City of Norwalk, Connecticut

Yesterday, the City of Norwalk held an Immigrant Community Meeting led by Mayor Harry Rilling, Attorney General William Tong, Dr. Alexandra Estrella, Superintendent of Norwalk Public Schools, Lamond Daniels, Chief of Community Services, and Police Chief James Walsh. We want to thank all our community partners who helped organize and participate in the event, Building One Community, Norwalk ACTS, the Catholic Charities of Fairfield County, Inc.    During the meeting, officials responded to questions from community members and discussed resources available to our immigrant community members.    If you were unable to attend the event or watch it on Zoom, you can watch the recording by visiting https://lnkd.in/guP_A76G    To access resources that were mentioned last night, you can visit the City of Norwalk’s Community Resource Hub, which is managed by our Community Service Department, by visiting room 202 at City Hall, calling (203)-854-7999 or filling out a referral form. The form is available in English, Spanish, and Haitian Creole, and you can access it by visiting https://lnkd.in/gz2djYyq      You can also utilize Building One Community’s resources, which include guides on knowing your rights, family preparedness, and support. To visit their community resources guide, please visit https://lnkd.in/gRtA_wdf    For more information on how to access Catholic Charities of Fairfield County’s resources, please visit: https://lnkd.in/gN9v_gna    For more information on how to access Norwalk ACTS’s resources, please visit: https://lnkd.in/g3nfjFUT     #CityofNorwalk #ImmigrantCommunityMeeting 

Exciting update: Construction is on track for the South Norwalk neighborhood school and new Norwalk High School! Earlier this year, the City, Norwalk Public Schools, State and local leaders completed the groundbreaking of both new schools. We are thrilled that in the Fall of 2025, the brand new, state-of-the-art South Norwalk School, the community’s first neighborhood school in over 40 years, will open its doors to welcome students! It will be the City’s first school construction project under the new state reimbursement rate of 60%. The new Norwalk High School, which is receiving an 80% reimbursement rate from the State, is also on track and projected to welcome students in the Fall of 2027! These incredible reimbursement rates will save taxpayers millions of dollars while creating state-of-the-art learning environments for our children. Read more about the projects by visiting this link: https://lnkd.in/ejB75tv9 #CityofNorwalk #NorwalkPublicSchools #SoNoSchool #NorwalkHighSchool

The City of Norwalk is hiring a Preventative Maintenance Mechanic! This person will be responsible for performing preventative maintenance services and mechanical work in the repair, overhaul and maintenance of diesel and gasoline powered by City vehicles, trucks, heavy and light equipment, small engines and related mechanical equipment.  Come join the City of Norwalk! For more information about this position, please visit https://lnkd.in/da85gct #JoinOurTeam #PreventativeMaintenanceMechanic #OperationsandPublicWorks #CityofNorwalk 

The City of Norwalk has been recognized with the 2024 Fleet Award from the Marinas.com & Dockwa Team! The award recognizes Norwalk’s transient moorings and the City's efforts in the Norwalk Harbor and the Veteran’s Memorial Park boat launch and transient docks! The City and Harbor Commission have worked together to make Norwalk’s harbor more accessible and enjoyable for locals and visitors. Thanks to this work, non-local boaters can tie up their boat and spend time in our flourishing downtown centers. All visitors have to do is let the City know they will be visiting using the Dockwa app. To learn more about the 2024 Fleet Award, visit: https://lnkd.in/g4FWqJFy To learn more about docking in Norwalk, visit: https://lnkd.in/g8btH73j #CityofNorwalk #EliteFleetAward

Last week, the City of Norwalk celebrated the opening of a brand-new pocket park at the intersection of Burritt Avenue and Water Street in South Norwalk. This park was privately funded by Austin and Allison McChord. Not only did they fund this park, but they designed it with sustainability in mind. Their vision for this park emphasizes the City's goal of making Norwalk the greenest City in CT and enhancing the quality of life for our residents. Expanding community park space increases areas where residents can go to walk, socialize and be in nature, enhancing people's overall well-being.  #CityOfNorwalk #PocketPark #SouthNorwalk #ThankYouMcChordFamily  https://lnkd.in/eggZwdJ3

Today, Mayor Harry Rilling joined Austin McChord and Allison McChord, State Representative Travis Simms Jr., Common Council President Barbara Smyth, Common Council Majority Leader Josh Goldstein, Common Council Member Darlene Young, who represents District B and Eric Rains, the Park Landscape Designer to celebrate a brand-new pocket park at the intersection of Burritt Avenue and Water Street in South Norwalk. This park was privately funded by Austin and Allison McChord. Not only did they fund this park, but they designed it with sustainability in mind. The park features drought-resistant landscaping and water-wise irrigation strategies. Mayor Rilling thanked Austin and Allison, two deeply generous and environmentally conscious individuals, who care so much about our community. Their vision for this park emphasizes the City's goal of making Norwalk the greenest City in CT and enhancing the quality of life for our residents. Expanding community park space increases areas where residents can go to walk, socialize and be in nature, enhancing people's overall well-being. They also planted new trees to provide shade and environmental benefits to the community and installed a bike rack. Austin and Allison are two incredibly special people whose actions reflect the very best of Norwalk and our community's values. #CityofNorwalk #Park #SouthNorwalk #ThankYouMcChordFamily

