In this episode of "Navel Gazing: The Valley Indy Podcast," "Valley Sports Rewind" host Mike Cannici talks about the latest members of the Derby High School Athletic Hall of Fame.
Click play to listen.
In this very special episode of “Navel Gazing: The Valley Indy Podcast,” Rick Dunne talks about the “Regional Wastewater Treatment Consolidation Study!”
Click play to listen.
The ongoing study is scheduled to be discussed at 1 p.m. Tuesday (Dec. 11) during a meeting at Seymour Town Hall on First Street.
Dunne is the executive director of the Naugatuck Valley Council of Governments. The organization is administering a grant studying whether it makes financial sense to merge or consolidate (in some way) five sewer systems in the Naugatuck Valley.
Seymour First Selectman W. Kurt Miller says inside demo at Tri-Town Plaza, a mostly empty shopping center off Route 8, is scheduled to begin shortly.
The Valley Indy was criticized by local Democrats last week for sharing a New Haven Independent story detailing a controversy between the president of the state's NAACP and the Connecticut Young Democrats.
In this episode of "Navel Gazing: The Valley Indy Podcast," reporters Eugene Driscoll and Ethan Fry read and react to the negative comments posted on Valley Indy social media.
The later part of the podcast features (low quality) audio from last month's Derby Planning and Zoning Commission meeting, during which the commission rejected a "zone text change" application from The Hops Co., a popular beer garden on Sodom Lane, that would have created a 'development district' for certain properties in the city.
In this very special episode of "Navel Gazing: The Valley Indy Podcast," "Mobile Horror Companion" weirdo podcasters come on the air to talk about the (God awful) latest "mid-season finale" of "The Walking Dead."
Press play.
Democrats Stephan Behuniak and Tarek Raslan join Republicans Kurt Miller and David Papcin to go over the good, the bad and the ugly of the Nov. 6 races.
Sponsored by ValleyGivesBack.org.
Seymour residents are voting on proposed changes to the town charter Nov. 6, 2018.
Be sure to turn over your ballot to see the questions!
In this episode Seymour First Selectman Kurt Miller walks listeners through each question.
Click play to listen to Sharon Closius and Sue Mauriello talk about how regular people can bolster the Valley's nonprofit sector through "planned giving."
Closius is the president and CEO of The Valley Community Foundation in Derby.
Mauriello is a tax manager at Apicella, Testa & Co. in Shelton.
In the podcast, Closius first gives an overview of planned giving, ValleyGivesBack.org, and why it's an important way to help local nonprofits.
Mauriello then gets into the nuts and bolts of the different ways people can support charities through planned gifts, an increasingly common way to help.
This episode is sponsored by ValleyGivesBack.org.
Dave Lenart, a volunteer firefighter in Derby and a career firefighter in Bridgeport, returns to the Valley Indy podcast to talk fire prevention.
Lenart also hosts "2 Dudes Talking Disney," a podcast that deals with everything the The Walt Disney Co. owns -- which, at this point, is everything short of your mortgage.
This podcast is sponsored by ValleyGivesBack.org.
In this very newsy episode of 'Navel Gazing: The Valley Indy Podcast,' Derby Mayor Rich Dziekan and his chief of staff Andrew Baklik join reporter Eugene Driscoll to update listeners on a number of issues facing the city.
First the mayor gives his take on the terrible flooding that pounded the city Sept. 25 (and the neighborhoods below the Derby athletic field projects in particular).
Then Dziekan and Baklik talk about a zone text amendment designed to spur investment in the downtown redevelopment zone.
Dziekan then comes out against a zone text change in east Derby being proposed by the Hops Co., a popular beer garden.
The mayor also touches upon a tax incentive plan, and gives an update on the Regional Water Authority's efforts to build a water storage tank in west Derby.
In this episode, reporter Eugene Driscoll remembers a colleague who passed away suddenly, then switches gears for an update on the work of the Ansonia-Derby school regionalization committee.
Melvin Mason, editor of the Stratford Star newspaper, died Sept. 26. He was just 43 years old.
Melvin was previously a Valley reporter with The Connecticut Post, and he freelanced for The Valley Indy.
He lived in Derby until he married his wife, Allison, two years ago.
Driscoll recalls conversations he had with Melvin, and plays a clip from a Valley Indy video interview on which Melvin appeared.
The second half of the podcast begins around the 15 minute mark and features a 30-minute interview with Jim Gildea, the chairman of the Ansonia-Derby school regionalization committee.
Gildea says the group will probably choose a consultant at its Oct. 22 meeting. Gildea is also the chairman of the Derby school board, and updates listeners on new security measures in the district.
In this very special episode of 'Navel Gazing: The Valley Indy Podcast,' our pal Rich DiCarlo stops by the office to talk about this year's Ansonia Harvest Festival.
This year's festival is scheduled for 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Main Street.
There's a pie-baking contest, along with a pie-eating contest, vendors, food, a kids zone, and live music.
