Council Preview
Hartford City Council Meeting

Monday, October 24, 2011

Prepared by:
Hartford Public Library, and Hartford 2000

The Council meeting will begin at 7 P.M. at Hartford City Hall in Council Chambers. The next Council meeting will be Monday, November 14, 2011 at 7 PM, preceded at 6 PM by an open agenda public comment period. The next public hearing will be Monday, November 21, 2011 at 7 PM.

There are 38 items on the agenda. Below is detailed information about items of special interest to neighborhoods. Following those details is a listing of all agenda items, in layperson’s language. The complete official agenda for the Council meeting is available online by clicking on "Council Agendas" at the following web site: http://townclerk.hartford.gov/Webfiles/archive.aspx

ITEMS OF SPECIAL INTEREST

New Agenda Items:

The following items appear for the first time on the Council's Agenda.

Anti-Blight Special Fund – The Council will vote on a proposed amendment to the Anti-Blight Ordinance that, if approved, will establish an Anti-Blight Special Fund for the purpose of providing a source of funds for the City to use in securing and remediating blighted properties and in enforcing the provisions of the Anti-Blight Ordinance. All monies collected as fines, penalties, or liens as a result of violations under the Anti-Blight Ordinance will be deposited into the Special Fund, a permanent revolving account which shall be administered by the City’s Director of Development Services. The funds will be used exclusively for anti-blight activities. (Item #32)

Previously Submitted Items:

The following item was previously on the Council Agenda and was included in the Council Preview/Review. Action was postponed by the Council. It is now on the agenda again for action.

Commission Appointments – The Council will consider six resolutions appointing eleven individuals to five City Commissions: Commission on Grandparents Raising Grandchildren, Planning & Zoning Commission, Fair Rent Commission, Ethics Commission, and Parks & Recreation Commission (Items #1, 2, and 26-29). (Segarra)

Note: Hartford residents interested in serving on a City of Hartford Board or Commission should call the Mayor’s Office at 860-757-9564 or email Bayel001@hartford.gov for more information and to secure an application form.

