Category: News

By Julia Barcello

“We want to keep the Green in Greenwich” expressed Fred Camillo Thursday afternoon when discussing The Greenscape Project. The project will result in a transformed Route 1 with additional trees. The goal of this project is to protect Greenwich’s natural beauty and sustainability.

The Greenscape Task Force is a group which works to preserve Greenwich’s natural beauty by improving parts of Greenwich through the addition of greenery. The Task Force includes members of the Architectural Review Committee, the Town Tree Warden, Greenwich Tree Conservancy, the Conservation Department, the Department of Public Works, and town residents.

The Task Force began the project to plant trees along Route 1 approximately two and a half years ago to transform the road into a gorgeous route lined with greenery. The plan was first proposed in the Town’s 2019 Plan of Conservation and Development. The group of advocates aiming to keep Greenwich green has been walking the entirety of Route 1 marking locations for the addition of 500 trees. The Department of Public Works has verified that each tree location meets the town highway and safety standards, and will not interfere with traffic- including during the construction.

Awaiting state and Representative Town Meeting (RTM) approval, the planting of these trees will begin along the west side of Route 1 on the Port Chester/Greenwich Border and end just off of Hassake Road in Old Greenwich. The timing of when trees will be planted is based on their type, some will be planted during the Spring of 2022, and others will be planted beginning in October of 2022. The Greenscape Task Force will be funding all landscaping, “to make this a tree-line boulevard” according to Executive Director of the Greenwich Tree Conservancy, JoAnn Messina.

Members of Greenwich can now look forward to driving through this tree-lined boulevard, and many more projects to come that conserve the town’s natural charm and beauty. The group hopes to continue with more projects preserving Greenwich’s ethereal beauty in the future, “with projects like this, once you do one, there will be other opportunities to do more” stated Jacalyn Pruitt from the Planning and Zoning Department.

This article was featured in the Greenwich Sentinel at https://www.greenwichsentinel.com/2022/06/03/the-greenscape-project/

With luck by October crews will be busy digging holes and planting the first of 500 new trees planned along Route 1. The idea for the trees – both native species and ornamental – is to create a tree lined boulevard from Port Chester and Stamford.

JoAnn Messina, director of the Tree Conservancy said the number of different departments and agencies involved is numerous.

On Thursday elected officials, town employees and volunteers gathered along busy Route 1 in Old Greenwich to mark the last leg of the effort to pick sites for new trees.

Messina said 2-1/2 years earlier the Planning & Zoning commission chair Margarita Alban and town planner Katie DeLuca approached the Tree Conservancy, Conservation Commission, Parks & Rec, and Architectural Review Committee about the idea of greening the Rte 1 corridor. ARC chair Richard Hein became the chair of the Greenscape Committee.

Many recall an early project initiated by the Greenscape Committee involved planting thousands of crocuses in the island along Rte 1 at the foot of Stanwich Rd.

As for the the vision of a tree-lined boulevard, Messina said so far sites have been mapped out for 300 trees. [continued]

Click here to read the full article on the Greenwich Free Press website.

After 2-1/2 years of work, the Greenwich Post Road Greenscape Task Force is entering the final leg of an important project to transform Route 1 from Port Chester to Stamford into a graceful tree-lined boulevard.

A group of dedicated individuals including the Town Tree Warden has been steadily walking the entire length of the Route 1 corridor marking locations for as many as 500 trees. The Department of Public Works has then followed their path, verifying that each proposed tree location meets Town highway and safety standards.

Once the flagging is completed, a detailed Landscape Plan will be submitted for approval to the CT Department of Transportation, which controls the Route 1 right-of-way. The proposal will then follow town processes for approval.

The Greenscape Task Force was initiated to implement goals contained in the Town’s 2019 Plan of Conservation and Development.

The task force includes members of the Architectural Review Committee, Town Tree Warden, Greenwich Tree Conservancy, Conservation Dept and the Dept of Public Works, as well as town residents.

This project will help ensure Greenwich’s natural beauty and sustainability are enhanced for generations to come.

The Greenwich Tree Conservancy is proud to fund the cost of both the trees and their installation and has agreed to plant the 500 trees over the next four years.

Maintenance will be part of the Parks and Recreation Department’s routine tree care throughout Town. The trees have been selected to conform with Eversource’s standards for power line protection.

On Thursday, May 26 at 1:30pm, the task force invites anyone interested to join them along with the First Selectman Fred Camillo and State Rep Steve Meskers at 1330 East Putnam Avenue in Old Greenwich to begin the last leg of marking these important tree sites.

Greenwich Free Press: https://greenwichfreepress.com/around-town/greenwich-greenscape-task-force-plans-to-transform-rte-1-into-a-graceful-tree-lined-boulevard-181002/

The Waterfall Project at Greenwich High School is a public-private partnership working in cooperation with the Board of Education, the Greenwich Sustainability Committee, and the Board of Selectmen of Greenwich.

The Waterfall Project is co-chaired by Ashley Cole and Greenwich Board of Education member Joe Kelly.

Click here to read the full article on Greenwich Free Press.

By Urling Searle

The Tree Conservancy sits down with Dr. Kramer who came to Greenwich in 2019 bringing with him a wealth of horticultural knowledge and experience.

How does your background influence your work and how do you divide your time and responsibilities? To my work I bring my prior experience and education but also my passion. As a horticulturalist I am intrigued by the nature of all plants, as an environmentalist by the nature of native plants and the environment, as a humanist I am intrigued with how humans interact with nature. In my early career I worked in five different Olmstead gardens and came to realize an intuitive sharing of his vision of coexistence with nature as opposed to conquering it. As tree warden I use my ecological background in making planting decisions on town properties and rights of way that have lasting ecosystem impact. By state statute I hold tree hearings with public input and decisions that must be rendered. One part of my job is more formal and legal and the other more naturalistic and environmental.

Click here to read the full article in the Greenwich Sentinel.