February 5, 2018, by Markeshia Ricks- "The first glimpse of Chapel Haven’s expansion of its Westville home was a little hard to see during a Friday afternoon ribbon-cutting. There were so many people crammed into Chapel Haven’s new welcome center that the many supporters and well-wishers gathered could hardly get a look at the new fireplace, or check out much of the art created by the community members who lived there. But the tight quarters didn’t dampen anyone’s spirit as hot cocoa and cookies flowed. Because everyone was there to celebrate a milestone.
Monday | February 5, 2018
Friday | January 26, 2018
January 25, the New Haven Independent, by Markeshia Ricks- "The burned-down Delaney’s Restaurant & Tap Room is making a comeback to Westville Village along with new apartments on top, if a newly submitted zoning application gets approved. The zoning application has been submitted by the new owner of a now vacant lot at 882 Whalley Ave., where flames consumed the popular restaurant nearly four years ago. The lot has been vacant since that fire.
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Friday | January 19, 2018
“I have a last name which is Ukrainian. I am an American citizen. I was born in Poland. I was raised in Belarus. I went to college in Moscow. And I left Russia for Springfield, Massachusetts.” Such was Sergei Gerasimenko’s life as a “rolling rock.” Now a New Havener, he’s a rock of a different kind, working on West Rock Avenue in the shadow of West Rock itself, expertly fashioning custom features made of wood (not rock). It was a trip to the theater, of all things, that started his long roll to New Haven.
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January 19, 2018, by Markeshia Ricks- "The old Whalley Avenue CVS will get a new parking lot and cosmetic improvements — and still, despite some neighborhood opposition, become a Family Dollar in the end. City Plan commissioners unanimously approved the site plan for the conversion of the existing 9,857 square-foot former CVS at 1168 Whalley Ave. into a Family Dollar during its regular meeting Wednesday night after one last public hearing.
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Monday | December 18, 2017
December 15, 2017, by Lucy Gellman- Um Shaham (the mother of Shaham) was polishing a car in the driveway when the years of tragedy began. First, flames sprang from a second-story room where her infant daughter slept, just missing the girl but leaving her and her son with second and third degree burns. Then the fire devoured everything else in their path, taking the car in a burst of orange and red. Then the war came to her front door. Just months after the fire, her husband was shot dead from a stray bullet, his taxi returned to her soaked in his blood.
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Thursday | October 26, 2017
"On Friday afternoon, a New Haven fashionista will raise a glass to five years at his Orange Street shop—then close the doors to his Ninth Square outpost for a final time. He’s in search of a better work-life balance, and thinks he might find it by spending more time in Westville. That’s the story for Neville Wisdom, a surgical tech-turned designer who has decided to close his 63 Orange St. location as many neighboring businesses move away, or come under new ownership.
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Tuesday | September 19, 2017
September 15, By Lucy Gellman- "Just to the right of a stripper pole, Madison Sapphire Duchannes is killing it. In one hand, she grips the microphone tightly, lifting it to her mouth as she flutters her blue-powdered eyes and long, mascaraed lashes. The mic casts its bulbous shadow on her outfit — red bra, red and black bustier, red panties, everything hugging minuscule, angular curves. She drags her right hand through her hair, pulling off a long blonde wig.
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Tuesday | September 5, 2017
September 1, 2017, by Paul Bass- "If not for his talents for forgery and for culinary invention, Salam Al-Rawi probably wouldn’t have been on Whalley Avenue this week preparing to open Westville Village’s newest restaurant. He might well have ended up in prison if he hadn’t been able to forge a convincing stamp on the passport he used to flee his native Iraq in 1978.
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Wednesday | July 5, 2017
July 3, 2017, The New Haven Independent, by Betsy Kim- "At the municipal parking lot wall on Blake Street, off Whalley Avenue in Westville, artist Don Wunderlee unveiled a new mural Sunday. “I did not consciously copy anything from a garden. It is about capturing energy and vitality through the repetition of form and color that coexist harmoniously,” he said.
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July 4, 2017, The New Haven Independent, by Markeshia Ricks- "Marijuana leaf symbols have appeared in the window of a small office at 326 Central Ave., but you can’t knock on the door and buy ganja. It’s not a dispensary. Instead two nurses there will offer you instruction on medical marijuana and its use and how to find your niche in the fast-growing cannabis industry. The nurses are Kebra Smith-Bolden and Lynne Kravitz. The office is home to their businesses, Cannabis Consultants of CT and CannaHealth.
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