A City worth living in (or visiting) requires a cultural vibrancy. As I have come back to Hartford I am rediscovering its limitless opportunities to get exposed to the arts and artists who live here. Yet, of late, I have to admit to becoming an acolyte of the merry jester of the court of staid Hartford, Anne Cubberly. As I reflect on those events which have delighted and enchanted me, Anne’s fingerprints are everywhere:

• Nightfall – haven’t been, not done . . . yet!
• First Night 2014: The Big Game – held in the lobby of City Hall, this “board game” navigated participants by a roll of the dice. Landing in jail required me to sing “Amazing Grace” as a penalty. All materials are recycled.
• Boar’s Head Festival: Asylum Hill Congregational Church: a spectacular program with a cast of hundreds, live animals and presided over by an angel who floated above the audience giving each of us her full attention
• Hartford Arts Sled Derby: in cahoots with Paul Spirito, this event takes the cold and blahs out of winter
• Night of the Gypsies: March 1 – one can only imagine the delights which wait to chase away the blues!

So Hartford is alive and vibrant with the contributions of Anne Cubberly.

Quote the maven: “Evermore.”

Rendering courtesy of Smith Edwards McCoy Architects

On February 4, 2014, Frank H. Hagaman, Executive Director of the Hartford Preservation Alliance (HPA) and Meryth Andrews, Chair of the Board of Directors of the John E. Rogers African American Cultural Center (JERAACC) signed a memorandum of understanding to collaborate on the renovation of the signature Northwest School on Albany Avenue to create a sustainable cultural center.  Both organizations will work together on what is to be a signature project to revitalize and restore this iconic Upper Albany landmark.

The project is a priority of the City of Hartford, the Connecticut Department of Economic & Community Development, the State Historic Preservation Office and the Connecticut Trust for Historic Preservation.  $1 million has been committed to mitigate hazardous materials and stabilize the exterior structure and the project is now poised to take critical next steps. The ground breaking for the renovation of this historic building will occur in the spring.

HPA and JERAACC have agreed to work together:

• HPA is to provide administrative support to the project sponsor
• Jointly work together to inform and educate on the historic significance of a treasured school
• Work with the National Trust for Historic Preservation to create a sustainable, dynamic and economically feasible center
• Organize and explore financial resources to create and maintain the historic building

Hartford Mayor Pedro Segarra and the city’s Department of Economic Development have been diligent in contributing time and talent towards the efforts to have this historic resource rejoin the vitality of Upper Albany Avenue.  HPA is delighted to have been asked to join the team.

Please follow our progress on www.facebook.com/hartfordpreservationalliance.

1 Hawthorne – a NINA restoration project

I last wrote about the amazingly complex and unhappy situation of the property on Fairfield Avenue.  HPA is completing a strategic plan which, when adopted and implemented, should help to solve this problem and others.  The Board of Directors has adopted a resolution to allow HPA to become the historic preservation “resource and technical assistance hub” in Hartford.  To become such we will address challenges thus:

1. Raise the profile of why preservation matters to encourage owners to seek advice as a first step when buying or owning property in an historic district
2. Recognize that the City of Hartford and owners of historic properties are to be our Number 1 customers
3. Consult on historic property guidelines as published by the Historic Preservation Commission under the Historic Preservation Ordinance adopted by the City Council 
4. Create a walk-in center where information, advice and resources are made available
5. Establish design consultation, construction budget and project management capacity to advise on site
6. Build a database of appropriate materials, costs, a construction calculator, where material can be purchased
7. Create a list of contractors and sub-contractors who have experience working on historic properties
8. Offer guidance on petitions and presentations before the Historic Preservation Commission
9. Link financial resources which support historic preservation projects, e.g. The State Homeowner Tax Credit Program
10. Create a revolving fund to facilitate access to funding for projects

The key is to raise the bar on historic preservation, to imbue in the City a philosophy that preservation matters and demonstrate that historic preservation improves property values. This is the mantra by which a livable community, one like ours with a tremendous historic fabric, thrives.

Your comments, questions and observations are greatly encouraged.