I am disgusted. Quite frankly I am sick of what our City has become. It hasn't just happened under our current Mayor. The incompetence and poor leadership has gone on for some time now, and we just sit back and take it.
I have spent most of my adult life as a resident of the City of Hartford. I have become used to the all too often question of "Why the hell do you stay there?". I have been a victim of crime, I have witnessed more crime as a Hartford resident than most people see in a lifetime. But yet I choose to call Hartford my home. A city that I have embraced with open arms and fought hard to see change.
Hartford is my home .It is sickening to see my next door neighbor contemplating a move out of the City that I love and deliver a devastating blow to my hometown. It is even more devastating that the so called leaders of our City and State could be so ignorant of their surroundings to be caught off guard of the move. I warned the Mayor and his Chief of Staff over a year ago when a source at Aetna told me that a move was imminent.
I was aggravated last fall when a high ranking official at Aetna told me personally that their communications with the Mayor were "virtually nonexistent". Not a good way to treat anyone. especially a large corporate neighbor like Aetna.
Although Hartford has its warts and failings , it is still my home. I am extremely fortunate to have met so many people that I probably would have never met if I chose to settle elsewhere. My good friends, like Hyacinth Yennie who has been there to prop me up for years, even during her own trials and tribulations. If there was ever anyone to win the award for Hartford cheerleader, it is Hyacinth and her energy for the people of Hartford is incredible.
I would love to start naming everyone but I know I will miss many, But a few keep coming to mind.
Bob and Candy Killian I met relatively late in my Hartford residency. Judge Killian and his wife are two of the finest people I have ever met. Bob and Candy have both adopted me and have taken me under their wings. Bob has taught me valuable lessons in a relatively short time about humility and thoughtful reasoning. Even occasionally having to put the brakes on me and saying "are you going to let me finish or do you want to talk?". I have not met anyone yet that knows more about Hartford and its history and is able to tell the story with anecdotes that only a lifetime involved in Hartford can provide.
Alyssa Peterson is someone else that has an extreme love for Hartford. Often misinterpreted due to her strong sense of right and wrong, often called a naysayer, but she serves a purpose in keeping Hartford from going off the rails regularly. Alyssa also has an uncanny knack or sixth sense of knowing when I land in the ER. She has a way of convincing hospital staff she is family to get her way beyond the locked hallways.
I have befriended my share of underdogs also, and they are far from anything close to an underdog to me, they are some of the most genuine decent people, if anyone took the time to appreciate them. Lt Rob Allan from HPD, Deputy Chief Dan Nolan from HFD, and quite a few others that are probably better unnamed because they still have time left to work at HFD and HPD. Sadly, Lt Allan announced today that he is calling it a career and moving on from HPD.
People like Shirley Surgeon, Angel Arce and Doug McCrory all have opened my eyes to life in Hartford and Hartford's odd way of politics and have helped me appreciate all that our City has to offer.
Chief Rovella is also someone that has taught me a lot about our City and both his and Chief Freeman's vision and planning to try to keep Hartford a great place have been underrated. One major thing Chief Rovella has taught me is that when I am really pissed, stay away from the keyboard, take the time to breathe deeply before the venom starts flowing through my keyboard. That is why tonight's posting is not what many people expected when they called me today The upset and the venom can wait until tomorrow
And so finally, for anyone I didn't mention above, you already know if you mean something special to me. And I wouldn't change my experiences in Hartford for anything.
The video below is something I found on youtube tonight, and pretty much has nothing to do with the posting above, but I found it inspirational, enjoy, and keep fighting for Hartford. If we keep trying, sooner or later we will get it right and elect some decent leaders for our City.
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45 comments:
I have not met anyone yet that knows more about Hartford
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I certainly wish Judge Killian were to lend us a few comments on your blog, Kevin.
Even though he didn't win, his campaign served to educate us about, or at least wake us up to the reality of, the city's fiscal situation. Ed Koch used to describe himself as a liberal with sanity. Killian's sane voice rang refreshingly true in this town of less-than-entirely sane lefties.
I suggest that the new city i.d. cards be not only available at the library, but also made available at Yard Goad Stadium.
Are you considering moving out of Hartford, Kevin?
NO, I didn't just arrive here and decide to capitalize on our City, I am here for the long haul
You mean like Luke and Sara Bronin have?
You are quick
Very thoughtful piece, Kevin, and thanks MUCH for the kind words . . . at least you didn't mention the time I snuck into your rehab appointment at Mount Sinai, to make sure they were REALLY getting you up and walking after your worst stroke LOL!
To anyone reading this blog post, Kevin did call me every time he heard something about Aetna and a possible move. His deep sources, Republican AND Democrat, always amaze me as do his concerted attempts to alert the "right" politicians. The problem is -- they don't listen, can't execute, and are too busy thinking of their next career move or future after Hartford. There's no question we would all be feeling differently about our City right now, if Bob Killian was our mayor.
