HPD AND HFD MAKE QUICK ARREST OF SUSPECTED ARSONIST

Hartford, Conn. (September 28,2017) –   

 Today, the Hartford Police Department arrested a male suspected of starting three fires around the City. The incidents occurred in Keney park, on Oakland Terrace, and a mattress in a separate location at Keney Park.  

Around 11am, employees from the City of Hartford’s Department of Public Works (DPW) noticed a fire next to a storage container near the football field in Keney park.  Upon further investigation, they observed a male stoking that fire with a stick. The DPW employees immediately notified Hartford Police Department (HPD).  HPD promptly responded to the area and conducted a search for the suspect.  A short period later, the suspect was observed walking north on Oakland Terrace in the vicinity of 153 Oakland Terrace, where Hartford fire department (HFD) personnel were actively engaged in fire suppression activities on a detached garage. 

The suspect was taken into custody at the intersection of Greenfield Street and Oakland Terrace.  At the time of the arrest, the suspect had in his possession a plastic bottle with a flammable liquid, two lighters, and a bag of heroin. “The City of Hartford will utilize every resource to hold individuals who intentionally set fires accountable. I applaud the efforts of our DPW employee, Hartford Police Department and members of Hartford Fire Department’s Fire Marshal Office for their prompt action and professionalism” said Fire Chief Reginald Freeman.

Because of the collective efforts of members from DPW, HFD, and HPD, the City of Hartford is a little bit safer today.

HOMESTEAD AVENUE CLOSED DUE TO MDC WORK

EFFECTIVE IMMEDIATELY: ROAD CLOSURE ON HOMESTEAD UNTIL FURTHER NOTICE


HARTFORD, CONN (September 28, 2017) – This afternoon, Metropolitan District Commission (MDC) workers doing sewer repair work on Homestead Avenue discovered an approximately 20-foot long and approximately 14-foot deep void beneath the road surface along a sewer line.  They immediately contacted the City, and now the Hartford Police Department, Department of Public Works, and the MDC are working together to secure the area.  To prevent a potential collapse, Homestead Avenue is shut down to the general public between its intersection with Albany Avenue and its intersection with Woodland Street until further notice, effective immediately.


“We are taking this action as a necessary precaution, as we believe there is some risk that the void underneath the road on Homestead Avenue could have caused the road surface to collapse under extreme weight,” said interim Department of Public Works Director Reginald Freeman.  “The City and MDC are working closely together to determine the scope of the problem and we will update the public as we learn more.”


West-bound drivers on Homestead will be redirected either North or South on Woodland Street and drivers on Albany Avenue will not be able to turn onto Homestead Avenue at all.


Residents of Baltimore Street will be able to enter and exit the street from Albany Avenue because it’s a two-way street.  Kent, Adams, and Milford Streets will remain one-way streets but the Police Department will allow residents to use Homestead to enter or exit their street as needed.

IS HPD SERIOUS ABOUT HIRING?

From the "Get Hired Hartford" website:"Join Goodwill, NBC Connecticut and Hot 93.7 for the premiere career expo in the state. Over 70 employers will be on hand to hire for over 5,000 open positions. Job seekers can get their resume reviewed and updated onsite."

Surprisingly, or maybe not so surprisingly, the Hartford Police Department is missing from the list of over sixty employers who will be there next week. Despite the hype and publicity from HPD, I still keep getting calls from people who had made attempts to contact the HPD recruiters either through the website, e-mail or phone and have had no response back.

These recruiting positions almost need a sales type mentality and recruiters that are able to "close" the deal, unless of course the City of Hartford and HPD are not really serious about filling these much needed positions. Even the New York City Department of Corrections is coming to Hartford to recruit according to the list below, but HPD is apparently a no-show. Is it maybe just for show and there is no money to hire cops?

