Trust for Public Land in Connecticut - 2022

Connecticut THERE IS SO MUCH TO BE PROUD OF IN 2022 AND MORE TO LOOK FORWARD TO IN THE YEAR AHEAD

Thank you for being a TPL champion!

Trust for Public Land has long believed that everyone needs nature— and we know that access to parks and public land is not equally shared. That is why, with your generous support, we are leading a nationwide movement to close this outdoor equity gap.

Together, we are creating nature-rich places in the communities that need them most, improving people’s health, nurturing their joy, and strengthening their connection to the outdoors and one another. As we head into our second half-century, we are more committed than ever to connecting everyone to the outdoors.

We are focused on growing our impact and inviting new friends to join us. Thanks to your generous support in Connecticut, we are protecting special places like Copps Brook in Stonington and Meadowood in Simsbury, and collaborating with the City of Bridgeport to make the waterfront a safe and accessible destination for all.

© KESH A L A MBERT

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The impact of your giving is felt across the country— from scenic trails across Connecticut to transformed schoolyards in California and beyond. We could not accomplish the transformational projects featured in this report without the generosity of supporters like you.

Together, we are ensuring everyone can benefit from nature’s healing and unifying powers. Thank you!

Walker Holmes, Associate VP, Connecticut State Director

Meadowood, CT

Preserving Copps Brook

BOTH PHOTO S : © RICH A RD FREEDA

For decades, a private oasis of shrubland, tall oaks, and hickories flanked the serene Copps Brook, which flowed directly into the drinking water reservoir for Stonington, Connecticut. When the property came on the market less than two years ago, Avalonia Land Conservancy, residents, and Stonington’s First Selectman reached out to TPL to help permanently protect the property.

In June 2022, we successfully conserved the 230 acres, forever protecting an important refuge for threatened New England wildlife, a source of drinking water for the town, and a beloved network of trails.

Residents and visitors will also be able to access the brook on public hiking trails.

Approximately 100 acres of the property will be added to the Great Thicket National Wildlife Refuge for public access, bow hunting, fishing, recreation, and all other approved uses. The remaining land will be owned and conserved by Avalonia Land Conservancy, a regional land trust in southeastern Connecticut, for the benefit of people and wildlife. And it will help ensure access to high-quality drinking water for southeastern Connecticut families for decades to come.

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Unveiling Connecticut’s Civil Rights history During both world wars and into the late 20th century, the tobacco fields of the Connecticut River Valley offered summer work to local teens from across the state. They were joined by hundreds of college students from historically Black colleges and universities, who travelled north to work on the farms and earn money for tuition. Over the years, thousands of immigrant farm workers from Jamaica, Puerto Rico, and other Caribbean islands also helped to keep the farms running. Many laborers put down roots after their time on the farms; in fact, the tobacco farms of the Connecticut River Valley

are a primary source of the diversity of Hartford County—including one of the largest concentrations of Jamaicans and West Indians in the U.S. Many Morehouse College students, including Martin Luther King, Jr., spent summers working in the fields at the former Cullman Brothers Farm, now known as Meadowood. Evidence of their time there can be seen on the walls of the old tobacco sheds, and the land is rich with the history of all those who spent time there.

We protected the site in 2021 to preserve its important history and ensure future generations can explore and learn from it.

Meadowood is now in the process of being listed on the National Register of Historic Places and on the Connecticut Freedom Trail, a network of more than 145 places associated with Black history across the state. The project has received national news coverage on CNBC’s nightly newscast.

We are engaging the community to envision the newly protected land as a place of learning, connection, creativity, and appreciation for nature. Over the coming year, we will work with the State Historic Preservation Office and the town to design an interpretive landscape that honors the history of civil rights, agriculture, and immigration in America while safeguarding wildlife habitat and seizing opportunities for outdoor learning and adventure.

© KESH A L A MBERT

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Meadowood, CT

Welcome to our summer professionals

Cally Guasti, Mariana García, and Julia Talamo

TPL applauds its 2022 summer interns, who hail from Yale University and Williams College through the Yale School of the Environment (YSE) Conservation Scholars program. The Conservation Scholars program allows students to explore build professional skills, expand networks, and shape the course of their careers. And the research, procedures, and information they created this year help TPL deepen our commitments to equity, climate, health, and community.

MEET OUR SUMMER PROFESSIONALS Julia Talamo is a YSE Master of Environmental Management candidate, class of 2023, specializing in people, equity, and the environment. She chose TPL to learn more about the intersection of conservation work, equity, and justice. During her internship, she researched the history of Meadowood, conducting interviews, reviewing historic documents, and engaging with community groups.

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Mariana García is an environmental studies major concentrating in Latino/a studies, graduating from Williams College in 2024. For her internship, she researched the history of Meadowood and made recommendations on precedent sites for interpretive landscapes. As she learned the stories of people tied to the land, her appreciation for the site grew. Originally from Arizona, she did not have a close-to-home green space growing up and has enjoyed the abundant trees and patches of nature in New Haven and TPL’s commitment to addressing the park equity gap.

