Rebranding of Connecticut's Cities Continues: Waterbury Up Next

The latest Connecticut community to go down the re-branding road is Waterbury.  The Prospect-based marketing firm WORX Group presented its marketing concepts this week to the city’s Board of Aldermen, according to reports in the Waterbury Republican-American. In December, the firm proposed two logos and sought public input, including at a series of focus groups last spring.  The underwhelming choices: The proposals were either a stylized “W” or a version of the city’s “brass horse.”  The horse is modeled after the statute atop the Carrie Welton Fountain by the city’s downtown Green. The proposed logo adds two leaves as wings, symbolizing the city’s rebirth. The “W” has an upward-tracking center, representing the city’s rising trajectory.

The lack of enthusiasm – and some outright criticism – for the initial options prompted a new approach, which led to the latest proposal, a stylized multi-colored W with the city’s name underneath, unveiled this week for the city leadership’s approval.

In recent years, Stamford, Norwalk and New Britain are among the Connecticut communities that have undertaken re-branding efforts, including rolling out new logos for the municipalities.   New Britain took steps to redesign the city’s Main Street bridge over Route 72 with architectural features promoting a beehive theme, as highlighted in the logo launched in 2017, and New Britain began to use the new logo and tagline on signs, letterhead, brochures and its website.

In Waterbury, the local marketing firm has been paid to $81,500 to develop marketing concepts and is proposing a $180,000, one-year, contract that would include a new website, social media, email marketing and other related initiatives. The website and social media campaign would include job openings, available properties, recreation opportunities, local eateries, upcoming events, health care resources, stories on city infrastructure projects and features stories on key city figures and business success stories, the newspaper reported.

The U.K.-based creative agency Canny, which chronicled city rebranding efforts around the world, has pointed out that “Creating a single brand for a city helps highlight its offerings and interactions, allowing it to appeal to both tourists and residents alike.”  The site also notes that “good city branding can make a place seem desirable, but bad city branding can have the opposite effect.”

Connecticut Hall of Fame Inductions Seem to Have Ended

It seemed like a good idea at the time.  More than a decade ago, in 2005, a committee of legislators successfully urged the state legislature to establish the Connecticut Hall of Fame, to be featured in the Legislative Office Building (LOB) in Hartford. In announcing the proposal, they explained “the hall of fame is designed to recognize those individuals from Connecticut who have distinguished themselves in their professions, nationally or internationally. It will also have an education function because of the great number of students who visit the Capitol and LOB annually.”  It was even specified that the lettering of the names of inductees “will be in brass.”

The first class of inductees, in February 2007, were Mark Twain, Igor Sikorsky and Katharine Hepburn, their names affixed to the wall of the second floor atrium in the LOB.  It marked a successful launch, after being “in the planning stages for four years,” according to an announcement at the time.

The legislators driving the initiative were then-Senators Joseph Crisco (D-Woodbridge) and John McKinney (R-Fairfield) and then-Representatives Elizabeth “Betty” Boukus (D-Plainville), and Michael Caron (R-Danielson).  Today, all no longer hold legislative seats.  When it began, it was said that “Funding for the Connecticut Hall of Fame is expected to come from corporate contributions, grants, and contributions from individuals, foundations and, potentially, appropriate state agencies.”

The Hall has slowly fallen from the legislative radar screen. A brochure about the Hall of Fame indicates that “Each year the committee reviews the applications of many nominees and refers their selection to the Legislative Leaders for approval. An awards ceremony, ‘Connecticut Hall of Fame Day,’ is held to honor those inducted.”  Not lately.

Induction ceremonies were held in 2007, 2008, 2009, and 2010, but only in three years since – 2013, 2014 and 2016.  In 2008, the committee reviewed the applications of 30 nominees.  No ceremonies have been held, however, in three of the past four years, and none appear to be on the immediate horizon.  Officials indicate that the “committee” currently is without leaders.

In 2009, the committee included Rep. Themis Klarides, now the House Republican leader. In a news release that year, she saluted one of the inductees:  “Paul Newman’s story is a truly American story and Connecticut can be proud he called our state home,” said Representative Klarides. “Mr. Newman is known widely for his distinguished film and Broadway career, but his service to our nation in WWII and his life-long philanthropic dedication further make him uniquely worthy of addition to the Connecticut Hall of Fame.”

