Trumbull Receives Municipal Excellence Award

TRUMBULL, CT — The Town of Trumbull recently received a Municipal Excellence Award from the Connecticut Conference of Municipalities (CCM) at its annual convention earlier this month, according to First Selectman Vicki Tesoro.

The CCM award included a check to the town in the amount of $1,000 in recognition of two town programs. The convention was held Nov. 1.

According to a news release, Trumbull officials created two programs committed to supporting local small businesses while offering assistance to its residents as part of the town's emergency response and long-term recovery strategy.

One program, the "Local Meals Program," addressed food insecurity experienced by residents who faced difficulties such as illness, job loss, hospice care or the effects of COVID-19. The other, "The Main Street Dollars Pilot Program," assisted residents in purchasing gifts from local establishments, Tesoro said.

The Local Meals Program provides meals prepared by nine local Trumbull restaurants for take-out or delivery to vulnerable residents. This program is funded by a grant from the State of Connecticut Department of Housing, Tesoro said.

The grant for $200,000 was obtained by Economic and Community Development Director Rina Bakalar. Not only does this program provides much needed relief to the residents, but it assists our restaurants during a difficult time for local businesses, Tesoro said.

According to Tesoro, 5,853 meals have been served to 322 residents to date, and participating restaurants have benefited from $197,500 in business they may not have otherwise received. Residents were supported during difficult times and felt thrilled that they were helping businesses though the program.

The Main Street Dollars Pilot Program was funded through a $5,000 grant from United Illuminating, under which three small, locally owned businesses that all have a "gift shop" aspect to their establishment were selected for the pilot program (Pure Poetry, City Line Florist and Plasko’s Farm). This program ran from Nov. 29, 2021, to Jan. 31, 2022.

According to Tesoro, the pilot program utilized $2,880 dollars of the grant funds. Residents spent $5,419 dollars at the businesses. The total money spent at the businesses was $8,299. The remaining grant funds will be used for another round of the program during the holiday season.

Tesoro thanked the Trumbull Long-Term Recovery Committee, the Economic and Community Development Commission, the Economic and Community Development Office (ECD), the Finance Department and Trumbull Human Services Department for partnering to bring these programs to Trumbull residents.

More information about these programs is available on the town website.