Stamford: Economy

Major Industries and Commercial Activity

Traditionally, Stamford has been known for its corporate headquarters, manufacturing, retail and research activities. In the 1980s and 1990s, however, southwestern Connecticut blossomed, its real estate growing ever more attractive as the cost of doing business in New York City skyrocketed. By 1990, most of the city's downtown had been demolished and replaced by corporate headquarters. Like many areas of the Northeast, Stamford experienced higher vacancy rates and a slowdown in construction early in the 1990s, but by the dawn of the new century it was experiencing a tight market with low vacancy rates.

Stamford boasts an extraordinarily diverse economic base, and serves as the business center of Fairfield County. Many major U.S. companies have located their corporate headquarters in Stamford. Midway through the 2000s, Stamford remains a top-five city in the U.S. in terms of concentration of Fortune 500 headquarters in the country, as firms moved to the city citing lower costs of doing business and a higher quality of life. The area continues to have relatively low unemployment and continued growth was expected as more and more companies continued to grow in and relocate to the city. Among the firms located in Stamford are General Electric Capital Corporation, Pitney Bowes, Clairol, Xerox Corporation, Champion International, Gartner Group, Omega Engineering, Cadbury Beverages, Circon/ACMI, General RE Corporation, Hyperion Software, and Diaggio/United Distillers. Stamford is also home to Warburg Dillon Read, a Swiss-based international investment bank.

Stamford remains the major retail center of Fairfield County; a sizable portion of its labor force is employed in wholesale and retail trade. Research and development activities center around industrial research in chemicals, the electrical and optical fields, electronics, and pharmaceuticals. In addition, precision manufacturing maintained a significant presence in Stamford.

As of 2005, Stamford had more than 15 million square feet of office space rented, with additional space planned for the near future.

Items and goods produced: chemicals, computer software and microprocessors, electrical and electronic equipment, drugs, cosmetics, machinery, aircraft, metals, die casting, and apparel and textile products

Incentive Programs—New and Existing Companies

Local programs

The Southwestern Area Commerce and Industry Association (SACIA) is the designated Small Business Development Center (SBDC) for Stamford, serving start-up and small businesses. SBDCs offer technical and management assistance, counseling, education, and training programs. Qualified companies can take advantage of Federal Enterprise Zone benefits in Stamford. In addition to Stamford's already advantageous tax structure and rents as much as 50 percent lower than Manhattan rates, firms can qualify for significant corporate tax abatements under the Enterprise Zone and the Urban Jobs Program. Stamford was also named a Brownfields Showcase Community to demonstrate the benefits of collaborative activity on developing lands contaminated by industrial activity.

State programs

The Connecticut Department of Economic and Community Development develops and implements strategies to attract and retain businesses and jobs, revitalize neighborhoods and communities, ensure quality housing and foster appropriate development in Connecticut's towns and cities. Programs and services include loans and loan guarantees to manufacturers and job-providers, loans to women- and minority-owned businesses, planning and development services for industrial parks programs, tax credits for investments in Connecticut insurance firms, small business assistance, export assistance, and more.

Job training programs

Both on- and off-site and on-thejob training assistance is available through the Connecticut Department of Labor. Seventeen community and technical colleges across the state offer job and specialized skill training. The Connecticut Development Authority offers prime rate loans for Connecticut manufacturers to become more competitive by enhancing their employees' skills through training and development. The CDA pays 25 percent of the amount borrowed from a participating lender to invest in training, up to a maximum of $25,000. The State Department of Economic & Community Development provides counseling, job training programs, technical information and financing to help start-up and growing companies.

Development Projects

Well underway by 2005, the Mill River Corridor Project involves the creation of approximately 19 acres of new parkland along both sides of the Rippowam River and extending into downtown. The park is just the first part of a planned re-development of downtown that is expected to bring an additional $5 million in extra tax revenue annually upon completion.

The Gateway District Project was created to assemble the site for the relocation of the North American headquarters of the company now known as UBS Warburg (Swiss Bank) to Stamford. In all 12 acres of land had to be acquired and more than 20 buildings demolished to accommodate the 560,000 square-foot headquarters, which covers four city blocks in the heart of downtown and employs approximately 4,000 people.

In 2004 Stamford became one of the first major urban centers to lure a major retail store, in this case Target, to a five-story downtown location. If the store thrives the move could entice other traditionally-suburban retailers to try a downtown location, much to the surprise of industry insiders. Other downtown retail developments include a 126,000 square foot Burlington Coat Factory, and another 150,000 square feet of retail space at the Grayrock Place housing development.

