New leadership gets off on the right foot

While it would be easy for members of Winsted’s new Democratic leadership to rub Republicans’ faces in the results of the Nov. 8 election, party members are stepping off on the right foot, announcing that input from all parties will be encouraged in the new term and that it is time to get to work right now.Mayor Maryann Welcome showed immediate leadership Tuesday night, attending an Economic Development Committee meeting at Town Hall and expressing a keen interest in getting the ball rolling on business stimulation programs. Welcome was joined by Town Manager Dale Martin at the meeting, who announced the town’s plans to meet with businesses that have been underrepresented by groups like the nonprofit Friends of Main Street group.The decision to reach out to a broader community is a bold step in the right direction for both the mayor and the town manager, who have said that they are willing to listen to all ideas in the process of helping Winsted develop its downtown and secure its economic future. From industrial and retail businesses to mom-and-pop shops — and, we dare say, newspapers — town leaders have a wide range of information available to them if they simply ask for it. Mayor Welcome is doing that and showing the business community that she is interested in hearing from everyone.Coming off two years of bickering on the Board of Selectmen, it will be nice to see some quick decision-making happening during the next two years under a more unified board. It will also be interesting to see if the new Republican minority decides to work with the majority or tries to throw monkey wrenches into the system. Town residents will get their first look at the dynamics of the board when selectmen hold their first regular meeting on Monday, Nov. 21.In the meantime, Winsted residents are encouraged to have a happy and healthy Thanksgiving and to shop locally when possible for the upcoming holiday season.

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Tuning up two passions under one roof

The Webb Family in the workshop. From left: Phyllis, Dale, Ben and Josh Webb, and project manager Hannah Schiffer.

Natalia Zukerman

Magic Fluke Ukulele Shop and True Wheels Bicycle Shop are not only under the same roof in a beautiful solar powered building on Route 7 in Sheffield, but they are also both run by the Webb family, telling a tale of familial passion, innovation and a steadfast commitment to sustainability.

In the late ‘90s, Dale Webb was working in engineering and product design at a corporate job. “I took up instrument manufacturing as a fun challenge,” said Dale. After an exhibit at The National Association of Music Merchants in Anaheim, California, in 1999, The Magic Fluke company was born. “We were casting finger boards and gluing these things together in our basement in New Hartford and it just took off,” Dale explained. “It was really a wild ride, it kind of had a life of its own.”

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Robert Cray’s soulful blues coming to Infinity Hall

Robert Cray

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Blues legend Robert Cray will be bringing his stinging, funky guitar and soulful singing to Infinity Hall Norfolk on Friday, March 29.

A five-time Grammy winner, Cray has been inducted into the Blues Hall of Fame and earned The Americana Music Awards Lifetime Achievement for Performance. He has played with blues and rock icons including Albert Collins, Muddy Waters, John Lee Hooker, The Rolling Stones, Tina Turner, Eric Clapton and many more.

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