All The Democratic News Fit To Print In and Around New Britain, CT (USA)

Saturday, December 8, 2007

6 December 2007

Celebrating the Life of Tony Norris -- Dinner is Sunday, December 9th

Friends and associates of Urban Oaks Organic Farm Founder Tony Norris will hold a dinner buffet and program in celebration of his life on Sunday, December 9th, at 4 p.m. at the Marchegian Society Ballroom, 40 Acorn Street. Democratic Party leaders, including former State Senator Joe Harper, State Rep. John Geragosian and Council Majority Leader Mike Trueworthy, will participate as part of the tribute. Norris, 59, died November 18th after a long battle with cancer. The New Britain native, a longtime citizen activist, established Urban Oaks in 1999 with his partner, Mike Kandefer. Interested persons may RSVP for the dinner to Maria Agramonte-Gomez at (860) 826-7585 or by e-mail to the Urban Oaks Farm at urbanoaks@earthlink.net .

There is no admission charge but financial contributions in memory of Norris are encouraged to: Urban Oaks Farm, c/o Human Resources Agency of New Britain, 180 Clinton Street, New Britain, CT 06053.

New Britain Dems To Meet Dec. 13th:
Presidential Politics, School Board Vacancy On Tap

The Democratic Town Committee will meet Thursday, December 13th at 7 p.m. at New Britain City Hall, 27 Main Street for its final meeting of the year. The agenda will include the 2008 Election Calendar and presidential politics. The Connecticut Presidential Primary has been moved to February and representatives of the presidential candidates will be invited to attend. Delegate information will also be available. The DTC will also be asked to recommend a candidate or candidates to fill a vacancy on the Board of Education created by the resignation of the Rev. Charles Tillett of Spottswood AME Zion Church. Rev. Tillett's term runs through 2009. He has been appointed pastor of a church in North Carolina. New Britain Democrats thank Rev. Tillett for his public service and extend best wishes to him in his new ministry.

Holiday refreshments will be served and members and friends are asked to bring a non-perishable food item to be donated to St. Ann's Roman Catholic Church food pantry on North Street

Presidential Primaries and Voter Registration:
15,555 Democrats with 29,781 Total Voters: Drive Needed For February Primary

Less than two months before voters will go to the polls to vote for President in party primaries, the total number of registered voters in New Britain hovers at 29,781 -- a total below the 30,000+ voters eligible in the gubernatorial and congressional contests of 2006. Connecticut's Presidential Primary will be held February 5th. The calendar calls for an early push to put the number of New Britain Democrats above 16,000 in the first quarter of 2008. Twenty years ago New Hampshire's first-in-the-nation Primary was held in March. On January 8th, N.H. voters go to the polls just five days after the Iowa caucuses. The Presidential calendar and the front loading of the process, including Connecticut, has greatly accelerated the selection process. Media gas bags -- also known as pundits and commentators -- are elevating and dismissing top tier candidates by the hour. They barely mention or cover all the candidates in the field, including Senator Chris Dodd. Senator Dodd's principled campaign and efforts in Iowa and New Hampshire will finally get the attention they deserve, not from the punditocracy, but from real voters early in the New Year. The Presidential Primaries will be discussed at the December 13th Town Committee meeting.

Public Transit Is The Key To Downtown's Future: DeFronzo Backs Busway With New Bond

Senator Donald J. DeFronzo (D-New Britain), Senate chair of the Transportation Committee, has taken steps over the last year to increase mass transit as a way to spur economic growth in New Britain. In the recently approved state bonding package additional state resources were committed to the planned New Britain to Hartford busway that is now a key to an emerging plan for downtown's rejuvenation. "We define transit oriented development as the development of residential commercial and employment centers within a half-mile walking distance of public transportation facilities, and in that regard the New Britain busway is ideal for implementing a transit oriented development plan," said Senator DeFronzo. "The area is ripe for local development, and the busway corridor will open transit opportunities for the city residents and employers." The New Britain-to-Hartford Busway will be eligible for $250,000 to $1,000,000 as one of four projects that qualify for transit oriented funding. The funding can be used for implementing a transit oriented plan, market analysis to determine economic viability, financial planning, environmental assessments, infrastructure studies and surveys, and other expenses related to planning and development surrounding the mass transit system. The issue was raised in a new post (below) from the NB Politicus blog. It calls for some interim moves to begin a transit-based economic development strategy well ahead of the busway's implementation

Downtown New Britain is no longer a "downtown," if that word means
anything. But if it's no longer the city's commercial or business center, then
what is it?

from http://nbblogs.com

The revitalization of downtown New Britain was not much of an issue during the 2007 municipal campaign. The welcome news of Carvel Corporation's move to the long vacant Smart Park (the former Stanley Works factory parcel)and a meaningless flare up over the location of a new police station were about the only headlines drawing attention to the city's vital center this year.

Downtown is ripe for new investment and development that needs to be managed wisely by city and state officials over the next five years. One of the big challenges of putting a viable downtown New Britain back together has to do with Route 9, the highway that connects I-84 to I-91 and shore points. New Britain is not unique among U.S. cities in having a four-lane roadway built 40 or 50 years ago that hastened decline of the central business district. The major task now is to undo that public works and public policy fiasco that cut the city in two.

Read more at http://nbpoliticus.blogspot.com

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New Britain Democrats

New Britain, Connecticut, United States
New Britain Democrat is a digest of e-newsletters that present news, views and information from the New Britain Democratic Town Committee. John McNamara, the Town Chair, is the editor. Mailing Address: Post Office Box 2112 New Britain, CT 06050 John Valengavich, Treasurer