Breast Cancer is Latest Cause to Grow Interest Through CT License Plate

Connecticut, with more than 50 special license plates featuring everything from animals to war survivors, is headed toward adding another choice for state residents to purchase. Organizers of Seymour Pink, the grassroots initiative launched in 2009 to raise money and awareness for breast cancer, is looking to have a specialty license plate produced to show support for the cause, the New Haven Registered reported this week.

State law allows the Department of Motor Vehicles to issue of special background plates on behalf of non-profit organizations. The organization must be non-profit, must submit a copy of the organization's charter or by-laws, provide a letter of good standing from the State of Connecticut Secretary of State’s Office (if required) and supply any Internal Revenue Service ruling on their non-profit tax exemption status.

The logo production and cost incurred will be the responsibility of the organization. The logo prototype design, preferred in PDF format, must be submitted to the DMV. The logo can be no larger than 2 inches wide and 3.5 inches high. DMV has final approval on all the plate and logo designs.

A liaison for the organization must be appointed. This individual will be responsible for all communications with the DMV as well as certifying and authenticating (by signature) each member’s application, submitting the logo design to DMV for approval, submitting 400 applications with the required fee prior to the manufacturing of the special background plates, and submitting a Special Interest Plate disclaimer.

Seymour Pink Founder Mary Deming told the Register that 100 paid applications have been received from people who want to purchase a “Seymour Pink” license plate for their cars.  The state Department of Motor Vehicles won’t begin production on the plate until Seymour Pink secures at least 400 paid applications, Deming said, indicating that Seymour Pink has set a tentative deadline of Jan. 15 to reach the needed 400 paid applications, the Register reported.

Many organizations in Connecticut offer license plates to their members and the general public.  General categories include animals, colleges, environment, organizations, police and fire, cities and towns, and recreation.

Organization vanity plates include Amistad, Benevolent & Protective Order of the Elks, IUOE Local 478, Grand Lodge of Connecticut, Knights of Columbus, Olympic Spirit, P.T. Barnum Foundation Inc., Preserving Our Past CT Trust for Historic Preservation, Red Sox Foundation, Lions Eye Research Foundation, Special Olympics, Federated Garden Clubs, Fidelco Guide Dog Foundation, Keep Kids Safe, New England Air Museum and the U.S.S. Connecticut Commissioning Committee.

All fees established and collected pursuant to the United We Stand plate (except moneys designated for the administrative costs of the DMV) shall be deposited in the United We Stand commemorative account.  Funds are directed to the United States Department of State Rewards for Justice program and is used solely to apprehend terrorists and bring them to justice. The account will also be distributed to the Secretary of the Office of Policy and Management for the purpose of providing financial support and assistance to the former spouses and dependents of persons killed as a result of the acts of terrorism committed on September 11, 2001.

When individuals purchase a Keep Kids Safe plate, a portion of the fee goes to the Keep Kids Safe Fund, which “makes many worthy projects happen for youngsters.”  The fund awards grants to schools, hospitals, municipalities and other non-profit organizations working to make all Connecticut children safer from severe and preventable injuries, according to the DMV website.

In most cases, remake of a current plate is $70; a new vanity plate is $139, a new series plate is $50.  For others, including the UConn Huskies plate, the price tag is somewhat different.  Off-the-shelf license plates cost $55, remake of a current plate is $75, a new vanity plate costs $144, according to the DMV website.

The Support Our Troops plate sends a portion of the fee to provide funding for programs to assist Connecticut troops, their families and veterans. When you buy a Red Sox plate, a portion of the fees support and help fund academic scholarship programs in Connecticut.

Also included are 17 varieties of military specialty plates, including Disabled American Veteran, Gold Star Family, Iwo Jima Survivor, Korean War Veterans Association, Marine Corps League, Laos Veterans of America, Military Order of the Purple Heart, Pearl Harbor 1941, U.S. Submarine Veteran, National Guard Association of Connecticut, First Company Governor’s Foot Guard, First Company Governor’s Horse Guard,

Colleges with designated plates include Central Connecticut State University, Penn State Alumni, University of Hartford, University of Connecticut, and University of New Haven.  Cities with available plates include Meriden, Norwich, and Stafford.

