beerbeer

I was in downtown a couple of weekends ago. There were four significant apartment projects underway. Three conversations and one new construction. Arch Street -53 units Pearl Street -258 units Radisson Hotel -96 units Asylum - 60 units All of these should open in 2019. It doesn't seem to matter how many units they build. They fill up fast. Much faster than anyone anticipated. The city is changing very rapidly.

The streetscape is starting to round into shape.The new Trumbull Street is finished and has new lighting. The scoreboard in left is framed and looks huge.

Latest developments finished steelwork on the exterior of the stadium should start up shortly scoreboard delivery and installation early next week sod installation in mid-March; unveiling of the exterior façade of the ballpark Team owner Josh Solomon also announced that the team will hold its first job fair March 26 at the Wilson-Gray YMCA on Albany Avenue.

The city approved the 5.5 million to take the park to finish. This is from February 22nd. This should be a spectacular addition to the city especially night games. By this time next year, the Hard Rock should be going up in the parking lot just left of the stadium.

I flew to Lisbon in 2014. It's really tough to get a non-stop from the most of the USA. I ended up going from DC to Frankfurt to Lisbon. This might end up being a good idea for both Hartford and Lisbon as the competition is not very hot. BTW, loved Portugal.

The city made its own trouble. They changed a bunch of specs after receiving the bid. In the long run it won't matter but this gives the usual group of suspects some time to chirp, gnash their teeth and hate on Hartford. The park is still moving along bit by bit as the world turns.

This is shaping up nicely. Looking from third base toward right field. And here to overall view with the field now cover in gravel.

If you check out the new construction photos. It finally looks like a ball park.

The current location closes at 3 PM on Saturday and is closed all day Sunday. It would be good if the move also coincided with longer week end hours.

I heard about the delay in starting the next phase but not the elimination of apartments. That would be a surprise. I think that location has virtually no competition and with a grocery store as part of the complex would fill up fast. The ball park itself is looking pretty good at this stage.

Don't know but USA Today reports the same September start up. Hartford, Conn. Aer Lingus’ Dublin-Hartford flights will launch Sept. 28 with one daily round-trip flight on Boeing 757 narrow-body aircraft. The new service is a boon for officials at Connecticut's Bradley International Airport, where Dublin will become the only trans-Atlantic flight on the current schedule. The Hartford Courant notes the “restoration of a trans-Atlantic flight has been a priority since the Connecticut Airport Authority was formed three years ago.” Hartford, of course, is on the smaller side of markets able to boast of daily trans-Atlantic service on a large airline. But the Connecticut capital sits in the densely populated I-95 corridor between New York City and Boston, giving it a large "catchment area" to pull customers from. "The key issue is it is a significant commercial metropolitan area, with a significant population and very high per-capita income, but it doesn't have a direct service to Europe," Aer Lingus CEO Stephen Kavanagh says to the Independent for a story headlined: "Hartford, Connecticut: Six things to know about Aer Lingus's newest destination."

Looks like September 2016 for Aer Lingus to begin flight to Dublin.

Occupancy of newest downtown apartments outpaces expectations.http://www.hartfordbusiness.com/article/20151012/PRINTEDITION/310099974/1043 Nice article from the HBJ. A very good sign for the apartments coming on line. "I was surprised at the pace,'' said Robert Arista, co-founder and president of Dakota Partners, the Massachusetts developer who bought and, with CRDA co-funding, renovated 179 Allyn and is converting a second building in the shadow of the State Capitol into apartments. "I wasn't surprised it filled up.''Occupancy percentages as of Sept. 15, for the other three completed conversions, according to CRDA include: 26-unit Grand on Ann (201 Ann Uccello St.), 77 percent; 286-unit 777 Main St., 65 percent; and 190-unit Spectra Boutique Apartments (5 Constitution Plaza), 44 percent.

