06/12/2026
Today was the ribbon-cutting for  Aspetuck Land Trust ‘s 12,000 square-foot Miyawaki coastal micro forest at Seaside Park in Bridgeport planted last fall. The largest of its kind in the Northeastern United States it is planted with 6,000 trees shrubs and ground covers and was designed to address, flooding, urban heat, and biodiversity loss. The project was funded by the Connecticut Department of Energy & Environmental Protection (DEEP) and the Connecticut Dept. of Agriculture (CTDOAG). We were honored to have both Commissioners of these statewide agencies, Katie D***s, and Bryan Hurlburt in attendance along with Joseph Gresko, Deputy Speaker of the House in the Connecticut General Assembly, Dr. Royce Avery Superintendent of the Bridgeport Public Schools City of Bridgeport, CT - Government, Jeanette Herron President of the Bridgeport City Council, and Luis Burgos Director of Public facilities, City of Bridgeport, who helped with locating this forest at Seaside Park. Thank you Mayor Ganim for your support.
This is the seventh forest we have planted in the City of Bridgeport and we hope to plant many more there and in Norwalk and Stamford. We are excited to bring the forest to the city and all the beauty and ecosystem services it provides. This is very important in our urban areas where the tree canopy is much lower than in surrounding suburban towns, and it is much hotter in the summer because of all the concrete and lack of trees. Today’s heat was a good example. The many people who attended were all huddled under an oak tree.
Connecticut Land Conservation Council
Land Trust Alliance
The Nature Conservancy
