Videographer Phil LeMontagne wrote: This video proves that you don’t have to leave the planet to see something that looks truly alien. I took the video on the grounds of the Wadsworth Mansion. I believe that it is a Tawny Garden Slug, (Limax flavus). The long tentacles at the front are for sight and smell. The short ones are for taste and touch. It was probably looking for something to eat, but since it was very exposed, in the middle of a very wide trail, it was more likely to be eaten itself.
Phi LeMontagne captured this video of our Paddle With A Purpose event on July 14, 2024. We invite new volunteers, even if you have never paddled before, to join us this summer. Our partner, The Connecticut River Conservancy, has a limited number of kayak to loan to those who don’t own one. See our 2025 paddle schedule and access our registration form here.
Middletown’s Complete Streets Committee, with support of the Jonah Center, will be conducting a Public Information and Input meeting regarding current projects on Monday, June 9, at 7 PM in Room 208 of City Hall, 245 deKoven Drive. This will be a good opportunity to learn more about what’s going on with bike paths, sidewalks and multi-use trails in and around town. Continue reading
To watch the Vernal Pool video by Phil LeMontagne, click on the image below..
Remember our “Power Moves” article, where we shared ways to cut energy costs? Have you tried any of those ideas?
If you’ve successfully lowered your energy bills, we want to hear your success story!
Please send us a message through the Contact Page on our website. Just give us the best way to contact you, and we’ll reach out to hear the full details. Continue reading
Every year, Wesleyan Physics Professor Brian Stewart presents an illuminating talk about the world’s environmental and energy crisis. It is always well worth attending. Here is what Brian says as preview to this year’s talk. Continue reading
UConn Extension Service is offering reduced cost well water testing to residents of Middlesex County. To register for the program, use this link.
This excellent video by Phil LeMontagne shows close-ups of some, but not all, of the backyard birds commonly found in northern Middlesex County in the winter. Most are year-round residents, but two of them, the Slate- colored Junco and the White-throated Sparrow, tend to move a little farther north in the summer. How many of these birds can you name? Keep watching until the end of the video to see why they are all constantly looking around nervously!
For a list of birds in order of first appearance, see below. Continue reading
A Message from Krishna Winston, Jonah Center Board President
As a Jonah Center follower and, we hope, supporter, you may have noticed two things.
First, our advocacy and work on behalf of the natural and human environment has grown wider and deeper over the years. Tree-planting, sidewalk improvements, planning and construction of multi-use trails, home energy efficiency, climate action, removal of invasive aquatic plants, litter cleanup, and waste reduction have all been significant areas of effort. Add to that John Hall’s leadership in keeping track of and intervening to affect legislation, policy, and action—or lack thereof—locally and at the state level, and the myriad tasks involved in administering a non-profit organization of any size.
Second, in 2024 the Jonah Center celebrated its twentieth anniversary. The Center has gained an enviable reputation as a responsible, engaged, and effective representative of multiple environmental interests. Our founder, John Hall, now admits to being twenty-one years older than he was when, at the age of 56, he got us started on this venture. The scope and complexity of the Jonah Center’s work has grown primarily as a result of his indefatigable volunteer labor over the years, and he recognizes that the time has come for him to begin stepping back and turning the burdens—and the rewards—over to leaders who will be appropriately remunerated for maintaining the organization’s momentum.
Recognizing these realities, the Jonah Center applied for and received from the City of Middletown a Community Development Block Grant of nearly $25,000 that will fund two part-time employees from January through August of this year. We are seeking funds to take us beyond this initial period. John Hall remains very much involved as we make the transition to a new phase in the life of the Jonah Center,
The Jonah Center Board of Directors has hired John Shafer as Associate Director, and Kristen Colombo as Community Organizer and Advocate. We are very excited about the skills, experience, and enthusiasm they bring to our organization. Continue reading
Evening commute back-up on Route 9 southbound at Hartford Avenue
The Connecticut Department of Transportation and the City of Middletown have essentially agreed on a conceptual plan to remove the Route 9 traffic signals. While the proposal is not ideal, no one has proposed viable ways to improve it. CT DOT is in the process of federal and state environmental reviews of the plan to determine whether it can be built and, if so, what modifications, if any, will be required. Only when this review process is complete will actual design begin. Construction will not begin until 2027 at the earliest, according to DOT. Below are links to plan details. Continue reading
On November 20, 2024, planning/engineering company VHB presented the results of the 2nd study to determine the best route to connect the Air Line Trail in Portland with the Farmington Canal Heritage Trail in Cheshire. (A previous study of the Meriden section was conducted several years ago.) Completion of this 23-mile connector trail shown in the purple and green sections in the area circled below will be a boon to recreational and commuting bicyclists and to walkers in our area. It will also go a long way to completing a 111-mile loop trail: the Central Connecticut Loop Trail (CCLT).
The entire slideshow presented on November 20, 2024 can be viewed here.
We offer our readers here the results of the study of the Middletown and Portland sections, shown in lime green within the oval above. To enlarge these images, right click on the image and then click on “open image in a new tab.” This summary starts at the west end (i.e. the Meriden-Middletown boundary) and works east. Continue reading
By Chris Donnelly
The City of Middletown’s Urban Forestry Commission is conducting a street tree inventory. This effort is being funded by a grant from CT DEEP. Professionals have been contracted to inventory the trees. However, we need volunteers willing to survey potential street tree planting sites. Are you interested in helping? Here are the basic details: