BGreen's First Three Years: Partners in Progress

The BGreen 2020 Initiative celebrates the release of its first comprehensive progress report documenting the implementation of BGreen 2020, the 10-year strategic plan for improving the environmental quality and livability of Bridgeport’s parks and neighborhood and promoting Bridgeport as a location for the development of green industries and green employment. The development of the plan was a public/private partnership which brought together over 100 stakeholders who identified 65 strategies in  five focus areas: 1) energy production & efficiency, 2)sustainable land use and transportation, 3) natural resources management, 4) green jobs, and 5) education and outreach.

The 2013 report documents progress on nearly all of the plan’s strategies, which range from increased recycling at public schools to the development of an eco-technology park in the city’s south and west end that hosts renewable energy production and waste processing facilities. The Progress Report also identifies a sixth focus area, adapting to the impacts of climate change, in response to the impacts repeated severe storms have had on Bridgeport’s parks and neighborhoods.

Over 150 individual projects now support the goals of BGreen 2020, with over 80 organizations and businesses contributing time and resources. Strong leadership for the initiative is provided by City of Bridgeport elected officials and staff and the Bridgeport Regional Business Council. Major ongoing support by the Fairfield County Com­munity Foundation has been supplemented by city, state, and federal funds, private investment, and funding or technical assistance by other foundations and non-profit organizations. The report was developed by the Regional Plan Association with the help of many city staff and members of local and regional community organizations.

Community groups and individual volunteers have been a big part of BGreen work, with the number of volunteer hours contributing to BGreen projects increasing 60% since 2011. Businesses such as Bridgeport Biodiesel, Fletcher Thompson Architects, and Kuchma Corporation have invested in Bridgeport, supporting green job growth and sustainable development. Federal agencies have supported many of BGreen’s major initiatives, including studying the feasibility of building a new train station on Bridgeport’s East Side, which was made possible through a Sustainable Communities grant from the Department of Housing and Urban Development.

Read the BGreen 2013 Progress Report.