Let's get serious and do some real recruiting before we have a real Public Safety disaster on our hands

click her for more info on the "Get Hired Expo"

Here is the extent of the HPD recruitment webpage

Here is how NYPD recruits

Below is a listing of companies recruiting at the Get Hired Expo next week

• A Caring Hand (ECHN)
• Aetna
• Albertus Magnus College
• Allied Universal Security Services
• American Eagle Financial Credit Union
• Automated Business Solutions
• Big Y
• Burris Logistics
• Cabela's
• CBS Radio Hartford
• CEG-Center for Economic Growth
• Chili's Grill & Bar
• Combined Insurance
• Comcast
• Companions & Homemakers
• ConnectiCare
• Connecticut Community Bank
• Cox Communications
• CT Science Center
• CT Transit
• CTFastrak - CT DOT
• Data-Mail, Inc.
• Dattco
• District 53 Toastmasters
• Dominos
• Electrical Wholesalers
• Enterprise Holdings
• Expert Staffing
• Express Pros
• Farmers Insurance
• Fastenal Company
• FedEx
• Foresters Financial
• Goodwill
• Guida's Dairy
• Hartford Healthcare
• Hartford Public Schools
• Hilton, Courtyard, Convention Center Hyatt
• Home Depot
• Kaman
• Kelly Services
• Latin Premiere Insurance Marketing Group
• Liberty Bank
• Loureiro Engineering Associates
• M. Frank Higgins & Co.
• Macy's Warehouse & Logistics
• Marriott Htfd., Sheraton Bradley, Lord Jeffery Inn
• Merry Maids
• Michel's Corporation
• Morris Group
• NAFI CT, Inc.
• NBC Connecticut
• NESCOR
• NYC Dept of Correction
• Oak Hill
• People's United Bank
• Pratt & Whitney
• Project Genesis
• Raymour & Flanigan
• Securitas
• Southern Auto Auction
• The Hartford
• Tradebe Treatment & Recycling Northeast, LLC
• Trumpf
• Turbine Controls, Inc.
• Ultimate Nutrition, Inc.
• United Personnel Services
• United States Postal Service
• UPS
• Verizon
• Walgreens
• Walmart
• WB Mason
• Webster Bank
• Whole Foods
• XL Center
• YMCA of Greater Hartford

MORE TROUBLE IN THE KINGDOM OF LUKE

It appears that "team building" is not a strong point for Mayor Luke Bronin and his reign over the Kingdom that includes Hartford City Hall. Bronin's list of Department heads still left is dropping faster than the City's Bond Rating.

DPW Director, gone. MHIS Director ,gone. Health Director, gone. HR Director, gone. Police Chief, going. And now add to the list, Daryl Hill, the Finance Director who resigned today effective November 4, 2017.

It is probably not much of a resume builder for Hill to be the Finance Director or Chief Financial Officer of a City about to declare Bankruptcy. But then again, not much of what Hill has done in Hartford would bolster a resume. The baseball stadium and the debacle of the Dillon Stadium fraud were two of Hill's claims to fame in our City.

I think Hill's departure was inevitable based upon calls I have been receiving from City Hall insiders who have been eyewitnesses, or maybe "ear witness's" to the frequent raised voices and shouting matches coming from the area of the Mayor's Office and the COO's Office on the second floor of Hartford City Hall.

(Helpful hint to the King- City Hall is like a canyon and those voices echo throughout the building quite clearly)

I will give the King as pass on the well deserved retirement of Chief Rovella, Chief Rovella has served the people  of Hartford  and has proven to have vision  as well as creativity to be able to still operate under such adverse conditions as he has been placed under during his tenure, and still produce impressive results.

I am still concerned about our Fire Chief and the pressure being placed on him by the King to manage two very difficult Departments after the Public Works Director quit last year. Chief Freeman was doing a very good job of returning the Hartford Fire Department back to order before his efforts were diluted when he took over DPW as the acting Director.

And even though King Luke will surely try to put a positive spin on these departures, it does not bode well for the stability of his Administration during these difficult times. How do you explain not having a permanent HR Director and even the acting interim HR Director calls it quits during Police contract negotiations? And departing when there is a need to hire over 100 firefighters and approaching 125 or more Police Officers.

Luckily the guillotine  is gone, or City Hall would be a much messier place to work than it already is.