Organizations interested in launching a new special plate, should contact the DMV Special Plate Unit at (860) 263-5154 for further information.

Health Insurance Report Card Provides Data on Companies Doing Business in CT

Members of health insurance plans in Connecticut offered by a changing list of companies competing for their business, were “always or usually able to see a specialist or obtain routine care as soon as they wanted,” according to a new annual report card released by the state insurance department. Insurance Commissioner Katharine L. Wade said that the 2016 Consumer Report Card on Health Plans in Connecticut is now available on the Insurance Department’s website, providing consumers with information on nearly 20 health insurers that are marketing plans for 2017.

“Open enrollment season is upon us and the Department’s newly formatted and consumer friendly Report Card can be a very useful tool for individuals and employers researching their coverage options for 2017, particularly for the thousands who can begin shopping November 1 for health insurance through Access Health CT,” Commissioner Wade said.

The Commissioner also noted that the department has “expanded mental health information in this report based upon work of the Insurance Department-led behavioral health working group which included consumers, providers, health plans and other agencies.”

Among the aspects that the report card reviews, by company, are the reasons and proportion of denial of claims as well as member satisfaction with the leading companies in Connecticut, including Aetna Health, Anthem, Cigna, ConnectiCare, Harvard Pilgrim , and Oxford Health.

The Department has been publishing the report for nearly two decades and the information has expanded each year as more quality measures were added.  “The intent remains the same – provide useful information to educate consumer on what health plans best suit their needs,” Commissioner Wade said.

The 2016 Report Card provides an overview of Connecticut’s health insurance managed care landscape by comparing care measures and member satisfaction surveys from six health maintenance organizations (HMOs) and 11 indemnity companies that have a total enrollment of more than 2.4 million members.

For this report, the Department worked with the Connecticut Economic Resource Center to help provide a statistical analysis and redesign. The report now includes three years of comparative data where available to reflect changes in insurance provisions due to the implementation of the federal Affordable Care Act.

The report also indicates that “most participating primary care and specialist physicians are board certified, with increases in the percentage of providers by company from 2013 to 2015.”

“This new, expanded report card offers everyday people, advocates and policymakers a graphic snapshot of consumer experience with the state's health plans, said Lynne Ide, Director of Program & Policy, Universal Health Care Foundation of CT.  “It illustrates successes and gaps in our state's health care marketplace - and helps us all focus on opportunities for improvement.”

The mission of the Connecticut Insurance Department is to protect consumers through regulation of the industry, outreach, education and advocacy. The Department recovers an average of $4 million yearly on behalf of consumers and regulates the industry by ensuring carriers adhere to state insurance laws and regulations and are financially solvent to pay claims. The Department’s annual budget is funded through assessments from the insurance industry.

CT Has Nation's 10th Lowest Rate of Cigarette Smoking

West Virginia had the highest prevalence of cigarette use in the United States, according to a new CDC study.  Utah had the lowest, and Connecticut had the 10^th lowest rate. Using data from the 2014 Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System, CDC determined that the prevalence of cigarette use in West Virginia was 26.7%, while the lowest rate was 9.7% in Utah.  In Connecticut the rate of cigarette use was 15.4 percent.

CDC recommended that continued implementation of proven population-based interventions, such as increasing tobacco product prices and enforcing comprehensive smoke-free laws, and increasing access to evidence-based clinical interventions can help reduce tobacco use.

"These findings highlight the importance of enhanced implementation of evidence-based strategies to help smokers and other tobacco users quit completely," CDC said.

