Print

Let's Beautify Main Street

Streetscape: Do For Hartford's Major Thoroughfare What Was Done For Trumbull Street

Hartford Courant Editorial

June 27, 2011

Trumbull Street in downtown Hartford used to be bland, unfriendly and uninviting. But new lighting, plantings, a median and a gateway where the street reaches Bushnell Park have vastly improved the look and feel of the street.

Let's now do the same for Main Street.

Main Street has seen some major building improvements in the past decade, notably the renovation or rebuilding of the former G. Fox, Sage-Allen and American Airlines buildings. Yet parts of the streetscape are dull and drab.

As it turns out, the city has Main Street on its radar screen. "It's in the concept stage," said David Panagore, the city's chief operating officer. He said the city is reorganizing public works and capital improvement functions to develop a more consistent long-term schedule for streetscape projects.

That is certainly to the good, but we would urge him to get Main Street to the top of the list - the whole street, not just the section around city hall.

With the new public safety complex well under construction, plus a skateboard park in the works, the city is poised to bridge I-84 and expand downtown, recapturing areas orphaned and blighted by highway construction. An attractive Main Street sends a message that the city is moving ahead.