The Rye City Council met yesterday night to vote on a six-month development moratorium, the most significant land-use decision the city has faced in years. Meanwhile, the Rye Garnets are one win away from a Section 1 title after Jamie Morris turned an 0-2 count into a three-run walk-off blast.

THIS WEEK

Buying time.

The Rye City Council holds a public hearing yesterday night on a proposed six-month moratorium on certain development applications, and it's the most consequential land-use vote the city has faced in years. The moratorium is designed to buy time for three major planning efforts underway simultaneously: a FEMA-funded flood resiliency code review, new design standards for the Central Business District, and a comprehensive plan update, the city's first since 1985. If passed, applications for affected projects in targeted areas would be paused for six months.

THE NUMBER

41

years since the City of Rye completed a comprehensive plan. The last one was written in 1985. May 27 moratorium hearing is the clearest sign yet that the city is serious about writing a new one before the next wave of development arrives.

LOCAL SPORTS

Rye Baseball Is in the Section Semifinals

The Rye Garnets are headed to the Section 1 Class AA Championship after Jamie Morris hit a three-run walk-off home run in the bottom of the seventh inning to beat Yorktown 4-3.** Facing an 0-2 count with two outs and two runners on, Morris launched the game-winner to center field. It was Rye's third consecutive postseason shutout-or-close performance — following Clayton McCarthy's complete-game shutout against Eastchester on May 19 and a Bubeck three-hit shutout against Horace Greeley on May 22. The Garnets need one win to claim the section crown.
Check ryeschools.org for the championship game date and location.

GREENWICH

Rain Didn't Stop the Party — Dave Matthews Played in It

Photo: Rodrigo Simas

The Greenwich Town Party turned 15 on Saturday at Roger Sherman Baldwin Park, and it rained through most of it. Nobody left. John Fogerty played with the energy of a man who invented rock and roll and wasn't done with it. Preservation Hall Jazz Band filled the late afternoon. Dave Matthews and Tim Reynolds closed the night in a steady downpour, no shelter, no delay, just an extended set in the wet. The Town Stage local lineup included the Kovac Brothers and Starpose, making its official debut.

A MESSAGE FROM ME :)

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GREENWICH

New Lebanon School Named a 2026 Connecticut Blue Ribbon

New Lebanon School in Greenwich was selected by the Connecticut State Department of Education as a 2026 Connecticut Blue Ribbon School — one of just six in the state — earning recognition in two categories at once: Exemplary High Performing and Exemplary Achievement Gap Closing.

State officials credited the school's principal with strong instructional leadership, combined with a staff culture of focused academic support and extensive arts programming. New Lebanon was built new in 2019 and has steadily built one of the strongest academic profiles in Greenwich Public Schools. The state will hold a recognition ceremony on June 9 in West Hartford.

Why it matters: closing achievement gaps at the elementary level is the work that compounds.

SOUND BITES

Port Chester — The Memorial Day parade was cancelled this year. The village held a memorial service instead of the traditional march, a departure from a decades-long tradition. The ceremony honored fallen veterans; the absence of the parade drew quiet disappointment from longtime residents.

Greenwich — The Jim Fixx Memorial Day 5K turned 62. Runners gathered in Greenwich on May 25 for the 62nd annual Jim Fixx Memorial Day races — named for the Greenwich-based author whose 1977 book made distance running a national movement. One of the oldest community footraces in Connecticut, and still going.

Harrison — May Planning Board meeting moved to June 8. Harrison's Planning Board session originally scheduled for May 26 was rescheduled to Monday, June 8 at 7pm. Items deferred from May will be taken up at that session.

Rye Brook — Crawford Park gets its Pride flag on June 2. The "Rainbow Crossing" will be unveiled at Crawford Park on Tuesday, June 2, followed by a Pride flag raising at the Crawford Mansion — kicking off a month of Pride events across the Town of Rye leading to the June 6 celebration.

TABLE TALK

Bambou: great food, easy parking and affordable.

The Mill on Pemberwick Road has a great restaurant setting, and Bambou has been anchoring it for more than two decades.

The concept is pan-Asian tapas, a wide-ranging menu that runs from sashimi-grade nigiri and specialty rolls to hot dishes like Pad Thai and tuna lettuce wraps. The Salmon Samba and Crab-Tuna rolls are the ones regulars order without looking at the menu. In warm weather, the outdoor patio overlooks the Byram River and its waterfall.

