Welcome to It’s Happening. In Hartford ! a Hartford Economic Development Commission eBulletin designed to give you a quick look at the most recent achievements within the city’s dynamic and diverse business community. At HEDC, we bring people together to make things happen in Hartford , Conn. By focusing on the city’s many strengths and collaborating with the best resources, HEDC is helping Hartford move ahead.

• Goodwin Estates, luxury townhouse community, nearing completion
• Mayor, HEDC help residents focus on success
• 2 hotel expansions bring new jobs to South Meadows 
• Former downtown department store undergoing transformation 
• New upscale Latin American restaurant opens
• Development resurgence attracts new specialty coffee company
• Gateway Self Storage opens in north end

A new residential community that combines historic restoration with new design and construction is nearing completion in the city’s West End . Hartford ’s important and historic Goodwin Estate is being redeveloped by Ginsburg Development Company, nationally recognized for its outstanding luxury home design and landscaping. In addition to restoring the estate’s centerpiece, the Goodwin Mansion , to include seven single-story residences and a community center, GDC is adding 56 new luxury townhomes to the 17-acre site. The redevelopment of the Goodwin Mansion and West End estate once owned by financier Walter Goodwin marks the first new luxury development in Hartford in 20 years.

For more information on residential development projects currently underway in Hartford , please click here.

Approximately 100 residents from throughout the city attended an interactive presentation at The Learning Corridor to learn how major downtown development projects are positively impacting their neighborhoods – and the future of Hartford .

Mayor Eddie Perez and the Hartford Economic Development Commission (HEDC) hosted “ Hartford ’s Rising Star Projects,” a neighborhood summit designed to give city residents more information about the progress the city is achieving in its ongoing revitalization. Progress is visible in every neighborhood, but officials chose to concentrate on downtown projects to help people understand the role these projects play in attracting neighborhood development.

The evening was so successful, another event is being planned to showcase major neighborhood projects.

Hartford ’s South Meadows is undergoing a re-birth that is clearly evident in the hotel expansions that will double the number of hotel jobs in this important neighborhood and make the city’s south end more attractive to travelers. Holiday Inn Express is currently undergoing a $2.5 million renovation that will result in 129 rooms and will double the number of employees from 20 to 40 when it is completed in early 2004.

The Days Inn expansion, also expected to be complete in early 2004, will result in 68 rooms and management expects to add an additional four to five new employees as a result.

For more information on this and other Hartford development projects, click here.

With financing in place, 18 Temple Street LLC is moving ahead with its plans to transform the former Sage-Allen department store on Main Street into 78 loft apartments and 42 4-bedroom townhouses for college students and corporate interns. The development will also re-open Temple Street as a one-way connection between Main and Market streets. The project is expected to build on the renewed economic vitality of this key section of Main Street .

For more information, click here.

La Casona is the newest addition to Hartford ’s diverse restaurant scene, which offers an amazing range of international cuisines, reflecting the many cultures that live here. La Casona, in the former Casa Loma on Wethersfield Avenue , features upscale Latin American dishes prepared by a team of experienced chefs. The dining rooms and bar area were designed to reflect a traditional South American décor.

La Casona is open Tuesday through Friday for lunch from 11:30 a.m. to 2 p.m. , and for dinner from 5 to 10 p.m. Saturdays it is open from noon to 10 p.m. , and Sundays from noon to 8 p.m.

For more information, click here.

Caffeines is a new specialty coffee shop that opened recently in downtown Hartford . In fact, the owner says it is the resurgence in Hartford development that convinced him to invest in a business here in the city.  Owner Mario Aresco, a Connecticut native with roots in Middletown and East Hampton , said his storefront in the Goodwin Building on Asylum Street is the perfect size for his upscale take-out business, and the location in the heart of the city’s corporate community will help him build his office catering business.

Caffeines is open Monday through Friday from 7 a.m. to 4 p.m. and on Saturday from 8 a.m. to noon . In the spring, Aresco plans on expanding his hours and setting up café tables on the sidewalk.

For information on how HEDC can help you open a business in Hartford , click here.

With his mission to exceed customers’ high expectations, a retired Hartford police officer turned entrepreneur has opened Gateway Self Storage in the Gateway Plaza on Homestead Avenue . Gordon Jones purchased the Gateway Plaza and immediately began making renovations. In addition to the recently opened self-storage facility, Jones is preparing space in the plaza for another business.

Gateway Self Storage features 50 climate-controlled spaces of varying sizes that have individual security access.

For more information on opening a business in Hartford , please click here.

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