Author Archives: Elizabeth Regan and Olwen Logan

TOP STORY: Artistic Spotlight Shines on Old Lyme’s Marvelous Midsummer Festival

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Old Lyme’s Midsummer Festival saw thousands of visitors exploring arts and crafts galore at a variety of locations. The photo above features the lawn at the side of the Old Lyme Inn.

OLD LYME—UPDATED WITH MORE PHOTOS 7/28: The Old Lyme Midsummer Festival on Saturday turned part of the town’s historic district into a vibrant celebration of the arts. Visitors enjoyed a view of Americana set in the same estuarine light that lured Impressionist painters more than a century ago.

Visitors of all ages enjoyed viewing the artwork on display.

Tents featuring individual artists with works in a vast range of media, local non-profits explaining their mission, culinary delights from nearby farms, and refreshments for immediate consumption were spread across five locations.

These latter comprised the Lyme Art Association, FloGris Museum, Roger Tory Peterson Estuary Center, Old Lyme Inn and Lyme Academy of Fine Arts..

The Lyme-Old Lyme Lions hosted their 20th Annual Classic Car Show at the Roger Tory Peterson Estuary Center.

On the shaded grounds of the Roger Tory Peterson Estuary Center, George Willauer took home a first place trophy for the Packard convertible his father bought new for $3,400 back in 1935. He attributed the vehicle’s pristine condition to Vintage Motorcars of Westbrook, the local shop with an international reputation that undertook a partial restoration after the car was damaged in a crash several years ago.

The 90-year-old Packard came into the world the same year Willauer did. He learned to drive on the three-speed manual transmission he still shifts today.

“It’s a part of me,” he said.

George Willauer, of Lyme, drove his 1935 Packard convertible to victory in Class B (1930- 1942) of the 20th Annual Lyme-Old Lyme Lions Club Classic Car Show.

Inside the Kelsey Family Children’s Innovation Discovery Center at the Roger Tory Peterson Estuary Center, conservation and education coordinator Joe Attwater helped 6-year-old Nova Berman examine a feather through a digital microscope. As Attwater described the “incredible” properties that make feathers such ideal insulation for comforters and coats, Nova magnified the fluffy down beneath her scope.

“There’s nothing warmer in the world than a feather,” Attwater said.

Nova Berman, 6, uses a digital microscope in the Kelsey Family Children’s Innovation Discovery Center at Roger Tory Peterson Estuary Center.

The festival is a destination not only for locals, but for visitors. This year marked the first Midsummer outing for Christine Mestler of Cincinnati, Ohio, who was in town to visit her sister, Ross Higgins. The women both went home with prints from the “Fence Artists” displayed on the grounds of the Old Lyme Inn.

Ross Higgins, of Old Lyme, and her sister Christine Mestler of Cincinnati, Ohio, survey the artwork outside the Old Lyme Inn.

The Lyme Artisans Guild began in 2023 when Carol Hunts Stanland, a textile artist, forged the crafts collective of jewelry makers, potters, sculptors, weavers and woodturners. Stanland said shoppers can also find their wares at the Guilford Art Center Holiday Expo and Light Up Old Lyme later this year.

Paul Maulucci, a woodturner from Coventry who belongs to the Lyme Artisans Guild, shows his wares at the Midsummer Festival.

Starting off with a 5K race to benefit the Lymes’ Youth Service Bureau and ending with fireworks set off from behind the Lyme-Old Lyme High School, each year brings enough active artistry to keep attendees coming back for more.

Aidan Kerrigan gave a stirring rendition of the national anthem immediately before the race began.
And they’re off! Serious runners were called to the front of the pack before the race began..
Around 500 runners and walkers competed in the Lymes’ Youth Service Bureau 5K race.
Some runners even wore tutus!
The Parading Paws dog parade at the FloGris Museum was delightful … as always.
Alfie went through his paces capably led by Quinn Ressler before walking away with the “Sweetest” dog.
Ed Shyloski (left) and Greg Symonds, longtime members of VFW Post 1467 continued their service by engaging with many of the visitors and explaining their important work.
A wonderful display of hydrangeas from ‘Hydrangeas Galore’ by Mark Comstock greeted festival-goers as they arrived at the Lyme Art Association.
The Duck River Garden Club—complete with little duckies—was offering beautiful bouquets for sale.
The Old Lyme Town Band gave a rousing concert as a perfect prelude to the fireworks display.
A fabulous fireworks display rounded off another marvelous Midsummer Festival.

