Connecticut
CT restaurant reveals ‘sacrifice’ for special neighbors by closing ‘at its peak.’ And a hope to move
Yes, there are restaurants across Connecticut that are closing because of lagging business or changing tastes.
But in the case of J Restaurant Bar’s closure, they are actually, “on top of our game,” said owner Jordan Dikegoros.
“It’s nice to jump out on top,” he said. “Our business is at its peak, which makes it that much harder.”
They’re jumping out now, for the sake of the children at Connecticut Children’s Medical Center, but are also shopping for a new location.
This week the restaurant of 54 years, an “oasis” to hospital visitors and staff-announced their closure for July 3 to make way for a parking garage to serve CCMC, located across the street.
The plan was in place three years ago and Dikegoros said he received a “fair deal” to sell four parcels.
But as closure time draws near, it’s “bittersweet,” not because of potential lost profit, but because of the close connections he’s made with the hospital and families whose children are being treated across the street at the children’s hospital. In addition, plenty of visitors come from Hartford Hospital, also across the street, Dikegoros said.
“It’s so much more than a restaurant,” Dikegoros said. “We’re an oasis for families. “We’re not pushing specials. We’re comforting them by giving them a place to escape reality for half an hour.”
Yes, the casual restaurant has pizza, Italian dishes, steak, seafood, and sandwiches.
But there were also lots of hugs that came with many customers who shared their poignant stories and deepest feelings. Dikegoros said they ate, returned, often with the healed child, and in some cases he’s become personal friends.
John Caezza and his wife, Dianne, of Farmington were at CCMC for two stints, 10 months at a time while their son was being treated.
“I struggle to call it a restaurant because it’s so much more,” John Caezza said. “The community and the city are losing a true gem.”
The Caezzas ate at J Restaurant Bar every night during their stay except Sundays, as the eatery was closed. John Caezza said no matter how hard one tries, there’s no hiding the lanyard hospital pass for returning visitors.
Dikegoros would connect families with one another to share stories, know they weren’t alone; seat them in a quiet spot for privacy if they needed it, listened to stories. In the case of the Caezzas who were there so often, if they were looking for something new on the menu, the restaurant would make anything they wanted, John Caezza said.
As for location, John Caezza said it was comforting to know they could “escape” for an hour or two with their son right across the street.
“It’s just the environment they created,” he said. “My wife and I would have gone insane if it wasn’t for that place. It’s a special place.”
Caezza said that with all the hours spent there he witnessed so many acts of kindness on the restaurant’s part, including donating hundreds of pizzas to the hospital and emergency first responders.
At some point the restaurant even constructed a New Year’s Eve Ball to “drop” for the kids across the street during the holiday.
The restaurant has been in the family for 54 years, open originally as Pizza Plus. The name changed in 2007 and Dikegoros has been running it for 37 years. The “J” in the name is for Jordan.
He said they have a great relationship with the hospital, its employees and patient visitors.
Dikegoros said he made a promise years ago to a former CCMC CEO, “When you guys expand I’ll be here for you.”
By selling the properties to LAZ parking for the parking garage, he is making good on that promise.
“We sacrificed for the children’s hospital…They’ve been great neighbors,” he said, noting there was really nowhere else to put the garage that will add 910 spaces.
“As the time is winding down, it’s getting a little emotional,” Dikegoros said.
While the COVID-19 pandemic killed many restaurant businesses, they never closed and the restaurant thrived, Dikegoros said.
Early on in the pandemic they created an outdoor eating area. At the peak they provided individual meals to go for hospital staff funded by donations, including some of their own. The business uptick never stopped, he said.
Dikegoros said they are hoping to reopen on the first floor of the parking garage, but that’s at least two years out until it’s built. They are currently located at 297 Washington St.
Meanwhile, they’ve been shopping for another location in the same Frog Hollow neighborhood as well as in suburbs so they can open sooner.
It could result in two J Restaurant Bar establishments, he said.
Earlier last year, Connecticut Children’s held a groundbreaking ceremony for a new $326 million clinical tower, the largest expansion to the hospital since construction began on the current building in 1994.
As part of the expansion, the hospital teamed up with LAZ parking to construct a new parking garage and pedestrian walkway, to accommodate for the increased traffic.
The restaurant announced on Facebook this week that they will have a final full dinner service on June 29. July 1, 2, 3rd will be modified hours and menus.
Connecticut
Billionaire Ray Dalio joins push to fund Trump Accounts, pledging $75 million to Connecticut kids
The U.S. Treasury asked major philanthropic donors to contribute to new investment accounts for children Wednesday as part of what Secretary Scott Bessent called a “50 State Challenge” to raise funds for the Trump Accounts program.
“The president is calling on our nation’s business leaders and philanthropic organizations to help us make America great again by securing the financial future of America’s children,” Bessent said in an address.
The billionaire hedge fund founder Ray Dalio, along with his wife Barbara, announced they would commit $250 to 300,000 children under 10 in Connecticut who live in ZIP codes where the median income is less than $150,000. Dalio founded the investment firm Bridgewater Associates and lives in Connecticut.
“I have been fortunate to live the American Dream. At an early age I was exposed to the stock market, and it changed my life,” Ray Dalio said in a statement, adding that he sees the accounts as putting children on a path toward financial independence.