Cigarette smoking was significantly higher among males than females in 34 states. Among males, cigarette smoking ranged from 11.2% (Utah) to 27.8% (West Virginia), and among females, from 8.2% (Utah) to 25.6% (West Virginia).

The report also indicated that the prevalence of smokeless tobacco use ranged from 1.4% (Hawaii) to 8.8% (Wyoming). It was 1.8 percent in Connecticut.

Prevalence of any cigarette and/or smokeless tobacco use ranged from 11.3% (Utah) to 32.2% (West Virginia).  Connecticut was 15.3 percent.

The CDC also indicated that the prevalence of any cigarette and/or smokeless tobacco use differed significantly by race/ethnicity in 21 states. Prevalence was highest among whites in eight states (Arizona, Delaware, Georgia, Maryland, New York, North Carolina, Texas, and Virginia), followed by adults of non-Hispanic other races in six states (Arkansas, Florida, Kansas, Nebraska, Oklahoma, and South Carolina), blacks in five states (California, Illinois, Indiana, New Jersey, and Wisconsin), and Hispanics in two states (Connecticut and Michigan).

The report was issued last week from the CDC.  The report concluded that “continued implementation of proven population-based interventions, including increasing tobacco product prices, implementing and enforcing comprehensive smoke-free laws, warning about the dangers of tobacco use through mass media campaigns, and increasing access to evidence-based clinical interventions (including behavioral counseling and FDA-approved medication), can help reduce tobacco use, particularly in populations with the highest use prevalence.”

3rd Party Presidential Campaign Names Celebrity Chair for Connecticut

On the heels of the first presidential debate, the campaign of Libertarian presidential candidate Gary Johnson and running mate William Weld, has named Westport resident and well-known celebrity Melissa Joan Hart as Connecticut Chairperson for the campaign. The actress, best remembered for starring roles in her youth in Sabrina, the Teenage Witch and Clarissa Explains it All, tells People magazine’s online program People Now that she “loves politics,” but is “fatigued” by it now.

"I want to break away from this two-party system and I think it's important for people to know that there's another candidate out there who really toes the line between Democrat and Republican," says Hart. "I mean he's Libertarian. But socially he's liberal, but fiscally conservative."

Johnson, 63, is the former governor of New Mexico – a position he held from 1995 to 2003. He ran a third party presidential campaign in 2012.  Weld is also a former Governor, having led the Bay State of Massachusetts, first elected in 1990.

Hart says she disagrees with the notion that a third-party candidate can't win the election, dispelling arguments that a vote for Johnson is a wasted vote.  In her home state, polls indicate his level of popular support is tiny, but she suggests it could have an impact.

"I think that everyone that I keep hearing say that, if they all voted for him we could have a third party win," she told People Now. "Even if he doesn't get that far, I just hope that they let him debate."  Referring to one of the campaigns most frequently mentioned issues, she indicated that "He was on a border state, so if you want to talk about immigration, he's the guy."

Johnson and Weld have yet to campaign in Connecticut.  Johnson was not invited to participate by the Commission on Presidential Debates because he did not have 15 percent of voter support according to recent national polling.  The Johnson campaign website indicates that a recent NBC/Survey Monkey poll shows Johnson leading both Donald Trump and Hillary Clinton among “pure independents” 31% to 24%. The survey, according to the site, is consistent with others showing Johnson with significant strength among not only independents, but particularly younger voters.

Melissa Joan Hart turned 40  earlier this year, is married to Mark Wilkerson. TV Guide reports she “made a pact with her husband to move out of Los Angeles before their second child went to kindergarten; they moved to Westport in 2009, and their family now includes three sons.

Disparities Continue As Uneven Economic Recovery Challenges Children and Families; Changes Urged

Connecticut lost 85,358 jobs during the recession, which technically ended nearly seven years ago. The state has continued to hemorrhage manufacturing jobs, however, and industries dependable before the crash—particularly those in finance and health care—grew more slowly or not at all. According to a new report by Connecticut Voices for Children, 97.7 percent of Connecticut’s net job losses were in mid- or high-wage industries and 51 percent of the job losses occurred in the manufacturing and construction sectors, with another 15 percent of job losses occurring in retail trade.

