Connecticut
Years after its first buses rolled, CTfastrak delivering new development in West Hartford
With CTfastrak about to enter its ninth year, The Jayden mixed-use project in West Hartford is on track to be the latest instance of transit-oriented development along its route.
Hexagon New Park LLC intends to build a five-story, 70-unit apartment building on a New Park Avenue site near the busway’s Elmwood station.
The plan advanced last week when the town’s Design Review Advisory Committee gave its endorsement following months of discussions with the developer. If Town Planner Todd Dumais grants a permit, construction on The Jayden could begin later this year with an opening planned as early as the end of 2025, Tommy Li, a Hexagon partner, said in the fall.
The Jayden would become the latest of more than a half-dozen major residential and mixed-use projects that developers attribute to CTfastrak, the bus rapid transit system that links New Britain, Newington, West Hartford and Hartford. High-frequency shuttles run between those communities and link to traditional bus routes serving most other central Connecticut communities.
When the busway was built for more than $570 million, then-Gov. Dannel P. Malloy predicted it would drive new residential and commercial development along the corridor, a 9.4-mile former freight rail line that was dominated by long-vacant factories and machine shops.
Since then, investors have built or started more than a half-dozen apartment complexes along the route, mostly clustered in downtown New Britain but also in West Hartford and Newington. In all, that represents more than 600 new apartments in the region, with many marketed to retired seniors and young professionals who want semi-urban living with either less driving or even none.
The Jayden would be a key victory for transit-oriented development advocates who defended the busway against heavy political opposition, with some conservatives in the General Assembly arguing that it was an expensive boondoggle.
In 2019, state transportation planners issued an analysis concluding the New Park Avenue corridor was ripe for an overhaul. That stretch of the busway parallels the main street from West Hartford’s Elmwood section to the Parkville section of Hartford.
“This industrial band is generally sandwiched between low-density residential and large-footprint commercial strip development,” they wrote. “However, recent and forthcoming investments have positioned the corridor for transformation. The New Park Avenue corridor has the potential to become a walkable, mixed-use and transit supportive environment.”
Two communities that quickly and most heavily made use of the busway’s ridership potential were New Britain and West Hartford. Both undertook planning studies and then amended their zoning rules to encourage higher-density housing and other development within walking distance of CTfastrak stations.
“The busway undoubtedly was the catalyst that allowed me the opportunity to redevelop so many of the sites around the station,” New Britain Mayor Erin Stewart said Tuesday. “Access to public transit is important for a new generation of Connecticut residents and young people.”
The result has been a series of new housing starts in New Britain’s downtown; four of the largest projects alone — The Brit, The Highrailer, The Strand and the first phase of Columbus Commons — are creating more than 400 apartments near the CTfastrak station on Columbus Avenue.
In 2018, West Hartford’s housing authority developed the 616 New Park complex with 54 apartments, including 30 at affordable rates. Last year it opened The Residences at 540 New Park, which rents 41 of its 52 units at affordable rates.
The Jayden is being developed by a private builder, though, and will lease 80% of its one- and two-bedroom units at market rates. Mayor Shari Cantor credited the town’s new rules in 2022 that make transit-oriented development smoother and faster for the builder.
“This is the first development since we adopted our TOD ordinance which allows a development like the Jayden with 80% market rate units and 20% affordable to be approved with administrative approval,” Cantor said. “This project is exactly what we had envisioned when we adopted the ordinance.”
Cantor said town leaders expect the transit-oriented development zone will continue to attract new construction in the future, and are hoping for a local link to the CTrail Hartford Line to help. The commuter rail trucks run parallel to the busway in that section of West Hartford.
“We believe a Hartford rail line station in this corridor is consistent with the state’ goals and will only enhance the state’s investment in CTfastrak,” Cantor said.
NEW HAVEN, Conn. (WTNH) — Looking for a free way to stay cool this summer in Connecticut?
Parks, recreation centers and beaches across the state are opening as temperatures continue to climb.
See News 8’s developing list below:
New Haven
- Foote Park in Brandford
- East Haven Town Beach
- Quasy Amusement Park in Middlebury
- Lighthouse Point Park
- Nolan Athletic Complex in Ansonia
- Villano Park in Hamden
Hartford
- Verplanck Elementary School in Manchester
- Nathan Hale in Beach in Manchester
- A.W. Stanley Park Pool in New Britain
- Willow Brook Park Pool in New Britain
- Chesley Park in New Britain
- Willow Street Park in New Britain
- Beachland Park in West Hartford
- Fernridge Park in West Hartford
- Kennedy Park in West Hartford
Middlesex
- Watrous Park in Cromwell
- Clinton Town Beach
- Veterans Memorial Park in Middletown
New London
- The Dinosaur Place in Montville
Windham
- Paderewski Park in Plainville
Splash pad locations operate at different times. Contact each location for specifics on parking, opening times and residency requirements.
Have a splash pad to add to our list? Email webproducer-wtnh@nexstar.tv
Download the News 8 app to get breaking news and weather alerts.
