By John H. Palmer

Spring renewal is in the air all around us. April showers this weekend should be giving way to what I have always thought was Fairfield County’s meteorological sweet spot: that one month around Mother’s Day and leading up to Memorial Day when the light is just right, we start to get that tinge of warmth, and the spring flowers pop up in unexpected places to greet those of us who enjoy the outdoors.

It’s also the time of year when the baby bunnies make their way onto the front lawn to munch on some weeds, a fact that is not lost on my Boston Terrier mix, Edgar Allan “Eddie” Von Halen Palmer. With ears the size of radar dishes that I am sure are communicating with some far-off civilization, he knows it’s prime time to go play hockey with the lawn creatures of spring.

With the divisions that we have been feeling on the national and global level, I’ve been comforted on a local level watching Westporters come out in full swing to garden, socialize, and rebuild. All through last week, hundreds of volunteers donated their time in cool and rainy weather to rebuild and revitalize the playground at Compo Beach, which has undergone several renovations since the Westport Rotary Club first built it in 1989.

Their purpose this time around? To make the playground more accessible for kids of all abilities, including Americans with Disabilities Act-compliant features like new sand-like ground material that allows easier wheelchair access, and a STEM play activity panel for kids who would rather not play physically but want to challenge their minds.

Flowers and buds and trees, oh my!

Gardens are aglow this time of year, and one needs to only drive around town to see the daffodils and tulips popping all around us. Trees are starting to grow buds, and for Arbor Day this past Friday, the Westport Tree Board marked the occasion with a tree sapling giveaway at Town Hall.

The Minute Man Road Race kicked off the spring season of running races yesterday to remind us all of how much we work most of us need to put in to get in shape for summer. (Every year, I tell myself I’m going to run the Boston Marathon, which was held on April 21. Every year, I realize my knees won’t have it.)

Even the property developers are going through their own cycles of renewal. A proposal to build indoor racquet sports facilities at the Fairfield County Hunt Club was put on hold until members of the Planning and Zoning Commission can tour the site. The Architectural Review Board finally gave the green light for a sign at the Delamar Hotel on Post Road East, which is slated to open in June.

Construction is springing up around town, too

Finally, developers for the proposed ‘Hamlet’ development in Saugatuck have gone back to the drawing board in a last-ditch effort to get Westport to approve the plan after neighbors, various town officials, and even the ARB this week voiced their disapproval on the plan as it stands, for concerns related to traffic, aesthetics, building density, and parking at the train station. Representatives for ROAN Ventures will be presenting their newly scaled plans at 6 p.m. tonight during a public hearing at the Town Hall main auditorium that is expected to draw quite a crowd.

Seeking to avoid a repeat of the April 7 “Zoombombing” incident that forced planners to cancel the first public hearing on the project, tonight’s hearing will be in-person only, meaning that the commission will not meet on Zoom, although it will be live streamed on the town’s municipal video channel. If you’re looking to get your voice heard, you’ll need to get to the meeting, as participants will only be allowed to speak in-person at the hearing.

I’ll be in the audience covering the hearing tonight, but first I gotta go find my dog.

John Palmer is editor of the Westport Journal, and has covered community news in Fairfield County and Massachusetts for over 30 years. He can be contacted at jpalmer@westportjournal.com.