The financial disparity in the state’s population is more stark than ever, the report said.  “Over the past thirty years, incomes for the bottom 99 percent grew by just 14.5 percent, while the incomes of the top 1 percent swelled by 290.8 percent. As a result of this lopsided growth—a period in which the top 1 percent captured 71.6 percent of all income—incomes of the top 1 percent are now 42.6 times greater than the bottom 99 percent.”

The report stresses that many Connecticut working families have been left out of the economic recovery. “As the share of low-wage jobs rises, so does the challenge of raising a family,” the report states. “The jobs created in low-wage sectors not only pay less, but often provide less flexibility, less predictability and fewer benefits than jobs past.”

In the report. Connecticut Voices for Children points out that the combination of an increase in the share of low-wage jobs, slow wage growth and persistently high unemployment for minorities and workers without a college education threaten the long term well-being of the state. Data highlighted points out that “black and Hispanic workers in Connecticut make median hourly wages that are, respectively, $7.25 and $8 less than white workers’—a gap that has widened since before the Great Recession.”

Among the recommendations:  raise the minimum wage.  Raising the minimum wage to $15 per hour would offer relief to 336,000 workers, the report points out, which would help those the state's recovery has left farthest behind. Breaking down the demographics, the research report indicated that 60 percent of benefitting workers would be women; 31.8 percent of all black workers and 37.5 percent of all Hispanic workers would benefit.

“Changes in the state economy pose challenges for low wage workers seeking to give their children the best possible start in life,” says Ellen Shemitz, Executive Director of Connecticut Voices for Children. “Higher unemployment and lower wages for workers of color exacerbate existing disparities in opportunity, with significant implications for both the competitiveness and fairness of our state’s economy.”

The report documents a long term shift in job and wage trends in Connecticut, with almost half of all jobs created since the start of the recovery in low-wage industries. Since 2001, the share of industries that typically pay low-wages has increased by 20 percent, while high-wage industry employment has decreased by 13 percent.

At the same time, unemployment has returned to pre-recession levels for white and college educated workers, but unemployment for workers of color and those without a college education have yet to recover.  Despite years of sustained job growth, these workers face unemployment rates that are three times higher than whites.

“Connecticut’s jobs swap has implications for individual family economic well-being and for the state’s overall revenue sufficiency,” explained Derek Thomas, Fiscal Policy Fellow at Connecticut Voices for Children and report co-author. “The first decade in the 21st-century – which includes the loss of manufacturing jobs in the early 2000s as well as the vast job losses during the Great Recession – has left the state with a sizeable high-wage jobs deficit.”

Among the reports’ key findings:

• Since 2010, unemployment has steadily declined for white and college educated workers, but not for workers of color and those without a college education. Unemployment for workers of color is nearly triple than for whites.
• Underemployment remains stubbornly high; the rate of part-time employees that would want to work full-time and workers that have given up on their job search in the past year is two times higher today that it was in 2007.
• Since 2001, the share of private-sector jobs in low-wage industries has increased by 20 percent, while the share of private-sector jobs in high-wage industries has decreased by 13 percent. Nearly half of new private sector jobs since 2010 are in low-wage industries.
• The median and bottom 10 percent of wage-earners have seen their wages decline by more than 2 percent since 2002, while the top 10 percent have experienced growth of more than 11 percent.
• Black workers’ median hourly wage is $8 lower than white workers and Hispanic workers’ median hourly wage is $7.25 lower than white workers.

