Dear Friend,

It’s been a busy few weeks in eastern Connecticut and in Washington, but I wanted to be sure you saw the news about some good developments that will really benefit our Enfield community.

Read below for a quick update on new support for our local Enfield schools through the American Rescue Plan that will help them stay open, and about our work to help create a new Enfield Train Platform to support a new generation of increased economic activity.

New Support to Keep Enfield Schools Open

Keeping our local schools open for classroom learning is essential to getting life back to normal. On Monday, my office announced that Enfield Public Schools are set to receive over $7 million through the American Rescue Plan that will help them do just that. We voted to pass the Rescue Plan back in March, and now these federal dollars are headed directly to the Enfield School District, helping them offset last year’s totally unforeseen budget cuts and making sure they have the resources to keep kids and teachers safe, and to keep classrooms open for in-person learning. 
 
The new American Rescue Plan funding will also help our K-12 schools in Enfield to start implementing programs to help students make up for lost learning during the pandemic. Click here to read more about the new funding in the Enfield Patch.

Our state has stayed ahead of the curve throughout COVID-19, and eastern Connecticut has done a great job of battling back with a strong recovery. Everyone from small business owners, to working moms and dads, to the Federal Reserve agree that we’re not out of the woods just yet though—our towns, police and fire stations, schools, hospitals, and others still need support while we work back to full-steam. That’s why we passed the American Rescue Plan, and it’s why we’re continuing to see the bill support our recovery here in Enfield and across the region.  

An Update on the New Enfield Train Platform

Even amid the recovery, eastern Connecticut has a horizon packed with exciting economic opportunities—and Enfield is going to be part of it. Our region’s economy is growing and diversifying, and we need to make sure that our communities have the infrastructure they need to succeed along with it. With that in mind, I wanted to update you on one of my top priorities this year: the new Enfield Train Platform.
 
Rail transit is an important piece of the puzzle for our local economies, and workers and businesses in Enfield can’t get left out. Earlier this year, Town Manager Chris Bromson helped announce updated plans for a new Enfield Train Platform and intermodal center in the Thompsonville section of town. The facility would create a new stop on the new Hartford Line. The project’s design includes a 200-foot-long platform, a fully functioning train station, and over 100 parking spaces. It would bring together commuter rail and bus transit access, making movement easier and more convenient in Enfield, and opening the door for new development. 
 
The Enfield Train Platform is an exciting project, and it’s going to require state, local, and federal funding—which is where my office can help. Last month, the House began the new process of submitting “Community Project Funding” requests, which are requests for congressional spending towards specific, tightly tailored projects within a community. This includes infrastructure projects like the Enfield Train Platform. After working with Chris Bromson and the Town of Enfield to help get these plans off the ground, last month my office officially began the process of requesting $4 million in federal funding to help support the Enfield Train Platform. Click here to read more about it in the Journal Inquirer. 

We’ve been helping push this project forward for months now, but it’s taken real leadership at the local level to design a proposal of this scale, and to secure buy-in from so many stakeholders. For that, I thank Enfield Town Manager Chris Bromson—he’s done a great job of bringing people together, and demonstrating the serious economic potential the train platform would deliver for Enfield. My office has been glad to help do our part to help bring the new Enfield Train Platform to fruition, and we’ll keep pressing in Washington to secure the portion of federal funding it needs to move forward.

Thank you for taking the time to read this update. To stay up to date with the latest updates on my work in Hartford and Washington, click here and sign up for my weekly eNewsletter. 

Sincerely,                          

Joe Courtney
Member of Congress