This week we’re focusing on a single development proposal that has divided the residents of Hartford’s West End neighborhood. The Capitol Regional Education Council (CREC) is interested in building a school near the intersection of Asylum Avenue and Elizabeth Street. We’ll start with an overview today and do a site visit tomorrow. From there we’ll look at the arguments for and against the proposal. Finally, we’ll share our thoughts, analysis and conclusions after the inordinate
At the end of last week there were two news stories in which we had the opportunity to contribute. First was a piece in the West Hartford News about the market conditions in West Hartford. The 2011 revaluation and associated grand list are almost complete, just waiting on the final appeals by individual property owners. That process has not seemed to be a big concern to home buyers as sales activity is up over last
Down this nondescript, unpaved driveway are three hidden houses. Other than the small sign to the right of the driveway, you would never know it from the road. All three of the hidden homes were built in the early 1900s, which makes them a little newer than the properties along the road. The visible homes almost all date back to the 1800s. These hidden homes all have a very secluded feel even though they’re quite
Ever since we lived in the Boston area, I have been interested in homes that were set back off the road on a lot that doesn’t have any real street frontage. I like to call them hidden houses. Take a look at this picture, can you see the house tucked between and behind the two on the street? What I find interesting about hidden houses is that they each have an interesting story. How did
Today’s question … what would it take to make a former office tower an interesting/hip/cool place to live? While walking through Downtown Hartford I was once again thinking about how interesting a neighborhood it is becoming. There has been a noticeable change since I moved to town in 2004, with the highlight being numerous projects filling previously underutilized sites with housing. There are plenty of underutilized sites that remain – many of them are office