Naugatuck Valley Planning Region, Connecticut
The Naugatuck Valley Planning Region is a planning region and county-equivalent in the U.S. state of Connecticut. It is served by the coterminous Naugatuck Valley Council of Governments. In 2022, planning regions were approved to replace Connecticut's counties as county-equivalents for statistical purposes, with full implementation occurring by 2024.
Geography
The Naugatuck Valley Planning Region lies in west-central Connecticut, spanning urban centers and rural towns along the Naugatuck River. The region covers approximately 412.8 sq mi and includes both densely populated cities like Waterbury and Shelton, and smaller towns such as Bethlehem and Oxford. Major transportation routes such as Interstate 84 and Route 8 serve as key regional corridors.Demographics
As of the 2020 United States census, there were 450,376 people living in the Naugatuck Valley Planning Region.Government and Planning
The region is governed by the Naugatuck Valley Council of Governments, which provides shared services and regional planning coordination. NVCOG oversees long-term transportation, land use, environmental, and economic strategies, and works with the U.S. Economic Development Administration to implement the region’s Comprehensive Economic Development Strategy.Municipalities
The following municipalities are members of the Naugatuck Valley Region:Cities
- Ansonia
- Bristol
- Derby
- Shelton
- Waterbury
Towns
- Beacon Falls
- Bethlehem
- Cheshire
- Middlebury
- Naugatuck
- Oxford
- Plymouth
- Prospect
- Seymour
- Southbury
- Thomaston
- Watertown
- Wolcott
- Woodbury