Oh please oh please oh please
Given the current status of all Hartford construction projects except the Science Center (man, that thing is zooming along!), perhaps I'm naive for getting excited about the redevelopment of the Broadcast House monstrosity so soon. But damn it, this building sounds great. It looks great. And most importantly, the developer sounds like someone who deserves my support, even if that support comes only in the form of positive thinking and finger crossing.
I mean, the owner of the property, Abul Islam, bought the building intending not just to redevelop it, but to redevelop it and move his company, with 90 employees (and probably more than that by 2010) to downtown. Why?
| Islam said it would have been easier to expand in the suburbs, where parking is most often free and taxes are often lower. But Islam, who believes in pedestrian- and bicycle-friendly city planning, said the good times of suburban sprawl are just about over. "It's not going to work for the next 50 years," Islam said. "We decided we needed to go back to Hartford." |
"[T]he good times of suburban sprawl are just about over."
"[W]e needed to go back to Hartford."
Thinking ahead and doing long-term planning. Swoon.
It gets better! This will be a green building. And by that I mean GREEN GREEN GREEN. Not just technology-wise (it will have a water recovery system--I don't even know what that is but I'm excited about it). Nope, this place will be so green that the developer won't even put in the number of parking spots that would be required to accommodate employees if all of them drove to work!
| The building is designed with 120 parking spaces below ground, well short of the 400 needed if everyone in the building drove to work. |
Double swoon. But wait! It gets EVEN BETTER.
| Though the building would have an agreement to share parking with the rest of the plaza, Islam said the design would make it easier for workers to arrive by other means of transportation. A bicycle parking area, for example, would be located near lockers and showers. "You can take a shower and ride the elevator up," Islam said. |
A bicycle parking area! Located near lockers and showers! In an office building! My only question is--when can my firm move in??
(As an aside, the comments on the article are actually surprisingly supportive overall. Nice to see for a change.)
I agree, I thought the entire plan sounded very positive. And it's nice to see a new developer enter the Hartford scene. Let's hope the funding stays together. Fingers and toes crossed.
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I've seen enough to know that the road from a rendering to a construction project is a long one. But this is exciting and it's nice to see a fresh face on the real estate development scene, and to see the city embrace him. Diving into asbestos mediation early is a good sign. Also, wanted to concur with your observation about the postings on the Courant board (why oh why do I waste my time reading them?) There are actually quite a lot of people who recognize that the city is important. But what is with these horribly miserable posters who just cannot say a good (much less informed) thing about anything? What a awful existence. Makes me appreciate people like you who actually DO things to contribute all the more. Thank you! You make a great thing that much better. Your voices really do add something good.
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Thanks, Matt. And don't get me started on the Topix comments. I can not FATHOM how those people have that kind of time.
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I'm so glad I stopped by your blog-- this is a great story, and I kind of stole it and riffed on it. I'll be checking in regularly!
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