Most recently, in 2017, the co-chairs were then-Sen. Anthony Guglielmo and Rep. Terrie Wood, along with then-Rep. Matt Lesser, now a State Senator.

Among the inductees are UConn’s Geno Auriemma and Jim Calhoun, along with historic figures Noah Webster, Harriet Beecher Stowe, Roger Sherman, Nathan Hale, Henry Burbeck, Helen Keller, Horace Wells, Marian Anderson, Harry Gray, Jackie Robinson and Ralph Sturges, longtime leader of the Mohegan Tribe.

The inductees also Judge Constance Baker Motley; composer and musician David Brubeck; architect Frederick Law Olmsted; aviation pioneer Frederick Rentschler; composer and lyricist Stephen Sondheim; actor and philanthropist Paul Newman, and actress Meryl Streep.  Also having their names added to the roster of inductees on a second-floor wall of the Legislative Office Building are Judge John T. Downey; American inventor and businessman Alfred Carlton Gilbert; artist Deane Keller and undersea explorer Robert Ballard.

Whether the Connecticut Hall of Fame will see additional inductees this year, or in future years, remains uncertain. Information on the Hall can be seen at https://www.cga.ct.gov/hof/

Cultural and Historic Sites Receive $3 Million in Waning Weeks of Malloy Administration

Aimed at small to medium-sized cultural organizations seeking funding for “collaborative projects which demonstrate a clear vision of how individual sites and organizations can effectively tie together local, regional or statewide cultural assets,” the Good to Great grant program was created in 2014 during the administration of former Governor Dannel Malloy to “go beyond basic facilities repair or expansion to support projects that tell the stories of our cultural and historic sites in engaging, meaningful and relevant ways.” The final round of grants – unless the program is renewed by the Lamont administration – were announced less than three weeks prior to the change in gubernatorial leadership.   The Connecticut Department of Economic and Community Development (DECD) announced $3,051,971 in grants to 12 nonprofit organizations through the program in late December.

The grants may be used for capital projects that address the rehabilitation and/or adaptive re-use of existing facilities that will transform the visitor experience, site work associated with rehabilitation projects or additions, rehabilitation of historic landscapes, or protection and/or interpretation of archaeological sites.  Other appropriate uses include artists’ fees, conservator fees, construction costs, ADA accessibility, evaluation services and documentation and exhibit scripts, fabrication and installation to complement capital improvement.

The grants range between $50,000 and $150,000 and require a 25 percent cash match; grantees will have two years from date of grant contract to complete the funded project.  Applicants for the state grant must be a Connecticut 501(c)(3) or 501(c)(13) organization that owns, operates and/or sponsors a cultural venue or historic site in Connecticut with an average annual income of $500,000 or less.

The just under-the-wire recipients:

• The New England Carousel Museum in Bristol was awarded $150,000 to install a new energy-efficient, air-handling system with humidity control to protect the Museum's collection and improve the visitors' experience.
• The Connecticut Electric Railway Association (aka The Connecticut Trolley Museum) in East Windsor was awarded $50,000 to complete the on-going restoration of one of theMuseum's most historically significant trolleys - Connecticut Company Car #3001.
• The Friends of the Pinney House, Inc. in Ellington was awarded $150,000 for the interior restoration of the Pinney House so it can be used as a cultural center, a meeting place and an education site.
• Ebony Horsewomen Inc. in Hartford was awarded $50,000 to erect a pre-fab barn building to create a meeting & classroom space and a mini Black Cowboy Museum.
• The Madison Historical Society was awarded $138,600 for the restoration and preservation of the interior of Lee's Academy and to create an ADA-compatible learning and community center.
• The Denison Society, Inc. (aka Denison Homestead) in Mystic was awarded $150,000 to restore the Homestead's barn so that it may provide areas for programs, workshops and community events.
• The Norfolk Historical Society was awarded $60,546 to redesign the welcome/reception area, reinterpret gallery space and reclaim research space.
• The Keeler Tavern Preservation Society, Inc. (aka Keeler Tavern Museum & History Center) in Ridgefield was awarded $96,575 for facility improvements (climate controlled, fire-protected, well-designed storage) for its most fragile objects that relate directly to major moments in U.S. history.
• The Stonington Historical Society (aka Old Lighthouse Museum) was awarded $56,250 for a comprehensive research effort and the commission of an archeological survey of a potential Venture Smith site; creation of a permanent Venture Smith and slavery exhibit at Old Lighthouse Museum.
• The Ward Heitmann House Museum Foundation, Inc. (aka Ward Heitmann House Museum) in West Haven was awarded $150,000 to repair the foundation and exterior along with period appropriate landscaping so the House can reopen its doors to the public.
• The Eastern Connecticut Center for History, Art and Performance (aka EC-CHAP) in Willington was awarded $1,000,000 to preserve and rehabilitate two secondary buildings for use again as an in-residence artist and a café and conduct a water mitigation plan for the main structure.
• The Mary & Eliza Freeman Center for History and Community in Bridgeport was awarded $1,000,000 for the exterior restoration of both structures, as well as the interior restoration of the Eliza Freeman House.

The grant award recipients constituted the final announcement of 2018 by the state Department of Economic and Community Development.  Nineteen days later, Gov. Lamont took the oath of office.  He is expected to announce the department's new leadership and management structure in the coming days.

One-Third of Connecticut Legislators are Women, Reversing State Trend, Ranking 14th in U.S.

As the new Connecticut legislative session gets underway, 33.5 percent of lawmakers are women, the 14^th highest percentage among the states.  The Connecticut legislature now includes 61 women, apparently the high water mark in state history, and exceeding the national average among the states of 28.5 percent. In the Senate, there are currently 9 women out of 33 members.  Eight of the nine are Democrats.  In the House, which currently has 149 members, 29 are Democrats and 22 are Republicans.

Connecticut’s 33.5 percent is from 182 seats, with five vacancies to be filled in special elections on February 26.  Candidates for those seats have not all been selected.

The ranks of women dropped by two in the Senate between Election Day and Opening Day of the legislative session, with former Senators Terry Gerratana of New Britain and Beth Bye of West Hartford accepting positions in the Lamont Administration and not taking the oath of office for a new legislative term.  Two male House members and a male Senate member also did not take their oaths of office in order to join the administration.

Nearly one-third of the women in the legislature this year - 20 of the 61 female legislators - are in their first term in the General Assembly.  Last year, women represented just over 27 percent of the legislature’s membership.

The 2018 election marked a slight comeback for Connecticut in terms of female representation.

Prior to this year, the state had fallen from ranking 8th to 19th during the past decade in the percentage of women serving in the legislature, with the percentage dropping from 31.6% as recently as 2009, according to the National Conference of State Legislatures. Connecticut’s 2009 legislature included 59 women, 31.6 percent of the membership, the 8^th highest percentage among the states. In 2011, there were 56 women, 29.9 percent.

For their 2019 legislative sessions, the states with the largest contingent of female legislators are Nevada 50.8%, Colorado 47%, Oregon 41.1%, Washington 40.1%, Vermont 39.4%, Arizona 38.9%, Alaska 38.3%, Maine 38.2%, Maryland 37.8%, Rhode Island 37.2%, Illinois 36.2%, Michigan 35.8% and New Mexico 34.8%.  As with Connecticut, the numbers in other states may vary slightly due to resignations or elected legislators opting not to serve.

Nationally, women hold 2,110 of 7,383 state legislative seats.  Democrats hold more than twice as many – 1,430 Democrats and 663 Republicans. That is an increase of more than 300 Democratic women and a drop of about 40 Republican women in state legislatures across the country compared with 2017, according to NCSL data.

Trump Told Coast Guard Academy “Things Happen to You That You Do Not Deserve;” Without Paychecks, They’re Now at Food Pantry

Twenty months ago, addressing the graduating class of the Coast Guard Academy in New London and their families, President Donald Trump said: “I hope you feel the full gratitude of our nation… Cadets, you deserve not only the congratulations but the gratitude of each and every American, and we all salute you.” He also noted that “this class has been exceptionally dedicated to public service. You served breakfast at the local food bank every single weekday.”