Former YSE summer professional Cally Guasti earned her YSE Master of Environmental Management in 2022.

We welcomed her back as a part-time staff member and she has been conducting a pre-feasibility study to identify new public funding mechanisms for parks in Connecticut. Originally from New York City, Cally enjoys birding, hiking at East Rock Park, and exploring the beaches, rivers, and lakes across the state. Her favorite local bird is the brilliantly colored Baltimore oriole.

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Addressing park equity in Connecticut Half of Connecticut’s urban and suburban residents do not have close-to-home access to a park.

To help city leaders and residents advocate for needed park resources, TPL’s Land and People Lab uses evidence to increase the impact of our on-the-ground work and spark a national movement for parks and public land. We inform policies and practices, build partnerships, and share resources to expand the many benefits of nature and the outdoors.

TPL’s ParkScore® Index is the national gold-standard comparison of park systems across the 100 largest cities in the United States, measuring park systems across five categories: access, investment, amenities, acreage, and equity. We have completed this special analysis for New Haven and Hartford, with plans to complete special reviews for Bridgeport, Stamford, Waterbury, and others. © NICK BENSON PHOTOGR A PHY

THANK YOU, AVANGRID FOUNDATION! Bridgeport’s post-industrial waterfront holds the key to a brighter future for the city. With that vision in mind, the community is now working with TPL to design the future three-acre “Sliver by the River” park space. Community events continue to liven up the waterfront and bring people outdoors: Wheels on the Waterfront offers roller skating and biking opportunities, and Yoga In Our City hosts weekly outdoor yoga classes in Seaside Park, open to all at no cost.

In April 2022, the Avangrid Foundation joined us for a volunteer day on the Bridgeport Waterfront, working their way from Knowlton Park south to the Congress Street Bridge. Ready with reusable gloves and trash bags, they emptied and reused their trash bags several times during the day. TPL is grateful to the Avangrid Foundation for their support to revitalize the Bridgeport Waterfront.

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The Bridgeport Waterfront Pathway is truly special because it will make a difference for generations to come. This is a long-term project that addresses a systemic issue right here in our community—it will expand access to green space and allow residents to reclaim the waterfront. Our team enjoyed taking part in the project by volunteering to clean up Knowlton Park. It was a great opportunity to give back and learn more about the pathway.”

— Pablo Colón, Director of Corporate Citizenship and Executive Director, Avangrid Foundation

CONNECTICUT ADVISORY BOARD David Berkowitz, Helen & William Mazer Foundation Susan Balloch, Conservationist Kara Bohnsack, Conservationist Wes Cain, Camody Torrance Sandak & Hennessey LLP Millie Carstensen, Conservationist Raúl de Brigard, Conservationist Rob Klee, Yale School of the Environment Elanah Sherman, Americans with Disabilities Act Coalition of Connecticut Erin Nicholls, Wiggin & Dana LLP

ACCESS FOR ALL In 2022, the Connecticut Advisory Board adopted an Accessibility Statement, affirming our goal and intent to create greater access to the outdoors for people with disabilities. We intend to incorporate maximum structural, communication, and policy-based accessibility into all our programs, services, and practices. We look forward to collaborating with individuals with disabilities and organizations that serve their interests; together we can work toward greater accessibility in the outdoors for all.

Morgan Yucel, MBA Candidate, Yale School of Management

STAFF Walker Holmes, AVP, Connecticut State Director Leslie Brauman, East Region Director of Philanthropy Max Gray, Institutional Giving Director Raul Irizarry, Program Manager Honor Lawler, Project Manager June Sgobbo, Senior Philanthropy Associate Cally Guasti, Intern Mariana García, Yale Conservation Scholar Julia Talamo, Yale Conservation Scholar

TOP: © D ENNIS MAIN; BOT TOM : © TPL STA FF

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THANK YOU for helping improve the health, equity, and climate outcomes for communities in Connecticut and beyond and for protecting special places for everyone to access and enjoy!

Join us Help ensure everyone has access to the outdoors. Every park we create, schoolyard we transform, trail we extend, and landscape we protect is thanks to supporters like you. tpl.org/donate/ct Walker Holmes, Associate VP, Connecticut State Director 203.777.7367 x3 | walker.holmes@tpl.org Leslie Brauman, East Region Director of Philanthropy 332.240.6180 | leslie.brauman@tpl.org 101 Whitney Avenue, 2nd Floor New Haven, CT 06510

COV E R , TOP: © BR A ND ON MCMA HON; © REBEK A H BUTLER PHOTOGR A PHY; © RICH A RD FREEDA; L A RG E : © RICH A RD FREEDA; TH I S PAG E : © RICH A RD FREEDA