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Politics & Government

Week in Review: April 17-23

Board of Reps OKs extra funds for city's HR department, Odyssey of the Minds students need to raise $8K to reach championship and more from this week's top stories.

The Board of Representatives’ Fiscal Committee on April 21 nearly $240,000 in additional appropriations from various city departments to fund accounts that are running dry. But members scrutinized a request from Human Resources Director Emmet Hibson, who sought additional funding to pay for outside counsel.

Hibson came before the board to request a $39,600 appropriation that would cover legal fees paid to a consultant, Christopher Dellaselva, to help Human Resources with union contract negotiations that include 11 labor contracts. Hibson and Dellaselva apparently have a known relationship that predates their recent work together on several union contracts and some representatives expressed concern for how Hibson has run his department.

The clock is  for two Odyssey of the Mind (OM) teams from Stamford schools – Stark Elementary and the Rippfield team, which includes students from Rippowam and Scofield Middle Schools – qualified in the Connecticut state finals to put their creative performances to the test in the World Finals, which will be held Memorial Day weekend at the University of Maryland.

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But in order to get there, the OM teams and parent volunteers must raise almost $10,000 by then to send both teams to Maryland. To date, the OM teams have raised $2,000 toward their goal. 

On the Stamford sports scene, local tennis pro Charl van der Merwe at last week’s US Open Eastern Sectional Playoffs, given a chance to compete in the sport’s biggest tournament.

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Facing off against 14-year-old James Wasserman, Van der Merwe overcame the chilly conditions at the USTA National Tennis Center in Flushing, and a determined opponent to advance into the second round of the event with a 7-5, 6-3 victory. The winner of the qualifying tournament advances to a national event for the chance at a qualifying wild card into this year’s US Open.

Making the Stamford police blotter this past week was the  of a Stamford man who was walking at the intersection of Smith Street and Schuyler Avenue. Police said the man was robbed at gunpoint by an unknown black male April 21. Police did not release the age of the victim. 

Fearing for his life, the victim handed over his wallet, which contained an unspecified amount of money, police said. The suspect fled with the wallet and the victim did not sustain any physical injuries. After a thorough check of the neighborhood, police were unable to locate the suspect, who is described as being 5’6 and was wearing dark clothes and a knit cap. Anyone with information should contact Stamford Police Department’s Crimes Against Persons Unit at (203) 977-4417.

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