HOW IRONIC, THE HYPOCRISY OF IT ALL

A little over a year ago, March of 2016 to be exact, people were calling for the discipline of a Hartford Police Officer. some here even called for his termination. Why, you might ask? Because he had the audacity to display a Trump bumper sticker on a laptop inside his cruiser. I think we might call that Freedom of Expression , but apparently many think Police Officer's forgo their Rights to free expression when they put on a uniform.

Apparently that forfeiture only applies to certain uniforms and certain professions and NFL uniforms are exempt. The same people that were ready to terminate the Police Officer are now standing in solidarity with NFL players over their choice to disrespect our flag. And yes, call it what you want, but I feel it is disrespect for our flag and our Country, and I have the Freedom to say that, whether you like it or not.And this has nothing to do with our President, we are all Americans no matter who is sitting in the Oval Office, and we need to show the proper regard for the many people who shed their blood and gave their lives for out rights to act as ignorant as we choose.

Shouldn't the rights of Freedom of Expression and Speech apply the same to one and all? Regardless of the choice being made, whether it is to support a political candidate or the choice not to support the symbol of our nation and the  Freedom's many have fought and died for?

Whether you are a police officer or a tight end in the NFL there is no different degree to the freedom's we all are allowed to enjoy in this great Country, unless of course you are a hypocrate.


Let's get over the hypocrisy and get back to what has made our Country great

FROM HPD: COMMUNITY HELP NEEDED IN OVERNIGHT SHOOTINGS

FROM HPD:

The Hartford Police Major Crimes Division is actively investigating two separate shootings that occurred in the North End of the city on September 22, 2017 and September 23, 2017.  The first shooting occurred in the area of 16 Durham Street at approximately 7:10 pm September 22, 2017.  One of the victims from 16 Durham Street was fatally wounded and the other was treated and released from Saint Francis Hospital. The surviving victim is not being completely cooperative at this time.  

The second shooting occurred in the area of 1164 Albany Avenue at 12:38 am on September 23, 2017. Four people were shot during this incident. One of the four was fatally wounded, a second person has injuries that were described as “catastrophic”. He is currently listed in extremely critical condition. The doctors tending to him don’t expect him to survive. The two remaining victims are being treated for non-life threatening gunshot wounds.   

In total six (6) persons were shot in the city between 7pm-1am  last night, two are deceased and one is listed as extremely critical. The Major Crimes detectives are talking to potential witnesses and attempting to locate any video surveillance in the area that may have captured the incident. We are going to need assistance from the community with respect to both of these shooting. We still need to identify potential witnesses that may have information related to either of these incidents. The area of 1164 Albany Avenue is heavy populated during the hour that this shooting occurred yet no one has come forward as of yet.  Any information we can get would be greatly appreciated.

No information related to any of the victims is being released at this time pending next of kin notification with family members.  Thanks in advance.  

HPD-860-757-4000

IT'S NOT JUST THE HARTFORD PUBLIC LIBRARY , IT IS A CITYWIDE PROBLEM

In a city that keeps claiming to be broke, the salaries paid are amazing, as well as the number of highly paid positions.

Here are the salaries for the Hartford Schools, stand by for the upcoming post for other City Hall and Department salaries.

This list I guess gives new meaning to the phrase we keep hearing, "doing more with less".

Also take a note of the "hometowns" and see how many of these checks go outside of Hartford, especially the one listing Atlanta, GA. ,Director of the Office of Institutional Advancement, $179,799, and what exactly does that have to do with educating children?

I guess maybe they don't want to put their kids in Hartford's Schools ,so they live out of town

Hartford Public Schools Salaries on Scribd

MORE ON HPL QUINN-CAREY

Below is the actual NYC Comptrollers Audit Report into allegations of Fraud and Misuse of Library Funds and Credit Cards, as well as a couple of other news articles.

Since Library Board member David Barrett has commented here that these accusations are baseless and were refuted prior to the Hartford Public Library hiring Bridget Quinn-Carey as the CEO, I have offered to him the opportunity to post any documents he may wish to disclose to show that the Library Board exercised proper due diligence before hiring Quinn-Carey. As of this point, no documents have been provided.

