Don't give up, Meadowland

I like places that age well and develop character along the way and that's why I went to the Meadowland Restaurant. It was a short walk from my Miller Street home and its restaurant a quick and good alternative. Having a meal and a drink in a place that has been operating since 1934 is a treat.

The Herald is reporting that Meadowland is closing its restaurant but evidently will continue as a bar with a limited menu. The Herald's reporter, Jason Vallee, went to the restaurant and spoke to its owner and customers and turned out a solid report. What I especially liked about this story was how it tied the restaurant's decision to broader changes in the city. But as I read this story, I was also troubled by its message. Is the restaurant owner retreating or fighting back? I suspect the former.

Here's an excerpt from the story.

One problem for Meadowland has been the loss of old customers without the ability to draw today's younger generation. With a shift in the city's makeup during the past decade, Fournier said his business has seen a sharp decline in the number of younger customers entering.

"There is just no industry left, nothing to keep people in the area for long periods of time," James said. "As our older customers continue to age, they can't come as often or unfortunately pass away and we aren't getting the younger generations to make up for it."

The problem [restaurant owner James] Fournier has experienced is not unique. For Connecticut in general, this has been a growing economic problem. The state ranks second to last, sitting just above Alaska when it comes to retaining college graduates and residents ages 20 to 29.

The restaurant was also burdened with sharp increases to electrical costs, gas costs and food pricing.

It's tough for college graduates in Central Connecticut. The area doesn't have the opportunity or the potential of major Metro areas. But that said, plenty of college graduates -- especially those who have attended CCSU -- stay and make a good life for themself.

Meadowland is in a stable neighborhood. I know my former neighbors on Miller Street continue to invest in keeping up their homes. This neighborhood is not in decline. Far from it. It's a very good place to live.

So what's the problem?

I don't doubt the truth of what the restaurant owner is saying. But what is the Meadowland doing to attract new patrons?

The Meadowland has a lot going for it. It really is a little gem of a place that needs to reach out to people and look for ways to change with the community. The Meadowland is also important to community. Young people, especially, who decide to live in an urban area want to be close to attractive places. Businesses like the Meadowland can help make a neighborhood a warm and inviting place to live.

There are, for instance, many hobbyist photographers in the city -- why not invite them to display and sell their photography? Invite artists as well. CCSU has a strong arts community. It would moderinze and enliven the decor and probably draw in new customers.

Mr. Fournier, from this story, strikes me as a thoughtful and opinionated person -- the ideal blogger. Creating an online presence, a blog, is a means to engage a broader audience. People go to bars to interact with others, and a blog continues that discussion once they leave.

Perhaps the Meadowland is already doing some of these things. I haven't been in there in some years, but I'll make a point of it next time in town, in a month or two. The next story I read in The Herald about the Meadowland will, hopefully, be one about how landmark has become optimistic about the city and its own future.

It’s an easy thing to give up on New Britain. It’s easy to overlook how much the city has that makes it a nice place to live. The Meadowland is one of things.

Soft sell?

Topping my list of "diamonds" in New Britain right now is the New Britain Rock Cats.

Earlier this month, the Rock Cats www.RockCats.com held their annual "FanFest," when the Cats threw open the New Britain Stadium gates to some 3,000 baseball-hungry fans who got a feel for the stadium, plenty of free fan-food like hot dogs, popcorn, ice cream and soda, some Rock Cats posters, Rocky tattoos, and face painting. Plus the hundreds of kids who signed up for the Rookies Club will get a free T-shirt at their first game and be able to run the bases after every Sunday game.

All without ever having to reach for the wallet. Sweet.

And most refreshing and commendable was the lack of sales pressure. While there were certainly places to get season or even just single-game tickets, nobody was peddling or pushing them. Obviously, the Rock Cats organization knows that in this case, a soft-sell is all that’s necessary.

And now, there are Rocky posters on the walls in all three of our boys’ rooms, and they have enough tattoos to last a while, and thanks to the schedule, the boys know which game is closest to their birthday. Maybe it was a hard sell after all, because believe me, the boys will make sure we’ll be there. This time with our wallets open.

It was encouraging to see that so many parents and others turned out at a meeting about the mold concerns at DiLoreto School . And while there is some consolation in the reports that the air tested well within state and federal standards, parents and others need to continue to be vigilant and ask more questions.

Have school board members, PTO members, parents and the media consulted an allergist to see what levels trigger problems for the growing number of asthmatic and allergic children? Can levels that are "acceptable" still trigger allergies and asthma? "Acceptable" levels for the general public may be different than levels that are problematic for staff and students who are prone to allergies. Just because a level is not considered dangerous may not ensure that it’s not causing trouble for the vulnerable.

