On Monday night, we convened a community meeting at Shiloh Baptist Church, focused on the tragic rise in violent crime our city has seen this summer.
At a time when politics is unavoidable, we focused this forum on policy – and on community. It was a powerful testament to see over 150 residents from all over our city come together to share ideas, concerns, and solutions.
I know some of you were not able to make it to the meeting on Monday, and I wanted to invite you to share your thoughts on how we can make our streets safer and our neighborhoods stronger.
Some key focus areas during Monday’s discussion were:
1. A demand for employment opportunities, with a particular focus on giving young people the tools to become entrepreneurs
2. A call to ensure that projects paid for by taxpayer dollars employ Hartford residents, and that set-asides are properly enforced
3. The need for additional recreation opportunities for our youth
4. The need for a strategic plan to get Hartford’s factory buildings back into productive use
5. The importance of taking full advantage of state and federal economic development programs such as HUBZone, Enterprise Zones, and Promise Zones
6. The need to support true community policing, though there was a lack of consensus on how to achieve that goal
7. A call for quality education and support of education by facilitating access to resources and providing information clearinghouse services
8. The importance of awareness-raising and education about history and identity
9. The vital importance of making the “no snitch” rule unacceptable