Since the workplace is meeting fewer of the needs of children and families, Connecticut Voices for Children is urging state policy makers to take action to bridge the gap between wages and the growing cost of raising a family. The report recommends five key policy initiatives:

• Restore the earned income tax credit for low income workers to its original 2011 levels, allowing low wage workers to retain more of what they have earned
• Raise the minimum wage to $15, allowing low wage workers to cover their families’ basic needs
• Expand high-quality early childhood education to remove barriers to employment for parents and better prepare future generations of workers
• Strengthen infrastructure investments to ensure economic competitiveness and economy-boosting jobs
• Reform property taxes for a more equitable education system

Because workers of color are overrepresented in the low-wage industries that have driven the state’s job recovery, racial and ethnic wage gaps have widened. “The growth in low-wage industries is a double whammy for working families – not only do they pay less, but they also lack the benefits, predictability and flexibility of jobs past,” says Ray Noonan, Associate Fiscal Policy Fellow at Connecticut Voices for Children and report co-author.

Connecticut Voices for Children is a research-based policy think tank based in New Haven.  The organization’s mission is to promote the well-being of all of Connecticut's young people and their families by advocating for strategic public investments and wise public policies. To achieve these objectives, Connecticut Voices for Children produces “high quality research and analysis, promotes citizen education, advocates for policy change at the state and local level and works to develop the next generation of leaders.”

PERSPECTIVE: Progress Made on Regional Cooperation During 2016 Session

by Mary Glassman The stroke of midnight on May 4 will signal the official close of Connecticut’s 2016 legislative session. Regardless of what bills pass during the last few days at the Capitol, this session clearly marks the beginning of a bold approach to regional cooperation, and it paves the way for us to meet the state’s growing needs and demographic changes.

As the state wrestles with ways to close a $1.1 billion deficit that is projected for next fiscal year, it is clear that a strategic plan is needed to identify the state’s future goals and to ensure that the state is providing services and educating all of Connecticut’s children. The many bills introduced this session that focus on regional cooperation offer a glimmer of hope. Connecticut may be ready to do just that.

Even the titles of the bills introduced this session provide us with a clue that Connecticut is ready to move forward. Bills that made it out of committee and are waiting to be debated on the floors of the House of Representatives and the Senate include: “An Act Concerning Regional Education,” “An Act Concerning Regionalism,” “An Act Concerning Regional Technology,” and “An Act Concerning Regional Efficiencies.”

Ideas included in the various legislative proposals would allow for the expansion of cooperative purchasing for towns and school districts through existing regional organizations, such as the state’s six regional educational service centers and nine councils of governments. The bills would also provide incentive funds for towns and schools to combine non-educational, backroom functions like human resources, finance, or technology services, and they would encourage long-term technology planning, which would enhance efficiencies, reduce costs, foster collaboration, and increase transparency and access to information.

For example, a proposed education bill would provide town and school districts with startup costs when they combine non-educational, backroom functions. While some towns, such as Mansfield, West Hartford, and Waterford, already share those behind-the-scene functions, other towns could use a little extra help when evaluating whether local taxpayers would save money by having different entities working together.

Another bill would require future enrollment projections to be provided as part of a request for state funding for the construction of new schools. This would encourage neighboring communities to share enrollment needs and to examine ways the state can help municipalities work together.

As local officials face uncertainty about state funding in this year’s budget, and probably in subsequent budgets, doesn’t finding ways to reduce costs by working together make sense?

___________________

Mary Glassman is Manager of CREC’s Office for Regional Efficiencies.

PERSPECTIVE commentaries by contributing writers appear each Sunday on Connecticut by the Numbers.

LAST WEEK: Social Media Manipulation: Worse than Advertising?

Connecticut Among Five States with Highest Percentage of Foster Children in Group Homes, Report Says

According to a recent report, the percentage of children in foster care in Connecticut who have not been placed with a foster family is among the highest in the nation.  The report, from the Annie E. Casey Foundation, highlights the differing policies and practices among states, stressing that “kids should live with relatives or foster families when they have been removed from their own families, but one in seven nationally lies in a group placement.” In Connecticut there are 4,071 children in foster care, with 74 percent in family placement and 24 percent in non-family placement, exceeding the national average, according to the report.  That compares with 84 percent in family placement and 14 percent in non-family placement, nationally.  Only Colorado (35%), Rhode Island (28%) and West Virginia and Wyoming (27%), had a higher percentage of foster children than Connecticut in a non-family placement.

