Connecticut’s Beardsley Zoo Receives $15,000 Grant from United Illuminating for Greenhouse Energy Conservation Project

Support Made Available under Connecticut’s Neighborhood Assistance Act Tax Credit Program
 
BRIDGEPORT, CONN. — December 2022 — Connecticut’s Beardsley Zoo received a $15,000. grant from United Illuminating, part of the Avangrid family, under Connecticut’s Neighborhood Assistance Act tax credit program. The funding will help the Zoo’s Greenhouse Energy Conservation Project.
 
“The assistance provided by the Avangrid Foundation through Connecticut’s Neighborhood Assistance Program is integral to our plans to renovate and update our greenhouse,” said Connecticut’s Beardsley Zoo Director Gregg Dancho. “It is only with the generous support of foundations like Avangrid that the Zoo can reach its goals. The greenhouse, demonstrating the connection between people, plants, and animals, is an important part of our conservation and education mission.”

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United Illuminating (UI), Southern Connecticut Gas (SCG) and Connecticut Natural Gas (CNG) — all subsidiaries of AVANGRID, Inc. — distributed a total of $450,000 in grants to 65 organizations.
 
The grants, made possible by Connecticut’s Neighborhood Assistance Act (NAA) Tax Credit Program, are aimed at helping nonprofit community and neighborhood organizations across the state improve energy efficiency and reduce their energy costs.

​Since 2010, UI, SCG and CNG has awarded $4.2 million in grants through the NAA Program, which offers a corporate tax credit to encourage businesses to provide financial support to qualified local nonprofit organizations.
 
“As we prepare to celebrate the holidays during these unprecedented times, we are mindful of the many people in our communities who are suffering as a consequence of the COVID-19 pandemic – and of the important roles nonprofit organizations play in supporting them,” said Frank Reynolds, President of UI, SCG and CNG. “This program allows us to help our nonprofit partners achieve ongoing energy savings, allowing our partners to focus their resources on the critical programs and services that they provide.”
 
The 2022 NAA grants support a wide variety of projects undertaken by community organizations across the UI, SCG and CNG service territories. A full listing of the projects supported can be found at NAA tax credit Program.
 
About Connecticut’s Beardsley Zoo:
Let your curiosity run wild! Connecticut’s only zoo, celebrating its 100th year, features 350 animals representing primarily North and South American and Northern Asian species. Guests won’t want to miss our Amur tiger and leopards, maned wolves, and Mexican gray wolves and red wolf. Other highlights include our Spider Monkey Habitat, the prairie dog exhibit, and the Pampas Plain with giant anteaters and Chacoan peccaries. Guests can grab a bite from the Peacock Café and eat in the Picnic Grove. Connecticut’s Beardsley Zoo is a non-profit organization celebrating its Centennial year when the mission of helping fragile wildlife populations and ecosystems is more important than ever. Tickets must be purchased on the Zoo’s website at beardsleyzoo.org. 
 
About UI:
The United Illuminating Company (UI) is a subsidiary of AVANGRID, Inc. Established in 1899, UI operates approximately 3,500 miles of electric distribution lines and 139 miles of transmission lines. It serves approximately 335,000 customers in the greater New Haven and Bridgeport areas of Connecticut. UI received the Edison Electric Institute’s Emergency Recovery Award recognizing the company’s response to the May 2018 storms that impacted its service territory. For more information, visit www.uinet.com. ​