mudcrab

how about a list of prominent businesses that are located/headquatered in the area (like United Technologies)? Also, you might like to add the Wadsworth, R.A.W. etc to the Arts list.

asylumhill, thanks for the info! Do you happen to know where the other garage with the shuttle actually is? (I'll actually be trying to go into NYC two nights during each working week - hence my very real concern about parking). Oh, for everyone else... another thing I noticed about 55 on the park is that while the two elevators are gleaming, they didn't seem to do anything at all to refurbish the stairwells. They're really kinda grotty - it doesn't befit the place at all. and yes, the ceilings in the apartments are rather high as MadVlad noted... One other thing, the bloke from the courant who's always writing about Hartford complained about the landfill up on I-91 a while ago... I have to admit, I never really noticed it until I looked out for it especially when I was coming in on I-91 S the other day... and I have to say it doesn't really look all that bad. I think I probably just mistook it for a hill. The Truck Depot on the other side of the freeway is more unsightly IMHO. - mudcrab

okay, so 55 on the park... it's actually pretty good, really. I live in one of the one-bedrooms (along the "long" northern side of the building) with a lovely view of the SBC building Oh, well, I imagine it's much cheaper than the park side ones and I can always see the park if I want to. I do rather like the way my apartment is laid out; the kictchen and bathrooms are both beautiful, I do appreciate having grey (rather then beige) carpet, and I like the solid doors and wooden closets. The gym downstairs is adequate and there's a nice room with a pool table down there too. And now for some things that aren't quite so wonderful... 1. The parking situation in the lot next to the building is kinda awkward at times (with two rows of cars on either side and the need to leave the attendent your keys if you're blocking someone). I'm sure this is nothing compared to parking in NYC, but it's a little different to what I'm used to. 2. Various little things in my apartment give the impression that the people who made it didn't care all that much. There are various depressions and uneven parts on the walls that nobody bothered to fill in, and rough parts in the paint job. The floor over which the carpet runs is also a bit uneven in places (with bumps and even a metal plate to be stepped on in the bedroom). 3. I always hear the sound of running water in the pipe-work; I'm not sure if this is typical of mid-rise living but I'd kinda like to get away from it sometimes... Overall, it's pretty good, though and I'd recommend it. The concierge and security guys downstairs are very nice (as are most of the other dwellers, it seems, but I haven't gotten too much of a chance to talk to them - but I'm on "nod-hello" terms with quite a few ). - mudcrab

Hi, I was just encouraged by JayHass's revival of the "moving to hartford from Atlanta" thread to post something of my own. I just moved here a week ago from California; I'm currently living in 55 on the park (subleasing for 6 months with an option to stay longer) and working in east hartford and, basically, I'm trying to make sense of the Greater Hartford area. I've actually been lurking on this board for a few months now, as well as regularly reading articles in the Courant pertaining to downtown development, so I already have some sense of what's going on and the big issues that everyone is concerned about. In particular, I'm in agreement with everyone else who is astonished and appalled at the sea of surface parking in downtown and more than a little frustrated with the glacial pace at which the colt/sage allen/front street/springfield-hartford-new haven rail-line projects are progressing. Overall, I guess I'm optimistic for Hartford, though, and I hope to play some small part in reversing its fortunes (hopefully something more than just being another downtown resident). I did want to ask a question of you all, though - one that the residents of this area might have a good perspective on. Basically, what are the options for getting to and from NYC from here? It looks like I might actually try to go in for grad school two weeknights per week starting in the fall (granted, this might seem like a bit of a crazy proposition but my company is willing to pay for all my tuition etc so it makes sense to me). Of course, if we had a better rail link with New Haven it'd be cake; since we don't, however, I'm kinda pondering the option of driving to New Haven to then catch metro north... except, that there's a huge parking problem at the station there (apparently) and it might still be full when I arrive in the mid-late afternoon. I guess I was just wondering what you all thought of the issue of getting to NYC in general (and perhaps my little problem in particular). Oh, and does anyone have any good recommendations for furniture stores (I went to Bob's, the Puritan Outlet and Raymour and Flannigan today, but wasn't sure they had precisely what I was looking for). Thanks! Mudcrab