People who have something to say about the baseball stadium proposal in Hartford have another chance to say it. There's another public hearing Monday night. WNPR recently toured the site with developers from Centerplan to talk about their $350 million vision for Hartford.
It all began in June when Mayor Pedro Segarra said the Rock Cats would leave New Britain and move to Hartford -- where the taxpayers would pay for a new stadium. Facing doubts and scrutiny, that plan evolved -- and grew. What was a $60 million stadium became a $350 million neighborhood, including retail, housing, restaurants, a supermarket, and a stadium.
Eventually, the city picked a developer from Middletown: Centerplan. According to the city, no real estate tax dollars will be needed to pay its more than $4 million annual stadium lease. That's a big bet. So is this -- a study Centerplan submitted says the city could handle apartment rents as high as $2,200 a month.
Yves Joseph, one of the developers, said they're bets worth making. I met with him recently at the site for a tour and a talk. Listen below for more.