Note: The interview was recorded using an iPhone, which diminishes the audio a bit.
Also in this episode: This Week In History and a review of last week's most-popular stories on ValleyIndy.org.
Seymour's Rob and Christine Caprilozzi run the Horror News Network, the group behind the Fifth Annual CT Horror Fest, happening Saturday, Sept. 15 at the Danbury Arena.
In this episode of 'Navel Gazing: The Valley Indy Podcast,' Christine talks about his year's show, which features legendary actress Pam Grier, Connecticut native Bill ("The Devil's Rejects") Moseley, and three cast mates from the original "Halloween."
In this very special episode of 'Navel Gazing: The Valley Indy Podcast,' Eugene reads a letter written after Ethan reacted to an Ansonia news item with a "laughing" emoji.
Ethan explains why he chose to react that way, prompting Eugene to advise reporters to act like they're being watched at all times.
The reporters then have a discussion as to whether it's possible to live in 2018 America without having a public opinion on the Trump Administration, and whether those opinions influence local reporting efforts.
Finally, the reporters review the most-read stories of the week, and Ethan reviews the long-running Castle Hill development issue in Ansonia.
This podcast is made possible by ValleyGivesBack.org.
In this episode of "Navel Gazing: The Valley Indy Podcast," reporter Eugene Driscoll gives a brief update on a plan presented to the Derby Planning and Zoning Commission to make changes at The Hops Company, a popular beer garden on Derby's east side.
Then Chris Bowen of Seymour joins by telephone to argue with the Valley Indy reporters about last week's decision made by hundreds of newspaper editorial boards all over the U.S. to explain why a free press isn't an "enemy of the people."
Bowen also touches upon a recent meeting of the CT Commuter Rail Council, and answers whether he thought The Valley Indy story on the meeting was too negative.
In this episode of 'Navel Gazing: The Valley Indy Podcast,' the reporters briefly discuss a zone change that, if approved, could trigger some changes to the land at The Hops Company, a popular beer garden in east Derby.
Then Seymour's Christopher Bowen comes on the air to talk about why he feels that last week's "enemy of the people" editorials in newspapers (and The Valley Indy) were meaningless.
On this episode of ‘Navel Gazing: The Valley Indy Podcast, we're speaking with Joseph Jaumann, the Ansonia resident and Republican nominee in the 104th state House of Representatives District.
The district includes Ansonia and Derby, and is currently held by Rep. Linda Gentile, a Democrat from Ansonia who opted not to seek another term.
On this episode of ‘Navel Gazing: The Valley Indy Podcast, we’re speaking with Kara Rochelle, the Derby resident and Democratic nominee in the 104th state House of Representatives District.
The district includes Ansonia and Derby, and is currently held by Rep. Linda Gentile, a Democrat from Ansonia who opted not to seek another term.
Click play to listen to Rochelle answer questions such as
-- The CT Post recently reported that she does not live in the district she is running to represent. How did this happen?
-- Where does she stand on Gov. Malloy’s $10 million toll study?
-- What are her thoughts on the Ansonia-Derby school regionalization committee?
-- Joe Ganim served time in prison for corruption, now he wants to be governor. Will you support his candidacy if he wins the Democratic primary Aug. 14?
Lorie Vaccaro is the president of the Ansonia Board of Aldermen and this week's guest on "Navel Gazing: The Valley Indy Podcast."
Click play to listen to Vaccaro talk about his latest role in Ansonia -- chairman of the Ansonia Charter Revision Commission.
The commission could take up to 16 months to decide whether to make major changes to the city charter -- that is, the documents that serves as the blue print for city government.
Seymour First Selectman Kurt Miller makes a return appearance on 'Navel Gazing: The Valley Indy Podcast' to answer questions from residents and readers on Facebook.
Ron Luneau, a lifelong Derby resident, isn't known as a guy to shy away from sharing his opinion, and he doesn't disappoint in the latest episode of "Valley Sports Rewind," a podcast hosted by Mike Cannici.
Luneau is a former Derby football and baseball coach, and he's currently the West Haven High School baseball coach, where he teaches history.
During the episode, in addition to talking about past athletic seasons, Luneau talks about how economic disparity in Connecticut gives wealthy towns a competitive advantage in sports, a move to study combining the Derby-Ansonia school districts -- and how he doesn't like snakes.
Press play to listen.
Newly-appointed Derby Middle School Principal Rachael Caggiano makes her first "Navel Gazing" appearance to talk about making the transition from teacher to administrator.
Caggiano was a Derby High School special education teacher before being named assistant principal and athletic director.
While the middle school has had a revolving door of administrators the last few years, Caggiano said she plans to bring stability and an ear for listening to the job.
Click play!
When Dino Verrelli's father, Giovanni, died from pancreatic cancer in 2011, Dino had already started working on creating a nonprofit group to raise money for research and to provide financial aid to people stricken with the disease.