HARTFORD - Once (and Future?) Great City

[HartfordTycoon]

If DeStafano gets elected good luck getting a pro team or a new arena. He let the New Haven coliseum get leveled and plans on leaving the city without a arena, let New Haven lose its minor league baseball team, is more in favor of the arts than any kind of sports, has publicly said he is against funding a new arena in Hartford and is all pro Fairfield County. Basically if this guy got elected it would be like having the capital in New Haven or Stamford.

Well, that sounds awful. I'm not sure it would be that bad. Malloy's city seems to be the darling of big business, however that is more than likely due to geography. I'm not sure who I'm voting for yet...

I personally would like to see a more favorable business climate. I would love to see the unions lose their grip on everything, but I don't want to see a bunch of illegals building everything in Hartford, which in my observation seems to be the case where the unions are weaker like in GA and FL, and I'm pretty sure most of the south and southwest.

[drc72]

Well, that sounds awful. I'm not sure it would be that bad. Malloy's city seems to be the darling of big business, however that is more than likely due to geography. I'm not sure who I'm voting for yet...

I personally would like to see a more favorable business climate. I would love to see the unions lose their grip on everything, but I don't want to see a bunch of illegals building everything in Hartford, which in my observation seems to be the case where the unions are weaker like in GA and FL, and I'm pretty sure most of the south and southwest.

The non-union areas seem to have a stronger economy these days.

[damus]

Fortunately Rell has a very high approval rating and when November rolls around I'm definitely voting for her. DeStafano and Maloy are both jokes as far as I am concerned.

I don't think of them as jokes, they're formidable opponents... I just don't wanna vote for them.

Ned Lamont pisses me off.. his first commercial and every other commerical has been an attack ad directed at Lieberman.... then after Lieberman retaliated he had a personal message urging us to not listen to Joe's petty attacks and to focus on the issues, then urged us to go to his website. F*ck Ned Lamont, I hope he chokes on his silver spoon (not serious, right now I just lack a better way to say I hate him).

DeStefano DEFINATELY could win over my vote, there's no doubt about it. If the election was tomorrow I'd vote for Rell. I just have too many concerns about the guy between not trusting politicians for their promises and that he seems to be an antibusiness Democrat who would further drain our surplus (hooray for Casino surplus!!!!) and put it towards a flawed universal health care system...

[TaylorG4444]

maybe one of us should run for governor....

[drc72]

maybe one of us should run for governor....

LOL! We would probably be better candiates, than what's currently out there.

[ctman987]

Malloy has done wonders for Stamford but Stamford is also very close to New York City which helps his city a lot and I hope Malloy does not only care about Stamford and Fairfield County.

DeStefano....hmmm....sports have died in New Haven, the business scene is more Hartford then New Haven but the arts has thrived and retail has thrived but that is basically because of Yale. Yale has made retail blossom and there are many yale theaters in the city and who wouldn't want to open a theater/performing arts venue in a downtown area that is home to one of the nations best colleges which explains the city's strong arts sector so New Haven's success is more Yale then DeStefano. If he does not care for Hartford then I do not care for him

Yes Rell was under Rowland...but Rowland did help Hartford...and while in office thus far Rell has not done an awful job and so she'd get my vote...right now at least

[drc72]

Malloy has done wonders for Stamford but Stamford is also very close to New York City which helps his city a lot and I hope Malloy does not only care about Stamford and Fairfield County.

DeStefano....hmmm....sports have died in New Haven, the business scene is more Hartford then New Haven but the arts has thrived and retail has thrived but that is basically because of Yale. Yale has made retail blossom and there are many yale theaters in the city and who wouldn't want to open a theater/performing arts venue in a downtown area that is home to one of the nations best colleges which explains the city's strong arts sector so New Haven's success is more Yale then DeStefano. If he does not care for Hartford then I do not care for him

Yes Rell was under Rowland...but Rowland did help Hartford...and while in office thus far Rell has not done an awful job and so she'd get my vote...right now at least

Rowland has done wonders for the city. It's a shame that he was ethically bad. I think Rell has been doing a good job and I can see her supporting a new arena.

[MadVlad]

Yep, Rowland did great, he was personally responsible for our only professional franchise leaving...

[drc72]

Yep, Rowland did great, he was personally responsible for our only professional franchise leaving...

