The Retired Men’s Association of Greenwich (RMA) will present Wes Haynes speaking on “The Merritt Parkway: History and Future of a National Treasure,” Wednesday, Sept. 4 at 11 a.m., at the First Presbyterian Church, 1 West Putnam Ave. The program is free and open to the public.
Wes Haynes, Executive Director of the Merritt Parkway Conservancy, will tell the story of the origin, construction and impact of this historic road that changed the design of American roads and life in Fairfield County, the challenges it faces, and what is being done to ensure its future as a safe and beautiful drive.
The Merritt Parkway Conservancy is a non-profit, member-supported organization committed to the protection and stewardship of Connecticut’s largest and most heavily used cultural resource, which is listed on the National Register of Historic Places and a federally designated Scenic Byway.
A native of Stamford, Haynes’ 40-year career in historic preservation has included senior staff positions with the CT Trust for Historic Preservation, New York Landmarks Conservancy, Preservation League of New York State, and New Jersey Historic Trust. He has worked on planning and implementing restorations of New York’s Central Park, the New York State Capitol in Albany, and Adirondack Great Camps. He directed a survey of 1,500 historic mills for the CT Trust completed in 2018. Haynes has taught historic preservation at the Parsons School of Design in New York, Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute in Troy and the Brooklyn High School for the Arts. He currently serves as a volunteer preservation advisor to the Mary and Eliza Freeman Houses in Bridgeport, Stamford’s First Presbyterian Church, Stamford’s Historic Neighborhood Preservation Program, and the New Canaan Preservation Alliance.
For more information, contact info@greenwichrma.org or visit greenwichrma.org
