Drive north on Main Street through Trumbull's Long Hill section and the changes along Route 111 are easy to spot. The Green has been redesigned and landscaped. A tall new flagpole went up this summer, placed so the flag can be seen from both directions along Main Street. There's a new medical building north of the Ecco plaza, and new delis have opened.
Most of the active work is now on Whitney Avenue, a block off Main Street. A sidewalk and trail connection is going in between Dunellen Road and the Pequonnock River Trail. Further along Whitney, at Kaatz Pond, a regional veterans and first responders center is on track to finish in January. The sidewalk comes out of the same planning effort that rebuilt the Green. The center is going up on the same avenue. Between them, north Trumbull's town center is reaching past Main Street.
How the Green Got Here
The work traces back to a Long Hill Green planning study from 2018, which the town has been carrying out piece by piece. The Whitney Avenue sidewalk was planned to connect the trail with the businesses that have been filling in along this stretch.
| Piece | What happened | When |
|---|---|---|
| Ecco | Opened in Long Hill Market Plaza at 6540 Main Street | January 2022 |
| Whitney Avenue sidewalk, phase 2 | State transportation grant awarded | 2024 |
| Main and Whitney intersection | New traffic light, plus added sidewalks nearby | December 2024 |
| Long Hill Green | Construction and landscaping improvements | 2025 |
| Pediatric Healthcare Associates | Opened its new building at 6600 Main Street | March 11, 2026 |
| Flagpole | New flagpole added to the Green | Summer 2026 |
| Whitney Avenue sidewalk | Construction underway, Dunellen Road to the trail | Fall 2026 |
| Veterans and First Responders Center | Completion expected, per the town | January |
The flagpole was one of the last pieces finished on the Green itself. The town scheduled its dedication for June 14, 2026, with veterans raising a ceremonial flag and the Trumbull Elementary Schools Honor Band performing. With the Green done, the work moved to Whitney Avenue.
What the Sidewalk Will Connect On Main Street
Long Hill Market Plaza had a restaurant before the Green was redesigned. Ecco opened at 6540 Main Street in January 2022, after omicron-era delays that CT Insider covered at the time.
The newer arrivals are mostly about food you take home. Arthur Ave Deli, at 6528 Main Street, runs as an Italian market. Its menu covers imported goods, hand-stretched mozzarella, sliced salumi, chicken cutlets, burrata, pesto, panini and breakfast. At the First Selectman's annual business address on October 1, the town put it on its list of businesses that opened in the past year. That list also includes Mi Scusi Italian Deli & Catering, further north at 7146 Main Street. Town minutes show Mi Scusi was still fitting out its space in May. That puts two Italian delis on the same part of Route 111, both new in the past year.
The biggest new building is Pediatric Healthcare Associates' 12,000-square-foot office at 6600 Main Street. When Planning and Zoning approved it in September 2024, the town's newsletter said it would sit just north of Long Hill Market Plaza, inside the Long Hill Green Village District, with a sidewalk tying it to the rest of the commercial area. The practice broke ground in February 2025, and Patch reported the official opening and ribbon cutting on March 11, 2026.
That sidewalk in front of the PHA building is one end of a walking network. The Whitney Avenue project is the other end.
On Whitney Avenue This Month
In September 2024, the town announced it had received a grant of more than $840,000 from the Connecticut Department of Transportation's Local Transportation Capital Improvement Program. The money pays for phase 2 of the Whitney Avenue sidewalk project, running from Dunellen Road to the Whitney trailhead of the Pequonnock River Trail. The town's stated goal was safer, more accessible walking between the trail and the Long Hill Green commercial corridor. At the October 1 business address, First Selectman Vicki Tesoro described it as a project that will "connect one of our commercial centers directly to our trail system."
Construction has started. The town's October 2026 newsletter says work is underway between Dunellen Road and the trail. While crews are working:
- Traffic on that section of Whitney Avenue runs as a single lane, alternating directions.
- The town expects delays and asks drivers to allow extra travel time.
This is not the only roadwork in town this fall. The state is also redoing traffic signals on White Plains Road between Daniels Farm Road and Reservoir Avenue, and the town expects that work to continue into the new year. If you live on the north end and drive south toward Trumbull Center, both projects can be on your route.
Where the Trail Goes From the Whitney Trailhead
Once the sidewalk is finished, you'll be able to walk from Dunellen Road to the trailhead on foot. TrailLink lists Pequonnock River Trail parking at 126 Whitney Ave., at a lot set aside for trail users. TrailLink also says Trumbull town parks require permit parking stickers year-round, so check the town's current rules before you park there.
From the trailhead, the trail goes two ways:
- South, toward Tait Road: a wooded river corridor with rapids and rock outcrops, continuing toward Twin Brooks Park.
- North, toward Old Mine Park: past the crossing at Route 111/Monroe Turnpike and on to the Monroe section of the trail.
When it's done, the sidewalk will link the Main Street delis, the Green and the new flagpole to a trail that runs south toward Twin Brooks and north into Monroe. The town has also repaired bridges along the Rails-to-Trails pathway in recent years.
The Building at Kaatz Pond
The other project on Whitney Avenue is the Trumbull Veterans and First Responders Center at Kaatz Pond. Its address is 1 Veterans Circle. The town describes it as a 5,500-square-foot multipurpose building. It will be home base for Trumbull's American Legion and for the VFW, which serves Trumbull, Shelton, Monroe, Easton and Redding. Planned uses include connecting veterans with care and services, training for first responders, water-rescue training on Kaatz Pond, and civic, community and private events. The town held the groundbreaking on May 16, 2024.
The center has taken years to build. WSHU reported in September that planning goes back nearly eight years. The previous building on the site was torn down after it developed structural problems, and the lot sat empty for more than five years. The new foundation went in, and then the pandemic stalled the fundraising. Dan Sacco, vice chairman of the building committee, told WSHU: "The prices kept going up during the time of COVID, so when we raised funds, we had to raise more." According to WSHU, a $900,000 state grant approved by the Bond Commission got construction moving again.
Local donors helped close the gap. WSHU reported a $100,000 gift from the DiNardo-Aiello Family Foundation, which the center's gathering room will be named for. The Ernest and Joan Trefz Foundation of Bridgeport gave $25,000 toward a generator. Maj. Arthur O'Leary, a veteran from Monroe, added $10,000 for the generator and for a new outdoor bench honoring veterans.
The town's October newsletter said interior work would start soon and that completion is expected in January. Once the building is done, the public will be able to rent it. WSHU adds that rental income will go toward operating costs and programming, and that the space will host meetings, events, educational seminars and community programs. Over the past few years the north end has added a new medical building, new delis and a redesigned Green. If the January target holds, a rentable event space on Whitney Avenue comes next.
Changes like a finished sidewalk, a trail you can walk to and a new event space are the kinds of details we bring into conversations with north Trumbull homeowners. If you're curious how they fit into what your home is worth, The Kasey Team can walk you through it. Start with a home valuation or browse our Trumbull neighborhood page, and Start Your Home Journey with people who follow these changes closely.
