In the last few years, Hartford has begun to generate renewed interest as many redevelopment projects have been completed, are currently in progress or planned across the city. These initiatives include both commercial and residential projects such as Adriaen's Landing, the Connecticut Center for Science and Exploration, an extensive system of riverfront trails and parks, Park Street and Parkville neighborhood improvements and significant downtown development. The historic Colt building and complex is also being renovated to National Park standards.
Downtown is Hartford's primary business district. Downtown is home to such corporations as Travelers, The Hartford Steam Boiler, Phoenix Insurance, Prudential Retirement and United Technologies Corporation.
Downtown is also home to the Hartford City Hall, the Hartford Public Library, the Old State House, the Wadsworth Atheneum, The Travelers Tower, Bushnell Park, and the State Capitol and Legislative Office Complex. Capital Community College and the Hartford Public Schools offices are also located along Main Street in the former G. Fox and Company Building. The newly renovated University of Connecticut School of Business is located at Constitution Plaza.
The Asylum Hill neighborhood was originally known as "Lords Hill." The Asylum Hill neighborhood is home to the Asylum Hill Congregational Church (organized in 1864), The Trinity Episcopal Church, and Saint Joseph's Cathedral (dedicated 1892).
There are also many insurance companies that were or are still located in the Asylum Hill area such as the Hartford Fire Insurance Company (now the Hartford Financial Services Group) and Rossia Insurance Company (now Northeastern Insurance Company). AETNA Insurance Company still remains as a major fixture along Farmington Avenue. Also along Farmington Avenue are the homes of Mark Twain and Harriet Beecher Stowe, which are now museums.
Coming soon to the Asylum Hill neighborhood is the Connecticut Culinary Institute which will move in the recently vacated Hastings Hotel and Conference Center next to AETNA
The West End neighborhood, which runs from a little bit past the Mark Twain house to the West Hartford border, was mostly farmland until 1870. During the 1910s, many two and three story homes were built, giving the area more of a suburban feel.
Elizabeth Park in the West End was created in 1895, when Charles N. Pond gave his estate to the Hartford Parks Commission which created the park and named it in honor of his wife. The park boasts a playground, softball field, and other recreational facilities in addition to views of the downtown skyline. It's the oldest municipal rose garden in the United States, and one of the largest.
The University of Connecticut School of Law, Watkinson School and the Hartford Seminary are located in the West End. Part of Prospect Avenue boasts mansions including the Governor's Mansion. Mansions can also be found along Scarborough Street including the former residence of A. Everett Ausin (Director of Wadsworth Atheneum from 1927-1944).
The neighborhood is located just south of downtown with the Connecticut River and I-91 running at the eastern end of the neighborhood. The Charter Oak monument is located at the corner of Charter Oak Place, a historic street, and Charter Oak Avenue.
The area was home to the Colts Firearm Factory which was started by Samuel Colt, who invented the automatic revolver. Along with building a factory, Mr. Colt also made a village with houses, a library, and recreational activities so that his employees could be close to work. Colt's estate, Armsmear, was given to the city as Colt's Park after Mr. and Mrs. Colt's death. A developer is currently in the process of renovating the whole facility to create office space and apartments for completion in 2006/2007.
The Capewell Horsenail Company was also in the area. In 1881, George Capewell invented a machine to make horseshoe nails.
The neighborhood is a conglomeration of formerly distinct neighborhoods that have been collapsed into a largely impoverished zone. Generally identified as consisting of the vast area north of Albany Avenue leading up to the Bloomfield and Windsor borders, the North End has been wracked by decades of policies such as redlining and racist city planning that transformed a once multi-cultural area of African-American, Jewish, and European immigrants into an underdeveloped zone of housing projects and slums that is nearly entirely African-American and poor. This began in the 1950s with the construction of I-84, which cut off North End from the rest of the city, followed by a high concentration of government-financed housing projects that caused the flight of the working and middle class to the suburbs.
Although many of the housing projects have been demolished in 1990s and 2000s, and were replaced with HUD home constructions designed to increase the proportion of working families in the North End, the area still suffers from underdevelopment and crime. Many of the North End's parks, such as Keney Park, are considered among the city's most dangerous. The schools are among the most segregated and underperforming in the country, with populations of impoverished and African-American students extending into the 90th percentile. Mortality rates in the North End are comparable to those of the South Bronx in New York City.
The North End is home to an active community of West Indian immigrants that provide the area with a cultural and artistic presence: the West Indian Social Club and Scott's Jamaican Bakery are two notable neighborhood institutions. The North End is also home to Weaver High School, which was also the alma mater of ER actor Eriq La Salle.
This neighborhood is home to the area of Franklin Avenue, known as Little Italy. Although many Italians have moved just over the border to Wethersfield, Newington, and Rocky Hill, there is still a major Italian presence in the city. There are numerous Italian bakeries along Franklin Avenue. In the past few decades, there has been white flight from the South End, with many Puerto Rican families moving into the neighborhood but nevertheless there are many local favorites (restaurants, bakeries and stores) that draw people back into the South End.
Another resident of Hartford's South End is the South Park Inn emergency shelter.
South Green is home to Barnard Park in honor of Henry Barnard, whose home is located on Main Street. Congress Street is a historic district with many Greek Revival and Italianate homes. Hartford Hospital and the Connecticut Children's Medical Center are also located in South Green.
Located at the southeastern corner of the city, the area is home to many industrial and commercial businesses. The neighborhood is home to the Regional Market, a 32 acre (129,000 mē) facility with 185,000 of warehouse space. Brainard Field along I-91 serves small aircraft and offers flight instruction. The Hartford Electric Light Company which started in 1921 is still operational and owned by CT Light and Power. One of the Metropolitan District Water pollution control plants is located in the south meadows. Also, the Mid-Connecticut Resource Recovery Facility, which opened in 1987 and is on 57 acres (231,000 mē), is located in the area.
Located just north of downtown along the CT River and I-91 the North Meadows is a largely commercial and industrial area that is home to many of the area's car dealerships including dealers for Mercedes Benz, BMW, Nissan, Infiniti, Jaguar, Toyota and Mazda as well as a brand new CarMax dealership. The North Meadows is also the home of the CT Expo Center which features 88,000 square feet of exhibition space, the Dodge Music Center (formerly the Meadows Music Theater), which hosts dozens of big name concerts each year, and Riverside Park.
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