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Politics & Government

CT Highway Named After Late Middletown Dems Chairman David Lavine

The late Middletown Democratic Town Committee Chairman David Lavine was honored by his former constituents in Connecticut at a ceremony attended by his family.

DURHAM, CT—Connecticut State Rep. Matt Lesser, Durham First Selectman Laura Francis and other public officials held a ceremony last Friday officially renaming Route 79 in Durham the  Memorial Highway, after the late Durham state Representative, who was living in Middletown, RI at the time of his passing.

About two-dozen residents gathered on the town green in unusually gorgeous weather in front of town hall Friday to share their memories of Lavine and unveil a replica of the new sign designating Route 79 as David Lavine Memorial Highway.

Lesser recalled receiving a congratulatory phone call when he was elected. The caller asked if he had met Lavine. Lesser, embarrassed, said he had not, and made a point to find Lavine. 

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"I went for coffee and we ended up talking for three, four hours," said Lesser. "When David passed away, we wanted to find a fitting way to honor him. His lasting legacy I hear is his love for life. He cared deeply about travel, food, chess, arguing ... the best asset Durham has to offer is quality of life, and hopefully people will remember David's love for life as they drive down the highway."

Lesser authored legislation this year which designates the portion of Route 79 in Durham from the Killingworth-Durham town line to its end at the intersection of Route 17 the David Lavine Memorial Highway.

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From Middletown, RI, Lavine's wife, , daughter, Rebecca, and grandson, Ari, were in attendance along with Francis, selectman John Szewczyk and selectman James McLaughlin.

"He was also very issue-oriented," remembered Gladys. "He cared a great deal, fought to accomplish something, usually through compromise — he was very persuasive. He believed in politics as an honorable profession. It was always for a greater purpose."

"He loved his cars," said Robert Horn. "He had a 1970s BMW 2002 ... I think yellow. He even had it shipped out and restored." 

Ona McLaughlin noted that Lavine also authored textbooks teaching government to children.

Durham Tax Collector Martin French reflected on the relationship he shared with Lavine. 

"He was a pretty funny, loud guy I remember as a kid. He's the reason I was interested in getting into politics. He went to Hartford and made things better for Connecticut, not just Durham."

French's parents were on the Democratic Town Committee with Lavine — his mother was the Registrar of Voters. 

Lavine represented Durham in the Connecticut General Assembly for two decades before his death last December. He was a nationally recognized expert on energy issues and authored Connecticut's Inland Wetlands Act. He later served as Connecticut's Commissioner of Energy.

After moving to Rhode Island, Lavine served as Chairman of the Middletown Democratic Town Committee.

Lavine's young grandson, Avi, ran around the green, giving everyone a little fright as he raced to the curb to show drivers the new sign. 

After the conclusion of the ceremony, everyone crossed the street for a small celebration at the Clay Howe House. It seemed less like an official ceremony and more like a family reunion as neighbors snacked on cheese and fruit, sipped champagne, and sat closely together saying things like, "Now, do you remember when ..., " and "What a gorgeous day to do this!"

The originally reported this story.

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