How was he personally responsible? Yes he could of tried harder no question there, but Karmanos wanted out period!!! Rowland could of offered him the world and he still would of left. You want to blame somebody? Blame weicker! The other group that bidded on the Whaler's was offering to stay at least 7 years and weicker turned them down flat. If anybody should be held personally responsible, it should be weicker!

[Captain59]

If anybody should be held personally responsible, it should be weicker!

Although I believe Karmanos initially wanted to make it work here and after a while got sick of Rowland and made up his mind to leave no matter what, Weicker absolutely is to blame. Karmanos should never have been in a position to move the team because he never should have been owner. Weicker gave Karmanos the team for his own personal benefit. (We all know Weicker is sitting pretty on Compuware's board.)

Rutherford really wanted the team to stay until the very end. He worked closely with Rell and tired to make it work. From what I've heard it was Rutherford who convinced Karmanos to consider the deal after the announcement was made to build an arena in Middletown. But it was just too little, too late. Karmanos wanted nothing to do with Rowland. In the end, I think that's what it boiled down to.

[drc72]

Although I believe Karmanos initially wanted to make it work here and after a while got sick of Rowland and made up his mind to leave no matter what, Weicker absolutely is to blame. Karmanos should never have been in a position to move the team because he never should have been owner. Weicker gave Karmanos the team for his own personal benefit. (We all know Weicker is sitting pretty on Compuware's board.)

Rutherford really wanted the team to stay until the very end. He worked closely with Rell and tired to make it work. From what I've heard it was Rutherford who convinced Karmanos to consider the deal after the announcement was made to build an arena in Middletown. But it was just too little, too late. Karmanos wanted nothing to do with Rowland. In the end, I think that's what it boiled down to.

Middletown?????? So what happened with karmanos and rowland that it became so bitter between them?

[uconn99]

It is a shame that he was ethically bad, however sometimes that works, look at Providence. However, that corupt Providence mayor did a lot more for that city than Rowland ever did for Hartford.

[MadVlad]

Was Rowland exclusively responsible? No. Is he directly responsible? yes. He thought he had the Pats rapped up, he couldn't have given a crap about the Whalers. If he had put one iota of effort in, they might still be here. Listen, I understand there are many layers of blame to go around, and many have as much crap on their hands as Rowland, i.e. Weicker and Karmanos. However, Rowland is the guy that could have made this work. Instead, he turned his back. He is directly responsible.

[damus]

It is a shame that he was ethically bad, however sometimes that works, look at Providence. However, that corupt Providence mayor did a lot more for that city than Rowland ever did for Hartford.

A lot of people argue that there are others who did and are still doing a lot of the work and that Buddy Cianci got in the way a lot, to boost his ego and his wallet. Look at all the development going on now that you don't have to deal with the mafia to get stuff done around there. If the business climate was decent over there Providence would be the biggest boomtown in America.

[drc72]

It is a shame that he was ethically bad, however sometimes that works, look at Providence. However, that corupt Providence mayor did a lot more for that city than Rowland ever did for Hartford.

Well in all fairness, Rowland was probably the only governer that really made some sort of an effort to help Hartford revitalize. Ethically he was no good, and yes he could of made more of effort to help keep the Whaler's in town.

[paul514]

Some of the obstacles to making Hartford a great city have already been mentioned and I agree with many of the points made above. I for one think that one of the biggest obstacles facing Hartford is the inability to think outside of the box and be a dynamic place. Part of this is rooted in the culture of the city, it's a fairly conservative place with a parochial outlook. It seems that the most innovative urban planners in the area would be content for Hartford to become another Providence. I for one would like to see the Hartford area become a world class city.

