Malloy speaks with Council candidates Ellen Zoppo-Sassu & Mary Fortier.
Governor Dannel P. Malloy joined Bristol Democrats and local residents on Sunday morning in Bristol to provide a last minute boost for candidates and supporters.
“Believe me, I know it’s hard work campaigning but it will pay off.” said Malloy.
Malloy also spoke about downtown Bristol.
“I’m a big believer in urban renewal. Bristol’s downtown situation is very similar to Meriden.” said Malloy
Malloy is referring to the Meriden Hub site which housed an outdated mall that was demolished over a decade ago. The property encompasses approximately fifteen acres and comprises an entire city block in Meriden’s central business area.
Malloy recently told the Record-Journal “Investing in making the Meriden Downtown Hub a center for transit, commerce and culture will not only benefit the residents of the city and surrounding area but, looking at the larger picture, moves us closer to our ultimate goal of making Connecticut a more attractive place to live, visit, work and do business.”
Meriden will receive $3.5 million in state bond funds for soil remediation on the HUB site. The funds support the ongoing redevelopment of the 14.4 acre site.
Malloy takes a photo with Mayoral candidate Chris Wilson and his grandchildren Brian Wilson & Cody Wilson
When asking if he would support funding for downtown Bristol Malloy said “It would be great to fund downtown Bristol’s efforts and bring downtown back!”
Mayor candidate Chris Wilson said “Any assistance the Governor can provide to secure investment in the rebirth of Depot Square will certainly be welcome. It is encouraging that he values the strategic investment necessary to move the project ahead.. It has been clear to me the that Depot Square/Downtown is inextricably linked to the sense of community Bristol will have for itself in the future.”
Renaissance Downtowns, the developer for Bristol’s former mall site is currently exploring options in state funding and recently met with state officials. Renaissance has until May 26th 2014 to buy the property for phase one.
In the coming weeks the Bristol Downtown Development Corp. plans to hold a special meeting to discuss Renaissance’s financing options.
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