October SoDo News and Meeting

Capitol Avenue, looking east to Main Street.

Interested in your neighborhood?

The next meeting for the 2019-20 year for the South Downtown NRZ is this week, Wednesday, October 16 at 6 pm at South Church (enter on John Street.)

Our meetings typically include reports from Hartford NEXT, Community Garden, and the Outreach and Social Committees, reports on fire and police activity in the neighborhood, and updates from various City offices such as Community Engagement, Planning & Development Services, and Sustainability. We occasionally have special guests who share information relevant to quality of life in the city or the neighborhood. Our guest for the October meeting is David Grant, Executive Assistant to the Mayor, who will present on the City's various Boards and Commissions, how they help shape our community and local government, and the criteria for volunteering.

Autumn leaves mean raking!

Autumn leaves are so pretty! And then at some point, you do have to rake them. Here are the City's leaf pickup schedules. Please note the rules regarding bagging and curbside collection.

Exciting Civic Engagement Opportunity with Hartford NEXT

Hartford NEXT (formerly Hartford 2000) has received a grant from the Hartford Foundation for Public Giving for a 2019/2020 Civic Engagement Project. The project will involve campaigns to Get Out the Vote to encourage voter registration and increased turnout and to Get Out the Count to encourage Hartford residents to complete the 2020 Census.

The grant includes funds to hire a part-time coordinator and four outreach interns.

The coordinator job description says, "An exciting opportunity to engage, help, and learn about the Hartford community at a grass-roots level. The primary purposes are to (1) increase voter registration, secure pledge cards, manage ride requests and operations, and capture program data for events leading up to and after the 2019 general election and 2020 presidential primary and (2) develop and implement an outreach plan to promote the importance of the 2020 Census to Hartford residents and facilitate participation and completion of 2020 Census forms."

The intern job description says, "The primary purpose of this position is (1) to increase voter registration through outreach, manage ride requests and operations, and capture program data for events leading up to and after the 2019 general election and 2020 presidential primary and (2) to assist in outreach efforts to inform Hartford residents about the importance of the 2020 Census and support the completion of the Census questionnaire."

Applications are due by October 18. Click here for more information and to apply.

Please share this info with your neighbors!

Join the SoDo Board: Elections at our Annual Meeting 6/19

Interested in making our neighborhood better?

The South Downtown NRZ has openings for Board Members in the following categories: Residential Tenant, Property Owner, Social Services representative, and Business Owner.
 

Elections are Wednesday, June 19, 2019, 6:00 p.m. at our Annual Meeting.

Any member of the SoDo NRZ can run for Board elections. Membership in the SoDo NRZ requires that an individual must (a) live in or, (b) own property in or, (c) own a business located in, or (d) represent a social services agency located in the South Downtown (SoDo) area. Board Terms are three years, and we request that Board members attend and actively participate in meetings and events, and have a non-partisan interest in improving the quality of life in our neighborhood. We meet on the third Wednesday of the month, September through June.  Click here for more information about the NRZ and the neighborhood boundaries.

To nominate yourself for election, please send a brief paragraph about yourself and why you are interested in joining to SoDoNRZ@gmail.com by 5 pm Friday, June 14. To nominate another person for election, please email their name and contact information to SoDoNRZ@gmail.com by 5 pm, Wednesday, June 12 and we will contact them regarding their interest in the Board.

How big (or small) is our neighborhood?

Spring on Buckingham Street.

The next meeting of your NRZ will be Wednesday, May 15 at 6 pm at South Church (enter on John Street.)

Our special guest this month is Amy Chambers-McKay, the City's new Director of Planning. We will also have a discussion about NRZ boundaries. Should SoDo annex some or all of Downtown, which currently has no NRZ?

Our meetings typically include reports from Hartford 2000, Community Garden, and the Outreach and Social Committees, and updates on fire and police activity in the neighborhood. We occasionally have special guests who share information relevant to the neighborhood. We always hope to be joined by all our neighbors.

June marks our Annual Meeting, and we do need more Board Members. If you are a SoDo resident, property owner or business owner and would like to get involved in the NRZ, please email SoDoNRZ@gmail.com. If you are not sure if your home or business lies within the NRZ boundaries, please check out this map.

You can view past meeting minutes and newsletter editions on our website. And don't forget to check out our Facebook and NextDoor pages for neighborhood news and photos.

What's new in your neighborhood?

Capitol Avenue in Spring

Happy Spring! Baseball season has begun, the flowering trees in Bushnell Park are starting to bud, and Capitol Ice Cream has opened for the season. And best of all, you can experience all of those things in one pretty great walk. Speaking of great, the next meeting of your NRZ will be Wednesday, April 17 at 6 pm at South Church (enter on John Street.)

Our special guest this month is our neighbor Julio Concepcion, who is both our State Legislator and also the Executive Director of the newly re-launched Hartford Chamber of Commerce.

March meeting is all about Park & Main Development

The proposed development at Park & Main Streets abuts the South Downtown neighborhood. It will bring more retail, offices, and residents to our area, but also impacts traffic, pedestrians, and potentially our new Community Garden. Please join us for this important discussion.

A vacant lot at an important intersection...NOTE: In lieu of this month's meeting the community is invited to join the SoDo Board and members in attending the Park and Main Development Meeting. Wednesday, March 20 at 5:30 pm at The Center for Latino Progress (95-97 Park Street). Click the photo or here to RSVP.

 
Meet with neighbors at the Center for Latino Progress to learn more about the Park and Main Street development that is being proposed by Freeman Companies, LLCand Spinnaker. We'll be joined by a presenter from the developers, and there will be an opportunity to ask questions.

The City of Hartford has been invited to send someone to talk about the nearby sidewalks and street projects near Park and Main Street. This intersection is an important and busy bus stop, and we have a lot of neighbors walking, biking, and taking the bus.

Neighbors from South Green, CSS-CON, South Downtown, and Frog Hollow Neighborhoods have been invited to attend this important gathering.

Food will be provided. RSVP here.