Public Hearing Set For Tree Removal At Longbrook Park In Stratford

STRATFORD, CT — A public hearing will be held Thursday, Feb. 24 on the town’s plan to remove eight trees for the tennis court replacement project at Longbrook Park.

The hearing is scheduled to take place at 6 p.m. in the Council Chambers at Town Hall, 2725 Main St., according to a notice on the town’s website. The hearing had been originally scheduled for 10 a.m. on Jan. 19, but wasn’t conducive for working people to attend.

Councilwoman Kaitlyn Shake, who represents the 2nd District and chairs the Longbrook Park Commission, told the Connecticut Post she’s glad the meeting was rescheduled to accommodate more people following a public outcry. Shake voted against the project when it was approved by the council in November.

Hundreds of residents have complained about the plan to remove the mature trees from Longbrook Park.

An online petition at Change.org, titled “Save Stratford Trees,” has garnered more than 550 signatures as of Wednesday afternoon.

The petition states that “hundreds of trees have been removed in Stratford (with few replacements) that has changed the face of our town for decades and contributes to environmental degradation.”

Organizers wrote that signing the petition is a call to the town to “abandon their present strategy and engage Town of Stratford residents to ‘Preserve and protect trees and their canopies as an important environmental and cultural resource that enhances the Town of Stratford's natural character and heritage.’”

Stratford was recently awarded a $37,000 grant from the Urban Forestry Council to plant 100 trees in the westerly and southern portions of town, which have been identified as “lacking significant tree canopy,” according to minutes from the Conservation Commission meeting on Jan. 11.

Kelly Kerrigan, the town’s Environmental Conservation Superintendent, is working on the contract for the project and plans to hold two community meetings regarding tree plantings, according to the meeting minutes.

The town unveiled this week the current drawing for the proposed Longbrook Park tennis court replacement and draft concepts (see below and online here).

Read the full story at the Connecticut Post here.