Prst. Std. U.S. Postage Paid Naugatuck, CT #27
“Without labor nothing prospers.” ~ Sophocles
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Bee Intelligencer Informing the towns of Middlebury, Southbury, Woodbury, Naugatuck, Oxford and Watertown A FREE COMMUNITY NEWSPAPER
Volume VIII, No. 36
Friday, August 31, 2012
Nardelli’s going strong at 90 By MARJORIE NEEDHAM Nardelli’s Grinder Shoppe is 90 and still going strong. In fact, it is expanding through franchises and now has seven locations, two in Waterbury and one each in Naugatuck, Southbury, Oxford, Middletown and Danbury. The business that started as a family business 90 years ago continues as a family business today. Siblings Tony, Diana and Marco run the business with their mother, Rina. Their family orientation can be seen in the Nardelli’s approach to Sundays. “We ask stores to close Sundays for their families,” Marco said. There a few exceptions. For example, the stores are open Super Bowl Sunday. The business had its beginnings with three brothers who immigrated to the U.S. from Italy in 1914. In a classic tale of success achieved through hard work, Joseph, Anthony and Fred Nardelli worked long hours and sent money home to help their parents. In 1920, when the grocery store where they worked was put up for sale, they bought what became Nardelli’s Grocery Store on South Main Street in Waterbury. In 1922, the brothers, who would travel to New York City to purchase fresh fruits and vegetables for their store, saw grinders were selling well there. They began to sell them out of their Waterbury store, and as word of their grinders spread, people flocked to the grocery store to buy them. Sometimes the line would stretch down South Main Street. And so Nardelli’s Grinder Shoppe was born. After the passing
of the founders, the business has continued to be run by family members. For a long time, there were only the two company stores, one at 87 Maple Street in Naugatuck and one at 540 Plank Road in Waterbury. In 2007, the family decided to offer franchises. The first one to open was the store at 515 Watertown Ave. in Waterbury. Since that time, franchise stores have opened in Union Square Plaza in Southbury, at 84 Oxford Road in Oxford and in Danbury and Middletown. Where will the next Nardelli’s open? All the siblings will say is, “Every town is a possibility.” When the Connecticut market is saturated, the siblings say they expect franchises will open in Massachusetts and New York. That may happen in about five years. Diana said it’s very important the quality is the same at all locations. Everyone is trained the same at every location, and she and her brothers visit every franchise twice a week to see how they are operating. The training for franchisees is intended to take 40 hours, but Marco said, “We go over and beyond with the training. Most franchisees get 10 times that amount of training.” All are given a threeinch-thick notebook that outlines every aspect of operating a Nardelli’s, all the way from food preparation to how to properly clean the restaurant. Asked how the economy was affecting interest in franchises, Marco said it has caused people to be more interested in having a franchise. “There’s a lot of uncer-
tainty in the corporate world, so people are looking for the security of being in business for themselves,” he said. As for the economy’s effect on sales in the stores, Diana said, “It affects businesses more on the high end. People can still afford a sandwich.” She said the downturn in the economy also has meant more people are looking for jobs, so staffing has become easier. However, a lot of their staff stay with them for years. Marco said Nardelli’s aims to provide great quality food and a wide variety of it. It also offers food for the health conscious and gluten-free soups and sweets. The store plans to increase its glutenfree offerings. Tony said the team is constantly tweaking the menu, which offers seasonal items such as cranberry walnut salad in the fall. “We listen to the customers and what they are looking for,” Marco said. The star of the menu is, of course, the grinders that made Nardelli’s famous. Something like 20 types of cold grinders and 20 types of hot grinders are on the menu. Also on the menu are salads, including green salads and pasta salads such as tortellini and macaroni. Crab, tuna and chicken salad are on the menu, too. And then there are hot dishes such as stuffed Portobello mushrooms, lasagna and hot soups. Desserts include cheesecake burritos, yogurt parfait and rice pudding. Learn more about Nardelli’s Grinder Shoppes at www.nardellis. Left to right, Tony, Diana and Marco Nardelli, all of Middlebury, stand outside the Nardelli’s com. Franchise information is un- Grinder Shop in Naugatuck. The siblings, along with their mother, Rina, operate the family busider “Franchise Opportunities.” ness started 90 years ago. (Marjorie Needham photo)
EIDC favors tax abatement By TERRENCE S. MCAULIFFE The Middlebury Economic and Industrial Development Commission (EIDC) at its Aug. 27 special meeting evaluated the Winchester Electronics tax incentive program application. Members agreed to recommend its approval to the Board of Selectmen (BoS) once an assessment report has been received from Middlebury Tax Assessor Daniel J. Kenny. Attendees at the meeting included co-chairmen Michael Kenausis and Gerry Matthews; members Mark Petrucci, Armondo Paolino, and Frank Mirovsky; First Selectman Edward B. St. John; and Kenny. Kenausis first confirmed all had read the application and then walked through the sections to gather comments on eligibility for the program. Winchester Electronics is a Wallingford, Conn., company considering relocating its 59 Research and Development (R&D) employees to the former Timex World Headquarters at 199 Park Road. A five-year lease was proposed with options for lease renewals. Kenausis confirmed the use would be a mixture of manufacturing and office work involving about $500,000 of building fit-up and relocation of about $721,000 of equipment from Wallingford. He said the proportion of manufacturing to office would affect the incentive because all real property improvements are eligible for the incentive, but personal property is eligi-
Conservation Commission meets after hiatus By TERRENCE S. MCAULIFFE
ble only if it is involved with manufacturing. Kenny said he had received an asset list from the company, but would need to go to Wallingford for the assessor’s report showing the depreciation schedule used for taxation. Kenausis said the likely abatement period would be four years based on real property improvements between $500,000 and $3,000,000. Members agreed the business more than met the general requirements necessary for eligibility. If the tax abatements are approved, Matthews said they wouldn’t take effect until October 2013. St. John said this is the first complete tax abatement application, and it will serve as a precedent for the future. He asked commissioners to prepare the recommendation in sufficient time for BoS review and to attend the selectmen’s meetings and the required town meeting so that EIDC support is evident and all questions are well answered. St. John said he would get a moderator for the town meeting and asked the EIDC to supply a spokesperson to explain the application and its benefits. Kenausis said the approval would likely be a simple letter to the BoS from the commission. Either a special EIDC meeting or the next regular meeting would allow members to review Kenny’s assessment report and vote to send the recommendation to the BoS. The next regular EIDC meeting will be Tuesday, Sept. 25, at 6:30 p.m. in the Town Hall conference room.
