The city and the Bushnell Center for the Performing Arts will get a $250,000 federal arts grant to enhance downtown, authorities said Friday.
Mayor Pedro Segarra and U.S. Rep. John B. Larson, D-1st District, announced the National Endowment for the Arts award at the Soldiers and Sailors Arch at Bushnell Park.
The funds will support the Bushnell’s iQuilt project aimed at promoting Hartford as a safe, sustainable community by leveraging its transit, cultural and housing resources. The iQuilt concept envisions a loose grid of Bushnell Park-to-Connecticut River pedestrian routes through Hartford.
Larson said federal officials, including the deputy secretary of Housing and Urban Development, that have come to Hartford to see the iQuilt proposal have gone away impressed.
“Hartford is an unpolished gem,” Larson said, “home to numerous cultural assets that can stimulate growth and development throughout the city. IQuilt will help us leverage our resources to create a more sustainable, vibrant city for our residents and visitors.”
The NEA awarded the funding as a part of the Mayors’ Institute on City Design 25th Anniversary Initiative, a program that supports projects in communities across the nation focused on planning, design, and arts engagement programs.Â
In total, 21 matching grants were awarded to cities and community groups across the country, amounting to an investment of $3 million on behalf of the NEA.
