Fairfield Morning Briefing: Thursday, Feb. 23, 2012

Today is Thursday, Feb. 23, 2012. On this day in 1945, U.S. Marines raise the U.S. flag on the crest of Mt. Suribachi, the highest peak on Iwo Jima.

Famous birthdays include George Frederic Handel – 1685; W.E.B. DuBois– 1868; Aziz Ansari – 1983; Dakota Fanning – 1994.

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HEADLINES

• Fairfield School Board Requests $2M For Capital Projects
• Letter: Don’t Close Black Rock Nursery School
• Report: Tenured Teachers Rarely Let Go
• Vegan Pumpkin Bread (blog post by Kaitlin Crean)
• Ask Dr. Wan: “What breed of dog should we get?” (blog post by Michele Wan)
• Robeks Juice of Fairfield Supports SpinOdyssey 2012 (announcement)
• The Other Side of Condo Living (announcement)
• Lost Dog Alert: Bring Ozzy Home (announcement)
• Bring Andy Home (announcement)

EVENTS & REMINDERS

• Fun Food Drive: 8 a.m., CardSmart. “We will have a collection box in the store to accept donations of 'FUN FOODS' -- individual-sized boxes of fruit snacks (i.e. raisins, apricots), pretzels, popcorn for the Pre-K students in Sister Theresa Tremblay's school on North Ave. in Bridgeport.”
• Bravo! A Century of Theatre in Fairfield County: 12 p.m., Fairfield Museum and History Center, $5. Come learn about Fairfield County’s theatrical history.
• February Break Film Fest: 2 p.m., Fairfield Woods Branch Library, free. Come watch “Mr. Popper’s Penguins.”
• Company of Thieves: 7 p.m., Fairfield Theatre Company, $17. “Company of Thieves is a Chicago-based rock band led by Genevieve Schatz, a small woman with a big voice -- like Fiona Apple gone indie rock.”
• Fairfield American Little League is now open for registration for the spring.

FAIRFIELD CINEMAS AT BULLARD SQUARE SHOWTIMES

• The Artist  - 1:20 p.m., 4:30 p.m., 7:20 p.m., (1 hr., 40 min.) – IMDb – Rotten Tomatoes - Trailer
• The Descendants – 12:50 p.m., 3:40 p.m., 6:30 p.m. (1 hr., 55 min.) – IMDb – Rotten Tomatoes – Trailer
• Extremely Loud & Incredibly Close – 1:15 p.m., 4:05 p.m., 6:55 p.m. (2 hrs., 9 min.) – IMDb – Rotten Tomatoes – Trailer
• The Grey – 1:05 p.m., 3:45 p.m., 6:40 p.m. (1 hr. 57 min.) – IMDb – Rotten Tomatoes – Trailer
• The Iron Lady – 1:30 p.m., 4:50 p.m., 7:25 p.m. (1 hr., 45 min.) – IMDb – Rotten Tomatoes - Trailer
• Joruney 2: The Mysterious Island – 12:40 p.m., (1 hr., 34 min.)
• Journey 2: The Mysterious Island 3D – 3 p.m., 5:20 p.m., 7:40 p.m., (1 hr., 34 min.) – IMDb – Rotten Tomatoes – Trailer
• The Secret World of Arrietty – 12:30 p.m., 2:50 p.m., 5:10 p.m., 7:30 p.m., 10 p.m. (1 hr. 34 min.) – IMDb – Rotten Tomatoes - Trailer
• The Vow – 1 p.m., 4:10 p.m., 7:10 p.m., (1 hr. 44 min.) – IMDB – Rotten Tomatoes - Trailer
• The Woman in Black – 1:40 p.m., 4 p.m., 7 p.m. (1 hr. 35 min.) – IMDb – Rotten Tomatoes - Trailer

GOVERNMENT MEETINGS

• Human Services Commission: 4 p.m., Sullivan Independence Hall (725 Old Post Road) second floor conference room (agenda)
• RTM Subcommittee – Public Health and Safety: 6:45 p.m., 140 Reef Road.
• Parking Authority: 7:30 p.m., Sullivan Independence Hall second floor conference room (agenda)

FORECAST as of 12 p.m. on Wednesday:

• Thursday: “A chance of rain before 9 a.m., then a slight chance of rain after 2pm. Mostly cloudy, with a high near 55. West wind between 9 and 15 mph. Chance of precipitation is 30 percent.”
• Thursday night: “Rain likely, mainly after midnight. Cloudy, with a low around 40. North wind between 5 and 7 mph. Chance of precipitation is 60 percent. New rainfall amounts of less than a tenth of an inch possible.”
• Hazardous Weather Outlook issued for Thursday night into Friday night: “A complex low pressure system will affect the region Thursday night into Friday night. There is a low-end potential for 50 to 60 mph wind gusts Friday afternoon into Friday evening in the wake of an associated strong cold frontal passage.”

INTERSTATE TRAFFIC CAMS

See also Fairfield Patch’s “Traffic & Gas Prices” page.

• Westport: northbound, south of Exit 19 – Maple Lane
• Fairfield: southbound, Exit 19 – Mill Hill Road
• Fairfield: northbound, Exit 21 – North Pine Creek Road
• Fairfield: northbound, Exit 22 – Fairfield Service Plaza
• Fairfield: northbound, Exit 22 – North Benson Road
• Fairfield: southbound, north of Exit 24 – Brentwood Avenue
• Bridgeport: northbound, Exit 26 – Wordin Avenue

TIDES & TIMES

• Low tide: 6:01 a.m.
• Sunrise: 6:37 a.m.
• High tide: 12:05 p.m.
• Sunset: 5:36 p.m.
• Low tide: 6:16 p.m.

Forecast obtained from the National Weather Service; tide information obtained from saltwatertides.com (calibrated to the closest selection to Fairfield, Bridgeport Harbor).