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Wednesday, July 6, 2016

JUST THE FACTS PLEASE

HARTFORD'S LARGEST NON PRODUCING ASSET,BESIDE CITY HALL  (but for how much longer?)


I think sometimes we tend to ignore the facts and listen to the rhetoric a little too much.
As we have a ballpark sitting empty with a price tag that ,when all is added up, will probably be well over $100 million dollars in actual and so far hidden costs. (land acquisition, legal fees, the City's hired  Construction rep, infrastructure and street repairs, etc,etc)
It is time we start focusing on the facts and get this project back on track, and quickly. The childish petulent responses from City Hall are doing nothing to resolve a bad situation, in fact they are probably only making it worse.
Below is a fact sheet put out to the public today by Centerplan and DONO, LLC, the developers of the project thrown off site by Luke Bronin.
No one has been perfect in this mess, but it is time to start talking and acting like adults and come to a reasonable resolution instead of trying to move closer to bankruptcy for our City.

JUST THE FACTS PLEASE

I think sometimes we tend to ignore the facts and listen to the rhetoric a little too much.
As we have a ballpark sitting empty with a price tag that ,when all is added up, will probably be well over $100 million dollars in actual and so far hidden costs. (land acquisition, legal fees, the City's hired  Construction rep, infrastructure and street repairs, etc,etc)
It is time we start focusing on the facts and get this project back on track, and quickly. The childish petulent responses from City Hall are doing nothing to resolve a bad situation, in fact they are probably only making it worse.
Below is a fact sheet put out to the public today by Centerplan and DONO, LLC, the developers of the project thrown off site by Luke Bronin.
No one has been perfect in this mess, but it is time to start talking and act like adults and come to a reasonable resolution instead of trying to move closer to bankruptcy for our City.

HFD ANNOUNCES COOLING CENTER LOCATIONS

Hartford Fire Department identifies cooling centers and tips to beat this heat

The Hartford Fire Department wants to remind everyone that with the upcoming heat wave and the heat index expected to be at least 90 and up to 94 between the hours of 11:00am and 4:00pm, to drink plenty of water and avoid long term exposure to the sun as much as possible. If at all possible please apply sunscreen approved by your physician and wear light breathable clothing. Also, if you have to be outdoors please try and stay in shaded areas and do not leave pets outdoors.
The Hartford Fire Department Special Services Division will be visiting bus stops, playgrounds, and other places of public assembly to pass out cold water from 11:00am – 5:00pm.

And please look in your vehicle before you lock and walk away from your vehicle.

Here is a list of cooling centers and other alternatives to cool down during this heat:

List of Cooling Centers :
  • North End Senior Center, 80 Coventry Street, Time: 8:30am-5:00pm
  • South End Wellness Center, 830 Maple Avenue, Time: 8:30am-5:00pm 
  • Parkville Senior Center, 11 New Park Avenue, Time: 8:30am-3:30pm    

Public Pools will be open to families at the following locations :
  • Colt Park Pool, 106 Wethersfield Avenue, Time: 12:00pm-6:00pm
  • Goodwin Pool, 1130 Maple Avenue, Time: 12:00pm-6:00pm
  • Keney Park Pool, 471 Tower Avenue, Time: 12:00pm-6:00pm
The Hartford Public Library is available for residents and visitors. Below are hours of operation :
  • Hartford Downtown Public Library, 500 Main Street, Time: Wed-Thurs 10:00am-8:00pm, Fri 10:00am-5:00pm
  • Albany Library Branch, 1250 Albany Avenue, Time: Wed-Thurs 11:00am-6:00pm, Fri 12:30pm-5:00pm
  • Barbour Branch, 281 Barbour Street, Time: Wed-Thurs 11:00am-6:00pm, Fri 12:00pm-5:00pm
  • Camp Field Branch, 30 Campfield Avenue, Time: Wed-Thurs 11:00am-6:00pm, Fri 12:00pm-5:00pm
  • Dwight Branch, 7 New Park Avenue, Time: Wed-Thurs 11:00am-6:00pm, Fri 12:00pm-5:00pm
  • Mark Twain Branch, 55 Forest Street, Time: Wed-Fri 1:00pm-5:00pm
  • Park Branch, 744 Park Street, Time: Wed-Thurs 11:00am-6:00pm, Fri 12:00pm-5:00pm
  • SANDS/Ropkins, 1750 Main Street, Time: Wed-Thurs 11:00am-6:00pm, Fri 12:30pm-5:00pm
  • Goodwin, 460 New Britain Avenue, Time: Wed-Thurs 11:00am-6:00pm, Fri 12:00pm-5:00pm
  • Blue Hills Branch, 649 Blue Hills Avenue, Time: Wed-Thurs 11:00am-6:00pm, Fri 12:00pm-5:00pm
Contact: Captain Raul Ortiz

Friday, July 1, 2016

MAYOR BRONIN: STEP BACK, TAKE A DEEP BREATH AND DO WHAT IS BEST FOR OUR CITY, PLEASE

Enough is enough. It is time to stop the finger pointing, the childish antics and the amateur behavior.

