738 Main Street South
Woodbury, CT 06798
203.263.4868

IN THE NEWS:



Local English Teacher Bill Bless Plays Music By Night.
News-Times Staff
06/20/2008

When he was in his early 20s, Bill Bless thought he'd be able to make a living playing music. For a while, he actually did perform at restaurants, cafes and bars. After some time though, the business aspect of the music scene made him change his mind. So did the money.
"I realized music will always be a major part of my life," he said, "but I also realized I wanted to own a house and have enough money to pay for gasoline."

Now 44, Bless gets to have the best of both worlds. He's an English teacher by day and a musician by night. The New Fairfield High School teacher will perform with his equally music-inclined wife, Martha (she teaches English at Nonnewaug High School) on Friday, June 27, at a fundraiser in Woodbury.

The fundraiser ­-- the 9th Annual Ice Cream Social ­-- is at the New Morning Natural and Organic Store, at 738 Main St. South. Running from 4 p.m. -- 7 p.m., it's a benefit for Safe Haven, a center for victims of domestic violence.
Bless and his wife, who plan to release a new album next spring, will be joined by Nyack, N.Y.'s Kenny Kaufman on bass guitar. They're looking forward to the performance ­-- a 45-minute set.

Some "word of mouth" publicity led folks from New Morning to request that Bless and his wife perform, and that's how they get most of their gigs, he said.  New Morning asked them to play their indie-acoustic, folkish rock (that's a mouthful), and they were thrilled. "Music is always something we've done to enrich our lives and people we know. Whether it's a wedding or benefit of any kind, or simply to play, we enjoy doing that," he said.

Bill Bless writes the music while he and his wife work out the arrangements together. The two have been performing as a duo for 13 years. While teaching and music sometimes are separate, Bill Bless says he often shares his first love with his students -- he even jams with his students on occasion. He also plans on forming a songwriters' club/workshop for students next year.

Also performing at the fundraiser will be Celtic harpist Julie Shrake. A $5 donation is requested at the event. Aside from the music, visitors can make their own sundaes.

WHAT: Pomperaug Health Fair

WHEN: Wednesday, May 14, 2008

WHERE: Pomperaug High School, Southbury, CT

Julie Benedetto, New Morning’s Customer Care Representative and Katey Miles put in a long day at the health fair at Pomperaug High School sharing information about a naturally healthy lifestyle. Students flocked to their table to sample granola bars, natural sodas, and personal care items. New Morning has been attending each year since the Fair’s inception several years ago. Although attendance appeared a little light, according to Katey, students were as always, very interested in speaking about natural and organic. Many other local health care professionals and businesses also donated their time to help students learn about healthy options available to them in the area.


Republican-American

New days are coming for New Morning
By Chris Gardner
Saturday, March 29, 2008

WOODBURY -- John Pittari's next incarnation of New Morning Natural and Organic Foods looks like a giant Erector set, but by this time next year the store should be in full operation.
For two weeks, workers have been erecting and welding giant girders and supports into place above the foundation of the new $5 million store, which will open at 129 Main St. North sometime in the first quarter of 2009, Pittari said.
The larger location will give New Morning nearly triple the floor space it now has in a rented building in the Middle Quarter Mall on Main Street South.
"We know that we are underserving our market now," said Pittari, whose business continues to expand by double digits every year despite the sluggish economy. "I'm amazed that we continue to grow even though our physical space isn't."
New Morning opened in Hotchkissville in 1971 as a 20-member cooperative known as the New Morning Trading Co. Pittari began managing it in 1976, then bought and moved it to a storefront on Hollow Road in 1982. After outgrowing that space the store moved in 1995 to its present 4,000-square-foot location.
Pittari said the new building, on the site of a former bowling alley, indoor flea market and child care center, will accommodate New Morning for at least the next two decades. With 11,000 square feet of retail space, there will be expanded departments in all product categories, including cheese, seafood, poultry, meats and produce.
The food counter will have more seating and an expanded menu of prepared foods for eat-in or take-out, something Pittari's customers have requested.
"Our particular slant is regional, sustainable and organic whenever possible," he said.
He has even designed the building to be environmentally friendly, with "rain gardens" that will filter rain to the ground instead of having it flow off site.