Also, has anyone looked at how many teachers, staff and students have been absent – or, as reported, left their jobs – because of respiratory problems? How many people at the school have turned to the dreaded steroids to fight allergies that may be more safely treated by improving the air quality at the school. How do those numbers compare to other schools of the same size?

Just because the air levels at DiLoreto are not considered dangerous, that does not mean the air can’t – and shouldn’t – be improved.

How a stop sign taught me about the importance of local news

There are no unimportant issues in New Britain City Hall and this is something I learned more as a resident of the city than as a reporter at The Herald. I'll use my experience with street signs to make this point.

Mayor William McNamara use to joke about how New Britain officials never met an intersection that didn't need a stop sign. (He was far wittier about it.) But that brings me to this story about my experiences with two street signs.

I lived on Lawlor Street for many years as well as Miller Street and, as a result, frequently used Allen Street.

One day, I was driving up Allen to Stanley Street and realize that I just blew past a stop sign at Carlton and Allen. I never hit the brake. The stop sign wasn't there the previous day. I never noticed it. But what upset me the most was the fact that I never alerted Herald readers about it. I was The Herald reporter responsible for informing people about items before the Common Council.

My suspicion was that many other residents didn't see the new stop sign at Carlton and Allen and that gave me a story idea.

The next day, a photographer and I parked on Carlton and watched what happened. And sure enough, a lot of drivers went through that stop sign without slowing down. We kept count and I wrote a story about it. I also asked city officials about whether there was a need to do more to alert residents about new stop signs. The story didn't change anything, and I'm sure residents are still surprised from time-to-time by the sudden addition and removal of signs.

Stop signs, no parking signs, are usually the result of complaints by residents who want to slow traffic down or get rid of on-street parking. Aldermen have been apt to support restrictions because they don't cost much and it usually earns the thanks of neighborhood residents. But this brings me to another story.

When I moved to Miller Street in 1987 there were signs prohibiting parking during the winter months. For reasons unknown to me, the parking signs were removed before winter began that season. It was a big relief. I had bought a three-family with some friends. In total we had six cars, but only enough room for two cars in our driveway.

Some years later, the Common Council was asked to approve a no winter parking restriction on Miller Street. It was on an agenda. I called the alderman sponsoring it and was told by him that his petition was at the request of some Miller Street residents. It had to do with the mess the plows made to get around cars not removed during parking snow emergency bans. But this is a problem in every neighborhood.

None of my neighbors wanted a seasonal parking ban because they all had small driveways and needed off-street parking. The push for no parking was no doubt coming from those Miller Street residents with large lots and room for all their cars.

When I pointed out to the alderman that there were many other residents on Miller Street who needed on-street parking and would be forced to park on adjoining streets (gobbling up on-street parking spaces used by residents on those streets) and then walk, often after dark, to their homes, he pulled the measure.

My experience with the signs on Allen and Miller streets helped to drive home an important lesson: that there is no such thing as a routine item on a council, board or commission agenda.
If I was living on Miller Street today and not in Washington DC, I would have a blog and mailing list as well, about this neighborhood. It would be a way for neighbors to share information and news of importance. An effort by some neighbors to ban parking would be noticed and debated. I think that -- in time -- most neighborhoods in New Britain will have blogs that focus on these often important local issues.

But one thing local bloggers need is access to information and the city has a very important role to play here.

Common Council agendas and minutes are posted online, but you won't find agendas online for many other governmental bodies, such as the Zoning Board of Appeals, an extremely important group or the Police Board. Aldermen can really help by making expanded online posting a priority. There should be very little costs -- if any -- to make reports, agendas and minutes available online.

Keeping residents informed today involves more than newspapers. It includes actions by concerned elected officials, as well as neighborhood residents.

For those New Britain residents interested in creating neighborhood blogs, a great resource is placeblogger. You can also look at my blog in DC, DCBlogs for an idea of how local blog communities develop. Some of the local blogs in placeblogger and DCBlogs are sophisticated but don't let that scare you off. All it takes is opening a free account at blogger.com and within minutes you can have an attractive blog. Adding photos and video is easy as well. Blogging is also a great hobby and much fun. If you want some help, please email me at dcblogs@gmail.com.

Note: Please welcome Elisa, a former Herald reporter who I worked with, will also be writing on this blog. We worked together on many stories, and she loves this city as much as I do.

Photo: Taken on Allen Street this past summer from my car.