CTDOT Welcomes Public Input on 2026 Pavement Preservation Project in Lyme, Old Lyme, East Haddam

Posted on August 1, 2025 by Admin

HARTFORD—The Connecticut Department of Transportation (CTDOT) is developing plans for the Pavement Preservation Project for the 2026 construction season in East Haddam. This project involves applying an asphalt rubber chip seal treatment on Rte. 156 through Lyme and Old Lyme, beginning in East Haddam at the intersection of Rte. 82 (Mile Point 0.00) and ending in Old Lyme at the intersection of Rte. 1 (Mile Point 8.43).

The purpose of this project is to preserve and maintain the condition of the pavement, bringing it to a good state of repair. This project will help the CTDOT achieve Transportation Asset Management Plan (TAMP) goals, through pavement preservation treatments that extend the overall pavement life and improve pavement performance.

The present schedule indicates that the design will be completed in August 2025, with construction anticipated to start in the spring of 2026, assuming acceptance of the project, availability of funding, receipt of any required right-of-way, and environmental permits. This project will be undertaken with one hundred percent (100%) State funds.

A press release issued July 31 by CTDOT states it is the CTDOT’s policy to keep the public informed and involved when such projects are undertaken and important that the community share its concerns with the CTDOT to assist in the project’s development.

If anyone has any questions or comments on this project, contact Sebastian Cannamela, Principal Engineer, at (860) 594-2698 or by email at Sebastian.Cannamela@ct.gov. Questions/comments should make reference to State Project No. 0172-0553.

TOP STORY: Lyme-Old Lyme Senior Softball Team Defeated by Mid-Atlantic in Final World Series Game

Posted on July 31, 2025 by admin

And off they go. Spirits were high as the Lyme-Old Lyme Senior Softball team took their places on their coach-bus for the ride down to Delaware.

LYME/OLD LYME—UPDATED 8/1: Sadly, the girls were defeated 14-2 Monday evening by Delaware on Monday evening and 12-1 by Asia-Pacific on Tuesday evening. Today the team played Southwest at 9:30 a.m. this morning and lost 22-3. In their final game, the girls were defeated 7-3 by Latin America.

Congratulations to the Lyme-Old Lyme Seniors softball team as they set off to compete in the Softball World Series!

The team. of 14 girls aged 13-16 —10 of whom are from Old Lyme with the remainder coming from Westbrook and Deep River — will represent the East Region in the Little League Senior Softball World Series in Lower Sussex, Delaware.

The girls posed for a team photo before departure.

A rousing send-off took place this morning at Lyme-Old Lyme High School as the girls set off in their quest for victory.

Parents, relatives and friends of team members came to wish the girls good luck and show their support for the team.

The Old Lyme Police and Fire Departments joined the Deep River Fire Department to form a convoy with sirens blaring to lead the the team to the highway.

An Old Lyme Police Department vehicle led the convoy accompanying the team bus as it exited Lyme-Old Lyme High School.

Lyme/Old Lyme Little League on social media announced the dates and times for next week’s games on ESPN+. Watch parties will be held at The Stumble Inne, the league said.

Monday vs. Delaware at 6 p.m.
Tuesday vs. Asia-Pacific at 8 p.m.
Friday vs. Southwest at 9:30 a.m.
Friday vs. Latin America at 12 p.m.

We wish the players and coaches the best of luck in Delaware!

Editor’s Note: This story has been updated to include details of the send-off for the team on Saturday morning.

Old Lyme Property Transactions … Are Back!

Posted on July 29, 2025 by admin

Editor’s Note: We are delighted to bring back publication of Old Lyme property transactions. We know that readers enjoyed these in the past and are confident they will spark the same interest today. We will publishing them every two weeks going forward and also adding Lyme’s property transactions shortly.

6/16: 3 Jadon Drive, Gregory P. Carnese, conservator for David E. Barclay of Old Lyme, to D+C 97 LLC of East Haven, $235,000.

6/23: 7 Haywagon Drive, Paul S. Constantinou and Amy P. Constantinou to Edward Granfield, $975,000.

6/27: 14 Avenue A, the Estate of Marie Mirliani of Boston, MA, to Adrian Scarpa, $425,000.