I think Hartford leaders need to stop comparing Hartford to other cities in the region, and especially stop looking to the suburbs. Urban planners need to start thinking of ways to showcase Hartford as an urban center that offers a lifestyle much different from its suburbs and should market itself as such. For starters I would try to get urban planners and advisors from cities all over the world, especially those that consistently rank high up on Mercer's annual Quality of Living survey. The link is below for those of you who are curious to see this year's results.

http://www.citymayors.com/features/quality_survey.html

I've been fortunate to have visited many of the top cities on the list and lived in one for four years (Vancouver). One thing that sets the top cities apart from Hartford is their ability to be truly global rather than provincial in outlook. What are the examples? First off, Hartford needs upscale shopping with boutiques, jewellery stores, etc that cannot be found in suburban malls. The greater Hartford region has lots of wealth yet I'm constantly surprised by the lack of upscale shopping. By upscale I mean boutiques such as Armani, Versace, Ermengildo Zegna, Herm

[damus]

These are just my ideas for a more dynamic city by using what I've seen as successful ideas from other cities. I think for Hartford to truly be a great city it needs to be world class and that means making it attractive and yes trendy. Hartford has some excellent architecture that people in Vancouver would have killed for. They made the most out of their city and with the wealth in this region coupled with the geographic location I think Hartford has untapped potential. A favorable business climate must be created though as well as a city and state government willing to lower taxes in the region to create the right sort of growth. Sorry for the long ramble but ever since I've returned to Hartford I've been thinking of all of these things.

Great post and welcome to UP! I think Hartford was thinking of itself as a major city, but not a world class city, back when I was younger. Today, the people and even the newscasters talk about Hartford like it's this small boring city. Hartford has a lot of the same types of colonial gems that Boston has, and they also have the Traveler's Tower and the best looking State Capitol I've ever seen. Providence has made great strides while Hartford (from an outsider's perspective, like me) has regressed for many years. Hartford still has a stronger corporate presence than Providence, but the image isn't there. As for the rail, I'm happy that they're at least going to do the New Haven to Springfield rail. Let's see if they give it a chance to succeed. It could be the start of some good things.

It's sad, but Hartford is not viewed as being hip at all. I chose to go to college in Providence even though the University of Hartford for some odd reason offered me an 18k per year scholarship (I guess based on need and high SATs???). My idea was if I was going to be spending 4 years somewhere I'd better enjoy it, and Providence was known to be and proved to be fun for me. Where will Hartford go from where it is now?

[siracusano]

I've always thought Hartford lacks upscale retail. Even if the market doesn't exactly exist for boutiques like Armani and Versace, I am pretty sure there are plenty of college age kids with money that would buy from places like Armani Exchange, French Connection, Diesel, Guess (the closest one is all the way in Holyoke), Urban Outfitters, (New Haven), or at least a Lacoste. These types of stores aren't necessarily all that expensive, but surpass stores that you find in a regular mall like West Farms or Buckland. That is, it might be a risk to hope for people in the Hartford area to drop 500 dollars on Versace jeans, but I'm pretty sure plenty of people around here would spend half that for something like Diesel. I think no real city should be without places like this and perhaps if put together in one location, these places would really do well. How can we call Hartford a national city if we have to travel to another state just to find a Lacoste store? At least I know I'm tired of driving to Boston just to go to AX.

[SOCOM]

Some great ideas all around. Just keep in mind that Hartford is in its infancy in terms of its revitalization. Nothing really got going until late 2001/early 2002 with the construction of the Convention Center and Rentschler Field. Most of the 1,000+ apartments/condos planned for downtown haven't even opened yet. Even though the "master plan" came out for Hartford in the fall of 1998 (Adriaen's Landing, Ken Greenberg), our rebirth has only been going on since 2002. It's going to take a good 5-10 years before we start to see major changes. Right now, 4 years in, we are only on the cusp of what should be an exicting time for the city in the near future.

We have tons of work to do (street improvements, retail, affordable housing, fixing image problems), but the seeds have been planted - they just need to grow.

[drc72]

Some great ideas all around. Just keep in mind that Hartford is in its infancy in terms of its revitalization. Nothing really got going until late 2001/early 2002 with the construction of the Convention Center and Rentschler Field. Most of the 1,000+ apartments/condos planned for downtown haven't even opened yet. Even though the "master plan" came out for Hartford in the fall of 1998 (Adriaen's Landing, Ken Greenberg), our rebirth has only been going on since 2002. It's going to take a good 5-10 years before we start to see major changes. Right now, 4 years in, we are only on the cusp of what should be an exicting time for the city in the near future.

We have tons of work to do (street improvements, retail, affordable housing, fixing image problems), but the seeds have been planted - they just need to grow.

Slowly but surely we are getting there.

