🔒Violence undermines Hartford’s revitalization prospects

The city of Hartford has had many positive milestones to cheer about over the last 12 months.

Trinity College announced plans to open a new campus downtown. The first batch of new center-city apartments hit the market and have begun to fill up with tenants, adding to Hartford's burgeoning vibrancy. Ground has broken on a minor league ballpark that will bring professional baseball back to the Capital City. Plans to bring a pro soccer team to Hartford have been announced.

That's all good news, but the city's ability to maintain the positive momentum is in serious jeopardy with the recent outbreak of gun violence in Hartford's neighborhoods. Last week marked a much more somber milestone when the city recorded its 19th homicide of 2015, equal to the number of murders that took place in all of 2014.

Hartford's murder tally is now outpacing all other major New England cities. This trend is troubling not only for the tragic loss of life but because such violent crime adds to the perception that Hartford is unsafe. Such negative stereotypes have been steeled in the hearts and minds of many Connecticut residents over the years, leading many to dismiss the city as a great place to live or visit.

The timing couldn't be worse either. With hundreds of new apartment units coming online right now and over the next few years, Hartford needs to maintain a positive image so that more people will be willing to live and play downtown. Unfortunately, as Hartford Business Journal reported in May, one of the main questions prospective tenants are asking landlords is whether or not the city is safe.

Despite the recent spike in murders, the answer to that question, for the most part, is yes. Overall crime in Hartford is down this year, and downtown remains largely siloed from the gun violence that has plagued certain city neighborhoods. Still, perception is often reality, and with Hartford's homicide rate dominating local media coverage, it can be very difficult to convince someone on the fence about moving to Hartford to pull the trigger right now.

In this week's issue, HBJ News Editor Gregory Seay writes about the various amenities current downtown residents and landlords would like the city to add. Demand for a grocery store and bakery are high on people's wish list as are more diverse restaurants and cultural activities. But the one amenity that stands out above all others is personal safety. If people don't think they will be safe living in Hartford, they won't make the move; the recent spike in homicides could create a chilling effect.

What can be done to solve the problem? There is no easy answer. We applaud the state for allocating more resources to the city, including state police detectives and parole and correction officers. It's a good move by Mayor Pedro Segarra to reallocate more resources to the Shooting Task Force, which was credited years ago with helping curb gun violence but has been recently stripped of some of its funding.

More force alone, however, won't solve the problem. Community groups and individual residents within Hartford's neighborhoods must also be proactive in stemming the violence. They need to work closely with police to track down and arrest unsavory characters who pollute the social fabric of the Capital City.

The prevention of further loss of human life, as well as the fortunes of the Capital City, depend on it.

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