6/30: 106 Neck Road, Aaron P. Sikorski of New Orleans, LA, to James S. Pawlowski of Plantation, FL, $563,000.

7/1: 11 Bayberry Ridge Road, Nancy W. Lacasse and Joseph Lacasse of Bristol, ME, to George A. Dichario, $680,000.

7/2: 302 Ferry Road, Elizabeth A. Huston of Guilford to Conrad Home Buyers LLC of Lyme, $374,000.

7/3: 27 Brightwater Road, Gregory S. Simon, Trustee of the GS Family Trust of Sarasota, FL, to Jennifer Bradley of Charlotte, NC, $1,520,000.

7/3: 8 Spruce Ave., Julia Z. DiCandio, Trustee of the Thomas R. Coty Irrevocable Trust, to SLA Homes LLC of Somers, $287,000.

7/8: 8 Katherine Road, John Zettergren of New Britain to Katherine 8 LLC, $435,000.

7/8: 11 Matson Ridge, Patrick R. Avelange and Natasha Taylor to Dixon P. Downey III, $1,300,111.

7/10: 23 Columbus Ave., Charles A. Coniglio and Mary Collery-Coniglio of Naples, FL, to Matthew Ahern, $620,000.

7/10: 22 Oakridge Drive, Susan Steady, Trustee to the Daniel M. Pennella Trust Agreement of Waterford, to Kingsley and Rachael Schroeder of West Hartford, $165,000.

7/10: 7 Whippoorwill Road, Erin D. McAndrew, Trustee of the Dorothy McAndrew Revocable Trust of Wakefield, RI, to Mary B. McAndrew, $270,000.

7/10: 29 Whippoorwill Road, Robert J. Santoro, Trustee of the Dolores D. Green Trust of Cheshire, to Garip Kutrolli of Old Lyme, $20,000.

7/11: 6 Corsino Ave., Luigi Dimauro of Haddam to Susan K. Way, Trustee of the Susan K. Way Revocable Trust of Old Lyme, $655,000.

7/15: 6 Elm St., Sharon L. Bergquist of Essex to Carl Kolb of Austin, TX, $825,000.

7/15: 72 Lyme St., Philip Atherton Pineo and Danne Mahone Pineo of Old Lyme to Halloran Murdock of Old Lyme, $576,000.

First Congregational Church of Lyme Seeks Volunteer Parking Attendants for Hamburg Fair, Aug. 15-17

Posted on July 29, 2025 by admin

Parking Proceeds Serve as Church’s Only Annual Fundraiser

The First Congregational Church of Lyme. LymeLine file photo.

LYME–The First Congregational Church of Lyme is looking for volunteers to assist with parking during its traditional fundraiser at the Hamburg Fair, Aug. 15-17.

Organizers in a news release said the church operating budget relies on proceeds from those parking on the lawn during the fair, which serves as the church’s only fundraising event each year.

Organizers said they prefer to have four or five volunteers per two-hour shift. Three people will suffice during certain shifts.

Volunteers are needed at the church driveway entrance to collect money, and on the church lawn to monitor available spots and lead fair-goers to those spots.

To volunteer, sign up here.

Volunteers can also register by contacting Rich Clippinger at rclippinger@snet.net or 860-910-2512, or by reaching out to the church at ctlymechurch@gmail.com or 860-434-0220.

Help is needed in these time slots to support Hamburg Fair hours:

Friday, August 15

4:30 PM-6:30 PM (four volunteers)

6:30 PM-8:30 PM (four volunteers)

8:30 PM-10:30 PM (four volunteers)

Saturday, August 16

8:30 AM-10:30 AM (three volunteers)

10:30 AM-12:30 PM (four volunteers)

12:30 PM-2:30 PM (four volunteers)

2:30 PM-4:30 PM (five volunteers)

4:30 PM-6:30 PM (five volunteers)

6:30 PM-8:30 PM (four volunteers)

8:30 PM-10:30 PM (four volunteers)

Sunday, August 17

8:30 AM-10:30 AM (four volunteers)

10:30 AM-12:30 PM (four volunteers)

12:30 PM-2:30 PM (four volunteers)

2:30 PM-4:30 PM (four volunteers)

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

Posted on July 28, 2025 by Elizabeth Regan and Olwen Logan

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.