Members of the Norwalk Tree Advisory Committee reviewed fall planting results, account balances and outreach plans and approved the meeting minutes as modified during a session in which staff also described plans to engage the committee on a Richards Avenue roundabout and noted that the Common Council was scheduled to vote on an update to the city's tree ordinance that would reconstitute the advisory board as an Urban Forestry Commission.

The committee heard that the program secured roughly 250 planting locations this fall after seasonal staff surveyed a little more than 450 potential sites. "This is the first year that we've had seasonal staff that we've had available to actually be able to do some of the field work," a staff member said, adding that seasonal crews helped the committee expand planting capacity beyond the work of a small volunteer core.

Why it matters: committee members said the expanded staffing and additional funds allow Norwalk to plant more street and park trees, which the committee frames as investments in shade, stormwater buffering and neighborhood greening. The committee also emphasized that limited soil volume, overhead conflicts and sight-line requirements restrict species and size choices on narrow medians and some downtown parcels.

Key details

- Planting and inventory: Staff reported that seasonal crew work and an inventory funded by the Inflation Reduction Act allowed the program to identify and confirm roughly 250 plantings this fall from about 450 surveyed sites. The Tree Alliance reported its partners planted 373 trees this year.

- Budgets and accounts: Staff gave approximate remaining balances: $20,000'0,000'0,000 left from the MLK corridor grant depending on final pit installations; about $30,000'0,000'5,000 remaining in the DPW capital account after fall work; roughly $20,000 in the Recreation and Parks account for spring plantings; and about $10,000'0,000 in a downtown-specific account tied to a "Sono"/GGP collection for targeted downtown medians. Staff said final amounts depend on which pits are feasible and pending verification of utility conflicts.

- Site selection and community concerns: At Marvin Beach, residents raised waterfront-view and root-damage concerns. Staff said the committee reduced planned public plantings there from a larger candidate list to six final locations, primarily on Gregory Boulevard, after reviewing 30 sites judged suitable under city standards. Staff described species selection that favors smaller-stature trees where planting strips are only three feet wide to limit future sidewalk uplift.

- Richards Avenue roundabout: Committee member Gaye summarized a Sept. 30 public meeting with Jim Travers, the city's director of transportation and mobility and parking, who described a single-lane roundabout to replace aging signals with construction anticipated in 2027. Gaye said the project design will include curb ramps, crosswalks, a multiuse path and landscaped center space, and that Travers agreed to meet with the committee during the design phase to discuss greenery selection, soil, drainage and maintenance. Gaye asked the committee to flag protection of a large, mature maple near the east campus as a priority in early design conversations.

- Outreach and a care brochure: Members discussed creating a printed brochure and an online PDF that would explain how to water and mulch newly planted trees, provide species-selection notes (for example, fruit or nut production), and include diagrams (such as correct mulch "donut" versus "volcano" techniques). A committee member said the most common public question at plantings is "who's going to water the tree?" and recommended distributing printed care guides at planting events as well as online.

- Watering tools (gator bags): The committee debated whether gator-type watering bags should be required in planting contracts or provided to private-residence recipients. Staff estimated bulk prices at roughly $15'0 per unit. Members noted differences in application (single-stem versus multi-stem trees), contractor flexibility, and the need to pair any required equipment with a clear watering program and resident instructions.

- Norwalk Tree Alliance and Tree City USA: Jeff, speaking for the Norwalk Tree Alliance, reported the Alliance placed 373 trees this year, described a 60-location spring list in progress, and said the Alliance will provide fiscal-year planting counts and budget numbers to support a Tree City USA recertification application.

Formal action

- The committee approved the minutes as modified (motion text: approve minutes as modified). The meeting record does not include a named mover/seconded vote tally; the outcome was recorded as approved.

Process and next steps

Committee members asked staff to: coordinate early engagement with the Richards Avenue project team (to protect mature trees and advise on planting islands), finalize the list of MLK corridor and downtown planting pits pending utility checks, prepare a care brochure (printable and online) with clear watering instructions and mulching diagrams, and explore options for providing gator bags to private-residence recipients. The Common Council was scheduled to vote that evening on updates to the city tree ordinance that would rename the Tree Advisory Committee the Urban Forestry Commission and restart membership; committee members said the vote would determine whether this was the final meeting of the advisory committee and asked staff to notify members about the outcome.

Attribution and evidence

Direct quotations and program figures in this report are taken from the committee's meeting transcript and were attributed to speakers during the meeting (including committee members Gaye and Jeff and staff identified in the record). When specific dollar amounts or construction dates were presented as estimates or pending confirmation in the meeting, this article reports them as described by staff and project representatives and flags where amounts remain subject to final accounting or design decisions.

Ending

Members closed the meeting by noting the mayor planned to read letters of recognition for long-serving volunteers if the council approved the ordinance change, and by thanking volunteers and partner organizations for the year's planting work.