The offer still stands, but the Comptrollers Audit Report seems to speak for itself. Although Quinn - Carey's behavior isn't quit as egregious a that of Bronx CEO Galante, it is still very troubling for someone to  condone and also participate in the level of corrupt activity outlined in the allegations in the report

 I have also submitted numerous FOI requests to the City to obtain further information on any background investigation or verification gathered before the hiring of Quinn-Carey as the CEO .
Stay tuned for more.

QBPL Investigative Report Final by  on Scribd

https://nonprofitquarterly.org/2016/03/23/the-deposed-king-of-queens-library-the-legacy-of-bad-nonprofit-leadership/

From "Non Profit Quarterly.org"

The investigation found that Galante and Bridget Quinn-Carey, the former library Chief Operating Officer (who subsequently served as the interim CEO and President), had used their organizational credit cards to make more than $310,000 in prohibited or inappropriate purchases during the 2012 to 2014 fiscal years. 

http://gothamist.com/2015/07/08/queens_library_corruption.php

From the "Gothamist" article:According to Stringer's findings, Bridget Quinn-Carey, Galante's interim successor and the QBPL's former COO, also failed to take the moral high ground. Both Quinn-Carey and Galante allegedly filled their work cars (yes, public library executives get work cars) with thousands of dollars in gasoline, on non-work-related car trips in 2012 and 2013—$12,396 in fuel for Galante, and $4,151 in fuel for Quinn-Carey.

SOME UNSUNG STATE OF CONNECTICUT EMPLOYEE'S

FOI Commission Attorney's Valecia Harmon and Tracy Brown at MARG Community Day

Usually when we think of State employees our minds almost immediately jump to a nightmare experience at DMV or some other State agency. But two agencies hardy ever get noticed, but they have great employees who are true Pubic Servants.

One is the Freedom of Information Commission. FOI is a State agency that keeps our government honest and transparent.. I received a quick indoctrination into FOI when I started this blog. At that time, my focus was Hartford City Hall and City Hall was about as transparent as a concrete wall painted black and covered by a black tarp to keep any sunlight from shining in. With the help of FOI and their employees, I quickly learned the ropes and learned how to obtain documents that were normally hidden away from public view.

Tom Hennick,  AttorneyValecia Harmon and Attorney Tracy Brown have always been extremely helpful in assisting me to find my way through what can be a complicated maze of obtaining documents, and they will probably admit that more than once I have put them through their paces in my quest to get to the truth. I think Tom Hennick still uses me as an example in his seminar's of how a government official SHOULD NOT respond when complying to a FOI request from a citizen. Former Hartford Corporation Counsel John Rose responded to one of his subordinates in regards to one of my earlier FOI requests through an e-mail asking "Carl, how can I shut this asshole down?" Then Attorney Rose, being the brilliant legal mind that he is, apparently didn't notice he had copied me on the e-mail before he hit the send button.

Ahh, that is what makes Hartford the gift that keeps on giving.

But moving on, Attorney Harmon and Attorney Brown are a presence at every monthly meeting of the MARG NRZ, a community group meeting I try to attend every month. They are both there and have information in Spanish and English and will answer any and all questions regarding FOI and access to public documents. Their efforts are well above and beyond what their jobs require and they even go so far as being regular participants in the MARG NRZ Annual community Day as they were the last Sunday in August, complete with bookbags to hand out to kids getting ready for back to school , bags of popcorn and some great homemade Lemonade and grape juice mixture made by Valecia's mother.

Two other unsung State employees come from the Judicial Side of State government. Prosecutor Tom O"Brien and Chris Pleasanton put the "Community" in Community Court. They are both in attendance every month and give a report on the work of Community Court. an effort that was born out of concerns starting at the MARG NRZ to enforce quality of life issues that were often not addressed by the much busier Superior Court on Lafayette Street. Residents frequently address their concerns directly with Prosecutor O'Brien on issues such as prostitution, ATV's and other issues affecting their neighborhoods.

