Thousands gathered on Sunday afternoon to celebrate the 50th anniversary of New Haven’s Cherry Blossom Festival. Yoshino cherry trees in full bloom lined the perimeter of Wooster Square Park and crowds gathered on Academy Street in queues for over a dozen food trucks including Ben & Jerry’s, Bear’s Smokehouse and the Kettle King.
On a stage in the corner of the park, three bands — St. Luke’s Square Band, Airborne Trio and Carlos y su Momento — performed before the crowd.
“My favorite thing about coming here is seeing people have a good time,” Dante Hall, vocalist for the Airborne Trio, said. “No one’s fighting. The cherry blossoms — it’s about nature, it’s about love, that’s what it’s about. Hopefully it will transcend throughout New Haven, that’s what we need.”
Airborne Trio is a New Haven-based contemporary jazz band. Hall told the News that the band did not expect so many people to turn out with the overcast weather.
During an intermission, Bill Iovanne, co-chair of the Wooster Square Monument Committee, introduced various city officials and community leaders on stage. New Haven Mayor Justin Elicker, whose daughter accompanied him on stage, welcomed residents to the festival. Sen. Martin Looney, who represents New Haven, followed Elicker to speak about the festival, also highlighting the sense of community the festival demonstrated.
“This festival is of course the official opening of spring,” said Looney. “Even though it’s a little overcast today, [this is the] first large springtime gathering we have in the city. It brings together people who reside here now and former residents.”
Rep. Rosa DeLauro spoke about the history of the Wooster Square neighborhood, reminiscing about growing up just steps away from the park.
The city purchased the land where Wooster Square Park stands now in the 1820s. Italian American families immigrated to the area in the late 19th century. In the 1950s, the Urban Renewal Act threatened to demolish the neighborhood as the city planned to build Interstate 91 through the park.
“My dad and my mom stood in front of the bulldozers and said you’re no way gonna come and bifurcate this neighborhood, and for this we are all very grateful,” DeLauro said, followed by loud applause.
According to the Historic Wooster Square Association, 72 Yoshino cherry trees were planted in Wooster Square in 1973. Delauro’s parents participated in organizing the first Cherry Blossom Festival. Ted DeLauro, Rosa DeLauro’s father, was a community organizer who advocated for Wooster Square to become New Haven’s first designated “historic district.”
At the festival, DeLauro presented the Urban Resources Initiative with The Friends of Wooster Square Award. The Urban Resources Initiative is a nonprofit organization dedicated to urban forestry.
“To see all of you here today,” continued DeLauro, “The families who are thriving and flourishing like the cherry trees we cherish, generations of New Haven families have grown, they have flourished in the special place we called home.”
Wooster Square Park was designated as a local historic landmark in 1970.