Now, the tables have turned.  It is members of the Coast Guard and their families that are lining up at a local food pantry to receive – rather than distribute - donated food.

Because the Coast Guard is part of the Department of Homeland Security, one of the federal government agencies subject to the now more than three-week old shutdown, paychecks have ceased and putting food on the table has become the latest challenge.

Adm. Karl Schultz said in a letter to the Coast Guard's 42,000 members this week that the lapse in pay marks the first time to his knowledge that U.S. Armed Forces service members have not been paid because of a shutdown. Other military branches fall under the Department of Defense, which is not affected by the shutdown.

Published reports indicate that the southeastern Connecticut chapter of the Coast Guard Chief Petty Officers Association, the Coast Guard Enlisted Association of Southeastern Connecticut and the Coast Guard Spouses' Association of Southeastern Connecticut, set up the pantry at the Academy, providing items including food, diapers, household items and pet supplies.

Connecticut Senator Richard Blumenthal has said he will advocate for legislation that would authorize paying the Coast Guard, even as the government shutdown continues.

President Trump members of the Coast Guard in May 2017 that “you will face many challenges and many threats, but one thing you will never have to face is that question of what will I do. When you look back, you won’t doubt.”  He added, “Over the course of your life, you will find that things are not always fair. You will find that things happen to you that you do not deserve and that are not always warranted.”

Trump also told that graduates that “you have to learn how to act under great, great pressure. You’re all going to be under great pressure. You have to learn how to respond and to act under great pressure.”

CT Economic Development Leadership Has Been Changing, With More About to Arrive

Incoming Gov. Ned Lamont’s transition team looked at the state’s economy and business climate and declared, "Given the current fiscal pressures and environment in Connecticut, an economic development and pro-growth platform must have the laser-like focus of the new administration.” If the new administration follows through on that pointed recommendation, it will do so with a relatively new line-up in the field as well as in the administration, where, in addition to a businessman Governor, expectations are that Connecticut will have it's first Secretary of Commerce, along with a restructured economic development framework and approach.

One needs only look as far as four of the state’s leading business organizations to see that change is already underway around the state, and Connecticut’s economic development line-up is in the midst of a major makeover.

The Greater New Haven Chamber of Commerce, the MetroHartford Alliance and the Danbury Chamber of Commerce all have leaders at the helm who came on board with the past year.  And less than two months ago, the Bridgeport Regional Business Council saw a new leader take the reins.

Dan Onofrio began as president and CEO of the Bridgeport Regional Business Council (BRBC) in November after a decade as executive vice president of operations and general manager of business systems operations at Environmental Data Resources. He is also a franchise partner in three Rita’s Ice franchises in Connecticut and was the co-founder of the Greater Valley Chamber of Commerce’s Young Emerging Professionals business networking group, the Fairfield County Business Journal reported.

“The greater Bridgeport region has so much opportunity and I see so much potential to be part of the good things that are ahead of us,” Onofrio said in a recent interview.  “There is a perception that it is difficult to do business in Connecticut, so I think that we — not just as a region but as a state — need to change the perception of what Connecticut is and what we have to offer.”

Among his top priorities: “to get engaged with the small-business community as well as the large corporations, and to work with the universities to see how we can create that ecosystem to create a sustainable downtown.”  Widening to a statewide lens, he observed “If policy in Hartford can change, we will see a domino effect of activity in Connecticut that will boost the economy. But it’s not a silver bullet — there are a multitude of things that need to happen.”

Garrett Sheehan has served as president of the Greater New Haven Chamber of Commerce (GNHCC) since March. Before taking the post at the chamber, Sheehan worked as a broadcast journalist, in economic development and at United Illuminating (UI). He grew up in Middlefield before career stops elsewhere in the country, and service in the U.S. military.  The Chamber of Commerce advocates for business interests in New Haven and 15 suburbs, from Madison to Wallingford to Orange to Milford.  He also serves as 1^st Vice President of the Connecticut Economic Development Association.

