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Food Market For Downtown Hartford Is A Good Sign

Needed Amenity Downtown Hartford finally getting a grocery store

Hartford Courant editorial

August 10, 2010

Residents of downtown Hartford have a chicken-and-egg problem — they'd like to buy chickens and eggs, along with other groceries, without driving to the suburbs. Help is on the way.

Al's Market, a market and deli, is now under construction at 421 Asylum St. Also, residents of The Hollander, the new apartment building at 410 Asylum, are receiving fresh, locally grown produce each week as part of a community-supported agriculture program.

At 1,700 square feet, Al's is not the major supermarket officials and developers had been looking for, but it is a good start. Officials say they are pursuing a larger market, and it's possible Al's could expand.

This is good news, because the more residential amenities that can be brought back to downtown Hartford, the easier it will be to attract more residents. A healthy, vibrant, repopulated downtown is key to the smart growth of the city and region.