Thieves strike Hartford Habitat for Humanity project
Tools, boilder system taken from home on Capitol Avenue
Thieves on or around New Year’s Day made off with $10,000 worth of tools and a boiler system at a Habitat for Humanity project on Hartford’s Capitol Avenue, but through the goodness of the community and a corporate donation, the organization is regaining some of its losses.
Kris Mckelvie, director of Home Construction for Habitat for Humanity North Central Connecticut, said it’s always disappointing when a project is vandalized or suffers a break in and thefts.
“It breaks the spirit of the volunteers,” he said. “This (donations) helps to revive our spirits.”
Stanley Black & Decker recently donated a 12-inch miter saw, 8-inch table saw and several battery chargers and batteries amounting to about $2,000 and the community has also stepped up to donate as they work toward replacing the boiler and other items.
Every day the crew works there they notice something else missing, Mckelvie said. Donations can be made online at https://hfhncc.org/.
Stanley Black & Decker official Karen Price-ward said the company is committed to “improving the communities where we live and work and being a force for good.
“Through our long-standing partnership with Hartford Habitat for Humanity, we were honored to support the veteran homeowner in Hartford following the theft,” she said.
Mckelvie said Hartford police have a detailed list of what was taken and are looking for the items on the street, but otherwise aren’t likely to find the culprits or recover the items.
Since the theft, security has been heightened at the site, he said.
Mckelvie said the theft didn’t delay the timeline for finishing the home, which is on schedule for an open house March 30.
The Hartford Police Department was dispatched to 315 Capitol Ave. around 8 a.m. on Jan. 1 for a report from a person who lives in a neighboring building of a potential break-in at the site at around 6 a.m. The neighbor reported that the rear door appeared to be forced open.
Upon arrival, police found the rear door open and the door latch lock and a basement window broken.
Mckelvie responded to the home after he was informed of the break-in and told police that over $2,500 worth of tools were stolen, according to police.
Mckelvie estimates that damages totaled at least $10,000.
The thieves also broke a stained glass window pane in the front door and cut the locks off the back door and a box truck that the crew was using as a tool trailer.