Fairfield County Business Journal 122319

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PRINT JOURNALISM: BECAUSE IT STILL MATTERS. DECEMBER 23, 2019 VOL. 55, No. 51

westfaironline.com

Bill Webb, founder of Newtown’s A-Listers Cigar Club, enjoying a smoke.

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FATAL TOLL

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RECESSION-PROOF BUSINESS

READY FOR A FIGHT

Smoking with the A-Listers

INSIDE

NEWTOWNER BRINGS THE HEAT WITH ONLINE CIGAR VENTURE BY KEVIN ZIMMERMAN kzimmerman@westfairinc.com

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igar aficionados may enjoy lighting up a stick at the end of a long day. Bill Webb of Newtown is taking that idea further by firing up an online-only cigar store in the midst of a long career. “I’ve been smoking cigars for a number of

years,” Webb said, “and in August of 2018 I was looking for something to do differently, job-wise and career-wise.” That career has included being president of independent management consulting firm Pegasys for 23 years — Pegasys owns the new venture, A-Listers Cigar Club — as well as stints in the aerospace industry via Sikorsky

Aircraft in Stratford and Butler Aerospace & Defense in Shelton. Initially Webb conceived of A-Listers as both an online entity and a physical, destination cigar lounge, a la Big Buddha in Newtown, Havana on 25 in Monroe and Euphoria in Fairfield. “The lounge was the first thing I pursued,” he recalled. “I wanted to see if I could do it by myself, without partners, but it ultimately didn’t pan out.” Instead, Webb said, he had a eureka moment in October of last year. “It hit me that, Geez, I could just do cigars online as an alternative thing.” » CIGAR

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NEW YORK STATE SEN. HARCKHAM PROPOSES TOLLS TARGETING CONNECTICUT DRIVERS BY KEVIN ZIMMERMAN kzimmerman@westfairinc.com

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obody wants a toll war,” New York state Sen. Peter Harckham said at a press conference announcing a plan to install tolls targeted at Connecticut drivers. Harckham, whose 40th District includes northern Westchester County as well as parts of Putnam and Dutchess counties, used the Dec. 16 event to lay out a plan that would impose tolls along the New York/ Connecticut border with the revenue going toward infrastructure repairs. Harckham’s plan would install gantries on six state

and county roads that cross the state line in the towns of Pound Ridge, Lewisboro and North Salem. He said he would also support placing a toll on the Hutchinson River Parkway just before it becomes the Merritt Parkway upon entering Connecticut. License plate readers would charge only out-ofstate drivers, allowing New York residents to continue driving on those roads free of charge. “We don’t want it to come to this, but if so, I am willing to and prepared to submit legislation that would put tolls all along the Connecticut border so that we can pay for infrastruc» FIGHT

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