Home Care In Westport, CT

Product

Recalled oysters are from Norm Bloom and Son (CT-069-SS, AQ), harvested from Westport, CT, lot 207, with the harvest date 2/20/2024. The oysters were distributed to restaurants and retailers in CT, FL, GA, MA, MD, ME, MN, NJ, OH, RI, SC, and TX, and may have been distributed to other states as well.

Purpose

The FDA is notifying restaurants, food retailers, and consumers that the Connecticut Department of Agriculture, Bureau of Aquaculture is conducting a recall of oysters harvested by Norm Bloom and Son (CT-069-SS, AQ) from Westport, CT, lot 207, with the harvest date 2/20/2024, because they are associated with a norovirus outbreak in Minnesota and may be contaminated with norovirus. The FDA is advising restaurants and food retailers not to serve or sell and consumers not to eat the recalled oysters.

Shellfish contaminated with norovirus can cause illness if eaten, and potentially severe illness in people with compromised immune systems. Food containing norovirus may look, smell, and taste normal. Consumers of these products who are experiencing symptoms of illness should contact their healthcare provider and report their symptoms to their local Health Department. Diarrhea, abdominal cramps, nausea, vomiting, and fever may be associated with gastroenteritis infections caused by this organism.

Symptoms of Norovirus

People of all ages can get infected and sick with norovirus. The most common symptoms of norovirus are diarrhea, vomiting, nausea, and stomach pain. Other symptoms include fever, headache, and body ache.

A person usually develops symptoms 12 to 48 hours after being exposed to norovirus. Most people with norovirus illness get better within 1 to 3 days.

If you have norovirus illness, you can feel extremely ill, and vomit or have diarrhea many times a day. This can lead to dehydration, especially in young children, older adults, and people with other illnesses. Symptoms of dehydration include decrease in urination, dry mouth and throat, and feeling dizzy when standing up. Children who are dehydrated may cry with few or no tears and be unusually sleepy or fussy.

If you think you or someone you are caring for is severely dehydrated, call your healthcare provider

Summary of Problem and Scope

The Connecticut Department of Agriculture, Bureau of Aquaculture is conducting a recall of oysters from Norm Bloom and Son (CT-069-SS, AQ), harvested from Westport, CT, lot 207, with the harvest date 2/20/2024, because they are associated with a norovirus outbreak in Minnesota and may be contaminated with norovirus. The oysters were distributed to restaurants and retailers in CT, FL, GA, MA, MD, ME, MN, NJ, OH, RI, SC, and TX, and may have been distributed to other states as well. The FDA is advising consumers not to eat, and restaurants and food retailers not to sell, and to dispose of these oysters.

Contaminated oysters can cause illness if eaten raw, particularly in people with compromised immune systems. Food contaminated with norovirus may look, smell, and taste normal. Consumers of these products who are experiencing symptoms of norovirus illness should contact their healthcare provider, who should report their symptoms to their local Health Department.

FDA Actions

The FDA is sharing the notice of the CT oyster recallExternal Link Disclaimer and advising consumers not to eat, and restaurants and food retailers not to sell, oysters from Norm Bloom and Son (CT-069-SS, AQ), harvested from Westport, CT, lot 207, with the harvest date 2/20/2024, and distributed to restaurants and retailers in CT, FL, GA, MA, MD, ME, MN, NJ, OH, RI, SC, and TX. The FDA is awaiting information on further interstate distribution of the oysters and will continue to monitor the investigation and provide assistance to state authorities as needed.

Recommendations for Restaurants and Retailers

Restaurants and retailers should not serve or sell the potentially contaminated oysters. Restaurants and retailers should dispose of any products by throwing them in the garbage or returning them to their distributor for destruction.

Restaurants and retailers should also be aware that shellfish may be a source of pathogens and should control the potential for cross-contamination of food processing equipment and the food processing environment. They should follow the steps below:

Recommendations for consumers

Consumers should not eat the potentially contaminated oysters. Consumers who have symptoms should contact their health care provider to report their symptoms and receive care. To report a complaint or adverse event (illness or serious allergic reaction), you can

Visit www.fda.gov/fcic for additional consumer and industry assistance.

Submit Questions/Get Assistance

Follow us on XExternal Link Disclaimer

Additional Information

WESTPORT — After more than a year in progress, Amazon Fresh still hasn't opened at 1076 Post Road East. While some businesses are faring well without an anchor store, others could use the help to bring in customers.

The area, known as Post Plaza, is home to Naturino Kids Shoes and More, Bassett Furniture, Chase Bank, Angelina's Trattoria, Headliners Salon and Azena Nail Spa. As of 2021, Amazon Fresh is expected to open where Barnes and Noble was previously located.

“We’ll continue to open new Whole Foods Market stores, and will do so selectively with Amazon Fresh as we see results we like," Amazon spokesperson Jessica Martin said. "We’re encouraged by early signs of our new store design in Chicago and Southern California, and will proceed adaptively.”

Advertisement

Article continues below this ad

However, an exact date for opening was unavailable.

