Officials Send Out Crib Tent Recall Alert

The recall is nationwide.

Thousands of crib tents sold by several major retailers are being recalled due to a "serious safety risk," state and federal officials said on Thursday. The state Department of Consumer Protection is alerting consumers about a nationwide voluntary recall announced by The U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission and five major retailers. Refunds will be made available to consumers who have purchased any of the recalled crib tents or play yard tents made by Tots in Mind, Inc., officials said. According to CPSC, infants and toddlers are at risk of serious injury or death due to strangulation and entrapment by the products, and agency officials are urging parents and caregivers to stop using these crib tents and play yard tents immediately. Do …

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Readers' Choice Poll: The Best Place for Outdoor Dining

Vote in the poll!

So the nominations are in. And we now have several choices when it comes to local outdoor dining. Two of the nominees are on opposite ends of Route 30 and one is already a Readers' Choice winner for best Mother's Day brunch. Another is slightly over the Ellington line. There is another more personal nomination. Please take the time to vote. The ballot is below. You can vote until Friday at 9 a.m. On Saturday, we announce the winner. For a review of the Readers' Choice rules, click here. This review is all about you—your ideas, your feedback and your voice, so we hope you will chime in and check back. Need help finding the particulars of that restaurant? Check out the Vernon Patch Directory.

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Property Transfers

Transaction Ironed Out for Maiden Property

The latest real estate transactions.

Here are the latest property transfers recorded in the town clerk's office: • Sold, by Nuston Archambault, property at 3 Robert Rd., to Jacqueline and Shawn Lynch, $139,900, recorded May 10. • Sold, by David Galley, property at 25 Maiden Lane, to an undesignated recipient represented by Mark R, Spalding, $45,000, recorded May 9. • Sold, by Catherine Klebart, property at 80 Country Lane, Unit 38, to Sherry Vallee, $128,000, recorded May 8. • Sold, by Thomas Baker property 83 Grand Ave., to Imarat Management LLC, $79,400, recorded May 8. • Sold, by Townhouse III Condominium Assoc. Inc., property at 85 Old Town Rd., Unit 3, ro Arsalan Artaf. $24,500, recorded May 8. • Sold, by Mary Katherine Waltenius, property at 54 Franklin St., to Joan …

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Rockville Shopping Plaza Heading to Auction

The attempt to sell it over the winter was not successful.

A huge shopping plaza in the heart of Downtown Rockville is heading to the auction block. The national brokerage firm of Marcus & Millichap, in a memo to town economic development officials on Thursday, said that the owners of 33-43 West Main St. will now entertain bids on both buildings June 7 after unsuccessfully trying to sell the front building over the winter. The front building measures 23,389 square feet and the total of the two is 67,000 square feet. The property consists of 1.51 acres that sit across an intersection from Rockville General Hospital. The building was constructed in 1951 and renovated in 2006, according to the listing. The list price was $1.85 million. Current commercial tenants are Beacon Prescriptions, Antonio's …

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Connecticut Home Sales up 5 Percent in First Quarter

The increase in the number of single-family home sales in the state breaks a nearly two-year slump, though median home prices continue to slide, new data shows.

  Sales of single-family homes in the state increased 5 percent, to 4,157, in the first quarter of 2012. The sales hike is outlined today by the Warren Group, a Massachusetts firm that tracks real estate trends and statistics and publishes the Commercial Record. The sales numbers are up from the 3,950 single-family homes that sold in the first quarter of 2011. While it marks the first time since the second quarter of 2010 that home sales posted an increase, the Warren Group report also states that median home prices in the state continued to decline during the same period, sliding downward by 6.5 percent.

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Readers' Choice: The Best Local Staycation

What do you do locally when there is time off but no travel?

This week's Readers' Choice topic - a local staycation. So what do you do with that time off, but no desire to travel? Is it hiking or biking the Rails to Trails system? Or is it hiking the Hockanum trail system? Is it relaxing on the beach at Valley Falls? How about living the history of the New England Civil War Museum? A few laps at Ron-a-Roll? Taking the Kids to Dart Hill park or any of the local playscapes? Do you invest in a pool or hot tub? Give us your staycation nominations over the next two days. Each week in Readers’ Choice, we ask all of you for help in highlighting the best of Vernon. Here’s how it works. • We'll ask a question about your favorites. • We invite you to post your nominations in the comments below. • We hope you'…

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Great Cinco de Mayo Recipes (Video)

Margarita? Check. Guacamole? Check. Watch and learn.

  Cinco de Mayo celebrates the Mexican army’s victory at the Battle of Puebla on May 5, 1862. In the U.S., the holiday has become a reason to celebrate the food and culture of Mexico. Patch went to Margarita's in Mystic to get recipes for great guacamole and amazing margaritas. LA CHICA MARGARITA Here’s what you’ll need: Here’s what to do: Chill martini or margarita glass. Place salt on a flat plate. Wet rim with lime wheel, turn glass upside down and touch rim with the salt. Fill a cocktail shaker with ice. Use a shaker that has a strainer. Add liquid ingredients; adding the agave nectar last. Shake very well. Pour over ice or up. GUACAMOLE Here’s what you’ll need: Here’s what to do: Remove stem from avocados. Cut in half with knife. …

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Hey Mom, Guess You're Going to Beni's

Beni's wins the title of best place for Mothers Day brunch.

This week's Readers' Choice category is best place for Mothers Day brunch and the Vernon Patch readership picked Beni's on Hartford Turnpike near the intersection of Reservoir Road as the top choice. A total of 34 voted were cast in the Readers' Choice poll. Here are the results. • Beni's - 12. • Angellino's - 9. • Rein's Deli - 7. • Vernon Super Buffet - 6. For a review of the Readers' Choice rules, click here. The Readers' Choice polls are all about you—your ideas, your feedback and your voice, so we hope you keep participating. Need help finding the particulars of that restaurant? Check out the Vernon Patch Directory.

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New Company No. 10 Opens in Vernon

The Ribbon has been cut for Nurse Alarm Systems.

Mayor George Apel recently cut the ceremonial ribbon to officially welcome Nurse Alarm Systems on Naek Road to town. It marked the 10th new business to open in Vernon with such a ceremony since the winter. Apel said Nurse Alarm systems is a small assembly company that markets a unique product - an alarm placed in a pillow or bed that works off pressure. When a patient climbs or falls out of bed, it sounds an alert, he said. Let Patch save you time. Get great local stories like this delivered right to your inbox or smartphone every day with our free newsletter. Simple, fast sign-up here. The company has six employees and chose Vernon because it is centrally located between offices on the Connecticut shoreline and Massachusetts, the mayor …

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