Seymour gets state greenway grant [New Haven Register]

December 24, 2012

Article as it appeared in the New Haven Register

SEYMOUR — The town has received a $10,000 state grant to develop plans for a greenway walk along the Naugatuck River.

Seymour is one of six towns to be awarded a 2013 Preservation of Place grant, courtesy of Connecticut Main Street Center.

“This state-of-the-art project will promote economic development in Seymour by linking our downtown area to the beautiful Naugatuck River,” said state Sen. Rob Kane, R-Watertown, who was instrumental in winning the grant.

The project will be a “highly walkable attraction” for families, nature enthusiasts, shoppers and diners, Kane said.

Economic Development Director Fred A. Messore said the town applied for the grant soon after the Board of Selectmen adopted a new downtown strategy in July.

Without a plan, Messore said, grant eligibility was not possible. But with a strategy for short-term and long-term improvements for Main Street, Messore said, Seymour is on its way to becoming a hub of economic activity.

Messore said the town also is awaiting word on a $500,000 grant through the state’s Main Street Investment program.

First Selectman Kurt Miller praised Messore’s efforts to improve the downtown landscape, and to make it a destination for people and businesses.

Grants from the nonprofit Connecticut Main Street Center help municipalities preserve downtown and neighborhood assets.

The other winners of $10,000 grants are:
—Westville Village Renaissance Alliance in New Haven, for a public parking design and marketing plan.

—Kent, for a planning and engineering study for its Village Center streetscape.

—Bridgeport, for the Little Asia Historic Streetscape and Archway Project.

—Putnam, for the Putnam Downtown Center Signage and Wayfinding Design Project.

—The Northwestern Connecticut Regional Planning Collaborative, for the NW CT Village Center Vitality Tourism marketing campaign.

Since 2008, Connecticut Main Street Center has awarded $288,030 through the Preservation of Place grant program to 16 communities.