Urban Dispatch

@urbandispatch

Safe streets & Transit. People need somewhere to sleep and the sidewalk isn’t it. Believer that better more livable cities are possible. Let's stop letting perfection get in the way of progress. Anon here but happy to chat/meet up IRL Hartford, CT

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Urban Dispatch@urbandispatch· 9d

Interesting early vote count in CT, numbers still overall quite low www.wtnh.com/news/electio...

These Connecticut towns had the most early votes cast, according to state officials.

West Hartford: 2,519
Hamden: 1,935
Manchester: 1,475
Norwalk: 1,134
Bloomfield: 1,121
Glastonbury: 1,067
Stamford: 1,013
New Haven: 969
Milford: 939
Hartford: 887

Urban Dispatch@urbandispatch· 14d

This is far from true, nat gas plants are still cranking at mid-day all over the country CA (and ERCOT/SPP) are exceptions, none of the rest of the country are particularly close to that. On a very good day New England only hits 50% renewable midday (excl nuclear)

NE ISO production graph for 4 August 2026 showing that most of the day's production is Nat Gas incl at mid-day (large blue band)

Urban Dispatch@urbandispatch· 15d

That is roughly right. I have a tweet somewhere about this from when they got the $6M in state fund. Total I believe is $21M for this project State + Federal Classic "should be a roundabout" situation too www.wtnh.com/news/connect...

Image of theoretical alignment from previous grant announcment

Urban Dispatch@urbandispatch· 15d

This isn't just something Nolan is saying. If you look back at early zoning history and what the champions were saying, they were incredibly explicit This from West Hartford, CT. The first community in CT to have zoning

Long passage in which the champion of zoning in West Hartford states explicitly that the purpose of larger lot zoning is to make it uneconomic to build dense housing

Table with five zones and linking intended use to minimum land required per family housed

Urban Dispatch@urbandispatch· 17d

This might be the most interesting part of the article in its forward looking nature: Maintaining 97% occupancy despite over 500 apartments coming onto the Market in recent months is remarkable, moving right ahead with plans for 242 Trumbull and another 145 homes. Major sign of confidence

Three years ago, Shelbourne Global Solutions purchased the 324,000-square-foot mixed-use office complex at 242 Trumbull St., which includes 64 Pratt St. and approximately 30,000 square feet of retail space along Pratt and Trumbull streets.

With the residence hall complete, Shelbourne and its partners are turning their attention to converting the remainder of the office complex into apartments.

Reilly said preliminary designs call for at least 145 apartments. He expects to seek zoning approvals and additional CRDA financing this fall.

Reilly said demand for downtown housing remains strong, noting the roughly 900 center-city apartments in Lexington’s portfolio are about 97% occupied.

Urban Dispatch@urbandispatch· 21d

Great news, can they tear down route 8 while they're otherwise doing work there?

Site pinned juts west of route 8 in Bridgeport

Urban Dispatch@urbandispatch· 22d

So it seems the NHL is already materially faster from previous phases of TIME for CT 11 minutes is nothing to sneeze at! Esp when you layer in the super express on top of it

Connecticut sped up service from New Haven to Grand Central in 2022 by offering “super express trains” with fewer stops, cutting about 10 minutes off the trip.

“Our Super Express trains between New Haven and Grand Central have reduced trip times to as little as 88 minutes,” said Joe Lagana, the vice president for operations at Metro-North.

“Since then, we shaved another 11 minutes off of that timetable due to infrastructure improvements,” Eucalitto said. Those improvements included addressing signal problems and bad drainage that forced slower speeds.

Urban Dispatch@urbandispatch· 23d

Much of the Time for CT website details have been scrubbed but here is an old graphic. Maybe it is true 25 minutes off a 2 hour journey is quite a seismic change. Add in the dual mode locos coming to the HL and we could be looking at almost an hour shaved off Hartford-NYC routes by 2035!