The Middlebury Conservation Commission (CC) met Monday night for the first time since May. It was unable to meet in June or July because it lacked the required quorum. Seven residents serve on the commission. Monday night, in less than an hour, it approved drainage control on White Deer Rock Road and construction activity for the Middlebury Public Library expansion. It also extended permits for Benson Woods and accepted new applications for drainage, dock repairs and a cottage footprint modification on West Lake Road; a driveway on Sandy Beach Road; drainage repairs on White Deer Rock Road and a wetlands crossing on Briarwood Terrace. A trench and stone wall to control water runoff at 375 White Deer Rock Road was unanimously approved. Owner Joseph Dinova said recent road construction sent rainwater into his septic area that needed to be diverted. Plans for a drainage system to control parking lot rainwater at Whittemore Crossing were withdrawn. Attorney Michael McVerry, representing owner Dr. Dean Yimoyines, said the drainage system was related to a planned 420-squarefoot addition that was not being built as planned. He said a new application could be expected in the future. Permits for wetlands construction at Benson Woods were renewed until Aug. 27, 2016. Attorney Jennifer Yoxall of Carmody & Torrance told commissioners sales in the slow economy had delayed work on the project.
A wetlands permit for the Town of Middlebury to construct a 3,800-squarefoot addition to the existing 16,300square-foot library was unanimously approved with the condition that silt fences and other wetlands protection be added to the construction plan. Dale Cutler, partner in Kenyon & Cutler Architects of Avon, told commissioners a 1,600-square-foot addition to the south and a 2,200-square-foot addition to the north would have little impact on the existing storm water systems and management. Plans for three storm drains to control water runoff at West Lake Road were unanimously accepted with the condition the Board of Selectmen review driveway width requirements and have them included in the construction details. Town Engineer John Calabrese said conversion of summer cottages to year-round use might require widening driveways to 22 feet from 15 to allow for fire access and turnarounds. John J. Butkus, president of the West Shore Homeowner Association, told commissioners he was coordinating the work with the Town of Woodbury because runoff would ultimately enter Lake Quassapaug in that town. An application by Dana Osborn to install an asphalt driveway at 24 Sandy Beach Road was unanimously accepted on the condition he supply detailed construction plans for review by Calabrese. Osborn told commissioners a recently installed non-impervious driveway had washed out twice in heavy storms, and commissioners told him his plans needed to deal with control of the runoff.
Completed repairs to a collapsed 15-inch corrugated drainage pipe at White Deer Rock Road were unanimously accepted retroactively. Wetlands Enforcement Officer Deborah Seavey told commissioners she authorized the emergency repairs, and Calabrese explained that two 10-inch pipes were installed as replacements by Middlebury Public Works to allow for more earth cover. An application by Joseph L. Molder of 19 West Lake Road to modify the footprint of a demolished cottage on lot 10 was accepted on the condition detailed construction plans would clearly show the previously approved building and the proposed modification. Attorney Curtis Titus said Molder wanted to rebuild the cottage as a home for his son and expand its footprint to 1,038 square feet from 796 square feet. A wetlands crossing application by Rolando Trocchi to allow his landlocked lot to connect to Briarwood Terrace was unanimously accepted. Attorney Michael McVerry, representing Trocchi, said access rights for the lot were currently in litigation after a variance was denied by the Zoning Board of Appeals. Repair plans for a dock owned by John Butkus at 3 West Lake Road were unanimously accepted. Butkus told commissioners the dock was rotted, and he was planning to rebuild with composite materials and no other changes. The next regular CC meeting will be Tuesday, Sept. 25, at 7:30 p.m. at Shepardson Community Center.
Book Review.....................2 Adoptable Pets..................8 Classifieds.........................7 Community Calendar.........2 Computer Tip....................8 Fire Log.............................2 Frugal Mummy..................5
In Brief..............................4 Library Happenings............2 Nuggets for Life................6 Obituaries.........................5 Parks & Rec.......................6 Region 15 Calendar..........3 Senior Center News...........3
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MONday
Sept. 3
Labor Day Holiday
All schools and town offices, library, senior center and transfer station are closed.
Irish dancers to compete at Quassy.
Page 8
friday
Sept. 7
Walk for Substance Abuse Prevention, Recovery and Loss When: What: Where:
6:30 to 7:30 p.m. (Rain date Saturday, Sept. 8) Walk sponsored by the Woodbury-Bethlehem Parent Connection. Call 203-266-0487 for more information. Meet in Hollow Park in Woodbury; walk to Mitchell School and back. Bring a flashlight.
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Mail: P.O. Box 10, Middlebury, CT 06762 Published weekly by The Middlebury Bee Intelligencer Society, LLC - 2030 Straits Turnpike, Middlebury, CT 06762 - Copyright 2012