Watch News 8 on WTNH.com or the free WTNH News 8 streaming app on Roku, Apple TV, Amazon Fire TV and select Samsung Smart TVs.
Connecticut
Experts issue pet safety reminders during stretches of high heat, humidity in Connecticut
NEW HAVEN, Conn. (WTNH) — As high heat and humidity stretch across Connecticut for the next couple of days, experts are warning pet owners that this weather can be tough on their furry friends.
Old Lyme Veterinary Hospital chief surgeon Dr. Cornelius Marrinan joined News 8 live with some safety reminders on Thursday.
To watch the full video, click on the player above.
Connecticut
A 300-Year-Old House, the Oldest in Ridgefield, Connecticut, Is Selling as Part of an Amenity-Filled Family Compound
This two-house, two-barn compound includes the oldest home in Ridgefield, Connecticut, and stands right on the town’s historic and famously charming Main Street.
“It’s actually two distinct houses, two really iconic landmark properties on Main Street” that have been carefully restored and renovated, said listing agent Laura Ancona, of William Pitt/Julia B Fee Sotheby’s International Realty.
“Over $10 million has been spent in top-of-the-line improvements and designer appointments inside and out,” according to the listing.
The older home, known as the Hawley House, was built in 1713 for the Rev. Thomas Hawley, a minister who was also the schoolmaster and town clerk, Ancona said. “It’s quite a stylish home for the time, with high ceilings, wide-board floors and multiple fireplaces,” she said.
Other features include a gambrel roof, original paneling on the fireplace wall of one living room, original fireplace mantels, many of the original hand-blown glass windows, an original Dutch door and hand-hewn beams, according to information provided by the agent. An original double-seated, white clapboard outhouse rests about 100 feet behind the home.
The 300-year-old house is on the National Register of Historic Places as well as being one of the 32 “Stations of History” on Ridgefield’s “Museum in the Streets” tour, Ancona said.
MORE: Tour More One-of-a-Kind Homes In Out Listing of the Day Series
The 1777 Battle of Ridgefield in the Revolutionary War was fought on Main Street and it was also where Brig. Gen. Benedict Arnold’s horse was shot out from under him, she said. “We’re very historic, very Colonial.”
“It’s one of the top Main Streets in the country,” Ancona said. “It’s a Norman Rockwell-esque, tree-lined Main Street. Ridgefield is very protective of its Main Street.”
The second house on the compound, a Gothic Revival Victorian, was built by Hawley’s descendants in 1826, she said. “It’s very grand, very colorful,” now with four finished levels.
“It was not as well upkept as it should have been” when the sellers bought it in 2002 and began a multiyear renovation soon after, Ancona said. They were able to recreate much of the original architectural details from old photos.
The gray barn/carriage house associated with the Victorian has been renovated to now include a kitchen and great room that opens to the pool area, a gym and sauna, a poker room, a game room with a bar, an arcade and a movie theater for 30-plus people, she said. “It’s a completely tricked-out party barn.”
There’s also a circa-1900 red barn that now holds an indoor basketball court, an arts-and-crafts studio and a second-floor office with a conference room, according to the listing. It was updated and redone in 2012.
Both lots, which together are 3.16 acres, are quite deep with long driveways, which offers a great deal of privacy, even while being on Main Street, Ancona said.
“You can walk to town and still have all of this privacy,” she said.
Stats
The 8,934-square-foot compound has eight bedrooms, seven full bathrooms and two partial bathrooms. It sits on a 3.16-acre lot.
Amenities
Amenities include a heated pool and spa, a pool/carriage house, two two-car garages (one with two Tesla chargers), seven fireplaces, a gym and sauna, an indoor basketball court, a brick courtyard, a pergola, an outdoor kitchen, a home office with a conference room, an arts-and-crafts studio, a bar and game room, a poker room, an arcade and a movie theater.
Neighborhood Notes
The home is within walking distance of everything Main Street has to offer, including museums, the library, Ballard Park, an old-fashioned hardware store and lots of independent shops and restaurants, Ancona said. “There is no fast food in all of Ridgefield.”
Ridgefield is adjacent to Westchester County in New York, and it’s about a 30-minute drive to the Westchester County Airport, she said. Ridgefield is about 90 miles from Manhattan.
Agent: Laura Ancona, William Pitt/Julia B Fee Sotheby’s International Realty
View the original listing.
-
Lifestyle7 minutes ago‘Stop! That! Train!’ is Loud! Dumb! and Gay!
-
Technology15 minutes agoSo you want to buy a gaming handheld PC
-
World22 minutes agoFormer South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol sentenced to 30 years over North Korea drone flights
-
Politics25 minutes agoMamdani touts massive taxpayer-funded investment for trans healthcare: ‘First step’
-
Health30 minutes agoNightly glass of wine may not be as harmless as many people think, study suggests
-
Sports37 minutes ago2026 World Cup Odds: Teams Favored to Advance to Knockout Stage
-
Technology40 minutes agoStolen iPhones fuel scary passcode scam
-
Business52 minutes ago
AI is cutting hours of office work, but also creating a new kind of busywork