Item #

1. Reappointment. Reappointment of Louise Loomis to the Commission on Grandparents Raising Grandchildren. (Segarra)
2. Appointment. Appointment of Chuck Culliton to the Ethics Commission. (Segarra)
3. Immunization Grant. Approval to accept $117,710 from the CT Department of Public Health for programs to increase immunization of children. (Segarra)
4. Homeland Security Funds. Authorization for the City to enter into an agreement with he tCT Department of Emergency Services and Public Protection and the Capitol Region Council of Governments to participate in funding for emergency preparedness activities. (Segarra)
5. Smoke Detectors. Approval to accept $82,612 from U.S. Department of Homeland Security for purchase and installation of 2,124 lithium smoke detectors in Hartford homes. (Segarra)
6. 111 Homestead Avenue. Authorization for the Redevelopment Agency to lease land at 111 Homestead Avenue to Baltazar Construction for temporary storage of materials and equipment as they complete the Burton Street sewer separation project. (Segarra)
7. 52 Franklin Avenue. Approval of the sale of City-owned land at 52 Franklin Avenue to Pope Park Zion for renovation of a single family house for homeownership. (Segarra)
8. Early Learning Center. Approval for the City to enter into a lease with Asylum Hill Congregational Church for space to operate an Early Learning Center which is being relocated from a City building on Coventry Street. (Segarra)
9. Tax Lien Sales. Proposal to allow Hartford residents and business owners a 30 day preference period to purchase tax liens prior to City issuance of a request for proposals to sell tax liens in bulk. (Winch)
10. Bank of America. Requirement that Bank of America notify the City’s Corporation Counsel prior to foreclosing on any Hartford residential or commercial property. (Deutsch)
11. MDC. Resolution calling on the MDC to set aside jobs in the Clean Water Project for residents of member towns and institute elections for MDC commissioners. (Deutsch)
12. CT Puerto Rican Forum. Allocation of $30,000 for employment and training services. (Torres, Aponte)
13. Middle School Sports League. Allocation of $1,000 for purchase of uniforms and equipment. (Boucher, Kennedy)
14. Knox Parks Foundation. Allocation of $2,000 to the Knox Parks Foundation to purchase trees to be planted by the MARG NRZ. (Brinson)
15. Oil Drum Art. Allocation of $2,000 to allow 240 students to paint oil drums with environmental and nature themes for use as litter containers in parks and neighborhoods. (Brinson, Winch)
16. Allocation. Allocation of funds to Hartford Knights ($1,500), Center for Urban Research Education & Training ($1,500), Hartford Community Center ($1,500), Mi Casa Family Services ($1,500), Children’s Advocacy Center ($1,000), Judah House ($1,000), and Spectrum in Motion ($1,000). (Boucher)
17. Mike Peters Little League. Allocation of $3,000 for the Mike Peters Little League program. (Boucher, Kennedy)
18. ABC Drill & Drum. Allocation of $1,500 to the ABC Drill and Drum Initiative. (Winch)
19. Allocation. Allocation of $3,000 to the Children’s Advocacy Center at St. Francis Hospital. (Brinson)
20. Family Day Foundation. Allocation of $2,500 to the Family Day Foundation. (Winch, Kennedy)
21. Judah House. Allocation of $1,000 to Judah House. (Brinson)
22. Boy Scouts. Allocation of $2,500 to the CT Rivers Council of the Boy Scouts of America. (Brinson)
23. St. Justin’s. Allocation of $4,000 to Saint Justin’s Church. (Kennedy, Brinson)
24. Hartford Neighborhood Centers. Allocation of $4,000 to the Hartford Neighborhood Centers. (Kennedy)
25. Grants. Allocation of $1,500 to the Martin Luther King Jr. Soccer League, $2,500 to the Cricket Hall of Fame, $2,000 to the Artists Collective, $2,500 to the Blue Hills Civic Association, $5,000 to the Cultural Dance Troupe of the West Indies, $2,500 to the West Indian Foundation, and $3,000 to the Caribbean Resource Center. (Brinson)
26. Grandparents Appointments. Appointment of Christina LaMorte and Sharon Pope to the Commission on Grandparents Raising Grandchildren. (Segarra)
27. P&Z Appointment. Reappointment of Sandra Bobowski to the Planning & Zoning Commission. (Segarra)
28. Fair Rent Appointments. Reappointments of Beverly Jenkins, Lenora Perryman, Carol Smith-Jestin, and Talia Orr to the Fair Rent Commission. (Segarra)
29. Parks & Recreation Appointments. Appointment of Edith Pestana and Kyran Quackenbush to the Parks & Recreation Advisory Commission. (Segarra)
30. Bond Refunding. Authority for the City to refinance the outstanding balance of $23 million in bonds, previously issued for capital improvements, in order to reduce the debt service currently being paid. (Segarra)
31. Blight Citation Appeals Officers. Proposed change in the appointing authority, from Mayor to Corporation Counsel, of individuals who hear appeals of blight citations. (Segarra)
32. Anti-Blight Fund. Establishment of a special fund in which the City will deposit fines, penalties, and repayments of liens resulting from blight citations, to be used by the City for securing and remediating abandoned properties. (Segarra)
33. Deletion of Anti-Blight Language. Deletion of requirement that funds for securing and remediating abandoned properties be allocated in the General Fund. The provision is no longer needed due to the establishment of the Special Fund (see #32). (Segarra)
34. Barbados Independence Week. Designation of October 30 through November 5 as Barbados Independence Week. (Segarra, Winch)
35. VITA/HABC. Resolution supporting the Volunteer Income Tax Assistance Program and the Hartford Asset Building Collaborative both led by Co-Opportunity, Inc. (Boucher)
36. Children’s Advocacy Center. Allocation of $2,000 to the Children’s Advocacy Center operated by St. Francis Hospital. (Deutch)
37. St. Justin’s Church. Allocation of $500 to St. Justin’s Church for installation of a handicapped accessible ramp. (Deutch)
38. Hartford 2000. Allocation of $7,500 to Hartford 2000 for civic engagement activities. (Kennedy)

If you have any questions about the agenda, please call Richard Frieder at the Hartford Public Library, 695-6365, or email Linda Bayer at lbayer@Hartford2000.org . The Council Preview/Review is a joint project of Hartford 2000 and the Hartford Public Library.