Join the City of Norwalk for an Immigration Community Meeting on Wednesday, December 18th at 6:00 PM led by Mayor Harry Rilling, Connecticut Attorney General William Tong, Norwalk Police Chief James Walsh, Dr. Alexandra Estrella, Superintendent of Norwalk Public Schools, and Lamond Daniels, LCSW, MPA, Chief of Community Services for the City of Norwalk. Several community partner organizations supporting the event will also be present, including Building One Community, Norwalk ACTS, and Catholic Charities of Fairfield County, Inc. The majority of the meeting will include a question-and-answer discussion where the audience will be invited to ask our panelists questions about how local and state government officials will be working together to continue to make sure the City of Norwalk and CT remain a welcoming place for immigrants. The meeting will be hybrid and take place in the Concert Hall at City Hall as well as Zoom. It will include Spanish and Haitian Creole interpreters who will be in person, as well as translating the meeting via Zoom. We plan to share the Zoom link on social media next week. #CityofNorwalk #ImmigrationCommunityMeeting

Today, Mayor Rilling announced that the City of Norwalk's Community Resource Hub (CRH) program was selected by the Connecticut Conference of Municipalities (CCM) as the winner of its annual Municipal Excellence Award within its Population 3 General Awards category. Mayor Harry Rilling and AnaVivian Estrella, the Director of the City's Human Services Department, accepted the award at the 2024 CCM Convention earlier this week. Norwalk's CRH was created in 2022 following the launch of the City's Family Navigation Program in 2020, which was formed at the onset of the pandemic to identify new needs among struggling children and families. The CRH, housed in the City's Community Services Department, connects residents directly with community providers to help meet their needs. Some support services include accessing a food pantry, clothing, employment resources and health-related support, including mental health resources. The CRH helps residents identify, understand, and navigate local support services and resources in English, Spanish and Haitian Creole.  The Family Navigator Program and CRH were made possible through the generous support of the Per and Astrid Heidenreich Family Foundation and the Ritter Family Foundation. Their grants and partnership with the City have not only launched and sustained these vital programs but also contributed to the long-term well-being of the community. This collaboration highlights the power of public-private partnerships in addressing local challenges and ensuring residents have access to essential resources. We are deeply grateful for their ongoing commitment to support Norwalk. "Through our Family Navigator Program, the City of Norwalk learned about varied needs among community members that were exacerbated by the pandemic and stepped up to create the Community Resource Hub to connect residents directly with community providers to best meet their needs," said Mayor Rilling. "Oftentimes, residents are unfamiliar with how to navigate systems to get the resources they need and come directly to City Hall to seek help. I'm proud that the Community Resource Hub is being recognized for helping thousands of residents in Norwalk. Whether it's connecting people with access to a food pantry, clothing, employment resources, or health-related support, I want to remind anyone who may be struggling, that the City of Norwalk is here to help and to utilize our Community Resource Hub." During the CRH's first year, July 1, 2022, to June 30, 2023, the City served 792 households, an extraordinary 903% increase from the previous year's 79 households when the program was managed by the Family Navigator Program. From July 1, 2023, to June 30, 2024, the CRH served 1,206 households comprised of 2,734 individuals. To learn more or to access our CRH, please visit https://lnkd.in/e3MURpd3 #CityofNorwalk #CommunityResourceHub #MunicipalExcellenceAward Lamond Daniels, LCSW, MPA AnaVivian Estrella

Today, November 30th is Small Business Saturday, which encourages the community to shop locally and support our Norwalk business community. Shopping locally at small businesses benefits the community in these ways: ➡️ Boost the local economy ➡️ Support your neighbors and community ➡️ Reduces your carbon footprint Tag your favorite small Norwalk businesses in the comments! #SmallBusinessSaturday #ShopSmall #SupportLocal #CityOfNorwalk

Last week, the Common Council adopted the City of Norwalk's Complete Streets Ordinance, a transportation policy and design approach that aims to strengthen multimodal transportation networks and improve safety for users of all modes of transportation. Complete Streets expands safe, convenient and comfortable alternative and viable modes of transportation like walking and biking, therefore helping to reduce car congestion and encouraging walkability and biking. It also sets Norwalk up to meet several of our sustainability goals and emphasizes safety, getting us closer to our "Vision Zero" goal, an initiative that aims to eliminate traffic-related fatalities and injuries. #CompleteStreets #CityofNorwalk #Walkabiltiy #Connectivity