The Dalios’ $75 million commitment follows the $6.25 billion pledge from billionaires Michael and Susan Dell earlier in December. The Dells promised to invest $250 in the accounts of 25 million children 10 and under who live in ZIP codes across the country that also have that median income.
The new investment accounts were created as part of President Donald Trump’s tax and spending legislation, passed over the summer. Under the new law, the U.S. Department of the Treasury will deposit $1,000 into the investment accounts of children born during Trump’s second term.
The Treasury has not yet launched the new accounts.
“Starting on July 4th, our nation’s 250th anniversary, parents, family members, employers and friends will be able to contribute up to $5,000 to each Trump Account each year,” Bessent said Wednesday.
Brad Gerstner, a venture capitalist, who championed the accounts, said the Treasury will create an account for every child in the U.S. who has a Social Security number but private companies will eventually administer the accounts. Parents or guardians will have to claim the accounts on behalf of their children. For children born before Trump came to office and who don’t qualify for the funds from the Dells and the Dalios, their families can open and fund their own Trump Account if they choose.
Money in the accounts must be invested in an index fund that tracks the overall stock market. When the children turn 18, they can withdraw the funds to put toward their education, to buy a home or to start a business.
Bessent said employers, family members and philanthropists can put funds into the accounts and that the administration hopes states will also eventually set up programs to invest in the accounts. Companies including Visa and BlackRock have also pledged to contribute in some way to the accounts of their employees’ children.
___
Associated Press coverage of philanthropy and nonprofits receives support through the AP’s collaboration with The Conversation US, with funding from Lilly Endowment Inc. The AP is solely responsible for this content. For all of AP’s philanthropy coverage, visit https://apnews.com/hub/philanthropy.
CONNECTICUT (WTNH) — Connecticut officials and officials from 35 other states have agreed to a settlement with automakers Hyundai and Kia to come up with a plan to help prevent vehicles from being stolen.
Connecticut Attorney General William Tong (D) and 35 other states call the settlement, which has been several years in the making, a matter of public safety. The issue concerns the number of Hyundai and Kia vehicles that have been reported stolen and crashes related to these thefts.
The settlement provides up to $4.5 million in restitution for customers whose cars had been stolen.
“This settlement points us back in the right direction to help address some of the underlining issues that have made it easier to steal vehicles,” Meriden Police Chief Roberto Rosado said.
Tong said that groups of young people known as “Kia Boys” were aware that Kia and Hyundai vehicles did not possess modern anti-theft technology, making those brands of vehicles more vulnerable to theft.
One such example is a 2023 incident in which a group of teens reportedly stole and crashed a Hyundai in Waterbury, resulting in the death of a 14-year-old girl.
“Connecticut State Police have been saying for some time that they needed some assistance, that they needed help in reducing the opportunity for these vehicles to be stolen,” Connecticut Department of Emergency Services Commissioner Ronnell Higgins said.
Several states have attempted to get Hyundai and Kia to alter the way their vehicles are built in the United States, finally coming to an agreement with the two automakers to provide an anti-theft device to protect the vehicles.
“At some point, they started offering excuses,” Tong said. “You can do just a software update, that will fix it. That didn’t work. We advocated for a recall, they refused. This settlement requires that, for all future vehicles sold in the United States, Hyundai and Kia will install, as part of their standard package, industry engine immobilizer anti-theft technology.”
The technology is linked to the key fob, which means that the car will not start if the smart key is not present.
Connecticut is requiring Kia and Hyundai to provide customers with a free zinc-reinforced engine cylinder protector for vehicles already on the road that are not equipped with the anti-theft technology.
Meet Kenyatta Watson, a onetime receiver who’s been named the first general manager in Boston College football history – The Boston Globe
Denver airport delays, crashes, broken windows, downed power lines: What to know about Colorado’s windy Wednesday
Alex Carpenter scores twice as Seattle Torrent beat Charge 4-1
Frustrated teachers walk out of SBUSD meeting that decided to close Central Elementary
Community raises over $29,000 during Home 4 the Holidays virtual food drive
Florida High School Football Rankings: Top 25 teams – Oct. 21
Cleary's 21 help Le Moyne down Central Connecticut State 69-64 in OT
How old is Bo Nix? What to know about Oregon quarterback ahead of 2024 NFL Draft
99th annual Pony Swim held in Virginia
Video: ‘It Didn’t Have to Happen This Way:’ U.Va. Faculty Call for Review of Police Response to Protests
Border Patrol chief, progressive mayor caught on camera in tense street showdown: ‘Excellent day in Evanston’
European Parliament asks for EU funds to finance abortions abroad
FBI Deputy Director Dan Bongino says he will step down in January
Video: Man on Roof Faces Off with ICE Agents for Hours in Minnesota
Maryland to study slavery reparations after lawmakers override Dem governor’s veto
-
Iowa3 days agoAddy Brown motivated to step up in Audi Crooks’ absence vs. UNI
-
Washington1 week agoLIVE UPDATES: Mudslide, road closures across Western Washington
-
Iowa5 days agoHow much snow did Iowa get? See Iowa’s latest snowfall totals
-
Maine2 days agoElementary-aged student killed in school bus crash in southern Maine
-
Maryland3 days agoFrigid temperatures to start the week in Maryland
-
Technology7 days agoThe Game Awards are losing their luster
-
South Dakota4 days agoNature: Snow in South Dakota
-
Nebraska1 week agoNebraska lands commitment from DL Jayden Travers adding to early Top 5 recruiting class