From The Executive Director
David MacDonald
Hartford’s Planning and Zoning Commission Endorses AHNA’s Strategic Plan for Asylum Hill
The strategic plan for Asylum Hill moved a step closer to official City adoption earlier this month when the City’s Planning and Zoning Commission unanimously endorsed it at its April 11 meeting.
The 40-page plan, developed over a 15-month period by the Asylum Hill Neighborhood Association (AHNA), addresses eight major goal areas. The plan will now be considered by the City Council for final adoption.
According to Jackie McKinney, AHNA chair, “a powerful vision emerged of what the Asylum Hill neighborhood could become.” She said that the 78 members who worked on one or more of the planning teams came to believe that “Asylum Hill could become a model urban neighborhood.”
If successful in implementing its strategic goals, AHNA imagines a neighborhood:
● That is green and clean, with a large tree canopy, abundant gardens and a healthy Park River peacefully flowing along its western edge
● Where everyone can live, walk and bike safely.
● Where historic housing is preserved, and affordable housing is available to all income groups
● Where art, culture and history of our diverse population is celebrated
● Where businesses, small and large, thrive and hire neighbors to fill jobs
● Where fellow citizens, non-profit groups, faith communities, corporations, schools and government agencies work collaboratively and effectively to create opportunities for every Asylum Hill resident to be all that they can be.
Ted Carroll, chair of the AHNA Strategic Planning Steering Committee, said “AHNA members are dreaming big and are deeply committed to realizing our collective vision for Asylum Hill.” He added, “the creation of a neighborhood strategic plan is one of the most important responsibilities and privileges that the State of Connecticut confers on Neighborhood Revitalization Zones (NRZs).”
Even as AHNA awaits final adoption of the plan, AHNA executive director David MacDonald says that the group is already moving forward on accomplishing several of its proposed initiatives. “In the past year alone”, says MacDonald, “we helped coordinate a street festival on Farmington Avenue to showcase our arts and culture, worked with the City on a plan to curb speeding and accidents on Asylum Avenue, and made progress on getting the iconic Comet diner ready for redevelopment.” Further, he notes, work is underway during AHNA’s 25th anniversary year to preserve and improve the north branch of the Park River, create a jobs fair for local residents, and to promote home ownership opportunities in Asylum Hill.
To learn more about the Asylum Hill strategic plan, go to www.asylumhill.org. To assist with one or more of the efforts outlined in the plan, reach out to David MacDonald at exdir@asylumhill.org.
