Madison Holman | Writer
The Downtown Hartford, Inc. held a community meeting on Monday, Sept. 28 to discuss how to continue to better downtown Hartford.
At the meeting, the organization discussed the events that have taken place, the changes they have made and the four pillars of the group: design, economic development, historical preservation and organization.
Downtown Hartford, Inc. wanted community input on how to improve their actions to enhance the community.
They started the discussion off by talking about the design pillar and how the Downtown Hartford Inc. has been improving the design of the community and their plans for the future.
Rickie Kunzweiler, president of Downtown Hartford, Inc., stated, “We have three blocks. We finished our first block, and that was historical lighting, baskets and banners, and that’s the same thing we are doing on block two. And then when we get to block three, it will be a little more complicated just because of the outlay of the land.”
She stated that they hope to finish block two this year, and then they will be able to continue to work on the design of block three. Block three poses a challenge because of the land, but the group has high hopes to improve the aesthetics of it. While they will not be utilizing as many historical lights as the other two blocks, the group hopes to finish the bridge on Turtle Creek and “possibly some sort of park,” according to Kunzweiler.
Downtown Hartford, Inc. hopes to have block three completed by the Hometown Christmas of 2021.
Kunzweiler also mentioned that the group discussed the development of a town square at some point in the future. She pointed out that this project is further out than most of the other projects they are tackling.
Next, the group discussed economic development. Kunzweiler stressed the importance of economic development in the community.
According to her, the community has expressed interest in a “hometown restaurant.” She continued by saying that the community has emphasized this interest numerous times. The group hopes that the economic development foundation of Hartford will assist in this desire.
Kunzweiler said that they hope to increase retail businesses in downtown. She stated, “Our goal is really to just increase our retail downtown to make it so that it’s more of a local shopping option for people. So hopefully through economic development we can make that happen.”
The group also touched on the topic of new signage. Kunzweiler mentioned that they discussed proposed signage for Western Avenue and Highway 38 as well as historical signage to match the lights downtown.
Next, the group focused on the historical preservation goals of the group. Kunzweiler stated, “Our next plan of action is putting historical markers on the businesses downtown.” These historical markers will be able to illustrate the historical significance of buildings. Along with the markers, the group wants to put up QR codes for the community to scan that will take them to a webpage to read more about history of downtown.
Finally, the organization discussed funding. Kunzweiler expressed, “Funding is difficult.”
She stated that the organization is funded in many ways. For one, the organization accepts endowments. She said, “So if you want to bequeath funds for a family or a single member or maybe your business wants to donate some money for a good cause downtown, that, you know, that’s one of the ways we fund.” She also mentioned that they also get funding through grants, fundraisers and the city.
She mentions that they are always looking for sponsors to help out with the funding of events as well.
After the organization touched on funding options, the discussion was opened up to the community for input. Kunzweiler mentioned that the reactions were favorable, positive, and those present seemed thankful for the word that the organization has done.
Looking ahead, the Downtown Hartford Inc. will be working on the events they have planned: the Downtown Market, the Witches and Warlocks Wine Walk, the Food Truck Rumble, the Jingle Bell Run and a Spring Art Show.