No More Trees at Robinwood

Developers finally noticed that the intersection of West Main Street, Park Road and Robbins Street is conveniently located at an exit ramp from I-84. New construction started last year with medical buildings (and the new hotel next to the new cancer center further up the road). West Main Street on the hillside was rebuilt over the course of the past year. This past week, many beautiful old trees in the middle of the intersection were cut down. They also cut down some of the trees in Rowland Park (which, by the way, has no connection to the former Governor's family). The cute little storefronts next to the gas station are going to be torn down and replaced by a bank. Lots of big changes.

It makes me sad to see the trees at the intersection taken down. They really were wonderful. Without them, the Robinwood area there is going to look like a concrete wasteland, sort of like the stretch of West Main Street between Willow Street and the Green, or like Grand Street between Bank and South Main Streets. I think that trees and landscaping are an important part of a city's character and can make a city seem pleasant and inviting.

I've seen photographs of Waterbury from the 1950s (and earlier). The banks of the Naugatuck River were meticulously manicured--no overgrown weeds or bushes. For the past few decades, landscaping has been abandoned. The banks of the river are completely overgrown and look terrible. If I'm riled up enough about this in the spring, I think I might try to organize a grass-roots (pun intended) movement to improve Waterbury's landscaping.