Town officials last week voiced support for a plan to install dozens of trees in a popular park near downtown New Canaan.
The Parks & Recreation Commission during its regular meeting April 9 voted 9-0 in favor of the New Canaan Garden Club’s plan to plant nearly 50 trees in Irwin Park.
“We’re really excited,” Tori Frazer, co-chair of the Club’s Irwin Park Committee, told members of Parks & Rec at the meeting, held at Lapham Community Center and via videoconference. “It’s really going to enhance the beauty of Irwin.”
Parks & Rec Chair George Benington and members Gene Goodman, Hank Green, Keith Richey, Susan Lione, Douglas Murphy, Timothy Klimpl, Lindsey Heron, Melany Hearne and Brittney Singer voted in favor. Commissioner David Shea was absent.
The Weed Street park is to receive $25,000 worth of trees from the town, Frazer said. The Board of Selectmen is expected to take up the expenditure at its April 22 meeting, she said.
Frazer thanked First Selectman Dionna Carlson for her support of the project.
“We are really, really thankful to her, she was behind part of this and the Garden Club in general is extremely appreciative of this,” Frazer said.
The list of specific native trees selected for the planting already has been reviewed and approved by the tree warden, she said.
Most of the trees themselves are to be planted along the park’s northern border with Wahackme Road, with some replacing invasive species or dying trees that will come down, Garden Club representatives said.
“If you drive down Wahackme toward Weed Street and look to the right you’ll see it’s much clearer looking into the park than it’s been in a really long time,” Frazer said. “So some of these will provide more of a screen for the neighbors or provide good trees instead of invasive trees.”
Planting is planned to start in early-May, she said.
The Club thanked the town, including the Department of Public Works, for work done through the winter at Irwin Park.
Hearne asked about plans for removal of tree stumps and shavings in Irwin.
Frazer said that if the Club knew the specific area in question it could get a specific answer, and added that, in general, the town would rake out such shavings though “if it’s in an area that has a lot of trees where there couldn’t be any other undergrowth, it’s possible they are leaving it there.”
“There could be newly cut areas and they just haven’t gone back for cleanup yet,” Frazer said.
She added that there are plans to launch a “Friends of Irwin Park” organization.