Judge Norko, who until recently,prior to his retirement and cut back of his hours was also a regular attendee at the meetings. Judge Norko was a unique Jurist who understood and exemplified the need for the efforts of the Community Court , and the resident's always appreciated his unique perspective and attention

WE THE PEOPLE SHOW SEPTEMBER 11, 2017

WE THE PEOPLE SHOW AUGUST 28, 2017

7

FEDERAL JUDGE TO BRONIN ADMINISTRATION: YOU ARE WRONG ON INDEMNIFICATION OF POLICE OFFICERS

US Federal Judge Willaim Garfinkel issued a decision this week that appears to slap Hartford Mayor Luke Bronin and his decision not to indemnify City Police Officers when thy are sued over the performance of their duties.

Judge Garfinkel wrote, in no uncertain terms:

"The City’s position, in addition to being unsupported by precedent, is bewildering. How can Hartford maintain a qualified police force when it is willing to expose its officers to personal liability for compensatory damages for civil rights judgments? What capable officer, in his or her right mind, would want to work for such a city? And what message does this send to the community, the residents of Hartford, when their governing officials promote a position that, in all likelihood, will leave them without full compensation for injuries in the event that they are the victims of a civil rights violation? The Court readily understands the need, as a general rule, to deter police officers from the sort of outrageous conduct that warrants punitive damages. But this is not that case. The result in this case, in a second trial after a jury could not reach a verdict in the first, was a close call. This case arose from a confrontation apparently instigated by Fabian Edwards, who lost his case, and involved something of a melee in an enclosed environment in which the officers were initially outnumbered.3 It is safe to say that no police officer would expect to be abandoned by his employer with respect to an award of compensatory damages in this case, even if a jury unexpectedly also awarded punitive damages. Nor should any officer expect that." 

As Judge Garfinkel stated, Bronin's decision not to support his Police Officer's was "bewildering". I think one of the key points was that the officers who were originally sued , in the Judges opinion , did not display any wilfull misconduct or malicious intent but were merely performing their duty

And yes, in a violent City like Hartford unpleasant things can happen under adverse conditions. Who in their right mind would come work in a City that leaves them on their own even when they are acting in good faith. It sends , and it did send, a chilling message to our Police Officers

You can read the full decision below. Thank you Judge Garfinkel for applying common sense to this matter, even when City Hall couldn't or wouldn't

20170913 Indemnification Motion Ruling by  on Scribd

IS IT DEJA VU AT THE HARTFORD PUBLIC LIBRARY?

The Hartford Public Library is currently the subject of controversy in the community as members of the public have organized to oppose closing of several library branches

It would appear though that the Executive Director of the Hartford Public Library is no stranger to controversy. Much of that is detailed in the New York Daily News article below from 2015.
.http://www.nydailynews.com/new-york/queens/city-controller-da-irs-probe-queens-library-article-1.2284767

That article detailed allegations of misuse of funds and what the New York City Auditor described as
a "significant likelihood of fraud and/or embezzlement.Financial abuse at Queens  Library was so out of control that city Controller Scott Stringer urged  the IRS and local prosecutors to launch criminal probes against both Thomas Galante, the library’s ousted president, and his successor, Bridget Quinn-Carey.

Stringer found that Quinn-Carey used her credit card for lavish meals, personal gasoline bills and other costs that are not regarded by the IRS as deductible business expenses and that also violated the library’s own prohibition against using the organization’s credit cards for personal expenses.

According to the article “I urge the current board to have a serious discussion about whether someone who was a party to so much malfeasance can effectively lead this organization going forward,” Stringer said.

And here is another article describing Quinn-Carey's behavior.http://licpost.com/queens-library-delusions-of-confidence.

Does this pattern of behavior sound familiar? According to the article"This and other illicit activity covered in the Comptroller’s reports engaged in by Mr. Galante and by current Interim Library President and CEO Bridget Quinn-Carey (who served as Chief Operating Officer when Galante was in charge) took place while “the Library was eliminating services to the reading public, cutting operating hours of Queens branches by an average of 4 hours per week,” according to Stringer.

