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By Kerri Provost, February 11, 2013 1:58 pm

Trinity Street in downtown has been plowed several times. Residents in some neighborhoods are still waiting for one plow.

The snowfall stopped two days ago, but residents are reporting that a number of streets have yet to see a plow. Streets described as not “open,” with open being defined “as the plow opening up the middle of road” were posted by residents on the Hartford Fire Department’s Facebook page. It is safe to assume that this is an incomplete report, as not everyone has access to Facebook.

If you want to know exactly which streets were reported as “not open” — which areas receive service and which do not — check out the map created by Real Hartford. The streets included on the map — marked with snowflake icons — were reported on Monday morning and early afternoon.

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By Kerri Provost, February 10, 2013 9:58 pm

Severe weather situations seem to bring out the best and worst of people. On the same street there can be a strong sense of community, with many striving toward a shared goal, while at the same time, further down the road, there are individuals acting with complete disregard toward others. For as many stories we hear about neighbors helping one another clear driveways, there are tales of disrespect, like trucks dumping snow on side streets and plows trashing someone’s landscaping, with drivers not so much as apologizing. As tempers flare while residents are given more unsatisfying excuses for slow progress on snow removal, it’s helpful to take the long view, or at least, get out of the house and take a walk.

Vehicles freshly parked on Putnam Street during the parking ban on Sunday evening.

Continue reading 'Snowy Sunday Walk'»

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By Kerri Provost,

Frog Hollow residents began shoveling a path the width of a van down the middle of a one-way side street on Sunday morning. What started with a lone shoveler quickly snowballed into a community effort. Continue reading 'When the Plows Don’t Show'»

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By Kerri Provost, February 7, 2013 8:38 am

Updated at 4:15pm on February 13, 2013: The Hartford Public Schools are scheduled to re-open tomorrow, February 14th, with a one-hour delay.

Parents, you can all rejoice.

Updated at 6:30 pm on February 12, 2013: Mayor Segarra says, “We have approximately 550 streets and 500 curbside miles in Hartford and as of right now they are all passable, meaning emergency vehicles and cars can get in and out.”

The parking ban will be lifted at noon on February 13th for downtown. Vehicles were already parking illegally on Main Street this afternoon. [Note: The Courant is reported a different time for the parking ban lift. The time reported on Real Hartford is coming straight from a City of Hartford press release]

In a press release from the City of Hartford, it is stated that the parking ban will be lifted in the neighborhoods at midnight on February 13, 2013.

Vehicles parked in school lots need to be moved before 6a.m. on February 14th, as it is expected that the Hartford Public Schools will reopen on Thursday.

The Emergency Operations Center is slated to close at noon tomorrow.

Updated at 4:40pm on February 12, 2013:

All of Hartford Public Schools will be closed again tomorrow, Wednesday, February 13, 2013.

The Hartford Public Schools have had to contend with a series of concerns complicated by the slow snow removal from sidewalks and streets. Besides checking the structural safety of roofs, it’s been necessary to ensure that children can safely access bus stops. Anyone who has walked around Hartford since the storm can attest to the fact that there are few, if any, curb cuts in certain areas, meaning that pedestrians have to either climb over huge mounds of snow or walk in the roadway. As of Tuesday morning, the sidewalk on Lawrence Street around the Maria Sanchez School had not been cleared. Some schools lots continue to be used by neighborhood residents due to the ongoing parking ban. Continue reading 'Weather Information Without the Panic'»

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By Kerri Provost, January 5, 2013 3:29 pm

Continue reading 'In Your Neighborhood: Frog Hollow'»

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By Kerri Provost, December 29, 2012 2:13 pm

In preparation for the storm, Bushnell Park's sidewalks have received copious amounts of "salt."

The mayor has announced that there will be an on-street parking ban in effect from midnight until 8 Sunday morning. During parking bans, vehicles left on the street can be ticketed and towed. Earlier in 2012, 500 vehicles were ticketed and another 100 towed during one weekend.

Public school lots can provide temporary parking for those who lack off-street options.

As of 5 p.m. today, the parks will be closed.

Residents are expected to clear sidewalks. Hartford’s municipal code states:

The tenant, occupant, owner or agent of any premises abutting upon any street or public place in the City where there is a sidewalk graded, paved or planked, shall cause all snow to be removed from such sidewalk within six (6) hours after it has fallen, been deposited or found, or within three (3) hours after sunrise when the snow has fallen in the nighttime.

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By Kerri Provost, October 29, 2012 2:09 pm

Besides having two emergency shelters open, a “senior and chronic health center” has been opened in the South End Senior Center, located at 830 Maple Avenue.

Three fire stations are now open to the public for showering and charging electronics: 181 Clark St., 129 Sigourney St., and 510 Franklin Ave.

There will be no trash collection on October 30th and Hartford Public Schools will also be closed on Tuesday.

In a message from Maribel La Luz, the Director of Communications and New Media for the City of Hartford, it was stated that a recorded message about storm information has been sent to “30,000 unique telephone numbers.” Segarra said, “We will continue to do everything possible to respond as quickly as we can and expedite a return to normalcy.”

Comments (1)

By Kerri Provost, October 28, 2012 7:59 pm

The City of Hartford will have emergency shelters at the following locations:

• Parker Memorial Community Center, 2621 Main Street
• Pope Park Recreation Center, 30 Pope Park Drive

These will be open as of 7am on Monday, October 29th.

Comments (2)

By Kerri Provost, October 27, 2012 12:14 pm

As of noon, all Hartford parks are officially closed. A message from the City of Hartford indicates that those which can be gated and locked will be.

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By Kerri Provost, July 17, 2012 9:04 am

Starting at 9 in the morning, five centers will be open for people to use to cool off. They are scheduled to close at 8pm on July 17th and 18th:

• North End Senior Center, 80 Coventry Street
• South End Wellness Center, 830 Maple Avenue
• Parkville Senior Center, 11 New Park Avenue
• Hispanic Health Council, 175 Main Street
• Hispanic Senior Center, 45 Wadsworth Street Continue reading 'Cooling Centers Open During Heat Wave'»