Hey Greenwich! Did You Know ... There's A Towering Legal Issue?

Today is Friday, June 15, 2012 and it's National Lobster Day.

Today's birthdays:

• William Dean Martin, who became lead guitarist of Good Charlotte, is 31.
• Broadway and TV star Neil Patrick Harris is 39.
• Obsessively neat Monica Geller on TV's "Friends," Courtney Cox is 48.
• L.A. rapper-turned-actor Ice Cube is 51.
• Comic actor Jim Belushi is 58.
• Former New York governor Mario Cuomo is 80.

This day in history:

In 1846, representatives of Great Britain and the United States sign the Oregon Treaty, which settles a long-standing dispute with Britain over who controlled the Oregon territory. The treaty established the 49th parallel from the Rocky Mountains to the Strait of Georgia as the boundary between the United States and British Canada.

In 1877, Henry Ossian Flipper, born a slave in Thomasville, Georgia, in 1856, is the first African American cadet to graduate from the United States Military Academy at West Point.

In 1963, Kyu Sakamoto accomplished something never achieved before or since when he earned a #1 hit on the American pop charts with a song sung entirely in Japanese.

Things you should know:

Should the town sue over cell phone tower?

The Board of Selectmen are holding a special meeting at 2:30 p.m. today to decide whether to heed a nonbinding resolution from the Representative Town Meeting—join a group of Cos Cob residents' legal attempts to prevent Aquarion Water Co. from erecting a cell phone tower atop a water tank.

Aquarion has an agreement with AT&T to install a 17 1/2 foot antenna that would enclosed a 50-foot tall water tank at Aquarion's facility at 455 Valley Rd. Residents claim the installation of an antenna violates the original 1953 deed restrictions the town imposed when it sold the property to the water utility. While the town's agreement at the time was for the property to be used exclusively for water production, the word "exclusive" wasn't included in the deed. If there is any non-water related use of the property, Aquarion would have to relinquish ownership back to the town.

Earlier this year, the selectmen rejected the residents' request that the town join their legal suit claiming the proposed cell tower violates that deed restriction. At its June 11 meeting, the Representative Town Meeting overwhelmingly approved a nonbinding resolution urging the the selectmen to reconsider its vote and join the lawsuit. The RTM voted 19-162-18 in support of joining the lawsuit.

In urging the RTM to approve taking legal action, District 8 representative Chris von Keyserling said, "Why not defend the right we already we have. I certianly like to see the town defend the right of homeonwers rather than the the rights of the water company."

Selectman Drew Marzullo said he continues his support of the town joining the lawsuit. "The intent is clearly being violated in my opinion even though the word exclusive was omitted from the deed. It wasn't meant to be used for cell phone towers or a hot dog stand," explained Marzullo who was the only selectman to vote in favor of taking legal action.

"I think the people have spoken," Marzullo said of the RTM vote. "This has a real life impact on people who l ive on property near cell towers. It affects their property values and their health."

Marzullo added, "We're contemplating involvement because the town owned the piece land. So we're not setting precedent ... It's about our ability to honor a contract, an agreement we made."

The selectmen are to meet in executive session with the town's lawyers to reassess their position and possibly vote on whether to take legal action. The 2:30 p.m. meeting will be held in the Cone Room on the second floor of Town Hall.

 

Meetings today at Greenwich Town Hall:

2:30 PM: special meeting of the Board of Selectmen

 

Greenwich Community Television

If you prefer the clicker instead of being there or want to catch up on a Greenwich meeting you missed, there's Greenwich Community Television (GCTV) on either Fios Channel 24 or Cablevision's Channel 79.

1:00 am RMA presents Art Gottlieb, Naval Historian, on the WW II Battle of the Atlantic 3:45 pm Board of Selectmen Meeting, June 7, 2012 5:00 pm The Greenwich Retired Men's Association presents David Neeleman, founder of Jet Blue and three other Airlines 6:00 pm BET - Mill Rate Meeting 8:00 pm Creating Cooperative Kids - The Parenting Show: Creating Agreements with Children 9:00 pm Benjamin Franklin and American Values: A Lecture with Walter Isaacson

And if you prefer the movies:

Bow Tie Criterion Cinemas at Greenwich Plaza
Showtimes for Friday, June 15, 2012
Moonrise Kingdom (PG-13)
Bruce Willis, Edward Norton
93 minutes
Trailer 4:45, 7:00, 9:30
Digital;
Hysteria (R)
Rupert Everett, Hugh Dancy
95 minutes
Trailer 4:30, 7:15, 9:40
Digital;
The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel (PG-13)
Bill Nighy, Maggie Smith
118 minutes
Trailer 3:30, 6:30, 9:20
Digital;

 

Sources: History.com, famousbirthdays.com