So, until next year …

Plan Plods On for Two Old Lyme Affordable Houses in Partnership with Habitat for Humanity

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Hikers donned sunglasses and walking sticks for a trek through the McCulloch Family Open Space this past weekend. The ‘Hiker’s Happy Hour,’ a venture of the Old Lyme Open Space Commission and Old Lyme Land Trust, was the first of the season. Photo courtesy of the Old Lyme Land Trust.

Hikers Explore Area Earmarked for Construction, Hike Precedes ‘Happy Hour’ at Old Lyme Inn

OLD LYME–On May 7, a group of local residents gathered for the first hike of the season organized by the Old Lyme Open Space Commission and Old Lyme Land Trust. For many of the walkers, the hike through the McCulloch Family Open Space was their first time visiting the property off Flat Rock Hill Rd. in Old Lyme.

The hike preceded what the hike’s lead organizer Andrea Fenton described as, “a delightful Happy Hour at the Old Lyme Inn.” She emphasized that all are welcome to join these combination hikes and ‘Happy Hours,’ which are organized on a regular basis, stressing that you do not actually need to take the hike in order to enjoy the ‘Happy Hour!’

Affordable Homes Move Closer to Reality

The new, red path that the hikers followed loops around two Affordable Housing lots, which were designated in the original transfer of the property. The process of turning these six acres of the 300-acre McCulloch Family Open Space property into two affordable, single-family homes is moving closer to reality as part of a joint effort between the town and Habitat for Humanity of Eastern Connecticut. 

The Zoning Board of Appeals (ZBA) on Thursday is set for a public hearing on a request from the Old Lyme Affordable Housing Commission that would allow the two proposed houses to share a driveway with two existing houses on Flat Rock Hill Road. 

The town in 2019 closed on the purchase of approximately 300 acres from the McCulloch family to be preserved in perpetuity. The sale set aside two parcels, totaling about six acres, for the construction of affordable homes. Voters last year authorized the transfer of the land from the town to Habitat for Humanity of Eastern Connecticut, which will build and manage one single-family house on each parcel.

Variance Needed Before Construction Can Begin

A variance to zoning regulations must be granted before the town can move forward with a plan to bring in Habitat for Humanity to start construction, according to Affordable Housing Commission meeting minutes.  

Old Lyme Land Use Coordinator Eric Knapp on Monday said about six acres of land at 130-1 Whippoorwill Road, which were deeded to the town by the McCulloch family for the construction of affordable homes, do not have any direct road frontage. 

“So we’re trying to subdivide them out, but can’t without a variance,” he said. 

Old Lyme Land Trust member Andrea Fenton said many of the hikers at the inaugural Hikers’ Happy Hour were visiting the property for the first time. Photo courtesy of the Old Lyme Land Trust.

The town’s zoning regulations require 25 feet of road frontage per lot to qualify for subdivision. 

The land has deeded rights to a 50-foot wide driveway off Flat Rock Hill Road, according to the ZBA application. 

“It’s kind of a unique situation, and that’s what the ZBA is there for,” Knapp said. 

State law grants the ZBA the power to grant variances if existing regulations create “exceptional difficulty or unusual hardship” when it comes to using the property. 

The other two houses that would share the driveway are on land owned by the nonprofit HOPE Partnership, according to assessor’s records. The houses that sit on the land – built in the 1990s by the Old Lyme Affordable Housing Corp before it merged with HOPE – are sold to low-income households using a community land trust model. The framework limits the profit owners can make if they decide to sell their homes. 

