Archive for the 'Hartford' Category
West End Sidewalk Update
This morning I visited the Hartford Department of Public Works to get the latest on the city’s sidewalk review. The bottom line is that a new round of sidewalk notices are on the way.
We’ll start with a quiz - can you spot the violation in this section of sidewalk?
As a quick recap, Hartford homeowners are responsible for maintaining the sidewalks on their property. The city is responsible for ensuring that homeowners maintain their sidewalks and use the notification process to do so. Ultimately, the city has the right to send a contractor out to make repairs and then put a lien on the property in the amount of the cost.
Let’s do a little Q&A to address the main questions that I had about the process.
Q. What constitutes a violation?
A. All sidewalks need to conform to the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA). Some of the regulations include a 4 foot width and no horizontal or vertical gaps of more than 3/8ths of an inch. Additionally, the surface of the sidewalk can’t be cracked or delaminated.
Q. Who evaluated the sidewalks?
A. The Department of Public Works sent a team out this summer to take a look at the West End. The city is under pressure from the Justice Department to bring the city’s sidewalks into compliance.
Q. How will I know if I receive a notification?
A. The results from this summer’s survey are still being entered into the computer system, so we will likely get letters in the mail in a month or so. They’ll look like this except that they’ll have your address and the number of square feet of sidewalk that will need to be replaced.
While visiting the Maps & Records office, I also learned that there is a public computer available to look up existing sidewalk notifications. Although our house does not have any legacy notifications, lots and lots of homes on our street have one or more.
Q. What do I need to do if I get a notification?
A. In the City of Hartford, only licensed and bonded contractors are authorized to make sidewalk repairs. The city has the list at the Department of Public works of about 45 contractors authorized for curb and sidewalk repairs in 2008. Once you hire a contractor, they will take out a permit and the city will inspect the work. The notification is cleared only after the city completes the inspection.
Q. How long do I have to make repairs?
A. The notification will have an expiration date. My sense is that we’ll get about 3 months to make repairs, though we’ll know for sure when we receive the notifications.
Q. What if I don’t make repairs?
A. I honestly don’t know, but there were still notifications from 1997 in the computer. Sidewalk notifications could become an issue if you tried to sell your home and the buyer discovered there was an open notification.
Q. Can they make me replace my slate with concrete?
A. They can make you replace damaged slate. They can make you realign your slate. Previous battles over the slate apparently resulted in protection for the West End slate (everywhere else in the city is apparently required to replace slate with “approved” materials). At the end of the day, the city would prefer to see the slate removed because its open joints require more maintenance.
The only issue seems to be whether or not any of the approved contractors are willing to work with slate because they have to guarantee the work for 5 years.
Q. How does the MDC project play into the city’s effort?
A. The city’s recent survey is completely independent and unrelated to the MDC project. I didn’t have an opportunity to discuss the interplay between the two efforts, but will do so once we learn more about the MDC’s plans this fall.
So those are the main points from my visit. Please feel free to post questions in the comments section and I’ll do my best to address them.
Additionally, Duane Roberts of the Department of Public Works was very helpful and graciously agreed to allow me to post his contact information so folks could call directly with questions. Duane can be reached at 860-522-4888 x6589. Their office (with the computer to look up notifications) is on the second floor at 525 Main Street downtown.
The Fight for Young Professionals in the Hartford Area
Young professionals, usually associated with Generation Y (1980-1994), are where it’s at. Local towns and cities in central Connecticut are fighting over them because there are a lot of them (Gen Y is the largest demographic group since the Baby Boomer generation) and they have a lot of spending power.
Hartford has spent quite a bit of time and money courting young professionals to work and live in the city. Hartford 21, the Lofts at Main & Temple, Trumbull on the Park, in addition to other rental options downtown were created with the Gen Y demographic in mind. The currently stalled Front Street development, Colt Gateway, and Riverfront Recapture efforts were also part of the plan.
Blue Back Square in West Hartford is also seen as an attractive area for young professionals, with its restaurants and shops. While the condos there are essentially out-of-reach based on pricing, there is an upscale rental option with The Lofts at Blue Back Square.
And now Simsbury seems to be throwing its hat in the ring. The Simsbury zoning commission voted last week to a new mixed-use development that would have a rental component, marketed toward the young professional demographic.
With all of these options, where are the young professionals ultimately going to choose to live? While I am not technically part of Gen Y (I was born in ‘76 and am a staggering 32 years old), I think I am still considered a young professional. What I see my clients and friends gravitating towards are areas that are close to work (long commutes are really a drag), walkability to shops, restaurants, and coffee shops, and some type of nightlife, whether it be a low key coffee shop or wine bar or a techno-thumping club.
Perhaps more importantly, are employers in the Greater Hartford area going to be able to attract enough young talent that all of these options can survive? At what point is saturation reached? I may be incorrect in my thinking, but I’m going to say it anyway. I have a feeling that the Simsbury development might be a little late to the game and Simsbury might not be the ideal location for young professionals because of its more rural nature and lack of “things to do.” But only time will tell…
Greater Hartford Real Estate Blog on WFSB’s Face the State
I got a call last week from WFSB’s Dennis House. He said he reads my blog. Huh, okay. Then he asked me if I’d like to be a panelist on his Sunday show, Face the State. He was interested in interviewing Hartford bloggers about the state of Hartford, mainly the major issues and how to improve the city.
Random. I’ve never been on TV before. Well, I was briefly on ESPN back in my undergrad days, but my face was painted and I was yelling “you suck” at Tim Duncan. My parents were very proud.
Anyway. TV. Panelist interview. Sure, I guess that sounds okay.
So, last night I went to the taping. I was joined by fellow bloggers Kerri Provost of Real Hartford and Ken Krayeske of The 40-Year Plan. Kerri and I have met before and she’s on my blog roll. We carpooled. I hadn’t met Ken before and wasn’t familiar with his blog, and vice versa for him, I think. (So many blogs, so little time…)
Down in Rocky Hill we were given a brief tour of the studio, watched Dennis interview Senator Donald Williams, and then had our panel discussion. The whole thing was kind of a blur.
Dennis asked questions about Hartford’s biggest problem, development in the city, crime in the city, teen pregnancy, the mayor’s performance, and a few other things I can’t remember. I think we were taped for a 12-15 minute segment.
TV is weird. I have no idea how I did. I remember being asked a direct question about crime, which my profession does not allow me to answer, so I stumbled on that a bit. But I think the rest went relatively well. Who knows?
You can see for yourself by watching the airing of the show. Apparently it will be televised on August 24 at 11:00am on WFSB Channel 3. Don’t worry, I will remind you as it gets closer to the date. 
Thanks for including me Dennis!