"Between 2008 and 2013 when library branches in Astoria, Court Square, Long Island City, Jackson Heights, Sunnyside, and Woodside, among many others, reduced hours and programs which had a tremendous impact on almost everyone–especially school children and senior citizens."

Apparently the Board decided she couldn't, and she then appeared in Hartford.

Some things never change, especially in Hartford

YOUR HELP IS NEEDED

I don't think I have ever done this before, but this posting and this cause are very important to me.

I need your help and information.

I have received several calls over the past couple weeks regarding Animal Control in the City of Hartford and the killing of impounded dogs. The callers have claimed that captured dogs are not being properly advertised as required by Connecticut Law before they are killed.

Imagine your pet being impounded by the City of Hartford and killed before you could even get a return call to check on them or find out if they had been found

And I don't want to make this an indictment of Hartford's Animal Control Officer, I understand he is overworked as the only active ACO in Hartford since the Bronin budget cuts forced the lay off of two other ACO's last year and one more is out on some sort of sick leave.

If you have had difficulty in contacting ACO's in  Hartford or in trying to recover or adopt a dog or if you have information on dogs being killed while in the Hartford pound, please contact me either by e-mail or phone or if you wish, comments can be left on this posting also.

We need to be the voices for our beloved pets

HOW BROKE IS THE HARTFORD PUBLIC LIBRARY?

Apparently not very broke by the looks of some of the salaries.

A lot of discussion has been going on regarding the intention of the Hartford Public Library Board of Directors decision to close several library branches.. Below is a list of salaries paid at the Hartford Public Library.

For a relatively small operation, I just wonder how much could be saved to keep branches open by possibly paying more realistic salaries.

A Chief Administrative Officer , and an  Executive Director. And $101,151.96 for  a "Customer Experience Officer"? Is that like a greeter at Walmart?

And it looks like more "directors" on that list than a Hollywood movie set.

Bridget Quinn-Carey, Chief Executive Officer 860-695-6348
Mary T. Tzambazakis, Chief Administrative Officer
860-695-6312
Leticia Cotto, Customer Experience Officer
860-695-6335

Brenda Miller, Executive Director of Hartford History Center
860-695-6347
Homa Naficy, Executive Director of The American Place
860-695-6334
Gilda Roncari, Director of Donor Relations 
860-695-6296
Don Wilson, Director of Marketing & Communications
860-695-6282

This is the Hartford Public Library, not the Smithsonian.

A meeting will be held tomorrow night at City Hall with the Hartford City Council regarding the Library.

The Hartford Public Library Board of Directors is as follows:

Officers Gregory C. Davis, President
Geraldine Sullivan, Vice-President
Edward C. Keith III, Treasurer
Ana Alfaro, Secretary

Directors
Arunan Arulampalam
David Barrett
Amy M. Barron
Melvyn Colón
Andrea Comer*
Miguel Correa
Andrew Diaz-Matos
Marc A. DiBella
Stephen B. Goddard
Antonio J. Matta
Phyllis Shikora
Ex-Officio
Hon. Luke A. Bronin, Mayor

Click on the "HPL Salaries" line below to view the full size document

  Hpl Salaries by on Scribd

LUKE-TAKE SOME ADVICE FROM NIKE

As I have said here several times previously, Luke Bronin's "Chicken Little" act is wearing  thin. The sky is falling chants are wearing real thin. We have been hearing the threats for almost two years now , and nothing has changed . There is still no viable plan for sustainability as requested by the big three CEO's who are still holding the purse strings tight on their pledged $50 million dollar contribution to help the City.

That money will only be released when and if the 3 feel  comfortable that Mayor Bronin actually has a plan. So far, it doesn't seem to be a priority for Bronin and no plan has been submitted.