Time for CT graphic showing current run time in each segment and estimated time savings

Urban Dispatch@urbandispatch· 29d

LMAO, Greenwich CT which has thrown every thing it could at outlawing townhomes and quietly rejecting thousands of apartments over the last decade is welcoming with open arms this 18k sq foot Mansion with a private 40 space underground parking garage This is perfectly @nedlamont.com's Connecticut

Rendering of the 18,000 sq foot mansion to be built in Greenwich

Urban Dispatch@urbandispatch· Jul 20

But at the same time the State is stiffing the city by not paying its statutorily required PILOT payment for state gov + non-profits. You could argue it does this through other channels (education, other) but its really just hamstringing things

The city also is constrained in taxing because about 1,500 properties — including state offices, hospitals and religious institutions — are exempt from paying local property taxes. The state does pay the city of Hartford a payment in lieu of taxes, or PILOT, but it is far less than would have otherwise been paid. In 2022, the city estimated that $370 million would have been paid by exempt properties, while the PILOT payment was $52 million.

Urban Dispatch@urbandispatch· Jul 20

Lol. Gonna call bullshit on that one

Arulampalam dismissed any speculation that the revaluation delay coincided with next year’s mayoral campaign as cynical and out-of-touch “when so many people are hurting right now.”

Urban Dispatch@urbandispatch· Jul 18

Hartford should really put one of these on the bridge over Columbus boulevard up on the plaza. It would open a lot of eyes

Urban Dispatch@urbandispatch· Jul 15

what do you think about getting a Colorado style transit system to make it possible to travel between towns outside the shoreline rail line? Would be a good tangible way to get some support and coverage Can DM details, its silly cheap for the value

Map showing possible intrastate middistance transjt routings

Urban Dispatch@urbandispatch· Jul 12

The Bridgerton night on Pratt Street last night with the Hartford Symphony Orchestra was awesome. People were so into it Living in a Real Place™ is so underrated (note the chandeliers!)

People dressed up enjoying Bridgerton night on Pratt St In Hartford

Urban Dispatch@urbandispatch· Jul 12

history doesn't repeat but it does rhyme The city was on the verge of having a shop rite in DONO over 10 years ago until the powers that be opted for a baseball stadium instead

2014 rendering of a shop rite grocery store along Main Street

Urban Dispatch@urbandispatch· Jul 11

Just learned that CT has formed a "citizen assembly" to attend a series of workshops over the next few weeks with a stipend to learn about & make recommendations about how to change our local tax system What a novel invention, maybe we should do this convene this annually at a central meeting house

screen shot from https://ct-citizens-assembly.org/ reading

An Assembly of Everyday CT Residents to Define the Future of Local Funding
The Connecticut Citizens' Assembly is a groundbreaking democratic initiative designed to give residents a direct voice in state policy. By bringing together a representative group of citizens from across the state, we aim to solve the complex challenge of funding local public services.

From transportation and infrastructure to education and emergency response, local public services are the backbone of our communities. Our mission is to give a representative sample of the people of Connecticut a chance to set their priorities for public service provision and funding.

Urban Dispatch@urbandispatch· Jul 7

Parking Reform means more homes and great walkable neighborhoods 7 days from CT's new law becoming effective, we have this great project in Seymour CT on the corner across from the train station! 14 homes + commercial ZERO PARKING

Property owner Lon Syla previously pitched a plan to the commission in 2023 to build 15 apartments there, with first floor retail and 15 parking spaces. The town’s zoning regulations, however, required more parking spaces than Syla had proposed. As a result, Syla withdrew his application.

Thomas said the new state law no longer requires off-street parking for projects with less than 16 residential units, if there is public parking nearby along with access to train and bus lines.

This proposal has all of that, Thomas said.

