Naugatuck River Greenway – NVCOG CT – Naugatuck Valley Council of Governments

MTP 2050

NVision50: The Metropolitan Transportation Plan for the NVCOG and the Central Naugatuck Valley MPO lays out a comprehensive vision for transportation in our region leading up to 2050.

HydroLand Kinneytown Dam Fish Passage

An ineffective fish ladder at Kinneytown Dam in Seymour, owned by HydroLand, is currently preventing migratory fish from accessing miles of restored habitat upstream. NVCOG has joined the Naugatuck River Restoration Coalition with the goal of returning migratory fish to the Naugatuck River by ensuring that safe, timely and effective fish passage is established at Kinneytown Dam. The Coalition has developed an Interactive Story Map to explain the issue.

Kinneytown Dam and Fish Ladder, Seymour, CT

As a hydroelectric generating facility, Kinneytown Dam is regulated by the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC). As part of the facility’s license exemption, Hydroland must provide for safe, timely and effective fish passage at the dam. FERC opened a docket in Fall of 2020 in response to a letter from the US Fish and Wildlife Service documenting inadequate fish passage at the facility. NVCOG is participating in the docket to ensure that regional and municipal voices are heard by regulators.

**Update** On December 14, 2022, the US Department of Commerce announced that NVCOG has been recommended for funding for a project intended to lead to the removal of Kinneytown Dam. The funding is being made available through the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s (NOAA) Restoring Fish Passage through Barrier Removal grant program. The Naugatuck River Restoration Coalition issued a press release in response.

Hydroland, HydroLand, HydroLand Omega, Hydroland Inc, Hydroland Corp, Hydroland Corporation,

Explore the Issue:

This interactive storymap details the effort to restore migratory fish to the Naugatuck River, and the current issues at Kinneytown Dam keeping fish from miles of restored habitat upstream.

NVCOG FERC Docket Filings:

4/25/2022 Coalition Comments

12/16/2021 Coalition Comments

11/4/2021 Coalition Comments

10/12/2021 Coalition Comments

9/30/2021 Coalition Complaint

12/16/2020 NVCOG Comments
10/27/2020 NVCOG Comments

9/30/2021 Legal Action

Legal Motion/Complaint

Legal Exhibits

Press Release

More Information:

Let the Naugatuck River Run Silver Again Op-Ed by John Waldman published in Hearst Media publications 12/4/2020

Our Opportunity to Restore Fish Passage at Kinneytown Dam Save the Sound Blog Post 12/10/2020

Staff Contact:

Aaron Budris
Senior Regional Planner
abudris@nvcogct.gov

NRG Trail Thomaston to Torrington Routing Feasibility Study

The Naugatuck River Greenway Thomaston to Torrington Routing Feasibility Study Report was endorsed by the Northwest Hills COG Board on December 10, 2020, by the NVCOG Board on May 8, 2020, and by the Naugatuck River Greenway Steering Committee on May 13, 2020.

Where should the Naugatuck River Greenway (NRG) Trail be developed between Torrington and Thomaston?

The NRG Trail Thomaston to Torrington Routing Feasibility Study was conducted to answer that question. In 2018 and 2019, study partners investigated environmental conditions and potential trail route options throughout the corridor, and talked with stakeholders and the public to help determine a preferred route for the NRG trail. The goal of the study was to identify a single preferred route for the NRG Trail through field investigation and public and stakeholder engagement, and to develop project phasing with cost estimates in preparation for future funding opportunities.

Final Report

The Naugatuck River Greenway Trail Thomaston to Torrington Routing Feasibility Study Report was endorsed by the NVCOG Board on May 8th, 2020. The report explains the methods used by the study team throughout the study, and presents findings detailing the current conditions of the study area. The preferred route, selected by the Project Committee, is described in detail, along with design and construction cost estimates and phasing recommendations. Additional trail development considerations are also presented.

Report Appendices

Appendix A: Trail Section Cost Estimates
Appendix B: Route Option Summary Sheets
Appendix C: Safety And Suitability Matrix
Appendix D: Castle Bridge Visual Inspection Memo
Appendix E: Reports Of Meetings
Appendix F: Public Survey Comments
Appendix G: Trail Conceptual Design Typical Sections

Appendix H: Public Comments to the Draft Report

The study was conducted by the BSC Group in partnership with NVCOG, The Northwest Hills Council of Governments (NHCOG), the City of Torrington and the Towns of Litchfield, Harwinton and Thomaston. The study was funded by a Responsible Growth and Transit Oriented Development grant from the Connecticut Office of Policy and Management (OPM), supplemented by funding from CT DOT and FHWA.

Explore the Project Area

The interactive Project Webmap allows users to explore the project corridor and preferred route in greater detail by turning on and off various data layers that informed the study:

Staff contact:

Aaron Budris
Senior Regional Planner
abudris@nvcogct.gov

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NRG Thomaston – Watertown Design & Construction

The Towns of Thomaston and Watertown received a federal Recreational Trails Program grant through the CT Department of Energy and Environmental Protection to design and construct a trailhead parking area and short section of Naugatuck River Greenway (NRG) trail in Thomaston and to design critical features along the future NRG route in Watertown. NVCOG is administering the grant on behalf of the towns, and Vanasse Hangen Brustlin (VHB) is the project engineer. The project is part of the larger 44-mile NRG trail that is planned to follow the Naugatuck River from Torrington to Derby.

The original purpose of the project was to design and construct a trailhead and trail on town property in Thomaston adjacent to the town water pollution control and animal control facilities connecting to an existing historic trolley bridge over Branch Brook, and design critical features including drainage and rail separation for a trail to be constructed in the future in Watertown. Investigation into the reuse of the Trolley Bridge revealed that it would be more cost effective to construct a new crossing. The scope was altered to use the limited construction funds to fully design a new crossing full design of a new crossing of Branch Brook.

The trail segment and trailhead parking in Thomaston will provide access to the NRG, Mattatuck and Branch Brook Trails via a new pedestrian bridge over Branch Brook that was designed as part of this project. Thomaston and Watertown each applied for Local Transportation Capital Improvement Program (LoTCIP) funding to construct sections of the NRG Trail in the respective towns.