Other housing projects are well underway downtown. In 2004 Stamford-based Stillwater Corp. broke ground on a 92-unit condominium project called Riverhouse with a planned occupancy date of June 2005, which was when ground was broken for another 83-unit luxury condominium development called High Grove.

Economic Development Information: Stamford Office of Economic Development, 9th Floor, Government Center, Stamford, CT; telephone (203)977-5089. Southwestern Area Commerce and Industry Association (SACIA), Ste. 230, One Landmark Square, Stamford, CT 06901-2679; telephone (203)359-3220. State Department of Economic and Community Development, 505 Hudson Street, Hartford, Connecticut 06106-7107; telephone (888)860-4628; Connecticut Development Authority, (860)258-7800

Commercial Shipping

Stamford is served by Conrail and a vast trucking fleet which makes use of the many federal and state highways that crisscross the city. Freight arrives by air at the New York City airports and is trucked into Stamford. All of the major national and international freight and shipping companies operate in the area.

Labor Force and Employment Outlook

Stamford citizens are highly educated; the city had the highest percentage of college graduates in the metropolitan area comprised of Connecticut's Fairfield County and parts of New York and New Jersey. The city's public school system turns out well-educated graduates; in fact, "Ladies Home Journal" ranked Stamford's public school system fourth among the nation's top 200 cities. Stamford's unemployment rate typically remains well below national averages. Employment gains tend to be centered in the services sector. The work force tends to be well trained and educated, which is not surprising given the technical nature of the products manufactured and the demands of the service sector. Stamford employers benefit from proximity to Yale University and other schools that provide consultation as well as education.

The following is a summary of data regarding the Bridgeport-Stamford-Norwalk NECTA metropolitan area labor force based on 2004 annual averages.

Size of nonagricultural labor force: 409,700

Number of workers employed in . . .

construction and mining: 14,400

manufacturing: 41,800

trade, transportation, and utilities: 74,900

information: 12,100

financial activities: 41,700

business and professional services: 69,600

educational and health services: 59,500

leisure and hospitality: 32,500

other services: 16,800

government: 46,400

Average hourly earnings of production workers employed in manufacturing: $19.08 (April, 2005)

Unemployment rate: 4.9% (March 2005)

Cost of Living

Housing costs and other cost of living factors are high in Stamford and in its surrounding metropolitan area.

The following is a summary of data regarding several key cost of living factors for the Stamford area.

2004 (3rd Quarter) ACCRA Average House Price: $614,691

2004 (3rd Quarter) ACCRA Cost of Living Index: 153.2 (U.S. average = 100.0)

State income tax rate: 4.5% (corporate business tax rate: 7.5%)

State sales tax rate: 6.0%

Local income tax rate: None

Local sales tax rate: None

Property tax rate: $29.16 per $1,000 of assessed value (2005)

Economic Information: Stamford Department of Economic Development, 9th Floor, Government Center, Stamford, CT; telephone (203)977-5089

Stamford: Recreation

Sightseeing

Among Stamford's perennial premier attractions is the Bartlett Arboretum, a 63-acre nature area maintained by the University of Connecticut. Its highlights include a swamp walk, natural woodlands, cultivated gardens, ecology trails, a horticultural library, and display greenhouse. The 118-acre Stamford Museum and Nature Center, a nineteenth century park, contains a working farm, complete with farm animals and early American furniture and tools. The Center also has a planetarium, country store, nature trails, and galleries of art, natural history, and Native American items. The Champion Greenhouse presents horticulture exhibits that change with the season. The Hoyt-Barnum House, a restored blacksmith home which was built in 1699 and refurbished in 1738, represents three centuries of Stamford life. The nearby Maritime Aquarium at Norwalk attracts 525,000 visitors a year and is one of the largest attractions in Connecticut. To support the growing number of visitors and educational programs, The Maritime Aquarium recently completed its first major expansion project. Opened in April 2001, the new $9.5 million Environmental Education Center (funded through corporate, private, and state contributions) boasts new classrooms and high-tech educational equipment, plus a new main entrance, larger gift shop, and 180-seat food-service area. The move from the old gift shop also allowed for the addition of loggerhead sea turtles to the Aquarium's growing animal collection.