Some news on the opening of Front Street Lofts. WFSB Channel 3 is excited to announce its partnership with The Big Mo’ 2015 which will take place on Oct. 3. Slated as the major fund raising event for Riverfront Recapture, this event aims to celebrate the positive changes in Hartford and East Hartford with a focus on locations near the River. Big Mo’ 2015 will be introducing the new lofts located on Front Street. There will be tours of a roof-top terrace as well as the apartments. Tenants will begin moving into the apartments immediately following the Big Mo’. Read more: http://www.wfsb.com/story/29924794/wfsb-partners-with-the-big-mo-2015#ixzz3luNahDOO

I thought the Lofts on Front Street were suppose to open in July? Obviously that ain't happening. Does anyone know when they are scheduled to start renting apartments? That wiill help both the economy and optics of Front Street.

In the city last week end. Took this shot from my hotel room. The north side already looks better. Just the construction is a huge improvement over the empty lots. My gut tells me this ball park will be a big success. I also stopped by Front Street on Friday night and the place was full of people. The apartments there are virtually finished. You could see (through a big hole in the back wall) that UConn has already stripped the Times Building down to its bones.

Top amenities desired by downtown landlords/tenants. http://www.hartfordbusiness.com/article/20150803/PRINTEDITION/307319973/1196

Annual effective rent growth for Hartford-West Hartford-East Hartford market was 3.2% in the second quarter of 2015. The national average is 5.0% but considering Connecticut is an economic basket case, this is a very good number. The area's occupancy rate is 96.8% which is a very good number, nationally very high. So what does it mean? Good news. The city seems to be absorbing the new apartments downtown and the market is still rising. These are numbers to watch. My guess is they are plenty of takers to fill the new capacity.

Cameron said he is scheduled to meet with Centerplan next week to continue deal negotiations. Cameron said he has also been looking at other Hartford properties, just in case. This could be to get leverage. But it's impossible to negotiate if you are not willing to walk away.

WATERBURY Republic American (today) — Early ridership counts for the state's first rapid bus transit system, CTfastrak, show an average of about 13,500 weekday riders using the system — enough to placate transit advocates, but several thousand users short of the long-run target.

This is an amazingly positive article about the apartment building boom with some interesting numbers and projections. http://www.courant.com/real-estate/property-line/hc-downtown-hartford-connecticut-apartments-20150503-story.html#page=1\ They (Spectra owners) said they expect the building to be nearly full in a year. Ravetz and Klaynberg say they are looking for new projects in Hartford. So far, they've been outbid on such properties as the recently sold Bushnell on the Park apartments. Bruce R. Becker, the developer of 777 Main, said he expects his first tenants to move in by the end of May. He said the 26-story tower already has 100 deposits, 35 percent of the building's 285 rentals. The Grand — a former Masonic Hall — has leased nine of its 26 units, with two more expected to be occupied by June 1. Allyn Street had 19 of its 63 rentals occupied as of mid-April with move-ins expected for another 18 units by late last week. Downtown Hartford had nearly 1,500 apartments and a vacancy rate hovering between 3 percent and 4 percent prior to this latest wave of building. Vacancy rates at the newest apartment complexes built a decade ago — Hartford 21, The Lofts at Main & Temple, Trumbull on the Park and others — are all in the low single-digits, according to CRDA, making it tough to find an apartment.

The University will hold an official groundbreaking ceremony at the Hartford Times building on Monday, May 18. The board also approved the purchase of a nearby structure, located at 38 Prospect Street, to provide additional academic space to the downtown campus. The cost of purchasing the building is included in the design budget. UConn officials say the acquisition is further evidence of the University’s commitment to Hartford. And it may allow UConn to start developing its presence there in advance of opening the main building.

oops

I think this was the thread about the original hotel development on Market Street. http://www.urbanplanet.org/forums/index.php/topic/42599-proposed-best-western-hotel-on-market-st/?hl=+best%20+western

Saw that the small hotel (eight floors) proposal from a few years back may actually get built. The plan was re-ignited by the ball park going up a block away.