The state-by-state data from 2013, the most recent year available, shows use of group placements varies widely by state, ranging from 4 percent to 35 percent of children under the system’s care.  In Oregon, Kansas, Maine and Washington, only 4 to 5 percent of young people in out-of-home care are in group placements, the report points out.

The Foundation’s policy report issued this month, Every Kid Needs A Family, highlights “the urgent need to ensure, through sound policies and proven practices, that everything possible is being done to find loving, nurturing and supported families to children in foster care.” The report highlights the promising ways that state and local government leaders as well as policymakers, judges and private providers can work together as they strive to help these 57,000 children who are living in group placements – and overall, the more than 400,000 children in the care of child welfare systems.

The report goes on to recommend how communities can widen the array of services available to help parents and children under stress within their own homes, so that children have a better chance of reuniting with their birth families and retaining bonds important to their development. And it shows ways in which residential treatment — a vital option for the small percentage of young people who cannot safely live in any family during treatment — can help those young people return to families more quickly and prepare them to thrive there.

“We have an obligation to help all of our kids succeed,” said Patrick McCarthy, president and CEO of the Casey Foundation. “If our children couldn’t live with us, we would want them to live with someone close to us - and if that couldn’t happen, with a caring foster family who could provide them with as normal a life as possible during a turbulent time. This report shows more kids can live safely in families and get the nurturing they need while under the care and protection of our child welfare systems.”

Among the report’s findings across the United States:

• One in 7 children under the care of child welfare systems live in group placements, even though federal law requires that they live in families whenever possible.
• Forty percent of the children in group placements have no documented behavioral or medical need that would warrant placement in such a restrictive setting.
• While research shows children who need residential treatment likely need to stay no longer than three to six months, young people are staying in group placements an average of eight months.
• Group placements cost 7 to 10 times the cost of placing a child with a family.

The report also indicates that African American and Latino youth are more likely than white youth to be placed in group settings, and boys are more likely than girls to be in group placements.  Nationally, African American youth are 18 percent more likely than their white counterparts to be sent to group placements, and boys are 29 percent more likely than girls, according to data cited in the report.

Blumenthal is 20th Most Popular Senator Among Home State Constituents; Murphy Ranks 43rd of 100

U.S. Sen. Bernie Sanders, the Vermont independent running for the Democratic presidential nomination is the nation’s most popular United States Senator, with an approval rating surpassing 4 out of 5 voters in his home state.  A comprehensive survey of more than 75,000 voters in all 50 states, conducted over several months by Morning Consult, shows Sanders has the highest approval rating of any U.S.  Senator among his own constituents, at 83 percent, with only 13 percent disapproval of the job he’s doing representing them in the nation’s Capitol. The ratings for Connecticut’s Senators:  Richard Blumenthal:  58% approval, 29% disapproval; Chris Murphy:  52% approval, 27% disapproval.  Both Senators were among the top 50 among the Senate’s 100 members.

Blumenthal is tied for 12^th among Democratic Senators, and tied for 20th overall among Senators of both parties (and independents).  Murphy ranks 43^th overall, tied with seven colleagues.