Urban Dispatch@urbandispatch· Jul 3

Grid scale batteries are needed asap, everywhere

day ahead price graph for NE ISO shoeing big price spike as the sun sets

Urban Dispatch@urbandispatch· Jul 2

we had a new New England renewables records today, saved our bacon from sizzling jn this heat

Urban Dispatch@urbandispatch· Jul 2

All those "innocent towns" NIMBYing solar and battery projects have real world consequences Heat waves align with long clear sunny days. Fossil plants can no longer fill the gap and are causing the price spike seen here. We need a big battery deployment like seen elsewhere

Urban Dispatch@urbandispatch· Jul 1

🔔🔔RING THE BELLS🔔🔔 Residential Parking Mandates are officially a relic for the history books!! No longer will the tyranny of rules like 3 spaces per studio apt rule Connecticut Wallingford CT out of the gate strong taking a sharpie to its existing rules. Those that embrace this will rue the day

Wallingford CT mandates being struck through

Urban Dispatch@urbandispatch· Apr 19

Cool to think about what is to come in New England I bet we can push to do this even faster

Slide from MassDOT about the planned service expansion on the inland routing and NYC through running of service

Urban Dispatch@urbandispatch· Apr 19

Wait, ConnDOT is also overhauling State Street Station? Damn, look at this!! Turning Court St overpass into Ped/bike only with plazas 😍 Added second entrance from Court street to platforms 😍 Lengthen platforms to accommodate 4/6 car trains 😍 Reconfiguring tracks to smooth service 😍

Aerial view of the new State Street project showing ped bridge, longer platforms, new entrance

Street level view of new Court St pedestrian bridge open only to ped and bikes

Urban Dispatch@urbandispatch· Apr 17

Have you seen this plan for an overhaul of New Haven's Union Station??? Oh My, Oh My Indeed. A proper station it would become

Interior rendering of the new station Canopy at New Haven Union station from a platform view

Birds Eye View rendering of the new station Canopy at New Haven Union station showing the design concept

Urban Dispatch@urbandispatch· Apr 10

Folks, it happened. New England hit 1 GW of utility scale Solar today at 12:20 PM Source: www.gridstatus.io/records/ison... Certainly worth some coverage! Newsworthy transition update! CC @kendixonct.bsky.social / @ctmirrorpaz.bsky.social / @janellens.bsky.social

Stupid Achievement Certificate for New England hitting 1 GW of Grid Solar today 10 April

Urban Dispatch@urbandispatch· Apr 10

What a cursed site plan for this project in Glastonbury CT There simply must be a better way to design our communities than what most zoning codes dictate

Site plan for new development in Glastonbury which shows over 400 parking spaces for the proposed housing development

Urban Dispatch@urbandispatch· Apr 10

third straight day of FTM records in NE. Will today be the fay we cross the GW threshold in New England? It could very well be

ISONE max solar record of 998 set at 11:15 am on Friday April 10

Urban Dispatch@urbandispatch· Apr 10

A house fire over 20 years ago (sometime between 1992 and 2005) created a scar in Hartford's clay arsenal neighborhood Finally, that scar will be healed. Plans have been files for a 4 family home with equal sized 3 br homes. I expect to see this trend accelerate in the coming years

Vacant lot at 36-40 Brook Street in Hartford's Clay Arsenal neighborhood

Second floor floor plan showing two identical three bedroom apartments

Urban Dispatch@urbandispatch· Apr 9

New renders just dropped for the next phase of Arrowhead. What a difference this project will make, healing a decades old scar. 19 new homes, only 8 parking spaces. Love to see that ratio, bus service is fabulous here Parking reform means more homes

Photo of current conditions which is a grassy empty lot and boarded up building

Rendering of 275 High Street at the corner of Albany and Main showing a new building fronting the sidewalk and phase 1 complete at Arrowhead

Urban Dispatch@urbandispatch· Apr 9

We did it again, new record for utility scale solar (Front of Meter) production in New England today thanks to clear blue sky Let's zoom out, the amount of utility scale on our grid has tripled in just five years and came up just below a full GW today at peak production