🔒Copps Island’s New Haven expansion could help make CT the ‘Napa Valley of oysters’

Butter, spinach, parmesan cheese and the brininess of fresh shellfish come together to make “Copp’s Rocks” prepared oysters something special — the taste of the sea fresh from your very own freezer and on sale weekly in New Haven’s Fair Haven neighborhood.

Soon a private company, the city of New Haven and the state will come together in the hopes of making those Long Island Sound oysters more of an economic boon for the region.

Copps Island Oysters, the Norwalk-based maker of those tasty prepared shellfish, plans a major expansion along the banks of the Quinnipiac River in New Haven’s Fair Haven neighborhood.

The plan, going through the initial permitting process with the city, proposes two new buildings on Copps Island’s property at 610 Quinnipiac Ave., on the east side of the river.

Most significant from an economic standpoint, is a new oyster hatchery that would allow Copps Island to grow baby shellfish to a more viable size before being “farmed” on the floor of Long Island Sound. Currently, the “seed” is farmed directly into the sound, putting the oyster larvae at risk from storms.

“The hatchery is going to be an alternative source of seed if Mother Nature doesn’t cooperate,” said Jimmy Bloom, co-owner of Copps Island with his father, Norm.

The second proposed new structure in New Haven would house a processing facility where harvested oysters would be prepared for shipment to customers around the country, or processed into value-added products.

Once in full operation, the new buildings would employ 60 people, the company said. In addition, three historic buildings on the site would be relocated to be adjacent to the new structures.

Neighbors have been generally supportive of the expansion although some have expressed concern about the size and scale of the new buildings, the New Haven Independent has reported.

The COVID-19 pandemic has delayed permitting for the project but Copps Island hopes to break ground in mid-2023.

“It takes a while,” Bloom said of the process. “We had to put things on hold because of COVID last year and that extended it longer.”

“It’s a natural fit,” he added about the construction of a hatchery in New Haven, due to the site’s access to the Quinnipiac estuary’s ideal mix of fresh and saltwater. “That’s what oysters like.”

The New Haven expansion will also benefit from its proximity to Copps Island’s 14,000 acres of offshore oyster beds.

Although the company is based in Norwalk, most of Copps Island’s beds are in shallow waters near New Haven, with many actually in New Haven Harbor.

Historical, family legacy

Before European settlement, Quinnipiac native people harvested oysters at sites along the Quinnipiac River in what would be New Haven for centuries, and the city was central to the Northeast oyster industry through the 1800s until pollution fouled the Sound.

Jimmy Bloom’s father, Norm, remembers the nadir of the industry in the 1970s, when New Haven’s waters seemed hopelessly polluted from industry, sewage and garbage.

“My father talks about how dirty New Haven Harbor was,” Jimmy Bloom said. “It’s amazing how much it’s cleaned up since then.”

Unlike the state’s lobster industry — decimated due to warming waters — oystering is thriving despite climate change, Bloom said. The oysters harvested in Connecticut are the same hardy species that grow from Maine to Mexico.

“This species of oysters is naturally adaptable to temperatures,” Bloom said. “I don’t see global warming being an issue for shellfish production — warmer water only makes them grow faster.”

In addition, oysters act as natural filters, cleaning water of algae and organic particles that can lead to ecosystem imbalances.

Bloom’s family has been oystering since the early 1940s, with his father and uncles running the historic Tallmadge Brothers Oyster Co. until 1989. Norm Bloom established Copps Island in 1994.

Copps Island is now one of the largest oyster farms on the East Coast, operating 15 boats and employing about 50 people across the state. The company’s products are sold wholesale and exported across the country and world.

Oystering in Connecticut generates about $15 million a year, according to state estimates, with shellfish production and other forms of aquaculture seen as a growth industry.

Citing that economic promise, Gov. Ned Lamont signed a bill into law in July that allows for shellfish and seaweed beds in the Sound to be taxed at the same favorable rate as terrestrial farmland. More than 70,000 underwater acres in the state are currently being used for aquaculture, state officials said at the time.

“Agriculture and aquaculture are the same thing,” Lamont said. “They’re all about using our natural resources in the best way possible to benefit the most people possible and that can be on land or at sea.”

The governor singled out Copps Island and its role in the growth of aquaculture along the state’s shoreline.

“We already have great oysters, and this bill will make us the Napa Valley of oysters,” Lamont said.

Hopes of economic gains

New Haven officials also see the dollar signs in those oyster shells, hoping for more jobs and tax revenue to come from the Copps Island expansion.

“What you're doing by farming the bottom of the ocean — it creates jobs, it supports New Haven, it supports our community and it's good for the environment,” New Haven Mayor Justin Elicker said at an event at the expansion site celebrating National Oyster Day on Aug. 5.

“The historical significance of oystering in Fair Haven can't be understated,” said New Haven Deputy Economic Development Administrator Carlos Eyzaguirre. “This was founded as an oystering neighborhood. ... It’s great to see a traditional business like oystering thriving here.”

Copps Island was also praised by city officials for its work with the neighborhood, striving to allay many concerns about a major new industrial site in a mostly residential area.

An ongoing issue had been the “shell pile,” the odiferous mountain of oyster shells created every winter in preparation for seeding. The smell had been a contentious issue in the neighborhood for years until Copps Island started treating the pile with a nontoxic deodorizer.

‘Brand awareness’

As the city grinds through its process for the expansion, business was slow but steady at the Copps Island “farm stand” in New Haven on a recent Saturday in August. Cars pull off of Quinnipiac Avenue and steer down a steep driveway to find the farm stand tent on a gravel lot spangled with oyster shells.

Set up in front of an administrative building, the stand offers fresh oysters, fresh-caught fish and scallops from Stonington and frozen oysters prepared casino and Rockefeller style. Fresh oysters sell for 60 cents each, 20 for $12 and 100 for $60. Littleneck, cherrystone and shucked clams are also on offer.

“We do the farm stands mostly for outreach to the public,” Jimmy Bloom said.

Bloom seems aware that an ancient industry might need some positive public relations in an era of neighborhood activism and heightened environmental consciousness.

“For us, we get the brand awareness and exposure to the public, which I think is a good thing,” Bloom added. “People like to come down and know where their products come from and experience seeing the boats in operation and getting good product at a good price.”

City officials see the Blooms’ efforts as key to a potential boon for the city’s economy.

“There are definitely growing opportunities for aquaculture in New Haven,” said Economic Development Officer Dean Mack. “We’re trying to help the Blooms grow to promote that.”