NW Hills Council of Governments Meeting:
4/9/26, 10 AM
Present: Board Chair Dan Jerram, Vice Chair Mike Criss, Secretary Patrick Roy, Treasurer Tom Weik, and Representatives Greg LaCava, Molly Spino, David Barger, Seth Breakell, Denise Raap, Jesse Bunce, Eric Epstein, Paul Harrington, Doug Thompson, and Henry Tirrell; Present via Zoom: Curtis Rand, Jim Brinton, and Meaghan Cook; Absent: Magi Winslow and Todd Arcelaschi
Five members of the Northwest Hills Council of Governments (NHCOG) submitted applications for a grant disbursed via the State of Connecticut’s Transportation Rural Improvement Program (TRIP). All five applications meant to seek state funding were endorsed by NHCOG Executive Director Rob Phillips, who submitted letters of support for all.
The TRIP program itself, administered by the Connecticut Department of Transportation (CTDOT), is the byproduct of NHCOG meetings where members expressed to CTDOT representatives that rural communities rarely qualify for state transportation funding, according to CTDOT Commissioner Garrett Eucalitto. The Commissioner was on hand at the April 9 meeting of the NHCOG.
“The issue was brought up at these meetings about how, really, most communities in this area aren’t eligible for lots of funding,” Eucalitto said. “So, what can we do to help? And so we went to the state legislature and created the TRIP program.”
According to the CTDOT website, TRIP provides state funds to municipal governments for infrastructure improvements in rural areas of Connecticut. Activities may include transportation capital projects such as construction, modernization, or major repair of infrastructure.
Applications for this year’s TRIP funding round are due May 1. The projects submitted to TRIP by NHCOG were sent by the towns of Harwinton, Kent, Morris, North Canaan, and Washington.
Harwinton’s project would bring much-needed transportation infrastructure improvement to the town and the surrounding transportation circulation within the region, Phillips wrote in a letter to CTDOT’s Transportation Assistant Planning Director Craig Babowicz.
The project involves reconstruction of a minor rural local roadway in eastern Harwinton near Locust Road, which provides connecting routes from Terryville Road and to its south Burlington Road.
Landmarks in or near this area include the Harwinton Fair Grounds, the Connecticut Department of Energy and Environmental Protection Western District Headquarters, and the Roraback Wildlife Management Area.
“The project will consist of the full-depth reconstruction of the roadway throughout the project limits,” Phillips wrote in the letter. “Improving this road will enhance the ability of both residents and visitors to travel safely while improving the economic health of the Town of Harwinton and the surrounding towns within, and outside, of our region.”
Kent’s project consists of repairs and reconstruction along Bulls Bridge Road, which serves as a buffer between Kent Road, South Kent Road, and Camps Flat Road — all around U.S. Route 7.
“This road serves as a rural thoroughfare between the Kent and the South Kent area, which connects the South Kent School, a private all-boys boarding school, and other recreational areas with the community,” Phillips wrote. These connections include the Kent Land Trust hiking areas, as well as a direct link to the Western New England Greenway bike trail.
The project in Morris would bring full-depth reconstruction of Looking Glass Hill Road, as well as storm drainage improvements. Phillips wrote that the proposed project would be part of a multi-phase plan to rehabilitate the entire length of the roadway from the Litchfield town line at the west to the Litchfield town line to the east.
In North Canaan, their request for TRIP program funding would help cover the cost of addressing safety concerns related to poor roadway conditions and flooding risks. This would ensure safer and more reliable access to town buildings, Phillips said. To address those issues, the town would mill and resurface around 2.4 miles of roadway, drainage improvements, roadside stabilization, and culvert rehabilitation.
“Along with upgrades to sidewalks, railings, shoulders, markings, and signage,” Phillips said.
The project in Washington entails the retooling of sidewalks and the construction of new ones throughout the Titus Road area of Washington Depot.
“The Town has been unsuccessful in securing Community Connectivity Grants for this project on two previous occasions and is hopeful that this alternative funding approach will be successful,” Phillips wrote. “Phase 1 of the overall project was recently completed using Town funds. This phase included improvements along Route 47 between River Road and Bryan Plaza (west side), as well as both sides of a section of River Road.”
“Thank you all for the help this winter. I know it was a pretty difficult winter,” Eucalitto said. “I know your public works departments also felt that burden, whether it was supplies or overtime and trying to keep up with the winter.”