Sheehan said recently, “from an economic development standpoint I think [the region] has a really strong selling point: location, quality of workforce, institutions of higher education here, and business space we have here…  I’m from Connecticut I want to be a part of the solutions to make Connecticut a great place to be.”

The MetroHartford Alliance’s new leader, David Griggs, also took the helm in March, moving to Connecticut from a similar economic development post in Minneapolis-St.Paul.

“Hartford is a fabulous region that has been flying under the radar,” Griggs said on his arrival in Hartford. “The world needs to know what a great place Hartford is, like the world knows what a great place Minneapolis is… Our focus needs to be less convention and visitors bureau-type messaging about Hartford being a great place to live, work, or play. It needs to be more of a focused message to very specific industries about why they need to be in Hartford if they want to prosper in the U.S. marketplace in their industry.”

In November, Griggs unveiled plans for a changing focus, including an internal restructuring with new leadership staff (to include a research director), strengthening recruiting strategies and an unprecedented level of travel to promote Greater Hartford across the country, the Hartford Business Journal reported.  The Alliance will also rekindle its previous chamber function, bringing back the old Hartford Chamber of Commerce name that hasn’t been used in nearly two decades.

Peter “P.J.” Prunty, who served as director of CityCenter Danbury for the last two and a half years, was appointed as president and CEO of the 10-town Greater Danbury Chamber of Commerce last March. Prunty was born and raised in Danbury.

Hartford Surges into Top 50 Cities to Start a Business

Hartford is surging.  So says Inc. magazine, in the latest ranking of the leading “Surge Cities” in the U.S. – the 50 Best Places in America for Starting a Business.  Of Hartford, which ranked number 46, the publication said “Hartford gets its groove back by doubling down on manufacturing--and social impact startups.” Hartford ranked just ahead of Memphis, Cleveland, Virginia Beach and Buffalo in rounding out the top 50.  Leading the list were Austin, Salt Lake City, Raleigh, Nashville, San Francisco, San Jose, San Diego, Denver, Orlando and Portland.

Inc. pointed out that “Despite years of state budgetary woes, the Hartford area is on an upswing--thanks, in part, to a rebound in manufacturing. Aerospace company Pratt & Whitney can't keep up with jet engine orders, and Otis Elevator does over $12.3 billion in net sales.”  They went on to highlight what’s new: “Pioneering accelerator ReSet, which has a social impact focus, has graduated 100 area companies over the past five years. Toolmaker Stanley Black & Decker recently launched a manufacturing accelerator with Techstars. And Hartford--the ‘insurance capital of the world’--was named one of the state's four Innovations Places, making it eligible for $2 million in matching funds, part of which it's putting toward an accelerator aimed at insurance startups.”

Among the criteria in the analysis, and Hartford’s ranking:  rate of entrepreneurship (38), high-growth company density (48), net business creation (35), early-stage funding deals (35) and wage growth (21).

Elsewhere in New England, Boston ranked number 15; Providence was number 44.

Ghosts of Whalers Past Return in Carolina with Win, Attendance Boost, and Criticism

With the ghosts of Hartford Whalers past brought back to life for a one-night stand in Raleigh, North Carolina this past weekend, a glimpse at attendance numbers may give some perspective on what was, what is, and what might have been. The Carolina Hurricanes home attendance in the 31-team National Hockey League ranks 29^th in the league thus far in the 2018-19 season, after 20 home games, not including Whalers night.  The team has been drawing considerably better on the road (17,258) than at home (13,245). 

That home attendance figure should come as no surprise.  It is on pace for last season’s home attendance average over 41 games of 13,320.  Then as now, it was the third lowest home attendance average in the league.  Only Arizona and the New York Islanders drew fewer fans to home games.

It’s no wonder that the Hurricanes were seeking to recapture some of that Whalers magic – or should we say Bonanza.  And also cash in on merchandise sales, as well as seeking an attendance boost, even if only for a night.

