The Register Citizen (Torrington, CT)
CITY FACES ONGOING CHANGE
Carbone discusses future with Rotarians
TORRINGTON >> Mayor Elinor Carbone said her city is facing great change — in the economy, in demographics, in reactions to both the positive and negative — as the past falls away and the future approaches.
Carbone discussed Torrington in broad strokes earlier this week with members of the Torrington-Winsted Area Rotary Club. She said economic development amid demographic changes, including the aging population of the city and a projected decline in school-age children, was an area of particular focus for the city.
A $15,000 grant received through the Working Cities Challenge, Carbone said, has led to a focus on bolstering economic opportunity in Torrington and making the city attractive to young families.
“We want this to be a vibrant community that fosters innovation,” said Carbone.
Carbone noted a series of past and ongoing developments in business and housing in the city — including the opening of StepCraft and Ocean State Job Lot, among others, and the progress toward the senior living community planned for Litchfield Street and the apartment complex planned for Torringford West Street — as examples of growth in the city.
Downtown business owners are retiring, Carbone said — she mentioned the closing of Libby’s
Torrington Furniture as a particular example — and out-of-state business interests have stepped forward to potentially purchase the properties,
“That creates a bit of a challenge for us,” said Carbone, noting that the city needs to work with these new owners to create an attractive Main Street for the community.
“This is the new reality — our search for businesses and industries, manufacturers and retail, has become global,” said Carbone.
There have been wins and losses in recent months, Carbone said, as the city pursues future growth and economic development.
Among the wins: the opening of the LaunchPad space above Five Points Gallery, which she said had no parallel in the United States; and the expansions of KidsPlay Children’s Museum and the Torrington library.
“We’re really getting this cultural center that is developing on our Main Street — something we should be celebrating and promoting as much as we can,” said Carbone.
The closure of UConnTorrington, Carbone said, is among the losses — Carbone said she was speaking with university officials in hopes of finding a future use for the property.
Other areas of challenge and opportunity Carbone noted: the investigation of the Street Department, dealing with blight, and the continued struggle with opioid and heroin addiction in the city.
Carbone said she urged state and federal elected officials to allow for some regulation of sober homes in the community, as a step to address the opioid crisis.
“I have encouraged, I’ve begged, I’ve pleaded, for sober home legislation,” said Carbone.
And on top of this, there is further change.
Other topics in the mayor’s talk included the planned closure of two Catholic churches and the Beth El Synagogue, the stalled but ongoing renovation of the Yankee Pedlar hotel, and the possibility of consolidating financial offices between the Board of Education and municipal government.
“I can’t fathom (that) a community of 36,000, that supported five Catholic churches, four parochial schools and a synagogue, is struggling to maintain these faith-based institutions,” said Carbone.
The religious institutions in the city, Carbone said, hit particularly close to home.
She noted a primarily Latino start-up church has expressed interest in purchasing the synagogue, which Carbone described as a likely possibility.
“So while we’re losing one faith-based institution, it does warm my heart to know that there is another faith-based institution going in there,” said Carbone.
Old challenges do remain — the city’s budget development has stalled, as the state of Connecticut works toward providing a budget for municipalities.
“We are at an absolute impasse on our budget proposal in the city of Torrington,” said Carbone, noting multimillion-dollar discrepancies in the amount of funding that could come to the city under various proposals.
As Carbone concluded her remarks, Tor ring tonWins ted Rotary Club President Brian Matti el los aid one word came to mind after Carbone had detailed the various hills and vales facing the city — “ownership.”
The club meeting was held Tuesday in Torrington.