Elements of Urbanism: Hartford

[Traveller]

maybe a mea culpa is in order

No worries.  I'm sure Yale's presence in the state does provide some benefit to Hartford, whether in the form of dollars or intellectual talent.

[finehoe]

How Hartford's Bet on Cars Set the Stage for Population Loss and Segregation

Hartford, Connecticut, has one of the highest poverty rates in the country. The urban renaissance that has visited so many cities hasn't arrived there. Housing is still cheaper in the city than in the suburbs, and although suburban poverty is growing alarmingly fast, it's nowhere near the levels seen in the city.

There are multiple complex factors that have contributed to Hartford's woes. But one of them, clearly, is the degree to which the city enabled car-centric infrastructure to proliferate.

http://usa.streetsblog.org/2014/04/17/how-hartfords-bet-on-cars-set-the-stage-for-population-loss-and-segregation/#more-151217

[Wacca Pilatka]

Intriguing article, Finehoe.  I have read about some specific car-centric decisions in Hartford that were destructive to the core city.  One of these was that the owner of the city's leading department store insisted on Interstates 84 and 91 (I think those are the two...) being built through the heart of the city and intersecting right by her store.

[thelakelander]

^Wow. That's a pretty cool map in the Streetsblog link.


Between 1960 and 2000, parking took over downtown Hartford. Map by Chris McCahill & Norm Garrick, via WNPR

I think we should do one for Jacksonville.