I am not sure Bronin actually has a plan or is even capable of devising a plan. Bronins suburban "share the pain " crusade was pretty much a flop. His shame the Unions into cooperation efforts pretty much went no where, and his constant forays into the halls of the Capitol during the recent session were probably more of an annoyance to Legislators rather than producing any positive results

Originally I would have been opposed to a Chapter 9 Bankruptcy but now in talking to numerous parties, including attorneys familiar with the process, I have to say, in the words of Nike...JUST DO IT.

Nothing has changed financially under Bronin as Mayor. Let me rephrase that, nothing has changed positively financially under Mayor Bronin. It has gotten much worse under Bronin and on the positive side, our financial ratings can't drop much lower.

Every day we listen to Chicken Little, is one more day wasted before we get on the road to recovery, Enough of the false promises and gambling on Hartford's recovery.

A couple months ago, Bronin borrowed in excess of $20 million dollars to be able to pay Hartford's bills. Apparently Bronin felt comfortable borrowing the money based on a promise from a Hartford Legislator that the State of Connecticut would cough up money to bail Hartford out. That might actually be the honorable thing for the State to actually pay their fair share for all the Tax exempt property in Hartford.

But considering we are going on several months with no state budget and the State of Connecticut facing a billion dollar deficit themselves, who would like to place a bet on the odds of any State representative from Hartford  riding in on the white horse to save the day.  And who in Hartford's delegation has the pull to get the majority of the legislature to buy into Hartford's bail out and get it passed? Clearly not the same State Reps who convinced Bronin the check was going to be in the mail month's ago.

Stop the phony narratives, stop the blackmail techniques and get to work on a plan to turn Hartford around , and give up your plans to balance your budget on the backs of Hartford's Unions. If that involves a Bankruptcy filing then do what you were elected to do and begin leading. It may hurt for a while that you were the Mayor that led Hartford into Bankruptcy, and is probably isn't the next step on the ladder you expected for your political career.  More importantly, hopefully, a few years from now, you will also be known as the Mayor that led Hartford out of it

HPD WORKING TO CLEAN UP DIRTY BODEGA'S

Probably one of the biggest complaints at neighborhood community meetings are the negative impact on quality of life that many small neighborhood grocery stores have on street corners and neighborhood quality of life.

 The complaints range from  drug sales to illegal alcohol sales to loitering and gun violence.

Today the Hartford Police Department and several City and State agencies  conducted unannounced inspections of several of the businesses. Hartford Police officers, Hartford License and Inspections, Hartford Health Inspectors and the State of Connecticut Labor Department and Revenue Services focused on compliance with State and City regulations throughout the South District. Nine locations in total were inspected, and five of the stores were shut down immediately due to violations.

Carolina Grocery at 865 New Britain Avenue and Town Market at 1637 Park Street, had no violations found. Anthemy Supermarket at 3 Wethersfield Avenue had several violations, but none serious enough to shut down the store, although the health Department immediately ceased all food service. The State Labor Department opened an investigation into their staff issues and the Fire Marshall's Office began an investigation into Fire Code violations.

The Baldwin Grocery at 2 Baldwin Street was allowed to remain open after fixing electrical code violations.

The Platinum Grocery at 347 Wethersfield Avenue was shut down after  Health code violations were found, including an expired Health permit and they were ordered to stop selling food. Revenue Services issued summonses for sale of untaxed cigarettes and  the Labor Department also found labor violations. STORE CLOSED

Last Stop Market at 427 Wethersfield Avenue was shut down after State Inspectors found Revenue (Tax) issues and Labor violations. STORE CLOSED

The Beltre Family Grocery at 955 Broad Street was shut down after inspectors found Labor and Revenue issues and Health Inspectors found no current Health Permit for the operation. STORE CLOSED

G&C Grocery, 760 Park Street was shut down after State Inspectors found Workers Compensation issues. STORE CLOSED

El Comerio Grocery at 307 Zion Street was also shut down after State Inspectors found Worker's Compensation issues and Revenue Inspectors issued summonses for Tax violations.

Good Work addressing Quality of Life issues in the South End by all involved, including the Southend CSO's, Sergeant Kevin Oulette and Lieutenant Ian Powell as well as all other City and State inspectors involved