P&Z special permits allow businesses to grow

NORTH CANAAN — Two special permits were approved by the Planning and Zoning Commission (P&Z) on Oct. 3. Public hearings were held on each. Only the applicants commented. One approval will allow John Jacquier to expand the building that houses his welding business at his home at 213 Daisy Hill Road. His plan is to add to the existing 40-by-60-foot building a 40-by-50-foot addition for storage. It will have no exterior lighting.It was noted by the commission that the business operates as a home occupation in a residential/agricultural zone. The decision was unanimous.At C.A. Lindell, the “tank farm” built about two years ago to safely store the heating fuels it sells was re-established as a separate entity on the hardware store/lumberyard site plan. The change was proposed by owners Riva Associates LLP as permanent financing is put in place on the tank farm.Located behind the drive-through warehouse off of Church Street (Route 44), the facility sits on more than 2 acres. A driveway that leads to the warehouse parking lot will suffice as the required frontage for establishing a separate lot.Approval was unanimous for what will be designated as a petroleum station.

Latest News

State Rep. Horn injured in running accident

State Rep. Maria Horn (D-64) was treated for her injuries at Sharon Hospital.

Photo by John Coston

The day after concluding what has been described as a grueling legislative session, State Rep. Maria Horn (D-64) had a running accident, leaving her with a broken pelvis and collarbone among other more minor bruises and abrasions. Despite the injuries, she is in good spirits and recuperating at home, eager to get back on her feet.

Horn said after spending weeks in the assembly hall, she was eager to get some outdoor exercise in, but perhaps pushed a little too hard too soon. She said she was excited to get a run in on the morning of Friday, June 6, but was still exhausted from her time in Hartford and in the final stretch of recovering from a meniscus repair surgery in December.

Keep ReadingShow less
Walk-off win sends Pirates to championship

Milo Ellison sends a fly ball to left field, bringing home Brody Ohler and Sam Hahn in a walk-off win for the Canaan Pirates June 11.

Photo by Riley Klein

NORTH CANAAN — The Canaan Pirates advanced to the league championship after a comeback victory over the Tri-Town Red Sox Wednesday, June 11.

Down 3-2 with two outs and two on in the bottom of the 6th inning, "Mighty" Milo Ellison stepped up to the plate and launched a fly ball deep to left field. The single brought home Brody Ohler and Sam Hahn for a walk-off Pirates win.

Keep ReadingShow less
Kevin Kelly’s After Hours

Kevin Kelly

Photo by Christopher Delarosa
“I was exposed to that cutthroat, ‘Yes, chef’ culture. It’s not for me. I don’t want anyone apologizing for who they are or what they love.”— Kevin Kelly

Kevin Kelly doesn’t call himself a chef; he prefers “cook.” His business, After Hours, based in Great Barrington, operates as what Kelly calls “a restaurant without a home,” a pop-up dining concept that prioritizes collaboration over competition, flexibility over permanence, and accessibility over exclusivity.

Kelly grew up in Great Barrington and has roots in the Southern Berkshires that go back ten generations. He began working in restaurants at age 14. “I started at Allium and was hooked right off the bat,” he said. He worked across the region from Cantina 229 in New Marlborough to The Old Inn on the Green at Jacob’s Pillow before heading to Babson College in Boston to study business. After a few years in Boston kitchens, he returned home to open a restaurant. But the math didn’t work. “The traditional model just didn’t feel financially sustainable,” he said. “So, I took a step back and asked, ‘If that doesn’t work, then what does?’”

Keep ReadingShow less
Books & Blooms’ tenth anniversary

Dee Salomon on what makes a garden a garden.

hoto by Ngoc Minh Ngo for Architectural Digest

On June 20 and 21, the Cornwall Library will celebrate its 10th anniversary of Books & Blooms, the two-day celebration of gardens, art, and the rural beauty of Cornwall. This beloved annual benefit features a talk, reception, art exhibit, and self-guided tours of four extraordinary local gardens.

The first Library sponsored garden tour was in June 2010 and featured a talk by Page Dickey, an avid gardener and author. This year’s Books & Blooms will coincide with Ellen Moon’s exhibit “Thinking About Gardens,” a collection of watercolors capturing the quiet spirit of Cornwall’s private gardens. Moon, a weekly storyteller to the first grade at Cornwall Consolidated School and art curator for The Cornwall Library, paints en plein air. Her work investigates what constitutes a garden. In the description of the show, she writes: “there are many sorts...formal, botanical, cottage, vegetable, herb...even a path through the woods is a kind of garden. My current working definition of a garden is a human intervention in the landscape to enhance human appreciation of the landscape.” Also on display are two of her hand-embroidered jackets. One depicts spring’s flowering trees and pollinators. The other, a kimono, was inspired by Yeats’s “The Song of the Wandering Aengus.”

Keep ReadingShow less