The town paid $500,000 for what is now the McCulloch Family Open Space, and $50,000 each for two three-acre areas off Flat Rock Hill Rd. The Affordable Housing Commission in 2022 received a $150,000 grant from the town using federal pandemic-relief funds to reimburse the town for the original purchase price. 

But the deed transfer from the town to Habitat for Humanity of Eastern Connecticut is pending the creation of a steering committee to guide the process, April Affordable Housing Commission meeting minutes stated. The committee will be formed once variance is granted by the ZBA.

Old Lyme Town Band Celebrates 50 Years with Gala Community Concert, April 26

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On Saturday, April 26, the Old Lyme Town Band celebrates its 50th anniversary with a free Community Concert at Lyme-Old Lyme High School. All photos courtesy of Old Lyme Town Band.

OLD LYME —The Old Lyme Town Band (OLTB) sounds off its 50th anniversary season with a free gala concert in the auditorium of Lyme-Old Lyme High School on Saturday, April 26, at 7 p.m. A reception will follow the concert. All are welcome and there is no charge for admission.

These four early members of the Old Lyme Town Band still play in it today. Michele Smith Dickey at right conceived the idea of re-forming the band in 1975 after a 65-year hiatus. The other three members are from left to right, Barry Weiner, Ann Lander, and Ned Perkins.

it was Michele Smith Dickey of Old Lyme—a member of the current band—who conceived the idea of re-forming the band in 1975 after a 65-year hiatus. She notes there were about 30 musicians at that time and the first volunteer conductor was Donald Janse. That was, in Dickey’s words, when, “We started making music and making friends a half century ago”. “

The original incarnation of the Old Lyme Town Band (OLTB) spanned 1886-1910. It was re-formed by Dickey in anticipation of the US Bicentennial coming a year later in 1976.

This photo shows the band in 1910 shortly before it took a 65-year break.

“The group has played continually for half a century,” she noted, continuing, “It’s great to have a musical outlet for people of all ages where friendships are forged.”

A series of 15 conductors followed Janse through the years. Under the direction of its current conductor, Richard Chiappetta, the band entertains audiences with a variety of music including movie medleys, traditional marches, showtune favorites, and Americana selections. 

Dickey commented that the band has grown to more than 50 members since 1975 and continues to provide summer and holiday concerts to shoreline and river valley communities. 

The April 26 concert will feature a commissioned piece by composer Anthony Susi titled, “Impressions of Old Lyme.” It was inspired by three Lyme Art Colony painters in summer residence at the home of Florence Griswold, where the new school of painting became the center of American impressionistic art. Susi hopes “Impressions of Old Lyme,” expresses the rich art history of the community. “The French impressionists often painted scenes around Paris; the American impressionists in Old Lyme painted the rural landscapes of New England.”

This famous work,“Kalmia” by Willard Metcalf, is one of the paintings that inspired Anthony Susi’s original work, “Impressions of Old Lyme,” which will be given its premier by the Old Lyme Town Band at their celebratory concert on April 26.

They used a technique of high-key colors and broken brush strokes seen in the paintings “The Ledges” by Childe Hassam, “Peonies” by Matilda Browne, and “Kalmia” by Willard Metcalf. The works reflect the meadows, marshes, and flowers in the area known for inspiring art.

Brian Girasoli, OLTB President, said that the show will feature debut compositions as well as old favorites as the group celebrates 50 years of musicianship. 

“Since 1975, we  have been fortunate to not only have nearly a thousand people from the surrounding area provide his or her musical acumen, but also the support of the community to put on more than a dozen concerts each year,” he continued. 

Concert dates can be found at oldlymetownband.net/oltb and by visiting Old Lyme Town Band on Facebook. Regular annual events include a concert preceding the fireworks display at the Midsummer Festival, a summer concert on the Town Green, and a winter holiday concert at Katharine Hepburn Cultural Arts Center in Old Saybrook.  New this summer will be a concert at Water’s Edge in Westbrook.

The OLTB welcomes players of all ages, students to retirees. No audition is necessary. Rehearsals are held Monday evenings from 7 to 9 p.m. at Christ the King Church in Old Lyme.

For more information contact oldlymetownband@gmail.com.