FDA approves sale of meat and milk from cloned animals
Mitchell Clute  - 1/22/2008 4:04:16 PM Natural Foods Merchandiser

2007 Republican-American 
Work starts on expanded New Morning store
December 29, 2007

WOODBURY - Workers poured a foundation for a new 14,000 square foot home for New Morning Natural and Organic Foods on Friday.
The business, which is now in the Middle Quarter Mall on Main Street South, will open in a new $5 million building at 129 Main St. North sometime late in the new year or early in 2009. The store, expanding from 4,000 square feet, will feature a larger cafe, a larger prepared food section and a second floor for office space and classes.

The owner, John Pittari, said the new building was needed to alleviate the crush of customers in the current location, especially during the holiday season.

"There are times you couldn't move in the store," Pittari said. "I know there are other customers who would like to be in the store, and others who schedule times to come when we're not busy."

In addition, Pittari touted the new building's planned environmentally friendly features, including recycled material, a renewable energy generator and "rain gardens" to filter rain to the ground instead of allowing it to flow off site and carry pollutants from the parking lot.

In the late 1950s, 129 Main St. North served as a bowling alley, became an indoor flea market in the 1970s and an office building in the 1980s before turning into the Puddleducks child care center, which closed in 2004, according to Pittari.

An artist's rendering of the new, 14,000 square foot New Morning Natural & Organic Food store in Waterbury. Construction began on Friday  Pictures

2007 Republican-American

The Body is a Temple:
Health Food Store Owner Sounds Off.
By Laurel Tuohy

11/16/2007
Excerpted from:
The Litchfield County Times and Housatonic Publications

Owner John Pittari Jr. believes in buying local, consistent, high-quality products and having a highly educated staff. When wandering around the region’s largest natural food store, it is obvious the staff is well-informed and cares about the food they are stocking and selling. Two dairy workers can be overheard discussing why a supposedly non-sweetened yogurt seems to have a high number of sugar grams per serving and a cashier comments that one of the items that passes her scanner is her “absolute favorite.”

New Morning is in the process of building a larger facility on the same street, which should be done by late 2008 or early 2009. The new store will increase the shopping space from their currently respectable 4,000 square feet to a roomy 14,000 square feet and feature an expanded café, larger prepared food section and a second floor for office space and classes.

Mr. Pittari mentioned the relationship with customers as key to his store’s success. “Food retail is a close and intimate relationship,” he said of the interaction with customers, some of whom come to the store on a daily basis. “You can’t be out to make a quick dollar and not care what happens,” he added about pleasing the clients.
It’s this attitude that’s bred loyalty among fans of the store. “I’m always phenomenally impressed by how many of our customers travel from as far as Sherman or Lakeville to shop here regularly,” he said of his destination market.


New Morning Store's 'Green' Growth
By: Daniela Forte
10/11/2007
Published in the Business Section of the Litchfield County Times

Site work has begun for the new home of Woodbury's popular New Morning Natural and Organic store, and in creating a building to call his own, John Pittari Jr. is also endeavoring to make an eco-friendly statement and raise awareness about environmental issues.

Mr. Pittari began working on this project in January 2004 and the new store, located at 129 Main Street North, is expected to be completed next year.

According to Mr. Pittari, the new location-once the site of a bowling alley-lends itself to redevelopment, a process that he values above the development of raw land. And, he noted, his project is sensitive to the site by using the previous building's footprint. The new building will have a main floor of 10,000 square feet and a second floor with approximately 4,000 square feet.
 
"The building itself will be designed for our purposes, so we will have a full basement, which will make us much more able to carry out our mission," said Mr. Pittari. The New Morning Natural and Organic store opened in June 1971 on Route 47 in the Hotchkissville section of town and has relocated several times. It has been at its current Middle Quarter District location for more than 12 years.

After deciding that he needed to move a new and larger space, Mr. Pittari looked at properties from the Middle Quarter District toward North Woodbury. Suitable locations either had existing shopping centers or weren't feasible.

