The Courant is running a good story on the preservation challenges of modernist homes. Most people would recognize that Phillip Johnson’s glass house is iconic, but there are many other homes in the area that represent this period of architecture.

From the Courant:

People are coming looking for these houses, so the tear-downs have slowed down,” said Janet Lindstrom, executive director of the New Canaan Historical Society. “They seem to be much more respected. Many of them are in the process of being refurbished and it could be that maybe five years ago, they would have been torn down and lost to us forever.”

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Chris Shays, congresscritter from the 4th CD, has earmarked funds for improving police departments in the area. From Matt “Mad Max” Breslow’s Advocate report:

The grant was approved along with $500,000 to improve law enforcement in other towns, according to a news release from U.S. Rep. Christopher Shays, R-Bridgeport. The funding is included in the Commerce, Justice, Science and Related Agencies Appropriations Bill.

The Senate must approve its own version of the legislation, then both houses of Congress will work on a compromise bill.

Shays said he voted against final passage of the bill because it “undermines a critical provision of the Bipartisan Campaign Finance Reform Act.”

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Okay the legislature is out of session, so these what might have been stories are a dime a dozen, but, I find it irking to the max that instead of talking about the big problems, we get legislators talking about the little problems. Problems like a tweak to the open container law. From Brian Lockhart’s report in the Advocate:

Amann said over the weekend that when the General Assembly reconvenes later this summer to vote on a bonding package, he wants his colleagues to budget additional money for bridge and road maintenance to avoid a deadly collapse like the one in Minneapolis Aug. 1.

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