Windsor Breaks Ground on Wilson Park Using State Community Investment Funds

Windsor broke ground Tuesday on a long-planned community project to develop a park on a vacant land parcel in the Wilson neighborhood using a Community Investment Fund grant to cover most of the costs.

The park will be developed on a 5.68-acre parcel located on Windsor Avenue using a $4 million state grant and $355,000 in American Rescue Plan Act funding. When completed, the property will include a playground, sprawling lawn, and a pavilion.

During a morning groundbreaking ceremony, town and state officials remarked on the active community input that helped shape the project over the course of several years.

“Picture a space where community events, live performance, cultural celebrations will come to life and all of us can be a part of that,” Mayor Nuchette Black-Burke said during the late-morning event.

The mayor said the new park would serve as a catalyst for community growth and she applauded the work of Windsor’s legislative delegation for helping to secure funding through the Community Investment Fund.

The delegation includes Sen. Doug McCrory, D-Hartford, who represents Windsor in the state Senate and serves as a member of the Community Investment Fund board. McCrory recalled attending services at Wilson’s Hopewell Baptist Church as a child and he applauded the community for taking an active role in planning the new park.

“It’s amazing when a community comes together,” McCrory said. “It’s amazing when your local representatives listen to your neighbors. What you did was listen to the community and the community told you what they wanted and what they needed and they wanted open space.”

Gov. Ned Lamont said the Windsor community “got it right,” as it developed plans for the park. The project beat out a number of other competitive applications for CIF resources, the governor said.

“I want you to know that you’ve got a really good delegation here with Maryam [Khan, a state representative] and Doug and [Rep.] Jane Garibay, right next door,” Lamont said. “They fought hard for this.”

Posted by Hugh McQuaid