The top 10 Senators with the highest approval ratings in their home states, after were Bernie Sanders (D-Vermont) 83%; Susan Collins (R-Maine) 78%; John Barrasso (R-Wyoming) 73%; Patrick Leahy (D-Vermont) 71%; John Hoeven (R-North Dakota) 69%;  Amy Klobuchar (D-Minnesota) 67%; Mike Enzi (R-Wyoming) 67%;  Joe Manchin (D-West Virginia) 66%; Angus King (I-Maine) 65%; John Thune (R-South Dakota) 65%;

The next nine include Elizabeth Warren (D-Massachusetts) 64%; Al Franken (D-Minnesota) 63%);  Tom Carper (D-Delaware) 61%; Chuck Schumer (D-New York) 61%; Barbara Mikulski (D-Maryland) 60%; Ron Wyden (D-Oregon) 60%; Patty Murray (D-Washington) 59%; Mike Rounds (R-South Dakota) 59%; Shelly Moore Capito (R-West Virginia) 59%.

Tied ranking 20th are nine Senators including Blumenthal:  Chris Coons (D-Delaware) 58%; Mazie Hirono (D-Hawaii) 58%; Heidi Heitkamp (D-North Dakota) 58%; Jack Reed (D-Rhode Island) 58%; Mark Warner (D-Virginia) 58%; Maria Cantwell (D-Washington) 58%; Thad Cochran (R-Mississippi) 58%;  Kelly Ayotte (R-New Hampshire) 58%;

And while voters continue to disdain Congress as a whole, they have much more positive views of their home-state Senators: the polling shows 69 of 100 United States senators have approval ratings of 50 percent or higher among their own constituents, according to Moring Consult.

Only one senator has a disapproval rating higher than 50 percent among his own constituents: Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY), who is still recovering from tens of millions of dollars in negative campaign ads thrown against him when he won re-election in 2014, the website reported.

The polls, conducted between May and November, asked a total of 76,569 registered voters whether they approve or disapprove of the job their state’s senators are doing. Voters were identified based on their Zip codes and other factors, and each state’s sample was weighted based on gender, age and race, using data from the U.S. Census Bureau’s Current Population Survey.

No state has a higher opinion of its two senators than Vermont. Sanders’s colleague, Patrick Leahy (D), the longest-serving member of the Senate, begins his campaign for re-election with a 71 percent approval rating, the fourth-highest job performance mark in the Senate.

Sen. Susan Collins is the most popular Republican in the Senate; 78 percent of the 654 registered Maine voters interviewed said they approve of her job performance, while just 16 percent disapprove. Maine voters give Sen. Angus King (I) a 65 percent approval rating.

Democrats had an average approval rating of 54 percent, while Republicans have an average approval rating of 51 percent. Both parties are blown out of the water by the two hugely popular independents, Sanders and King, Morning Consult highlighted.  Margins of error varied according to sample sizes. The median sample size was 1,172 respondents.

Three Connecticut Urban Initiatives to be Recognized by Regional Organization

When the Congress for the New Urbanism, New England Chapter, presents the 2015 Urbanism Awards recognizing achievement in the region later this month, Connecticut will dominate.  Initiatives in Stamford, New Haven and the Hartford region are three of the five award recipients. The Urbanism Awards honor the designs, plans, and policies that best embody the principles of New Urbanism in New England. The Congress for the New Urbanism (CNU) helps create vibrant and walkable cities, towns, and neighborhoods where people have diverse choices for how they live, work, shop, and get around. People want to live in well-designed places that are unique and authentic. CNU's mission, according to the organization’s website, is to help build those places.

The Glen Brook Springdale Transit Oriented Development (TOD) Plan in Stamford, the Downtown New Haven One-Way to Two-Way Conversion, and the CT Fastrack bus service in the Hartford Region each earned the organization’s top honors in New England.

The submission by the City of Stamford of the Glen Brook Springdale TOD Plan is “a fine example” of creating “great livable and walkable spaces and bringing life back” to the area, the organization pointed out.  In selecting the Stamford plan, the Chapter said “The City initiated the study in order to promote much-needed public space improvements and to unlock the potential of each village as a transit-focused location for development. It promotes support and cooperation between the public and private investment for needed rail improvements and to promote walkability and bikability. The resulting plans are transit oriented development pockets and rail station improvements which lay a framework the land owners, developers and the City for good, strong New Urban development and improvements.”

