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