Hartford Stage Co. is pressing on with plans for a major renovation and expansion of its 31-year-old downtown theater at 250 Church St.
Hartford’s planning and zoning commission held a public hearing last week on the HSO’s application for a special permit to redo the theater’s interior and mechanical systems, including installing an elevator and replacing approximately 540 seats.
However, HSO Managing Director Mike Stotts acknowledged that the weak economy is having an impact on donors and on the construction timetable. The project isn’t likely to begin until next year, he said.
HSO has secured a local venue to temporarily stage performances while its home undergoes renovation, but Stotts declined to name it until all details are final.
“We are continuing to design the building and working on construction documents,’’ Stotts said. He said fundraising continues toward an estimated project cost of $11 million.
Meanwhile, stage and screen actor Matthew Modine will star in HSO’s production of Harper Lee’s “To Kill a Mockingbird,” which runs Feb. 19 through April 4.
Modine, who is known for roles in the movies “Full Metal Jacket” and “Any Given Sunday,” will play the lead role of rural southern lawyer Atticus Finch.
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Pocket Rockets
Pocket Wireless’ New England strategy is beginning to take shape.
Four months ago, when it leased office space in Springfield, Mass., and Bloomfield, local officials weren’t quite sure what to make of the company based in San Antonio, Texas.
On its Web site, Pocket Communications billed itself as the fastest-growing flat-rate wireless company in Texas. The real estate plays in this region were said to be the beginning of a New England initiative.
A few weeks later, Pocket lured Debra Shaffer back to Connecticut from a job in Florida. Shaffer had once handled the Connecticut Commission on Culture & Tourism account for a New Haven agency.
Last week, Pocket announced plans for an $80 million expansion into the Northeast from its new regional headquarters in Bloomfield. The company’s flat-rate, unlimited-use wireless voice and data services will be available soon in the Greater Hartford, Springfield and New Haven markets, as well as Poughkeepsie, N.Y.
The company said it expects to employ 400 in dozens of locations in the Northeast before the end of the first quarter.