Regarding the New Haven plan, the selection was made because “the Downtown New Haven One-Way to Two-Way Conversion Study strongly conveys the role that a retrofit of existing streets can have on improving the livability, safety, character, and economic development of an entire neighborhood area. The submission clearly articulates how this kind of street reclamation could both improve the efficiency of transit operations while also balancing all modes of transportation.”  Still to be completed, the selection team indicated they look forward to “seeing how this project can support overall revitalization in Downtown New Haven.”  Lead consultant on the plan is Fuss & O’Neill, Inc.

CT Fastrak, operated by the state’s Department of Transportation, was selected “for their success in helping to deliver the first dedicated mass transit system to the region in over 50 years. This is an excellent example of regional cooperation which contemplates improvements at every scale of the rural to urban transect. At the regional level, the dedicated bus only roadbed maximizes mobility while reducing dependence on the automobile. This achievement is enhanced by the inclusion of a 5 mile long multi-use trail way with several access points to the busway for cyclists and pedestrians. Further, several of the new stations will foster transit oriented development (TOD).”

The awards will be presented on October 21 at The Union Club of Boston.  The Congress for the New Urbanism, New England Chapter (CNU New England) is a cross-disciplinary network of professionals and advocates working to build strong cities and towns in New England. The organization’s mission is to:

• Educate the public and the development community about the benefits of New Urbanist planning, design and development
• Support the implementation of projects consistent with the principles of New Urbanism at the local, state, and regional levels
• Encourage the adoption of policies and regulations that promote traditional human-scaled urbanism

Fairfield County and Westchester County Merge in Monthly Business Publication

For regular readers of the Fairfield County Business Journal, September ended with something new in the mailbox – a combined issue of that publication and the Westchester County Business Journal.  The monthly combined edition of the two weekly publications will occur the last week of each month, while the other three weeks will see a continuation of the separate publications covering the business news of the two neighboring counties in New York and Connecticut. As the publications stated, “the normally separate Fairfield and Westchester County Business Journals are combined this week in a glossy magazine format.  The look is new, but the journalism, ads and legal information remain true to our half-century tradition of excellence in publishing.”

Westfair Business Publications (Westfair), a privately held publishing firm located in White Plains, N.Y., publishes weekly business newspapers: the Westchester County Business Journal in combination with HV Biz (Hudson Valley Business) in New York state and the Fairfield County Business Journal in Connecticut.

With a weekly readership of more than 150,000, Westfair’s business publications reach business leaders and decision makers in seven counties (Westchester, Rockland, Putnam, Orange, Dutchess and Ulster in New York state, and Fairfield in Connecticut). The new monthly publication required a combining of the two mastheads, which was accomplished beginning with the premiere issue.

There is no question that the economic fates of the two counties are intertwined.  Earlier this month, the mayors of cities in both counties came together for a forum to explore common issues including economic development and transportation, concluding that they had “more similarities than differences,” according to published reports.

The Fairfield and Westchester Business Journals are nearly 50 years old and are the only weekly, countywide local business newspapers. They were founded by former Westchester resident David Moore, a grandson of celebrated New York publisher Joseph Pulitzer, and John Smith, a former Wall Street Journal editor.

As the Westfair website describes, “In keeping with its founders’ principles, the newspapers focus on the local and regional business community with news and information that are helpful to business people. As a premier source of business information on matters of concern and interest …Westfair business publications and its website westfaironline.com, provide up-to-date news and information on issues important and pertinent to the regional business marketplace.”

With a staff of more than 30 industry professionals and several freelance writers and photographers and a highly informed insider network of business and community contacts in all the counties covered, Westfair brings timely business news and information in all its publications to its readers, the website points out. As is true of many business publications in Connecticut and across the country, Westfair also sponsors seminars, expos, conferences, roundtable discussions and debates, and the popular annual 40 Under 40 competition that highlights the region’s young business leaders.