Westport CPC Sends Six Projects Totaling $1.38 Million to Town Meeting

Other Committee · Meeting of January 8, 2026

Westport's Community Preservation Committee unanimously recommended six projects totaling more than $1.38 million to the 2026 Town Meeting on January 8. Chair Betty Slade led the committee through a two-hour remote public hearing that included a unanimous vote to amend the Westport Affordable Housing Trust's $300,000 request, expanding its land acquisition language to allow pre-development spending on housing projects of fewer than 30 units — a change championed by member Deborah Schialt after she questioned whether a promised study of housing capacity at the former high school site had ever been completed. The committee also raised the American Legion Hall ADA ramp request from $32,500 to $35,000 after contractor Brian Valcourt verbally suggested the existing deck may need reinforcement, though the panel rejected a further increase to $40,000 for lack of written documentation.

The Westport Youth Athletic Association's $400,000 mixed-use pickleball and tennis court proposal moved forward with $100,000 already pledged through a public campaign, and the Westport Land Conservation Trust's $300,000 conservation restriction on a 28-acre Drift Road parcel — protecting Kirby Brook's native brook trout habitat — advanced with a state grant application of another $300,000 still pending.

In the full story:

• The complete report — 1,199 words

Source: the Other Committee meeting of January 8, 2026, reported from the official video recording and transcript.