Mayor Erin Stewart Pandemic Record – a tale of failed leadership
The Coronavirus pandemic created great challenges to leadership around the world.In order to best meet this crisis local, state, and federal governments all needed to contribute their share to minimize fatalities and reduce the spread of COVID-19. Local towns and cities played a key role during the pandemic. Mayors had the power to set and […]
Debunking Erin Stewart Legacy
On Tuesday, September 24, 2024, mayor Stewart announced she will not seek a 7th term as mayor of New Britain (CT Mirror, Sep 26, 2024). In her speech, as reported in the Hartford Courant, she cited a theme that she has repeated over and over in every state of the city speech, that she has […]
Op-Ed: Tax and Spend Republicans in New Britain
By Aram Ayalon Recently, the New Britain Progressive reported that the city of New Britain is yet again, late in submitting its audit report, this time 6 months late instead of a year late for the 2022 budget – a slight improvement but still adds to the financial woes the city has experienced in the […]
Tributes to Dr. Alton Brooks: Dr. Aram Ayalon
Dear editor, As a former member of the school board and Common Council of New Britain I got to know quite a few of the members who were mentored by Alton Brooks. He was especially instrumental in engaging African Americans in the politics of New Britain and through that giving voice and influence to African […]
Op-Ed – Infrastructure Investment – A Real Proposal or a Campaign Gimmick
By Aram Aylon, In a June 12, 2024, article on the New Britain Progressive my opponent for District 26 state representative is cited as proposing a $200 million investment in municipal infrastructure to address sewer and flooding issues funded by recent state budget surpluses. New Britain has suffered from flooding in certain areas in the […]
Speedbumps and Speedhumps Work – Will New Britain make residents’ Safety a priority?
The Board of Public Works of the city of New Britain issued in June 2023 a policy banning the use of speed bumps and humps on city streets. While the policy statement claims to place “high priority on reducing accidents and injuries and increasing safety on its road network” it claims that, for many communities, […]
New Britain Police Malpractice Settlements Suggests Needed Reform
City council agenda items indicate that the City of New Britain has been settling claims against its police force in a rate that suggests reform is needed. On October 11, 2023, the city of New Britain settled a claim by Mr. Ortiz against detective Linda Glimpse for $3,500 alleging she conducted false arrest in March […]
Demonstrators Call for “Justice for Katherine” in Front of the New Britain Police Headquarters
Following state attorney Maureen Platt report issued on February 24, 2024 exonerating New Britain officer Connor Reinsch from any responsibility driving accident where his vehicle struck and killed Katherine Colon on September 21, 2023; Colon’s family, relatives and friends held a rally on Sunday, March 3, 2024 in front of the New Britain police building. […]
Is spending $2.7 million on a Reception Pavilion at Stanley Golf Course Justified?
The February 28 New Britain Common Council meeting has an agenda item requesting the Common Council to approve funding an installation of a reception pavilion in the New Britain-owned golf course for $2,698,000 by Diversity Construction Group LLC of Wallingford, CT. While a reception pavilion at the golf course would provide a location to host […]
The Renaissance Of The Dual Language Program At Diloreto School
It was 2012 and the major item on the New Britain School Board meeting agenda was the closure of the dual language program at Diloreto school. Superintendent Kelt Cooper with the support of the president of the school board Sharon Saavedra were proposing to replace a popular program that allowed the children of Diloreto K-8 […]
Early Voting Beginning in New Britain
Following new Connecticut state law early voting in Connecticut will be provided beginning with the April 2nd, 2024 presidential primaries. In a memo to the New Britain Common Council for its February 14, 2024 meeting, Peter Gostlin and Lucian Pawlak the Republican and Democratic registrars of voters recommended that The New Britain Senior Center on […]
New Sex Education Program Will Tackle High Teenage Pregnancy and Sexually Transmitted Infections in New Britain
New Britain has the second highest teenage pregnancy in Connecticut according to the Connecticut Department of Health, with 24.3 pregnant teens per 1000 women ages 15-19 and is also 8th in the state in Sexually Transmitted Infections (STI). In the October 16, 2023 New Britain school Board Curriculum Committee meeting, Lara Bohike, the District 6-12 […]
DiLoreto’s Spanish magnet programs are holding Annual Lottery
Consolidated School District of New Britain is holding its annual lottery for incoming Kindergarteners to enroll in two programs – (1) the Diloreto Elementary/Middle school program which has a Spanish Language Development program and (2) “Dos en Uno” Dual Language program. The Spanish Language Development program provides Spanish as a separate world language class and […]
Ten New Britain Schools Need Major Renovations in 10 Years – A New Report Suggests
On the January 8th 2024 Consolidated School District of New Britain Board meeting, the board heard a report titled “Facility Condition Assessment & Energy Audit” prepared by Bureau Veritas. In the current buildings’ conditions only Holmes Elementary was not classified as “well maintained” but as in “functional conditions.” Holmes Elementary School was original constructed in […]
City Council To Establish A Committee On Housing And Homelessness
In response to recent testimonies by people who are homeless or at-risk to becoming homeless and due to substantial increase in the rate of homelessness in New Britain, the city council, under the leadership of the democratic caucus, is voting in its January 10th meeting to add to its ordinance a Committee on Housing and […]
New Britain Ranks Low for Tree Canopy Cover: What are the Consequences and What Could be Done?
A 2013 report “New Britain Urban Forest” prepared for the City of New Britain by the Central Connecticut Regional Planning Agency (CCRPA) found that New Britain has one of the lowest tree canopies comparing to other cities in Connecticut. While Connecticut cities had an average tree canopy of 49% and overall town coverage average of […]
There is a large Gap between New Britain municipality employee diversity and the diversity of the City’s Population
According to WalletHub report New Britain has the 30th most diverse population among all cities in the United States. The diversity measure includes ethnic diversity, ethno-racial diversity, linguistic diversity, and birthplace diversity. Within these categories, New Britain stands out as 12th in the nation in language diversity (https://wallethub.com/edu/cities-with-the-most-and-least-ethno-racial-and-linguistic-diversity/10264). According to the census, New Britain’s racial/ethnic […]
Concerned Voices Confront New Britain City Council About Homelessness
Following a Monday rally organized by the Racial Justice coalition for housing justice, dozens of people experiencing homelessness and their advocates converged in significant and historical testimonial, at the City Council on Wednesday December 13th. They urged the city to take strong actions to help the homeless and renters who are experiencing substandard living conditions. […]
What’s in New Britain City Council Meeting Wednesday, December 13, 2023
The New Britain City Council will meet on Wednesday, December 13, 2023. The agenda for the meeting includes: Public participation: available in person at 7:00 pm or by phone calling begins 6:55 pm at 339-209-6176 Watch common council meeting live streaming at: https://www.newbritainct.gov/meetings or https://www.youtube.com/@CONBCT/streams Minutes: Every city council agenda usually includes minutes from the […]
Flooding in New Britain – The Role of the Shrinking Permeable Spaces
This year flooding hit New Britain hard. Flooding has been experienced in Roxbury Rd, Newberry Street, Allen Street, Overlook Ave, and McKinley Drive causing residents to speak in front of the common council demanding solutions. But flooding is by no means new in New Britain. The most susceptible area for flooding in New Britain is […]