. Inorio, stated, “We look forward again to working with you to improve the quality of life for the Town of North Haven and believe you will also be an asset for the Town of North Haven. We wish you success in the upcoming election.”

Mr. Freda thanked Mr. Inorio and all of the members of Local Union 455 for their support and confidence. For the latest in Freda campaign information, please visit www.mikefreda.com or call GOP headquarters at (203) 239-2084.

For Immediate Release
October 10, 2009
For more information:
Jean Pieper at (203) 239-1248 or Deborah Ward-O’Brien (203) 494-8459

The North Haven Young Republicans, along with the Republican Town Committee and the Committee to Elect Mike Freda, First Selectman, continue to open government to all with free events designed to build community spirit. A “Fall Festival”, hosted by the Young Republicans, will be held on Sunday, October 18, 2009, at the American Legion Post 76 on 20 Church Street, from 2 to 4:30 p.m. The event features children’s activities, a silent auction and refreshments. All North Haven residents are encouraged to attend.

The Republican candidates for local office will be present and look forward to sharing their ideas for North Haven’s future with all who attend. Election day is Tuesday, November 3, 2009. Please feel free to visit www.mikefreda.com and www.northhavenrepublicans.org or call GOP headquarters at (203) 239-2084 for campaign information, including receiving lawnsigns, applications for absentee ballots, new voter registration cards or rides to the polls.

The North Haven Republican Headquarters office is now officially open, from 11 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. daily.  It is located at 444A Washington Avenue in the rear of the building.  The phone numbers are:  (203) 239-2084 & (203) 239-2085.

Please feel free to call for “Mike Freda for First Selectman” lawn signs, voter registration forms, absentee ballots or with your questions for Mike & the Republican ticket.  Mike is running with Tim Doheny for Second Selectman, Stacey Yarbrough for Town Clerk/Tax Collector, Laurie-Jean Hannon for Treasurer and an entire team of qualified and experienced candidates.
Also, for more campaign information about Mike Freda, please visit, www.mikefreda.com.

Election Day is November 3, 2009!

At a press conference on July 29, 2009, Michael J. Freda, the Republican nominee for the Office of First Selectman in the Town of North Haven, challenged the incumbent to a series of live and unscripted debates at several venues around town.  The debates will focus on economic development, education/quality of life and town services.

The debates are scheduled as follows:

Monday, September 28th, 7-8 p.m. at the North Haven High School—featuring economic development

Friday, October 2nd, 7-8 p.m. at North Haven Middle School—featuring education/quality of life issues

Monday, October 5th, 7-8 p.m. at the Recreation Center—featuring town services

Mr. Freda invites the public to attend these forums as an educational opportunity to learn and share ideas about the future of the North Haven community.  He encourages everyone to bring his or her questions and participate in an informative exchange.  He stated, “In the past, I appreciated the televised debates but felt that they were limited in scope, the questions were known to the candidates in advance, and they did not allow the North Haven community the opportunity to attend and participate.  To open the process to the electorate, my campaign committee organized these opportunities.” He continued, “I believe strongly that these settings will produce a more thoughtful and informative process, and the voters can hear the candidates speak from the heart, not from prepared statements. In addition, there are several dates available for the convenience of the voters.”

For more campaign information, please call North Haven Republican Headquarters at (203) 239-2084 or visit www.mikefreda.com.

A press release went out announcing a lecture called “Hyperlocal: News In My Back Yard” which will be held on September 24, 2009 at Quinnipiac University. I will be among the “panel of journalism experts” who will explore this trend of local news blogs. The article appeared on the Hartford Courant’s website and yours truly was mentioned at the top of the article and even got a picture in there. Cool!

The following is an excerpt from a letter issued by Superintendent Sara-Jane Querfeld…

“Dear School Community;

The North Haven School District has been informed by our school health personnel and the local health department (Quinnipiack Valley Health District) that a case of Novel H1N1 influenza (swine flu) has occurred at our Middle School, and a probable case has occurred at Green Acres Elementary School. The Town of North Haven has had 2 confirmed cases of novel H1N1 (swine flu), one of which was the Middle School student. Public health officials believe the confirmed cases represent only a portion of the cases in town and that novel H1N1 will continue to circulate in our town and school system. We will continue to work with public health officials to assess the situation. The Health Director is not recommending School closures at this time.”

To read the full text, click here.

Additional information about swine flu is also posted on the North Haven Public School’s main web page.

The North Haven News was mentioned in an article on HartfordBusiness.com talking about hyper-local online news sites that are popping up across the state at a time when newspapers and television stations are struggling to keep viewers and advertisers.

The North Haven News was mentioned yet again in another Connecticut media blog. Former Hartford Courant employees have set up an alumni association and refugee camp, and the author points to the North Haven News, saying it, “affirms what the rank-and-file at The Courant have known since before the invention of market research: Local folks want local news.”

Thanks for the plug! Makes me feel like I might be on to something here.

North Haven News got a quick mention on The Laurel – a Connecticut media blog. Check it out!

A year ago to the day, I launched the North Haven News as a challenge to myself. With little or no expectations, I wanted to dive head-first into the online video blogging community with an experiment in hyper-local news broadcasting. I didn’t know if I would be able to consistently produce a bi-weekly video podcast, and I was even less confident that anyone would watch it.

Well, one year later, and I’m happy to say that I AM still producing new episodes and people ARE watching. With about 50 views per video (although I’ve seen a spike in traffic since the Citizen published that article about me), I feel as though I have a small but dedicated audience – and it’s because of those people that I feel an obligation to keep going…, at least for a little while longer. I guess I must be doing something right?

The timing is completely coincidental, but on this one-year anniversary, I’m thrilled to launch a completely redesigned website. I absolutely LOVE this new layout, which is geared specifically toward the video blog format. It’s very reminisent of hulu.com – another site I love (and if you’ve never heard of Hulu, you must check it out). I will always keep at least 3 videos in the top “Featured” section of the home page, and I’ve added a few new features like the events calendar and the local weather forecast.

So to all of you who are regular viewers of the show – thank you. Your support and feedback help keep me going. If you have any suggestions about ways to improve the show, I would love to hear from you. And hey…, if you know someone who might also like the show – please send them a quick email telling them about it and include a link to the site.

Thanks again.

Chris

By less than 100 votes, the people of North Haven have voted to approve the 2008-2009 budget.

The Canadian-based parent company of Quebecor World Northeast Graphics in North Haven just announced that they will be shutting the commercial printing plant’s doors on June 30, 2008. A total of 700 employees will be affected; local officials say that 350 of those work at the North Haven plant.

Hi, and welcome to my little experiment in hyper-local broadcasting. I want to bring to you – in video format – a quick recap of the news stories that are making headlines in our town. Using the community’s local newspapers and websites for content, my hope is to package a few of the more important and interesting stories in a short, 3-5 minute video podcast. I want to present the stories that are important to the members of our community that would not normally be covered by the local television stations.

This may be a monthly thing? This may be a weekly thing? Like I said, it’s an experiment…, I’ll just have to see how things go. I’m open to suggestions, so feel free to leave a comment.

Oh…, and if you know someone who wants to host this thing – have them drop me a line.