United House Wrecking Company's 30,000 square feet of floor space displays memorabilia such as furniture, marine salvage, antiques, musical items, and country store offerings. First Presbyterian Church, built in the shape of a fish to commemorate the early Christian symbol for Christ, was designed by Wallace K. Harrison in 1958. It features stained glass windows by Gabriel Loire of France, a Christian Memorial Walkway of flagstones, the Stamford Historical Wall tracing the city's history, and carillon concerts played by the fifty-six bells in the Maguire Memorial Tower. Many of Stamford's corporate headquarters offer tours of their facilities.

Arts and Culture

The Stamford Center for the Arts provides two homes for the performing arts in the city, and hosts more than 250 performances annually. The wonderfully restored 1927 Palace Theatre is home to the Stamford Symphony Orchestra, Chamber Orchestra, Connecticut Grand Opera, and the New England Lyric Operetta. The 1,580-seat facility also offers nationally renowned artists in live drama, music, dance, and opera performances. A recently completed multi-phase Palace Improvement Project has provided the Palace Theatre with an enlarged stage, new dressing rooms and other technical-support facilities, and improved services. The Rich Forum, with its 757-seat Truglia Theater, Mercede Promenade exhibition and gallery area, and "black box" Leonhardt Studio performing venue, brings live Broadway-quality productions to the city. Stamford Theatre Works, a resident professional theater company, offers productions at the Sacred Heart Academy Performing Arts Center. Connecticut Ballet stages several annual productions in Stamford, as does the city's resident City Ballet, often accompanied by dancers from the New York City Ballet. Canterbury Concerts is a series of baroque and classical choral and orchestral music performed at St. John's Episcopal Church, also the site of four annual programs presented by the Pro Arte Singers. Free summer concerts in Cove Island Park are performed by the National Chorale.

The Stamford Historical Society Museum presents permanent and changing exhibits of local history, and has research facilities. The Whitney Museum of American Art at Champion Plaza, a branch of the internationally-renowned New York City institution, offers five exhibitions annually (including works from Whitney's permanent collection), public education programs, special events, and docent-led gallery tours.

Festivals and Holidays

Stamford's annual festivals center around nature, and art and music. The coming of spring is heralded by the April's two-day Treetops Daffodil Festival and May's Azalea & Rhododendron Walk at Bartlett Arboretum. Spring on the Farm at the Stamford Museum and Nature Center Farm allows spectators to view plowing, sheepdog herding, and shearing. The Pink Tent Festival of the Arts is celebrated at Mill River Park in June. Music fills the July air with the sounds of the Long Island Sound Wave concerts. Ongoing mid-summer events include the annual Art in Public Places exhibition, the new French Market on Columbus Park (Tuesdays and Saturdays, July to November), and the five-concert Alive @ Five series of free outdoor performances in Columbus Park. September events include Arts, Crafts, and Blues on Bedford, the Harvest Fair at the Stamford Museum and Nature Center, Stamford Historical Society's three-day Quilt Show, and Kids' Day, which is sponsored by the Stamford Business Society. The two-day Gem and Mineral Show and Astronomy Day at Stamford Museum and Nature Center brightens November's days. Early December brings the city's Heights and Lights holiday extravaganza on Landmark Square, complete with a daredevil Santa rappelling down 22 stories from Stamford's tallest building and ending with the lighting of the city's tree. The glories of winter are celebrated at January's Winterfest at the Stamford Museum and Nature Center, and at February's Winterbloom two-day festival at Bartlett Arboretum.

Sports for the Spectator

Nearby Bridgeport has professional minor league sports with Bluefish baseball in the Atlantic League and Sound Tigers hockey, top affiliate for the New York Islanders of the National Hockey League. Local fans are also within an easy drive of several storied New York sports franchises, including the New York Yankees and Knickerbockers. The Department of Parks and Recreation annually schedules hundreds of baseball games at Cubeta Stadium, which hosts regional tournaments for league players of all ages.

Sports for the Participant

Golf and fishing are the activities of choice in Stamford, which maintains two public 18-hole courses. October's Stamford Classic Half-Marathon provides fast course loops through foliage, both downtown and at the coastline. Salt-water fishing is available aboard several charter vessels that dock in Stamford. The city's 40 parks cover more than 650 acres and include beaches, a marina, a boat basin, bridle paths, gardens, skating rinks, ball fields, basketball and tennis courts, and playgrounds. Several of the parks and yacht clubs are found along the shoreline. Cove Island Park is an 83-acre waterfront facility with a beach and the Terry Connors Rink, which has youth hockey and figure skating programs throughout the year. Scalzi Park and Cubeta Stadium has 48 acres of fields for baseball, soccer, Little League, tennis, bocce, and roller hockey. The Mianus River Park and Glen offers walking, hiking, biking and fishing in a 183-acre preserve. Indoor rock climbing classes for adults and teens are available at Go Vertical!.