TripAdvisor puts it at #14 of 113 Greenwich restaurants with a 4.2 rating, but the regulars who've been coming for years are a better measure. Myself included, we always go there for a quick dinner or lunch, love the blue crab avocado and the Godzilla roll.

Worth knowing: 328 Pemberwick Rd, Greenwich (at The Mill).
Lunch Mon–Fri 11:30am–3pm; dinner nightly. Outdoor patio open in season. Reservations recommended on weekends: (203) 531-3322.

RESTAURANT QUICK HITS

Ora Westchester, Rye — A Italian steakhouse offering premium dry-aged steaks alongside house-made pastas and seasonal farm-to-table dishes. Private dining rooms available for events.
🗒️ I've not been there yet.

DeCicco & Sons, Greenwich — The grocery chain's first Connecticut location at 21 Glenville St. (former Stop & Shop site in the Glenville section) is still running job fairs every Wednesday and Friday, 10am–5pm.

The Saw Pit, Port Chester — Still showing "Coming Soon" at thesawpit.com. It's still one of the most interesting openings on the Sound Shore, whenever it arrives.

LOCAL EVENTS

Foodshed CSA — First Pickup of the 2026 Season
Where: North Greenwich Congregational Church, 606 Riversville Rd, Greenwich, CT
When: Tuesday, June 2, 8:00am–12:00pm
More info: thefoodshednetwork.org

A Night with David Lee Roth
Where: The Capitol Theatre, 149 Westchester Ave, Port Chester, NY
When: Wednesday, June 3, 8:00pm
More info: thecapitoltheatre.com

Chelsea Handler: The High and Mighty Tour
Where: The Capitol Theatre, 149 Westchester Ave, Port Chester, NY
When: Thursday, June 4, 8:00pm
More info: thecapitoltheatre.com

Ryan Bingham Live
Where: The Capitol Theatre, 149 Westchester Ave, Port Chester, NY
When: Friday, June 5, 8:00pm
More info: thecapitoltheatre.com

Town of Rye Pride Celebration (pRYEde)
Where: Rye Town Park, 95 Oakland Beach Ave, Rye, NY 10580
When: Saturday, June 6, 3:00pm
More info: pryede.org

NEIGHBORHOOD SPOTLIGHT

Crawford Park Has One Good Loud Day a Year, That's This Saturday

Most people know Crawford Park as a place you drive past on North Ridge Street, a meadow, some ball fields, a 19th-century mansion.

This Saturday, May 30, the Town of Rye's annual ECOFest takes over Crawford Park for the best kind of noise: 11am to 4pm, free, families welcome, no agenda beyond spending time outdoors with people who care about the local environment. This year's lineup of organizations is the most expansive yet, more than a dozen groups including Save the Sound, Bartlett Tree, the Clay Art Center, Port Chester Beautification Commission, Port Chester Sustainability Committee, Poningo Earthcare, Westchester County DPW, and Bird Homestead & Meeting House. New this year: an Upcycled Costume Contest alongside the usual nature hikes, eco-arts and crafts, and green vendor booths.

Crawford Park is 113 acres of meadow and woodland sitting in the middle of one of the most densely developed stretches of the Sound Shore. It straddles the Rye Brook–Port Chester line, is open year-round.

MARKET WATCH

A 1930 Riverside Estate with a Movie Theater, a Dock, and a $100M Ask

The most expensive residential listing in Connecticut right now. Built in 1930, Cedar Cliff was named by the shoemaker who first owned it. Kathie Lee and Frank Gifford purchased it in 1994 for $7.8 million and spent decades transforming it — adding a professional recording studio, a three-story east wing with a 20-seat movie theater, a wine cellar, and a primary suite with panoramic views. The property sits on nearly three acres of Long Island Sound waterfront in the Riverside section of Greenwich, complete with a pool, dock, and tennis court. It's listed by Leslie McElwreath of Sotheby's International Realty.

8 bed / 9 full bath + 5 half bath • 13,163 sq ft • ~2.97 acres • Waterfront
View listing

🤝 Are you a real estate agent or agency looking to showcase your listing here? Reply to this email.

THE POLL

What does "home" mean to you on the Sound Shore?

🏘️ The town itself — I identify with my specific community, not the broader area
🌊 The waterfront — the Sound, the rivers, the beaches are what make this place
🏫 The schools — that's what brought me here and what keeps me here
🚂 The commute access — proximity to the city is the whole point
🌳 The quieter pace — I moved here to step back from something

Last week’s poll results: What matters most when you choose a local restaurant?
🍽️ The food — 70%
📱 Reputation — 20%
💰 Value — 10%

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