In early 1996, a 45-day “Save the Whale” season-ticket drive in Hartford resulted in 8,300 season tickets sold, about 3,000 more than the previous year.  In the aftermath of the season ticket drive, and heading into the 1996-97 season, the Whalers management said they would remain in Hartford for two more years, in accordance with their lease. Yet they ended their 18-year history as the Whalers in Hartford, moving to Greensboro, North Carolina seeking redder pastures and becoming the Carolina Hurricanes for the start of the 1997-98 season.

In the Whalers’ final season in Hartford, 1996-97, attendance at the Hartford Civic Center had grown to 87 percent of capacity, with an average attendance of 13,680 per game.  Published reports suggest that the average attendance was, in reality, higher than 14,000 per game by 1996-97, but Whalers ownership did not count the skyboxes and coliseum club seating because the revenue streams went to the state, rather than the team.  Attendance increased for four consecutive years before management moved the team from Hartford. (To 10,407 in 1993-94, 11,835 in 1994-95, 11,983 in 1995-96 and 13,680 in 1996-97.)

During the team’s tenure in Hartford, average attendance exceeded 14,000 twice – in 1987-88 and 1986-87, when the team ranked 13th in the league in attendance in both seasons.  The Hurricanes had somewhat higher attendance numbers in the immediate aftermath of winning the Stanley Cup a decade ago, but they did not sustain those levels and were among the top half of NHL teams in attendance only once.

Keep in mind that as we approach 2019, after two decades in North Carolina, the Hurricanes are only a couple of seasons removed from the recent low water mark in NHL attendance.  In the 2016-17 season, the average home crowd was the lowest in the NHL – only 11,776.  It was the second consecutive season that the Hurricanes had the league’s worst home attendance numbers. (They were second worst the previous year.)

The Hurricanes/Whalers will next skate in Boston against the Bruins in early spring, taking to ice in the green uniforms originally worn as road uniforms by Hartford from 1985-89, then again in 1991-92.  The Whalers, by the way, are now undefeated this season, as the Hurricanes defeated the Bruins 5-3 on Sunday afternoon.  The win was not without criticism, with one published report describing the Hurricanes new first-year management as leading "the desecration of a grave and a shameless ploy to drum up some jersey and merchandise sales. A cash grab."

The crowd was, as CBS Sports phrased it: "much bigger than they’re used to":  17,491.

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CT Per Student Spending in Public Higher Education Saw 7th Largest Drop in Nation During Past Decade

The burden has shifted and grown during the past decade for students attending Connecticut’s public two- and four-year institutions of higher education. Between 2008 and 2018, average tuition at public colleges and universities (adjusted for inflation) grew by 38.4 percent in Connecticut, according to a new national analysis by the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities. The study found that average tuition increased by $3,437 during the decade – 13^th largest average increase among the states - as state spending per student dropped by $3,203.

That is the 7^th largest average drop in state per student spending in the nation, and the largest among the New England states.  The next largest state reduction in the region was in New Hampshire, ranking 24th.  Massachusetts ranked 28^th, reducing state spending per student by $1,295.

Tuition climbed as state spending per student dropped by 20.2 percent at Connecticut’s public higher education institutions - the 20th largest percentage decrease among the states.

Connecticut is not alone.

Overall state funding for public two- and four-year colleges in the school year ending in 2018 was more than $7 billion below its 2008 level, after adjusting for inflation, according to the study.

Of the 49 states (all except Illinois) analyzed over the full 2008-2018 period:

• 45 spent less per student in the 2018 school year than in 2008. The only states spending more than in 2008 were California, Hawaii, North Dakota, and Wyoming.
• States cut funding deeply after the recession hit. The average state spent $1,502, or 16 percent, less per student in 2018 than in 2008.
• Per-student funding in nine states — Alabama, Arizona, Louisiana, Mississippi, Missouri, New Mexico, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania, and South Carolina — fell by more than 30 percent over this period.

The report also found that annual published tuition at four-year public colleges has risen by $2,651, or 36 percent, since the 2008 school year.  In Louisiana, published tuition at four-year schools has doubled, while in six other states — Alabama, Arizona, California, Colorado, Georgia, and Hawaii — published tuition is up more than 60 percent.