Of the businesses currently in the plaza, Bassett Furniture and Angelina's Trattoria said they have not be affected by a lack of anchor store, while Naturino said it could use the help from a big-name draw. Chase Bank and Azena Nail Spa declined to comment. Headliners Salon did not respond to a request for comment.

More For You

Police: Tree falls on Merritt Parkway, striking cars and injuring woman

Bridge over Sasco Creek in Westport, Fairfield to be replaced

Westport parents say more changes needed to student conduct code

Granger on Film: Oppenheimer to rule Academy Awards

Westport parents lobby legislators for hate speech task force

Matthew Mandell, the chair of the Westport-Weston Chamber of Commerce, said all he has heard is that the project to open Amazon Fresh is moving forward, but doesn't know what the timing is. He plans to keep up on it as it moves forward.

Advertisement

Article continues below this ad

"All I have heard is that the project is indeed moving forward," he said. "What the timing on this is I don't know, but I plan to keep up on it as it moves closer."

He said he doesn't have statistics on its possible effect on surrounding businesses.

"What I do know is the other stores and businesses are doing well as they draw customers on their own," he said. "Clearly once the hole is filled it will bring that much more vibrance."

Another Amazon Fresh is supposed to come to Brookfield, but it also has not opened after two years of planning.

Advertisement

Article continues below this ad

Naturino is a new store compared to the others in the plaza, which opened in 2022. Owner Danny Rivera said they are not struggling because the area needed a children's shoe store, but there is not as much foot traffic without an anchor.

"A big store always brings in for the little guys," he said.

Rivera said one of the main reasons he took the lease in that plaza was because he knew Amazon Fresh was set to open there. He looked at Ridgefield as a potential area, but chose Westport because of the amount of children there.

"We're doing well but we could do better, of course," he said, adding there are usually about 10 to 15 cars in the parking lot.

Advertisement

Article continues below this ad

Neighboring Angelina's Trattoria, which has been at that location for about 40 years, also helps bring customers to his store, since it's been there for so long. Still, the draw of a national retailer would likely speed his business's growth, he said.

"Luckily, my customers are loyal," Rivera said.

Over at the trattoria, owner Macio Sales said the overall traffic has declined at the center since Barnes & Noble closed, but his business remained steady. If anything, the high price of goods is having the greatest affect on his business, he said.

Bassett Furniture Store Manager Candace Clark said her store has been in the plaza for about 10 years and just renewed its lease. She said she did not think the presence of an anchor store at the plaza would affect Bassett. When Barns & Noble closed it did not affect Bassett, she said.

Advertisement

Article continues below this ad

"We're faring well," she said. "It would be nice if it (Amazon Fresh) opens but that remains to be seen," she said.

WESTPORT — The former Bridgewater Associates property is prepping to become new office spaces and housing, including affordable housing for people with disabilities, while paying homage to the outdoors in its aesthetic.

The development would be called The Glendinning Village, named after its 1 Glendinning Place address and the man who built it in the 1960s, Ralph Glendinning.

"The Glendinning Village community of single-family homes will complement the bucolic setting that currently thrives on light filtered through the canopy of robust trees, cool water traveling downstream, and the cushion of pine needles underfoot," reads an explanatory statement filed with the Planning and Zoning Department.

The project is a partnership between David Adam Realty President David Waldman and Eric O'Brien of Urbane Capital LLC and Sachem Capital. The duo began reviewing the project when the facility hit the market in late 2022.

"What inspired our design was a need for reasonably sized housing options within the market as well as a real need for adults with disabilities housing," Waldman said.

The plan has changed since its original iteration in September because of opposition, Waldman said. The development originally included 14 houses with three designated as affordable. Now, the number has been reduced to 10. Of those, two houses will contain six studio apartments for adults with disabilities, one room being for a site supervisor. All of the units in those two houses are designated as affordable.

The current building on the property is also set to remain there and will be renovated to house multiple offices. Waldman said they have leased half of the building and are looking for tenants for the remaining half, which totals about 25,000 square feet.

He added this project helps add to the town's points needed to reach an affordable housing moratorium to prevent 8-30g developments from coming to Westport.

The completion of this project will add 12 affordable housing moratorium points, while the original iteration only offered two, Waldman said.

The Glendinning Village will also house parking, electric vehicle chargers, community gardens, a compost area and the beginning of a pollinator pathway, the explanatory statement reads.

"There is a lack of quality inventory in our town housing supply," Waldman said.

He said this project will add to that inventory and the developers feel it will be a reasonable size in a beautiful location.

The explanatory statement says the new homes are going to replace an existing concrete mechanical structure on the property and match the design of the natural surroundings using wood paneling and windows to bring in light.

Each home will also pay tribute to the "office building with modern style, modest proportions and an eagerness to bring the joy of nature indoors."

The homes will be all electric and include LED lighting that can be dimmed, high-efficiency appliances and low volatile organic compounds in the paint, the statement reads.