If Aetna wants to fill some building in Manhattan with 150 execs, let them. According to Danny Haar's recent Courant column, living in a city isn't so easy these days. I'd like to see Kevin and some other neighborhood representatives get the company to make an additional $$$ commitment to Asylum Hill, for the employees they do leave behind. That used to be a beautiful area when I lived there but it's looking rather tired/sorry lately. Aetna could do MORE through the Business Improvement District. Perfect "ambassador" job for you, Kevin . . .
"Keep fighting for Hartford."
I can't, I wish I could, but after so many years of fighting and fighting I'm exhausted, can't take it anymore.
Sorry.
Nice post, Kevin. A lot of us love this City and a lot of us wish someone that really had roots in the City had won the last election. In fairness to Bronin , it must be hard to come in to a City and really understand what's going on in just a year or 2. What the heck were the voters thinking to elect him to run Hartford in such a difficult time?
We desperately need innovative, fresh thinking, and if any of that is happening, it's certainly being kept secret from the citizenry. The smartest people don't always have the best ideas or the common touch needed to reach out to all people.
I say Hyacinth Yennie for Mayor if Killian won't run again!
Did Sara Bronin draw a salary from City of Hartford?
So what is the deal with the removal of the hpd academy commander amid sexual esk / derrogatory behavior in front of the recruits ? I smell lawsuits coming .......
Sexual misconduct and unwanted behaviors expressed by the academy sniper lawyer should be addressed before its too late.
So what is the diluted reasoning behind the removal of the police academy commander ? Mighty interresting mid way through an academy class.
- Kudos to buckshot for squeezing the trigger on that smoke wagon!
She's always been a failure and psychotic, on top of a habitual liar. The one and only reason she passed the lieutenant's test was because Heavren gave her the written and oral questions.
Yes the information is accurate, Lt Christine Mertes has been removed/transferred as the Commander of the Hartford Police Academy. I am working to confirm the allegations, and yes the information that I have been able to confirm so far, the allegations are related to inappropriate sexual advances and contact towards academy staff and recruits.Mertes is currently out on EAP and the incident(s) are apparently being investigated by Deputy Chief Rendock. I am not clear why the matter is not being investigated by the trained investigators from IAD, but I will post more as information is confirmed,
Because rendock is a highly trained professional who has skill and pinpoint investigative techniques to fold this caper. - Relax children .
2:06pm
Really?
Rendock.....you mean Heavren's best friend? The one and only reason Rendock was appointed to Deputy Chief was because of Heavren. Rendock won't conduct a fair and impartial investigation. Mertes has a lot on Heavren that he never wants revealed. Rovella was repeatedly warned about Mertes long ago.
How about the Ford video.....when is that dropping?
So how is that fair to pick and choose who investigates mertes? The Iad LT according to our policy will handle LT 29s. Rovella takes one step forward for removing the lawyer sniper, but then takes two steps back for handing a high priority investigation to a closet trainwreck like dustin.
House mice impair my ability to complete my job correctly and safely
What ford videos?
3:57PM
I don't post porn on my blog, but maybe you can ask him about it the next time you see him at City Yard getting his smashed out windows in his city car fixed after a West Hartford rendezvous or his other"employee training" meetings
Well said 3:56PM. Closet train wreck is pretty accurate.
Very appropriate question from a "commander" to a recruit. Which hand do you use Kevin, right or left?
you mean at the range, right? That is the only appropriate meaning I can think of to that question
Gonna keep this rated PG and leave it at that.
6:32pm
Thank you, keep the gutter talk for the LT's Office at 85 Edwards. Oh wait, that office is empty now
Mr Brookman,
Fair warning. Mertes has a very thick law degree ...tread lightly. She will pull you apart like warm bread like the mayor does..
I miss rob allen already. Nooooooooooo.
North end resident.
I forgot the law degree, she was so good at it , must be why she no longer practices. And maybe you can refresh me, when did the Mayor tear me apart? I remember it differently.
Why Pedro Segarra 's head is not on a plater is beyond me. The money spent on this ballpark is ridiculous.
9:08PM
I agree with that, but lets not talk about Pedro Segarra. I don't want to ruin Pedro's chances of becoming a Superior Court Judge if someone is able to slip it through this Legislative Session
@9:08
As long as Segarra didn't take any kickbacks like his predecessor Fast Eddie Dif, , he had the right as mayor to propose anything. It's the council that voted for it and let's recognize that the one remaining holdover who voted for the park is our resident council dunce head, Cynthis "but we need jobs" Jennings.
Kevin, I agree. Our late great city on a hill, the hill being Trashbury Mountain by the Big River, is now forever in our memories. The ghosts now gossip from the graves about each other like the characters in Edgar Lee Masters "Spoon River Anthology."
I once waited in line at Sotheby's in New York to view the Katharine Hepburn estate. As I spoke to someone about coming down from Hartford, a woman in front of me turned around with a kind smile and asked me about Hartford. I kindly informed her that it was no longer the Hartford of the Guilded Ages of publishers and writers and grand horse and buggy rides up and down Farmington Avenue. And that blight and slum was creeping ever so slowly and now, years later, the ghetto has joined other ghettos of Hartford and become one pan ghetto from one end of town to the other. From Barry Square to Terry Square. From the hills of the West End down to the bend in the Big River..
