Thursday, February 6, 2020
www.berlincitizen.com
Volume 22, Number 49
CONNECTICUT GROWS
Nursery operation gets P&Z approval By Devin Leith-Yessian The Citizen
State Commissioner of Education Miguel Cardona tries on a virtual reality headset at Berlin High School on Tuesday, Jan. 28. Cardona met with students to hear about the issues they face and toured classrooms at BHS and Griswold Elementary School. Photos by Devin Leith-Yessian, The Citizen
State education commissioner, students discuss pressing issues By Devin Leith-Yessian The Citizen
Students asked state Education Commissioner Miguel Cardona about his goals to improve their postgraduate employment prospects and close the achievement gap during a tour of Berlin High School. Cardona’s Tuesday, Jan. 28 tour of Berlin schools started at the high school and ended at Griswold Elementary School.
Cardona told around a dozen students in the high school’s library that hearing their experiences and solutions is important when considering the policies he works on in Hartford. Before being selected to run the state Department of Education in August, Cardona served as Meriden’s assistant superintendent for teaching and learning. Drawing on her experience as a tutor, one of the students told Cardona she be-
Christopher H. Porter
lieves efforts to address the achievement gap — the disparate results for students of color or those from districts with high poverty rates — should start at the elementary level. “If we make sure that every child in elementary school has the same resources ... then when they enter middle school and high school, when things are more standardized, there won’t be as See Cardona, A10
Flowers may soon be returning to the former Kensington Garden Center on the Chamberlain Highway as two locals plan to reopen under the name Connecticut Grows. “The biggest thing we want to do is beautify the area,” said Dan Laviana, who is partnering with Jon Veneziano, both of Berlin, to purchase and reopen the nursery. Veneziano will be handling the business side of the operation, while Laviana puts his green thumb to use. The last major hurdle for reopening — gaining the approval of the Planning and Zoning Commission to re-establish the retail garden center — was cleared on Jan. 23. Before being green-lighted, Laviana told the members that they plan to operate as a wholesale distributor, opening the garden center mainly during the spring and summer.
"A lot of the independent garden centers and retail centers that you see, not just only in Berlin ... have closed down because you can't sustain a garden center with these big boxstore chains. So that's the big reason why we want to bring a wholesale aspect with that," he said. Kensington Garden Center closed in 2018 after operating at 398 Chamberlain Highway for around five years. The business had run into some difficulties with the town issuing a cease and desist order around 2015 for operating a gift shop. However, the Planning and Zoning Commission ultimately allowed them to continue running the shop. During last month’s P&Z meeting, Acting Town Planner Maureen Giusti said the operation Connecticut Grows is planning appears to comply with the town’s present land use regulations. See Nursery, A6
In Memory of
Christopher Hale Porter In recognition and honor of his many years of service and support to the Berlin Community
1950 – 2020
Erickson-Hansen Funeral Home of Berlin
R226733
Peter Hansen – Nancy Hansen - Craig Hansen