[Luca Brasi]

I have been a big advocate of retail downtown that is more upscale and not your typical national mall chains. A/X, Diesel, FC, H&M, Kenneth Cole, Room & Board, Virgin Records, etc. are the types of retail that will succeed and stick downtown. They're urban and trendy and not too expensive. Another GAP, another Bannana Republic, another Ann Taylor etc. is not going to cut it and will fail just like they did at the Civic Center and at Pratt Street years ago.

Connecticut's towns possess enormous wealth and can easily support these retailers. This is the type of retail needed to draw suburbanites and their dollars into Hartford and to make downtown a destination.

[ctman987]

Hartford needs to offer things that the suburbs cant. Shops that are not at the malls but in Hartford will draw people into the city. New Haven is home to numerous shops and restaurants many of which are not chain stores or are not located in area malls which means people have to go to New Haven to shop and eat at these establishments.....the same goes for West Hartford Center.

In terms of being hip I hate to say it New Haven I think has Hartford and yes Providence beat. Providence has numerous colleges but the fact that Brown and RISD are located on College Hill and not in downtown Providence does not help. College Hill is a beutiful area that resembles Martha's Vinyard and Boston's Back Bay but these colleges are still not downtown like Yale is. Yale's students walk out there door and they are in New Haven. To get something to eat, drink, etc. they have to do it in downtown New Haven which is oppisite for suburbanites and college students who are not in a walkable community. Yale has boosted the retail sector in downtown New Haven and has helped convinced many retailers to open downtown and many people to visit downtown. And when these people come to shop and eat they are not doing so at a mall in the middle of the city they are walking around.

Now with that in mind Hartford has an extremly strong corporate presence which is extremly helpful for Hartford area college students who can get jobs and internships at places like The Hartford, AETNA, Hartford Steam Boiler, Phoenix, St. Paul Travelers, MetLife, ING, etc. Hartford does a nightlife scene which can be found right in downtown and features places for college students as well as trendy upscale places like Club 960.

I do not know as much about Providence but Providence is a great city that is improving every day. How many mid sized cities can say they are having a coporate headquarters being constructed in the heart of their downtown ( GTECH is constructing their headquarters downtown during a time when many companies are moving to the suburbs). Providence is home to many well known colleges...Providence College, Brown, RISD, J&W.

And on a completly differant note Paul514 your idea on revamping the North Meadows is a great idea. Many cities have areas in addition to their downtowns that offer mixed use retail, residential, and office space that may be housed in low rise type structures similar to West Hartford Center for example as opposed to the skyscrapers in a downtown area. Hartford has other areas of the city but could use better ones. For example the Chestnut Hill area of Philadelphia is filled with trendy shops and is part of Philadelphia but is 30 minutes outside of Center City/Downtown. Now Hartford is not that big because in 30 minutes your not in Hartford anymore so on a smaller scale make the North Meeadow's Hartford's Chestnut Hill

[beerbeer]

New Haven has the 12 billion dollar Yale endowment behind it. Not many cities can match it.

Providence has a suburban mall in the middle of downtown. I don't think Hartford should make the same mistake.

Let real urban retail take shape as the businesses and downtown residents make it economically viable. It may lag development and take longer to take root but that will serve the city well in the long run. In this regard, trusting in free enterprise will produce the best result.

[HartfordTycoon]

New Haven has the 12 billion dollar Yale endowment behind it. Not many cities can match it.

Providence has a suburban mall in the middle of downtown. I don't think Hartford should make the same mistake.

Let real urban retail take shape as the businesses and downtown residents make it economically viable. It may lag development and take longer to take root but that will serve the city well in the long run. In this regard, trusting in free enterprise will produce the best result.

I agree, I don't want a mall in Downtown Hartford. Give things time to happen and they will.

[Jerry2]

New Haven has the 12 billion dollar Yale endowment behind it. Not many cities can match it.

Providence has a suburban mall in the middle of downtown. I don't think Hartford should make the same mistake.

Let real urban retail take shape as the businesses and downtown residents make it economically viable. It may lag development and take longer to take root but that will serve the city well in the long run. In this regard, trusting in free enterprise will produce the best result.

The mall in Providence is far from suburban. It fits into the fabric of the city and has retail and restaurants that open to the main road. The main reason it is succesful is because it's NOT a suburban mall.