Shopping and Dining

Stamford's major shopping facility is the Stamford Town Center, an enclosed mall with more than one hundred stores anchored by several noted department stores, including Macy's and Saks Fifth Avenue. Other prime shopping sites are the Bedford Street/High Ridge Fashion Plaza area, the Ridgeway Plaza, and the United House Wrecking, the state's largest antiques emporium. The nearby Norwalk Factory Outlet Center, with more than 50 stores, offers bargains on housewares, clothing, and shoes. Throughout Fairfield County, antique dealers sell furniture and house furnishings.

While seafood and New England chowders are mainstays on many menus, Stamford restaurants offer a range of culinary delights. Favorites among locals include Il Falco Ristorante (Italian), La Bretagne and Chez Jean-Pierre (French), Kujaku (Japanese and sushi), Ocean 211 (fine seafood), and Giovanni's Steak House (American).

Visitor Information: Coastal Fairfield County Convention & Visitors Bureau, 297 West Avenue, Norwalk, CT 06850; telephone (800)866-7925. State of Connecticut Tourism Division, 865 Brook St., Rocky Hill, CT 06067-3405; toll-free (800)CT-BOUND

Stamford: History

Religious Refuge Becomes Textile Center

In pre-colonial days, the Siwanoys, a subnation of the Wappinger tribe, lived on the land—which they called "Rippowam"—that now constitutes the site of modern Stamford. In 1640 the Siwanoys sold the land to Nathaniel Turner, an agent for the New Haven Colony, who was looking for arable land. A year later, twenty-eight families belonging to the Congregational Church fled a church dispute in Wethersfield, Connecticut, and arrived in Rippowam to form a permanent settlement. They called their town Stamford, after its English counterpart. In 1644, Stamford lost a third of its settlers when they moved to Long Island. Stamford, in turn, was absorbed into the Connecticut Colony.

Stamford, a minor port on Long Island Sound, had channels suitable only for small craft and barge traffic. The young community relied on subsistence agriculture and some crafts and only minimally on its trade with the West Indies. By the time of the Revolutionary War, Stamford, with 3,800 citizens, could boast that it was a major population center between New York City and New Haven.

Stamford continued to rely on its small industries until the founding of the Stamford Manufacturing Company in 1844. The new concern set up in the Cove Mills and began producing dyewood and licorice extracts, both crucial to the New England textile industry. In 1848, the railroad arrived, making Stamford one of the stops on the New York City-New Haven run. Soon European immigrants arrived by the trainload to work in Stamford's new mills. The Irish arrived in the 1840s, settling in the Kerrytown and Dublin sections of the city and forming Stamford's first ethnic minority.

Research and Development From Industrial Base

Aside from the arrival of the railroad, 1848 was an important year for Stamford for another reason: Linus Yale invented the first cylinder lock, revolutionizing lock design and launching an American industry. From 1868 until 1959, the Yale and Towne Company was the single largest employer in Stamford. Between 1869 and 1892 alone, the payroll grew from 30 to 31,000 employees. In the meantime, the west end of the city near the Mill River saw the opening of mills and foundries. In the business section, new banks, utilities, and factories opened. The population in 1868 stood at 9,700 people; that year a second railroad line opened, this time connecting the city with New Canaan.

By 1893, Stamford's population had swollen to almost 16,000 people; by the end of the century, the count stood at 19,000, which included a large number of Polish immigrants. Business boomed, much of it based upon the inventions of another Stamford genius, Simon Ingersoll. Ingersoll masterminded the friction clutch, the spring scale, and a steam-driven wagon, the precursor of the modern automobile.