Would you like to swing on a star
Carry moonbeams home in a jar
Or would you like to sit in a dish
And be someone's warm plate of fish
The city of Hartford has a clearly stated policy of zero tolerance of sexual harrasment. ZERO TOLERANCE! The policy is clearly posted at every single City building. Let's see if Dusty's investigation will be thorough and concise. Disciplinary action must be swift. From suspension or demotion. Discipline must be hashed out if these allegations are true. Unfortunately Mr. Brookman my guess is nothing will happen to her which will set precedent for future sexual harrasment complaint's in the Department.
Hartford is the place of my birth and would love to see the city turn around. I just caught the Colin McEnroe piece in the Hartford Courant about what he wished for Hartford in the year 2027, expecting lot's to happen after a new highway project and new Civic Center. But haven't these things been tried before and failed due to the high crime rate? Hartford needs to get very serious about crime then all else will follow. I had friends and family who tried to make Hartford their home and after apartment break-ins and muggings they just gave up. Recently I walked from the train station in Hartford down Washington Street to Hartford Hospital. Not exactly a long walk but just blocks from the state capital building there is extreme poverty and blight. How about cleaning up what the city has now before building splashy new projects?
Some things never change. We got the crime, drugs and prostitution anyway.
Hartford Courant December 16, 1992.
'While two neighborhood groups voiced strong opposition to casino gambling Tuesday night, another group met to hear the pros and cons of building a casino and convention center in Hartford.
About 60 One Chane members and others in north Hartford met to plan strategy to block a casino. No one at the meeting, attended by several ministers, spoke in favor of gambling. Several letters opposing a casino from local churches were read.
Many people said they were concerned about an increase in crime, including thefts, prostitution and organized crime. Jobs created by a casino, they said, would be menial and low-paying.
"We're not only here because of the gambling issue," said the Rev. William Purnell, lead organizer for One Chane. We're here to organize as a community, to have a voice, to have power."
Cynthia Jennings, a One Chane member, said she feared the extra jobs would go to people who live outside the city, and construction contracts would not be awarded to minority contractors."
Fast forward to June 11, 2008.
Two years ago, when the donors stopped giving and the bills couldn't be paid, the board of directors for ONE/CHANE went to U.S. Bankruptcy Court and filed for liquidation.
Looks like history might repeat itself. Wasn't that the same group that brought us the Rhodes Scholar and his wife The Mayor? How are those "extra jobs" working out for you Ms. Jennings?
Cynthia jennings is lucky the 50 or so people that vote in the north end actually voted for her. Fact is she does nothing but argue and muddy the water. She hates the police. She hates outsiders into hartford to take the city jobs. But when the city residents cant even read, then why should the people that can actually do the jobs get turned away.
Students at Hartford high, as i type, can barely read. Yet get pushed through at extremely low standards to comply with the no child left behind. So how are these youth being prepared. Kids wearing head phones. Talking on cell phones. Wandering the halls,etc.
i walk to the hartford high library and observe kids basically being dragged to classrooms because they either dont want to go or rather wander the hallways all day and get a free pass in life because they live in hartford.
And you wonder why the police dept only got 3 city residents from the last recruitment campaign. Fact. Ask rovella. He will tell you that most city residents are ill prepared for a job. The standards are set by the state. So there is reassurance that standards will not be lowered. Even the last police sgt exam. 141 took the written exam. Only 31 passed with a 70 or better. The city then lowers the passing score to 62! Unheard of in the history of hpd. What is next ?
The money is running dry and i dont think the federal goverment is going to give hartford 10 billion for a tunnel when every political hack like bronin and malloy bad mouth trump. Well fellas, in about two short years, trump will still be the president and both bronin and malloy will be unemployed. Bronin could have been a real leader but choose to fight every union in the city. Im sure that will help him in the polls when re election time starts.
Aetna leaving. The civic center is crumbling. Put a casino in the ct convention center and call it a day. It cost 389 million to build, yet needs major 30 million in water damage repair along the side that the highway runs next to. Im sure this was tucked away to not alarm the public. The list goes on. The money has run out. The system is broken.
Is hartford any better now then 20 yrs ago Mr brookman ?
Ms. Jennings is one of the many reasons for Hartford's failure and incompetence.
Brookman will you give me the video. I'll know what to do with it.
Pretty soon HPD will be hiring convicted felons that have done serious jail time....maybe they already have!!!
10:30pm
There are State statutes and POST standards that prohibit that, but who knows with this Mayor
Kevin,
You are well sourced at HPD. Any truth to the rumor that it is about time to start planning a Baby Shower for a certain HPD LT? We can hold it in the Academy Gym if that certain LT is still allowed in there, Hopefully it can be held before the baby daddy goes on FTO. We knew she was more than just talk on the range
Booty on duty is not a postive news article if that is true. Frankly, that is what happens when all you do is pass a multiple choice test and lie in a oviously non bias oral board.
Good forbid if that is true. Poor Rovella ....
Easy to pass when you had the test from the Assistant Chief you were involved with.
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