NAUGATUCK — A new gazebo for the Naugatuck Green is on the way.
The Naugatuck Town Green Gazebo Committee formed in 2018 with the goal of raising $20,000 for a new gazebo.
“It was 20 years old and it was a wooden structure that deteriorated rapidly and it was getting dangerous to utilize,” said Pastor Bob Butkus of Christ the King Church, who is chairman of the gazebo committee. “The gazebo, after analyzing, needed to be replaced.”
The committee, which consists of members from borough churches, organizations and commissions, has hit its goal.
Butkus said the committee has raised $27,500. The majority of that came from a $20,000 donation from the Ion Bank Foundation. The remainder of the money was raised through a letter campaign ran by residents Vicki Yablonski and Caroline Jones, a donation from Siefert Associates LLC of Naugatuck, and a painting party fundraiser organized by Linda Ramos, who is chairman of the Park Commission and the Beautification Committee.
Ramos said the new gazebo will send a beautiful message when visitors come into the community.
“It gives such a great impression,” Ramos said. “It takes a community to make a community. I think it’s important that we keep developing.”
Butkus said the committee made a down payment to Kloter Farms in Ellington for a new octagon, Victorian-style gazebo. The company is expected to deliver and install it in mid-April, he said.
The new gazebo will be made of composite wood and is expected to last twice as long as the old one, Butkus said. The new gazebo will be installed closer to the center of the green, he said.
The plan also includes lighting for the gazebo, a walkway leading up to it, and landscaping around the gazebo to beautify the area.
“It’s the heart of our borough,” Butkus said. “It’s a typical example of people coming to together to work in harmony and doing something wonderful in the community that can be enjoyed for years to come.”
Borough officials have moved the old gazebo to the Naugatuck dog park on Andrew Mountain Road.
