[JayCT]

Since we have on going discussions on New Haven and Stamford. I thought it might be appropriate to start one for Hartford as well. I know we have one that discusses the new baseball stadium and the No Do neighborhood and another on the UConn Hartford branch but I thought those were too specific and we needed one that discussed Hartford development in general.

To begin with I saw this articles on Asylum Hill, the neighborhood immediately west of downtown and one the city's most diverse and interesting areas. Once the city's most affluent neighborhoods, it is home to three of the city's biggest employers: Aetna, The Hartford and St. Francis Hospital. It is also home to the Mark Twain House and Harriet Beecher Stowe House (located in an area called Nook Farm) as well as St. Joseph's Cathedral. The neighborhood has a lot of beautiful old brick houses too many of which are not well kept. The area also has a number of cheap 50's/60's apartment buildings that kind of ruin some of the streets. Unfortunately too is the area has some urban crime issues that scare away suburbanites. The article below talks about how the neighborhood is improving. I am not sure how real the improvements are and I do think the Aetna, The Hartford and St. Francis should be taking a much more active role in cleaning the area up. It would help them and the city as a whole. What do you think? Jay

NINA leads Asylum Hill's quiet housing comeback | HartfordBusiness.com

[JayCT]

Also just saw this article on the renovation of some historic apartment buildings in the Upper Albany neighborhood. They look nice. Jay

$13M Upper Albany apt. makeover done | HartfordBusiness.com

[MrGompers]

One project I know of is called "Town Center West" in Rocky Hill on RT 3. They have already started clearing the land, so this is a go.

Town Center West - Rocky Hill, CT - Restaurants, Retail

You can't see it in the plans since it's not part of the center, but diagonally across the street (next to Dunkin Donuts) they are building a new Cumberland Farms. The building is already up. Not sure if they are adding gas pumps too, but I would guess so.

I can remember when Rt 3 thru Rocky Hill was one lane in each direction. I do wonder why all these strip malls have to go up and who's spending money in these shops? I sure am not. I also do not think residents of Rocky Hill, Cromwell, and Wethersfield have the disposable income to support all these shops unlike Avon or West Hartford. In those towns it makes sense.

[HumpDay]

Hopefully this thread doesn't get forgotten like most threads. With all the things going on in Hartford, i wont be surprised if stuff gets posted everyday.

I remember when the Asylum Hills neighborhood was the place to be. As you can tell this was a very long time ago. This was back when the Travelers Tower was the tallest building in the city and when 777 Main Street was being constructed. I was just beginning to walk then. I remember there was a baseball field where the The Hartford complex is located today. I knew people who property around the baseball field. I remember the Hartford Fire Company Insurance Building was there but many nice buildings where destroyed by urban planners who wanted it to be a modern metropolis. This led to hundreds of millions of dollars being poured into downtown in the 1980's while the outer neighborhoods rotted. Developers had no interest in these neighborhoods to begin with. They knew they could make money downtown because suburban folks had the wealth while we just watched. I can tell you it has gotten ALOT better than the 1980's but you can still see struggle today. I have seen improvement in the Asylum Hills neighborhood within past decade but they need to completely start over because we are in a position where it is hard to move forward from where we are. If money wasn't a problem i'd completely tear down Interstate 84 and reconnect everyone and everything. Put the highway underground and do what they did in Boston.

The thing with Asylum Hills is that I don't want to call the home owners not responsible for not keeping their homes up to shape because its their homes and they can do whatever they want. I just wish the area could clean itself up. If you drive around the Sigourney Square Park you will find many vacant homes and places where you can tell there has been abuse. Of course i cant speak for all the people who live in that area but many homes in that area are very old and historic. Many of the homes remind me of places in New Britain. The problem is too much urban sprawl and not enough urban infill, crime, and lack of amenities. Hopefully the renovations of the historic apartment buildings will be successful. We need to preserve what we have because we have a history of demolishing stuff. The only thing we need to demolish is Interstate 84 and redo it.

[wtby4000]

Originally Posted by HumpDay

The thing with Asylum Hills is that I don't want to call the home owners not responsible for not keeping their homes up to shape because its their homes and they can do whatever they want.