Once the store is open, Mr. Pittari said, "The efficiencies are ones of labor and scale. The store layout will be done more efficiently. We were able to give our departments the designed space [to make them] more efficient. Lines will be shorter and quicker ... . The quality of the products, being able to have enough of the proper storage conditions, that is a big factor for what we are doing."

According to Curtis Jones, president of Civil 1 Civil Engineers in Woodbury, the latest techniques and best management practices have been incorpated in the site planning to make the store and its surroundings an extension of the New Morning philosophy.
"A number of features are incorporated in the site plan to promote an eco-friendly concept, which mostly has to do with storm drainage and storm drainage run off. As areas get increasingly developed, the quantity and quality of the storm water runoff flows into the streams, lakes and rivers become important issues," said Mr. Jones.

The new site is on the edge of the 100-year flood plain of the Nonnewaug River, and the entire site is above an aquifer. "When you get a 100-year-flood, a rain storm so severe on the average you get it once every 100 years, then the river will come up significantly, and the edge of the 100-year flood plain is on the edges of the property, so that is like a prime environmental concern," he said.

Another consideration, he explained, is that when it rains, the water soaks into the ground and flows toward the center of Woodbury where there is an aquifer, or undeground water supply. Making sure New Morning's new presence keeps that aquifer clean is a priority. "As a matter of fact, the Woodbury Water Company has wells down river from us, so it is important we don't do anything that impairs the quality of the aquifer. If we can do anything to improve it, we will do that also," said Mr. Jones.

One decision made to protect groundwater quality involved foregoing paving in some areas in favor of "gravel paved areas" that promotes the movement of storm water into the ground to recharge the aquifer.
"In addition, ... the water from the paved areas will go into a series of rain gardens, specifically designed depressions in the ground where the water is collected. ... As you get more rain it will overflow to the next rain garden," said Mr. Jones, who explained that the soil types used for the rain gardens will actually clean the water.

As runoff goes from one rain garden to the next to increase the water quality, there is a long gentle swale known as a Bio-Swale that has nutrient and pollutant uptake within it to further mitigate storm water runoff and another large bio retention area. Mr. Pittari stated that the long gentle swale is planted with native New England meadow plants that do well in such an environment. "It's a multi-stage process where the storm water quality is mitigated every step of the way. It helps the aquifer, and everything is also in conformance with the 100-year flood plain to make sure everything works in balance here," said Mr. Jones.

Mr. Jones said that runoff from the roof will pass into an underground system behind the building that will also recharge the aquifer.
"These are all state-of-the art practices, there are very few building around that are incorporating these measures," said Mr. Jones.
In creating a new store, New Morning hopes to raise awareness about the low flows the Nonnewaug River have been experiencing. According to Mr. Pittari, it has everything to do with ground water and the status of the aquifer.  "It has so much to do with the fact that we have all these lawns and we have all these people drawing from the aquifer, so the water isn't staying in the ground. It is either being rushed into the river and down into the Long Island Sound, or it is being pumped out or evaporated through the irrigation," said Mr. Pittari. "Even here where we consider ourselves to be rich in water resources, the water is in danger; the aquatic life is in danger of dying from below-flow conditions," he said.

"Even more important than just this one site, there is a snowball effect here. If it raises people's awareness from this one site, maybe 10 people get the idea and then you have 10 buildings, and then as you move on through time, it's a step in the right direction," said Mr. Jones.  "The big thing is to serve as a model not only environmentally, but through raising people's awareness through eating the proper foods, supporting the local farmers, and I think that John's success over the years is a testament to the values of those issues," said Mr. Jones.

New Morning will also be purchasing a "load-sharing" generator that will be powered by biodiesel during peak store hours. At other times New Morning uses local and renewable energy purchased through Sterling Planet as it has done for a few years. New Morning will be participating in the state's co-generation program.

The total cost for the property was $1.35 million. Funding for the project was provided in a form of a bridge loan provided from Naugatuck Savings Bank. Financing will become a Small Business Association [SBA] structured loan for small businesses.  Approval for the funding of this project was given by the Connecticut Community Investment Corporation of New Haven, an agent in Connecticut for SBA. The architect for the project is Bennett Sullivan Associates of Southbury and the construction manager is Pediment Construction Inc., of Southbury.