When New York City became the East Coast industrial mecca of the late nineteenth century, Stamford developed into a residential suburb of the larger city. Following World War II, Stamford became the site of a number of research and development concerns, which added greatly to the local economy. Stamford incorporated as a city late by East Coast standards: in 1949, the city absorbed the surrounding communities to become the city of Stamford. By the 1960s, Stamford had attracted so many corporate headquarters that more commuters were traveling into Stamford each day than were commuting to New York City jobs. Much of the city's success in attracting those companies rested on its appeal as a suburb. To make way for them, most of the downtown was demolished and replaced by a boulevard of fortress-like corporate headquarters and a mall. The recession of the early 1990s saw the end of the office boom; new buildings stood empty as new businesses sought space in office parks elsewhere. Stamford found itself with a surfeit of office buildings and no downtown to go with them. But by the end of 1997, the situation had reversed, and Stamford had experienced a "mini-boom" with the occurrence of more than three million square feet of new, expanded or renovated construction.

By the year 2000, Stamford had increased its rental apartments by 1,000 units, and was planning for 1,000 more. In addition, the city had experienced a 27 percent decrease in the crime rate over the preceding four years. In 2005, Mayor Dannel P. Malloy said of his city: "Stamford is a community which is economically soaring, with major economic development projects currently underway. The Stamford office market is vibrant, unemployment remains at all time lows, and our economy is well diversified. The City continues to be one of the premier business locations in the metropolitan New York market, and the residential sector in Stamford is growing with the addition of hundreds of downtown rental units. Stamford continues to be a people-oriented community with a vibrant and active arts and cultural presence."

Historical Information: Stamford Historical Society, 1508 High Ridge Road, Stamford, CT 06903-4107; telephone (203)329-1183

STAMFORD

STAMFORD , corporate and finance center in Connecticut; population (2004) 111,000; Jewish population (2004) est. 14,000. The earliest Jewish merchants were Nehemiah Marks (1720), and Jacob Hart (1728), who by 1738 was the fifth highest taxpayer in town. He owned property also in Greenwich and Darien but as a Jew was not eligible to vote or serve on the grand jury. Hart's children were the first of the Jewish faith born in Stamford. Jewish families came from New York during the American Revolution, among them were Isaac Pinto who translated the first English High Holy Day prayer book in America (1761) and the daily English prayer book in 1766 but did not remain afterwards. Sporadic Jewish settlers continued to come until 1856 when Wolff Cohen advertised his clothing store in The Advocate. In 1868 there were five Jewish-owned businesses but no community or congregation. Through the 1870s Jewish owned saloons as well as clothing and fancy and dry goods establishments. The first Jewish marriage with a full minyan was held in 1805, but it was not until 1871, when Rabbi Henry Vidaver of New York married Henry Bernhard and Rachel Cohen, that a description of the ceremony and reception were printed in full detail in The Advocate. Samuel H. Cohen, Stamford's first Jewish attorney, was appointed probate judge in 1876. In 1881 Jacob Rosenblum arrived in Stamford; he is considered the first Eastern-European Jew from Lithuania to reach there, coming via Sharon, Pennsylvania. Young, single peddlers, Isadore Alexander and Solomon Osmansky, followed. The first worship services were held in an attic on Cedar St. In 1887 David Cohen, a new arrival, reports that the first High Holy Day services were held in Stamford in Jacob Rosenblum's tenement flat on Stillwater Ave. The same year Pacific St. began to develop as the retail hub for the new arrivals who opened a variety of retail stores and small manufacturing. By World War i, this street had become Stamford's version of New York's Lower East Side. Mainstream Jewish stores were also on Main St. and Atlantic Street. In 1889 a congregation was chartered as Agudath Sholom with 22 signers. In 1891 a cemetery association was chartered with the name of Agoodat Solima and purchased land on West Hill Rd. The congregation during this decade was dormant and by 1901, it was simply reported as "The Hebrew Society" with no building of its own. In 1904 a second charter for a Cong. Agudath Sholom was issued and ground was broken for the first synagogue, completed 1908. There were secular Jewish organizational chapters, such as L'Maan Zion that began in 1902, and the Independent Lodge started in 1903, which also established its own cemetery on Hoyt St. in Darien in 1904. B'nai B'rith was chartered in 1910, and the National Council for Jewish Women in 1911; a Stamford Hebrew Political & Social Club was chartered in 1907. Of all the aforementioned groups, only the Independent Lodge survives. In 1911 attorney Alfred Phillips was elected to the state legislature, and in 1913 he became the first Jewish secretary of state in Connecticut. In 1916 The Hebrew Institute was founded as the meeting place for social and later also some worship activities of the community. It dissolved in 1927 and was succeeded by The Stamford Jewish Community Center which dedicated its building on Prospect St. in 1930. Roosevelt Lodge of the Masonic Order was founded 1922, because Jews were refused membership in Stamford's Union Lodge F.&A.M. The jcc moved to its present location on Newfield Avenue in 1982. Temple Beth El, a Conservative congregation, was founded in 1920 and met in the Hebrew Institute until 1927, when its first synagogue was dedicated on Prospect St. The congregation moved to its newer structure on Roxbury Rd. in 1974. Temple Sinai, a Reform congregation founded in 1954, has a synagogue complex on Lakeside Drive. The Orthodox Congregation Agudath Sholom has worshiped since 1965 in its current building, which also has a mikveh, on Colonial Road. Young Israel is an Orthodox congregation with a synagogue on Oaklawn Avenue. Chabad is constructing a school complex on High Ridge Rd., and The Fellowship of Jewish Learning, founded 1973, is a liberal congregation sharing a meeting house on Roxbury Rd. All congregations have religious schools. The Bi-Cultural Day School founded in 1956 is renowned for its full curriculum from kindergarten through grade eight. Jewish Family Services has offices to serve all in need of assistance. Offices of The United Jewish Federation, and The Jewish Endowment are located in the jcc. The Jewish Historical Society of Lower Fairfield County was founded in 1983 in Stamford. Julius Wilensky was elected and served as the first and only mayor of the Jewish faith of The City of Stamford, 1969–73. Stamford is the birthplace and boyhood home of United States Senator Joseph Lieberman who was the first candidate of the Jewish faith to be nominated and run for vice president of the United States.