“These sharp tuition increases have accelerated longer-term trends of college becoming less affordable and costs shifting from states to students,” the report, “Unkept Promises:  State Cuts to Higher Education Threaten Access and Equity,” stated.

The largest tuition increases, comparing public, four-year colleges in 2008 and 2018, were in Arizona, Louisiana, Hawaii, New Hampshire, Virginia, Colorado, Alabama, California, Rhode Island, Vermont, Georgia, Tennessee, Connecticut and Massachusetts.  Connecticut was fourth highest among the six New England states.  Maine had the smallest tuition increase.

Indications are that the trend has slowed during the past year.  Published tuition — the “sticker price” — at public four-year institutions rose by less than 1 percent nationally between the 2017 and 2018 school years, the report indicated.  Rhode Island increased average tuition across its four-year institutions on a dollar basis more than any other state, by $559, or roughly 4.8 percent. Connecticut - along with Iowa, Mississippi, Montana, and Oregon - raised average tuition by more than $300, according to data compiled for the report, published last month.

The Center on Budget and Policy Priorities is a nonpartisan research and policy institute which pursues federal and state policies designed both to reduce poverty and inequality and to restore fiscal responsibility in equitable and effective ways, according to the organization’s website.  The Center is based in Washington, D.C.

Failures in Federal Housing Policy Focus of Media Investigation, Hartford Concerns Highlighted

An NBC News investigation of the federal Department of Housing and Urban Development has found that more than 1,000 out of HUD’s nearly 28,000 federally subsidized multifamily properties failed their most recent inspection — a failure rate that is more than 30 percent higher than in 2016, according to an analysis of HUD records. When NBC broke the story last week of the agency’s dismal record of responding to conditions that at times have been described a “life-threatening,” the example cited most prominently was in Hartford.

The news report stated that “A federal housing inspection in February confirmed living conditions were abysmal … throughout the 52-unit Section 8 development known as the Infill apartments. The property scored only 27 points out of 100, far below the 60 points needed to pass the mandatory health and safety inspection.”  Infill is located in Hartford’s North End. 

“More than nine months after the inspection, federally mandated deadlines for action have come and gone, and residents say little has changed,” NBC’s Stephanie Gosk reported, despite “citations for exposed wiring, missing smoke detectors and bug infestations,” noted that “the Infill units racked up 113 health and safety violations — including 24 that HUD deemed ‘life-threatening.’”

“In one of Hartford’s poorest neighborhoods, a three-month investigation by NBC News found that HUD failed to comply with federal laws requiring prompt action against the owner of a property that authorities knew was unsafe, unhealthy and in disrepair, according to documents released through the Freedom of Information Act,” Gosk reported.

While the agency pointed out that 96 percent nationwide passed inspections, NBC reported that “HUD’s enforcement office, tasked with going after the worst landlords, now has the lowest staff levels since 1999, according to a federal watchdog.”

“In the case of Infill, though, HUD acknowledged that the landlord failed to deliver,” NBC News reported. “The owner provided certain assurances to our field folks that, in the end, did not happen,” HUD spokesman Brian Sullivan said in an email to NBC News. “That hasn't stopped the federal subsidies,” NBC News reported.

"It's a flow of money that continues to come," AJ Johnson, a local pastor who has helped the tenants organize, told NBC News.  “Whether it’s indifference or incompetence, the Trump administration’s failures in Connecticut and around the country cannot be excused. Someone must be held accountable,” said U.S. Sen. Chris Murphy, who led previous efforts to strengthen the HUD inspection process, NBC News reported. “Secretary [Ben] Carson owes it to these families to present a concrete plan for how he will make this better, and how he’ll make sure nothing like this ever happens again.”

Infill’s owner, meanwhile, is “set for years to come,” the NBC News report concluded.  “In July 2017, just seven months before the failed inspection, HUD renewed its contract with Isaacson for 20 years — a deal worth over $14 million.”

The NBC News investigation was reported, in addition to Gosk, by Suzy Khimm, Laura Strickler and Hanna Rappleye, and included interviews with numerous tenants of the property and other individuals in Hartford and Washington.