Each of the Valley towns has different attributes and individual potential, but limited resources. Community leadership, prompted by the business sector, realized that to maximize the individual and collective potential of the six towns they would have to pool their resources and work in partnership. The Valley s unemployment rate had exceeded the State s rate for more than 30 years. It was clear that the solution to the unemployment problem was job growth at existing companies and new companies. The first success was funding by the State to prepare a regional economic development strategy for the Valley that provided a blueprint for future initiatives and job growth.
Meetings are open to the public.
Information has been publicly shared through the media, including locally produced cable television programs. Issue specific community committees exist for the Brownfield project, the Transportation project and the job growth effort. More then twenty public information sessions have been held to inform citizens about the Brownfield issue and about what they can do if they believe a Brownfield may exist in their neighborhood. A larger multi-region committee has been formed through the Naugatuck Valley Project to coordinate the Brownfield effort in sixteen towns. All of the new transportation programs that have been created have been based on input from employers and users of the system.