Education Reform and Job Creation Key to Bridgeport's Future

Citing the city's increasing population - the first increase in 60 years - and renewed business activity, Bridgeport Mayor Bill Finch focused on job creation and education reform in his annual address before the Bridgeport Business Council.  The city's population grew 3.4% between 2000 and 2010 according to the U.S. Census.  Finch stressed the importance of businesses collaborating with the school system in Connecticut's largest city to promote opportunities that can lead to jobs.   Finch thanked new business owners, such as Columbia Elevator and Bridgeport BioDiesel, and long-established businesses like Schwerdtle Stamp for believing in Bridgeport.   He also noted that the Police Department has added 45 new officers and the Fire Department has added 25 new firefighters during his tenure as the city's chief elected official, and "continues to lead the nation in the installation of life saving smoke alarms."  More than 30,000 smoke alarms have been provided to city residences that previously did not have the potentially life-saving devices.

Cable Coverage Is High; Broadband Is State's Next Target

The Hartford-New Haven television market is the 30th largest in the country, with a population of 2.6 million and just over 1 million television households.  Cable penetration - the number of tv households with cable television - is 82 percent, among the highest in the country.  Satellite penetration stands at 14%. As traditional television content becomes increasingly available on the Internet, more attention is being paid to broadband availability in the state.  Broadband  commonly refers to high-speed Internet access that is always on and faster than previous dial-up access.

A recent report by the Connecticut Academy for Science and Engineering found that there are segments of the population in CT that do not have broadband connectivity due to factors including "lack of interest or understanding of the importance of internet access," the lack of digital literacy, or costs associated with broadband connections.  Among the recommendations:  CT should establish a broadband cabinet that focuses on state policy, bringing together existing resources to encourage strong coordination.  The report also noted that  "making broadband technologies accessible to all residents will be an engine of growth for the state."

State of Entepreneurship?

Connecticut dropped from 13th to 17th in the State Entrepreneurship Index, a ranking of the 50 states' entrepreneurship environments, growth in business formation and technological innovation.  The newest stats reflect 2010 - an administration ago -  in an analysis by the University of Nebraska's Bureau of Business Research and Department of Economics.  The top 5 were New York (2.34), Washington (2.17), Massachusetts (2.04), New Jersey (1.93) and Oregon (1.93).  The bottom dweller?  South Carolina (.07).