The question is, what’s right with Hartford?
Bob Stefanowski got it wrong in recent op-ed
I write in response to Bob Stefanowski’s op-ed piece, “What Isn’t the Matter with Hartford?” which appeared in the Wall Street Journal on Jan. 2.
As the leader of a company that has called Hartford home for over two centuries, I feel compelled to respond to the op-ed’s depiction of our capital city and its elected leaders.
The timing of the op-ed is unfortunate. At a time when people and companies are looking for alternatives to large cities — and recognizing the benefits of more affordable, less densely packed and highly livable urban environments — we believe that Hartford and the Hartford region offer exactly what many people and companies are looking for. A one-sided, pessimistic depiction of the city could wrongly discourage those who might be considering the Hartford region as a high-quality alternative to New York or Boston or Chicago or San Francisco. An incomplete portrayal of Hartford and the surrounding region undermines the governor and mayor’s efforts to attract families, talent, jobs and investment to our capital region.
It’s true that Hartford faces difficult challenges, the city’s high share of tax-exempt property and employee benefit obligations perhaps foremost among them. These and other legacy problems are, in part, the result of dubious decisions and policies in decades past. For example, as the city’s fiscal challenge mounted, for decades city leaders raised taxes or robbed Peter to pay Paul, exacerbating the problem.
Luke Bronin is the first mayor in memory to tackle the city’s fiscal problems head on. Working with municipal employees, the city council, state legislators and two different state governors, Mayor Bronin fashioned solutions that stabilized the city’s finances and brought the city back from the brink of bankruptcy. Under his leadership, the city has attracted significant public and private investment for the first time in 20 years. Prior to the onset of the pandemic, Hartford had attained impressive momentum. The addition of hundreds of apartments and condos, new neighborhood restaurants and the new UConn Hartford branch campus put more feet on the street and contributed to a growing vitality in the city. The further development of the entertainment district, a new award-winning baseball stadium and minor league team, along with a refurbished soccer stadium and professional soccer team are drawing people from around the region into the city. And developments in the city’s Downtown North and Parkville districts promise economic growth in the city’s vital and culturally rich neighborhoods.
Significantly, for the first time in years, the business community enjoys an effective working relationship with the city. We have become partners in the effort to assure our shared future.
Prior to the pandemic, there was a palpable change in Harford’s mood, a discernable shift in how the city thinks of itself and of its future. The cloud that has hovered over the city since the late 1980s was lifting. Together, I know we will recapture that momentum as we finally put the deadly coronavirus behind us.
Hartford is a small city, facing issues that most small cities face, but it is also the hub of a geographically compact metro area with an aggregate population of nearly 1.5 million people. The region’s workforce is among the most highly educated and skilled in the world. Our region is an international leader in insurance, finance, aerospace, research, medicine, broadcasting and bioscience. The area offers world-class public and private schools and universities. The Hartford region is at the center of a burgeoning research and innovation corridor stretching from western Massachusetts in the north to New Haven and Stamford in the south. The corridor is also home to some of the country’s most innovative startup companies. And the cost of housing and commercial space is significantly lower than found in larger metro regions.
If I sound like a booster, it’s because I am. The Hartford believes in our city and its leadership. It’s why we committed significant funds to help the city weather its recent budget crisis.
I find that optimism is an essential ingredient of leadership. Not blind optimism, but an optimism that conveys to others that if we identify the root cause of a problem, we can work together to solve it. I’m optimistic about the city of Hartford, the capital region and the state of Connecticut in no small measure because we have those kind of leaders.
The Hartford was founded in our namesake city and has maintained our headquarters in Hartford for over 210 years. We plan to stay here. We’d be happy to talk to others who may be thinking of joining us in the Hartford region.
Christopher Swift is chairman and CEO of The Hartford.