NAUGATUCK — Public works employees began clearing underbrush and some trees in a forgotten park between Meadow Street and Fairview Avenue.
Lewis Park, an eight-acre parcel that is also known as Salem Park, is part of land that was donated to the borough by the Lewis family in 1894.
In addition to the park, the land would eventually become home of Hillside Intermediate School and Salem Elementary School, Mayor N. Warren “Pete” Hess said.
The park and school grounds were designed by Frederick Olmsted, an architect known for designing Grand Central Park in New York City and Golden Gate Park in San Francisco.
The park originally had scenic overlooks built in that would give pedestrians a clear view of downtown, Hess said.
However, over the past 50 years the park has not been maintained and fallen into disrepair.
The work is being done by public works employees during their regular time to keep costs down, Hess said.
“We specifically planned it as a winter project. We intend to do most of the clearing and cleaning this winter. The men are doing it on regular time, so they can only do it on days when we are not plowing the streets,” Hess said.
Once the work is complete, the borough will plant grass and plants that will preserve the slope of the hill, Hess said.
Along with the work on Lewis Park, the borough has cleared out about six trees officials deemed dead and hazardous from the Town Green in front of Town Hall.
The work is being completed with a $10,000 grant from the Connecticut Department of Energy and Environmental Protection Agency’s America the Beautiful Grant Program.
Once the work is done, there will be clear views of the borough’s downtown from Fairview Avenue and Meadow Street, Hess said.
Hess said this work is important to bring back a beautiful part of the borough’s history.
“It’s a good thing for the borough because it is going to highlight our sensational downtown,” Hess said. “It is part of our history and heritage, and it is worth bringing back.”