I really am getting tired of our City being a joke over a stadium that probably should have never been built in the first place. But it was started and here we are today having to deal with it.

The really sad part, with all the problems aside, is that anyone who has been invited in there has told me it is going to be a beautiful facility when it is done. A great space to watch a baseball game and get the people that don't know Hartford like many of us do, to experience Hartford.

I implore Mayor Bronin to take a deep breath and reassess the situation . But please reassess the situation as the Mayor, not as a lawyer. Please assess the situation as a Mayor who has a responsibility to the 400 plus people that were promised, and counted on jobs at the stadium. Reassess as the Mayor who has an obligation  to the numerous small business people involved with the project and surrounding the stadium area to remain viable with the income generated.

I understand that no one wants to look weak when they have an opportunity to dig their heels in and prove a point. But I also understand that no one benefits from these prolonged battles, except maybe the lawyers involved.

Again I implore Mayor Bronin to act like the Mayor that was elected by the people of Hartford. A Mayor that promised jobs. A Mayor that promised returning Hartford to some version of economic stability. A mayor that promised accountability and much better management that we had been seeing.

Mayor, insist that everyone get in the same room and start talking and  take Centerplan's offers and promises seriously.Put the egos aside. Forget what has been done up to this point and layout a realistic time frame for completion. Maybe keep the Stadium Authority  away from that meeting room, I think their lack of knowledge has been a hindrance to the project.

Admit the City and Development Services were wrong in their assumptions. I think eventually we will be admitting that anyway, and it will probably be a lot cheaper while working out a realistic solution as opposed to doing it in front of a jury determining damages. Admit the time frame for completion and opening this spring was unrealistic and a little too energetic

Admit that Centerplan may not have been up to the challenge of building a baseball stadium which is much different than retail buildings, apartments or rest areas. Admit that there will be no baseball in Hartford this year. But admit we are committed to getting it done, and soon.

But hopefully the City , Centerplan and the Yardgoats can agree to making it ready to go on opening day of 2017. I definitely think that is "doable" if we knock off the nonsense and get back to work immediately.  Not what we had hoped for, but the reality is that is a much  better  goal than seeing it sit empty while the court cases unfold.

Centerplan also needs to make assurances that hey are up to the task, and reasonable expectations can be fulfilled. Whether that involves financial disclosures on their part or even a third party oversight to assure appropriate time lines and deadlines , work it out and come to an agreement.

The ongoing battles may make for good fill for newspapers and newscasts and radio shows, but the interests of Hartford's people who live here demand more.

Mayor, show us you are capable of responsible leadership rather than creating controversy. We all know you inherited a mess and if we wanted that type of leadership your opponent probably would have been returned to office. We expected better and now it is time for you to start delivering that without hurting Hartford, its reputation or its finances more.

Please get it done, and soon. Everyone has to work to be part of the solution, the City, Centerplan, DONO LLC, the Yardgoats and us as residents being called upon to support this project. Your leadership  can make that happen, bickering and backbiting is doing nothing to get the stadium open and generating revenue.

Thursday, June 30, 2016

SURPRISED BY THE POLL RESULTS

The numbers for the first few hours of the blog poll above seemed unusual to me. I did something I normally don't do. For security reasons, a tracking program is attached to the blog. The program is meant to actually be able to identify any "anonymous" comments that might be threatening or disturbing.

I went to the software program today for my own piece of mid to see what was going  on. As they say, nothing on the internet is ever really anonymous. Not surprisingly, the majority of the comments or pro votes for Bronin were coming from "hartford.gov" ip  addresses , quite a few were also coming from the State of Connecticut-judicial branch  and the University of Connecticut ip addresses.

If only the Broninites could organize an effort so quickly to save Riverfest as they did to throw off the poll numbers.

I guess the only poll I need to take regarding the Bronin Administration and their performance is the one that matters, when I talk to people on the streets of our City because they actually live here , unlike many of Luke's staff

And yes, I do have screen shots of the IP addresses to prove what I am saying, but I'll save that for today

And once City Hall closed for the day , after 4:30 PM the positive votes slowed down and the negative votes really increased.. The games people play when the truth hurts

THE TRUE COST OF GUN VIOLENCE

Here is an interstign report detailing the true cost of gun violence. I think we all realize the impact a shooting has on families, but this report goes even further to dig into the "hidden costs".

It is estimated that a shooting has almost $583,000 in costs attached to it and that is just a shooting, not a deadly shooting. The negative economic impact on our community as a result of gun violence  is huge

Take a few minutes to read the report