Waldman and O'Brien were eventually selected as the buyers and began evaluating development options, Waldman said. They found the best one to be a complete renovation of the existing office building into a multi-tenant building with a potential rezoning of 3.4 acres of the property to become residential uses.

This isn't the first time Waldman and O'Brien have teamed up. Their first project was the Bankside House condominium in downtown Westport.

Waldman said, as with that project, they want to create "a very high quality and design centric commercial and residential housing development."

Waldman added they are proud of what they accomplished with that project and are grateful for the opportunity to restore a historic office complex, while building a sustainable and visually pleasing, small-scale residential community.

The prices have not yet been determined for the project because it is too early, he said. They are hoping to start construction, though, sometime in the late fall of this year.

The plan will have to go before the Planning and Zoning Commission, but the date has not yet been determined.

WESTPORT, CT — Norm Bloom, the veteran Connecticut shell fisherman and owner of Copps Island Oysters, said in a statement Friday that his company is fully cooperating with state and federal officials, following a recall of some of the oysters his company harvested last month in Westport.

The oysters in question, which were harvested from lot 207, were associated with a norovirus outbreak in Minnesota, but Bloom said in a statement to Patch that investigators have only "implicated a single bag of 100 oysters" as possibly being impacted.

"The Connecticut Department of Agriculture notified us that twelve individuals had become ill and were reporting symptoms consistent with norovirus," Bloom said. "These individuals all dined at a single restaurant in Minnesota. Eight of those twelve individuals had consumed oysters, and two of those were confirmed to have norovirus."

Bloom's company supplies shellfish to restaurants and retailers in dozens of states, and the Food and Drug Administration, which publicized the recall, said Connecticut, Florida, Georgia, Massachusetts, Maryland, Maine, New Jersey, Ohio, Rhode Island, South Carolina and Texas also received oysters from the company.

However, Bloom said that only the single restaurant in Minnesota has reported any illnesses.

Find out what's happening in Westportwith free, real-time updates from Patch.

"It is important to note that no other states or restaurants have reported illnesses from products sold from the implicated lot or neighboring lots," Bloom said. "At this time, this is isolated to one restaurant in Minnesota, and the cause of contamination is still under investigation."

According to the FDA, norovirus can cause nausea, vomiting and other ailments.

"Shellfish contaminated with norovirus can cause illness if eaten, and potentially severe illness in people with compromised immune systems," FDA officials wrote in a statement. "Food containing norovirus may look, smell, and taste normal. Consumers of these products who are experiencing symptoms of illness should contact their healthcare provider and report their symptoms to their local Health Department. Diarrhea, abdominal cramps, nausea, vomiting, and fever may be associated with gastroenteritis infections caused by this organism."

Bloom said that samples collected by the Connecticut Department of Agriculture from the growing area and the company's facility "indicated no evidence of bacteria or viruses present in 1) the growing area, 2) the shellfish tissue or 3) our facility."

The recall, he said, was issued "out of an abundance of caution" by the state Department of Agriculture for oysters from lot 207, which were harvested on Feb. 20.

He added that the recall was issued "despite no evidence of elevated levels of bacteria or viruses. No other shellfish are implicated in this recall."

"As always, we have complied with the recall and are cooperating with the authorities, as the safety of our products and the health of our customers and the public is of paramount importance to us," Bloom said. "We will keep you abreast of any new developments in this investigation."

Here are some suggestions on where to ring in the New Year.

Patch Staff

WESTPORT, CT — New Year's Eve is right around the corner in Westport, and Patch has you covered with some festive things to do in the area to ring in the New Year.

Heading to New York City to celebrate is always an option, or if you're Taylor Swift, heading to Kansas City, Missouri. But others might be more tempted to stay close to home as they celebrate the beginning of 2024.

Here is a look at some events happening in the Westport area:

In the United States, one of the most popular New Year’s Eve traditions is the dropping of the giant ball in New York City’s Times Square. Other U.S. cities have adopted iterations of the ball drop — the Chick Drop in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania and the giant Potato Drop in Boise, Idaho, for example.

The end of one year and beginning of another is often celebrated with the singing of “Auld Lang Syne,” a Scottish folk song whose title roughly translates to “days gone by,” according to Encyclopedia Britannica and History.com.

Find out what's happening in Westportwith free, real-time updates from Patch.

The history of New Year’s resolutions dates back 8,000 years to ancient Babylonians, who would make promises to return borrowed objects and pay outstanding debts at the beginning of the new year, in mid-March when they planted their crops.

According to legend, if they kept their word, pagan gods would grant them favor in the coming year. If they broke the promise, they would fall out of God’s favor, according to a history of New Year’s resolutions compiled by North Hampton Community College New Center in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania.

Many secular New Year’s resolutions focus on imagining new, improved versions of ourselves.

The failure rate of New Year’s resolutions is about 80 percent, according to U.S. News & World Report. There are myriad reasons, but a big one is they’re made out of remorse — for gaining weight, for example — and aren’t accompanied by a shift in attitude and a plan to meet the stress and discomfort of changing a habit or condition.