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Capitol Region Update
1
Capitol Region Update

Capitol Region Council of Governments, Connecticut
(August/September 2005)
Home Sales in the Capital Region:
Five Municipalities Average Over $300,000

Home sales prices and the number of homes sold in the Capital Region continued to
rise last year. Five of the Regions municipalities had median home sales prices
greater than $300,000, up from just one in 2004 and none in prior years. This is
just one of the findings of the recently completed Connecticut Capitol Region Home
Sales Price Report, FY 2005.

The study, which CRCOG has conducted annually since the early 1980s, collects
sales prices for single-family, two-family, three-family, and condominium homes
from assessors in each of the Regions 29 municipalities. Over the past year, the
median sales price for all types of homes across the Region increased by 12.6%,
slightly lower than Connecticuts overall increase of 13.6% and New Englands
increase of 13.0%. After adjusting for inflation, the Regions home sales price
increase was 9.8%.

The report also addresses issues of the relative affordability of home ownership in
the Capital Region. In fiscal year 2005, only 21% of sales within the region were
considered affordable to moderate-income households, as compared to 40% in FY
2001. Further, the study found that nearly half of the Regions affordable home
sales are found in just four
municipalities
(Hartford, East Hartford,
Manchester,
and Vernon), while four
other
municipalities (Andover,
Bolton,
Marlborough, and
Tolland)
had fewer than ten
affordable
sales each.










GRANBY
SUFFIELD
HEBRON
TOLLAND
AVON
ENFIELD
GLASTONBURY
SOMERS
SIMSBURY
WINDSOR
ELLINGTON
CANTON
FARMINGTON
VERNON
BLOOMFIELD
MANCHESTER
BOLTON
EAST WINDSOR
SOUTH WINDSOR
HARTFORD
ANDOVER
MARLBOROUGH
WEST
HARTFORD
EAST
GRANBY
ROCKY HILL
EAST
HARTFORD
NEWINGTON
WETHERSFIELD
WINDSOR
LOCKS
Median Sales Price, FY 2005
Less than $200,000
$200,001 - $250,000
$250,001 - $300,000
$300,001 - $350,000
$350,001 - $400,000
0
4
8
2
Miles
¯
2

Star Shuttle Downtown Circulator Launches
The Star Shuttle, Hartfords new
downtown circulator, began operation
September 6, one day before the first
major convention at the new Connecticut
Convention Center. CT Transit staff did a
fantastic job getting the buses ready,
temporary bus stop signs installed, and
route maps out to potential riders, all
with about a weeks notice. The newly
wrapped buses, one of which is shown
here with CRCOG and CT Transit staff
climbing on board, operate over the 2.6
mile circular route, providing FREE
service throughout downtown Hartford,
every 10 minutes during peak weekday
hours and every 12 minutes during off
peak hours.
Service is provided from 7:00 a.m. to
11:00 p.m. Monday - Friday and from
3:00 p.m. to 11:00 p.m. on Saturdays.
The shuttle route has been designed, with
help in part by CRCOG staff, to connect
the new CT Convention Center, the
Riverfront, the Arts and Entertainment
District, various restaurants, and
downtown hotels, and it is available for
use by all downtown residents, employees
and visitors. Even without a significant marketing campaign, which will come after
the trial period and final operating decisions have been made, average daily
ridership is over 200. More than 700 passenger trips were made on Friday,
September 19 with conventioneers in town who were eager to see what downtown
Hartford had to offer.
Ride the Star Shuttle yourself, next time you are in downtown Hartford. Its free,
its convenient and its fun!

Bike and Pedestrian Committee Hears Needs of
Vision Impaired
At the September 13
th
meeting of the Bicycle and Pedestrian
Committee, two representatives of the Board of Education and
Services for the Blind (BESB) gave a presentation on How to
Design Crossings to Accommodate Pedestrians with Low
CRCOG and CT Transit staff waiting to board the Star Shuttle.
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Vision or Who Are Blind. The informative presentation explained how blind
individuals are taught to travel independently and what kinds of cues they use to
cross streets and roadways safely. Here are some of the important facts that were
shared:

Persons considered legally blind may still have some sight but are unable to
pick up all the visual cues at an intersection that a fully sighted person might
use.

In deciding when it is safe to cross an intersection, individuals are taught to
listen to a couple of cycles of the light to determine how the signal operates.
Modern signals, with timings that vary by time of day and day of year, and
with all pedestrian phases, make this difficult.

It is very important for a blind individual to cross a street in a straight line;
curb cuts that are on the diagonal make it very difficult to maintain a straight
line through an intersection.

Accessible Pedestrian Signals (APS) with audible indications that pedestrians
may cross are very helpful to blind individuals. Newer APS systems can
provide useful information without sending excessive noise into a
neighborhood.

The representatives of the BESB have offered to work with any towns that would
like assistance in designing pedestrian crossings that accommodate sighted and
unsighted pedestrians. Contact Sandy Fry (522-2217, X20, sfry@crcog.org) if you
would like to contact BESB or if you need more information.

Region Selected for Project Public Health Ready

On behalf of the region, the West Hartford-Bloomfield Health District has been
selected to be a round three regional pilot site for Project Public Health Ready. Out
of 115 applications received, only 20 were selected by the National Association of
County and City Health Officials (NACCHO) to participate in the pilot.

This project works to prepare staff of local governmental public health agencies to
respond to emergencies and to protect the public's health through a competency-
based training and recognition program. The projects kick-off meeting will take
place in San Diego on October 18-19, 2005.

CERT Weekend

Many of the Capitol Region Civilian Emergency Response Teams (CERT) participated
in Connecticuts CERT Weekend, held on September 24-25
th
at the Connecticut Fire
Academy in Windsor Locks. The weekend included numerous activities and
demonstrations that enabled teams to practice skills and prepare for any type of
emergency.
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CRCOG Launches Online Training Course:
Motivating Employees
Eleven town employees signed up for the first CRCOG combined online and face-to-
face training program. The course is entitled Motivating Employees and has six
modules and involves three face-to-face meetings. Barry Feldman, West Hartford
Town Manager, was the kick-off speaker for the course. For more information,
please contact Hedy Ayers at hayers@crcog.org.
Upcoming CRCOG Meetings

Executive Committee, Wednesday, October 12, 2005, 12 Noon
Housing Committee, Monday, October 17, 2005, 12 Noon
Municipal Services Committee, Tuesday, October 18, 2005, 12 Noon
Regional Planning Commission, Thursday, October 20, 2005, 7:00 p.m.
Transportation Committee, Monday, November 7, 2005, 12 Noon
New CRCOG Board Member Welcome, Wednesday November 16, 10:30 a.m. noon
New Date: Policy Board, Wednesday, November 16, 12:00 1:30 p.m.
Public Safety Council, Thursday, December 8, 2005, 12 Noon




Capitol Region Council of Governments
241 Main Street
Hartford, CT 06106
860 522 2217
www.crcog.org