[Irwin Miller (2^nd ed.)]

Stamford: Education and Research

Elementary and Secondary Schools

Stamford's public school system offers several special programs, including bilingual and special education. Considered one of the finest systems in Connecticut, Stamford's enjoys one of the state's lowest student/teacher ratios. Teachers consistently earn national recognition for their innovative programs and are invited to share their expertise with their peers at conferences across the country. Stamford has had more Presidential Scholars than any other public schools system in Connecticut. Five schools offer magnet programs, each with a unique academic focus. Students are selected for the magnet programs via a lottery system.

The following is a summary of data regarding Stamford public schools as of the 2002–2003 school year.

Total enrollment: 15,231

Number of facilities

elementary schools: 12

junior high/middle schools: 4

senior high schools: 2

Student/teacher ratio: 12.3:1

Teacher salaries (2005)

average: $41,431

Funding per pupil: $13,337

The Stamford Catholic Regional School System and other parochial, private, and technical schools supplement Stamford's public school system.

Public Schools Information: Stamford Public Schools, PO Box 9310, Stamford, CT 06902; telephone (203)977-4105

Colleges and Universities

The University of Bridgeport's Stamford Campus offers graduate programs in Business (M.B.A.), Computer Science, Education, Counseling, Human Resource Development and Education Management and an undergraduate degree program, called IDEAL, for working adults. The University of Connecticut's Department of Plant Science maintains the 63-acre Bartlett Arboretum in Stamford. The university offers a master's of business administration program at the Stamford campus, as well as B.S. or B.A. degrees in American Studies, family studies, economics, English, history, political science, psychology, sociology, and general studies. A teacher certification program for college graduates is offered by the Neag School of Education. The J. M. Wright Regional Vocational Technical School provides programs in more than 25 trades and technical areas, and Stamford Hospital's School of Radiologic Technology has an allied medical program. The Westlawn Institute of Marine technology offers correspondence programs.

Libraries and Research Centers

Stamford's Ferguson Public Library system consists of a main library, three branches, and a bookmobile. The collection includes nearly 500,000 books and 1,200 periodicals. In 2004 there were 965,000 visitors to the library, and nearly 100,000 visitors to the library's website, which was named the top online library access in Connecticut. A $17,000 federal "No Child Left Out" grant helped the library's innovative Special Needs Center, which provides videos, books, and other materials to help parents of children with disabilities. Multimedia and electronic resources, art works, and Internet access are available to the public. The library is a depository for United States government and Connecticut State documents, and maintains extensive material on industries, business and management, genealogy, and local history.

Special libraries include those of the Xerox Corporation Legal Department, Clairol, Inc., CYTEC Industries, and GE Investments.

IRI Research Institute studies international agriculture and the University of Connecticut at Stamford conducts botanical research.

Public Library Information: Ferguson Library, One Public Library Plaza, Stamford, CT 06904; telephone (203)964-1000; fax (203)357-9098