That's not how it works.

[Mr_250]

Originally Posted by HumpDay

The thing with Asylum Hills is that I don't want to call the home owners not responsible for not keeping their homes up to shape because its their homes and they can do whatever they want. I just wish the area could clean itself up.

From the article. "Barely 10 percent, or 624, of the approximately 6,500 dwellings in Asylum Hill are owner-occupied; the rest are rented apartments.."

That's the problem, no pride. Hartford back in the day was kept up because people had pride in their community. It didn't matter how much (or little) you made, a person bought a home and kept it up. Community pride is infectious. Hartford is, and always will be, an office park city. You might get these feel good stories every now and then but until the schools, crime and economy get back on track Hartford will remain stagnant.

[MrGompers]

Originally Posted by HumpDay

Hopefully this thread doesn't get forgotten like most threads. With all the things going on in Hartford, i wont be surprised if stuff gets posted everyday.

I remember the Hartford Fire Company Insurance Building was there but many nice buildings where destroyed by urban planners who wanted it to be a modern metropolis. This led to hundreds of millions of dollars being poured into downtown in the 1980's while the outer neighborhoods rotted. Developers had no interest in these neighborhoods to begin with. They knew they could make money downtown because suburban folks had the wealth while we just watched. I can tell you it has gotten ALOT better than the 1980's but you can still see struggle today.

I'm afraid this thread is veering off topic and I'm a contributor to that. I found this video a while ago. It's worth a look if you know Hartford.


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tblFuGn1OS8

"Northend of Hartford - Come by Here." Filmed in 1983 while City Place was going up. I'm from New Britain and would visit Hartford on occasion, but I don't remember it looking this bad. Also, keep in mind that "crack" wasn't invented yet and despite that these neighborhoods were still destroyed.

Another Hartford video containing some of the same streets filmed 24 years later (in 2007)

VIDEO IS NSFW DUE TO MUSIC. IT'S TUPAC, SO IF YOU DON'T LIKE BAD WORDS AND/OR TUPAC TURN OFF THE SOUND.


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YxIU4d5BxS0

[HumpDay]

Originally Posted by MrGompers

I'm afraid this thread is veering off topic and I'm a contributor to that. I found this video a while ago. It's worth a look if you know Hartford.


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tblFuGn1OS8

"Northend of Hartford - Come by Here." Filmed in 1983 while City Place was going up. I'm from New Britain and would visit Hartford on occasion, but I don't remember it looking this bad. Also, keep in mind that "crack" wasn't invented yet and despite that these neighborhoods were still destroyed.

Wow thanks for sharing.

Yup I've seen this before. Brings back memories. I thought this was the start of something better. I'm speaking for downtown not the outer neighborhoods but those areas don't look as bad today as they used to.

[Mr_250]

Does anyone think that the developers should put the casino in Hartford? Either add it to the XL center or retro-fit it in there. It will add the entertainment aspect to the "slots in a box." It's centrally located which is nice too.

Also, any word on the outlet shops planned for the old P&W Site near Cabela's? They said they want it open in the Summer of 2016, which doesn't seem feasible. (http://articles.courant.com/2014-03-...enter-web-site)

Off Topic: I went to the new Foxwoods Outlets and was completely underwhelmed. CT doesn't need anymore outlet malls.IMO

[MrGompers]

Originally Posted by Mr_250

Does anyone think that the developers should put the casino in Hartford? Either add it to the XL center or retro-fit it in there. It will add the entertainment aspect to the "slots in a box." It's centrally located which is nice too.

Also, any word on the outlet shops planned for the old P&W Site near Cabela's? They said they want it open in the Summer of 2016, which doesn't seem feasible. (East Hartford's Rentschler Field To Get Outlet Shopping Center - tribunedigital-thecourant)

Off Topic: I went to the new Foxwoods Outlets and was completely underwhelmed. CT doesn't need anymore outlet malls.IMO

No. I don't think there's room in Hartford and there isn't enough free or cheap parking. The most logical place would be at the old Showcase Cinema's property in East Hartford off I-84. Since it's the most logical place that's exactly why it won't be built there though.