A series of entries designed to capture the ongoing adventures of NINA! See how we came to be where we are today, and follow along as we enter the new century of social media!
Page: 31
It’s the last thing we needed to address: the multiple file cabinets full of files on clients of the non-profit entity that occupied 115 Sigourney Street last. We still haven’t quite figured out the circumstances of their departure from 115 Sigourney Street except to conclude it was abrupt, because they left a lot of stuff behind. Most of it we could give to our non-profit and community-based partners in the neighborhood, but these files? They were health files, full of personally identifiable information and fully subject to HIPAA.
Naturally, the files needed to be shredded. Even more literally naturally, the files had spent a lot of time in the basement, where they’d become moldy. So what were we to do? This is where one of our friends stepped in to help – Aetna, well-versed in the ins and outs of HIPAA, said that they had a very large shredder, and they’d be more than happy to take care of these files for us.
We loaded up the files into the back of our car today – they were many and numerous! – and I reckoned that some group of volunteers would then sit at this very large shredder and feed the files, one by one, into it. We were thrilled to have the files dealt with, but wow this was going to be the most suckiest volunteer gig ever!
A very large shredder at Aetna, however, is really quite large: as big as a room! The files went into it – boxes and all!
Thanks Aetna!
It's on the market! It's a bit brazen to put it on the market so early, but we've already been getting lots of inquiries about it, we thought we'd try it out early to see how it performs. The MLS listing went live yesterday, and here's the official description we put out on the listing:
New single-family home marries Victorian charm and modern comforts. Designed to match the architectural and historic character of Hartford's Asylum Hill neighborhood, this home is energy- efficient with green features, off-street parking, and bay windows with a southern exposure. Close to downtown, walking distance to the major institutions of the neighborhood, and conveniently located near major transportation routes. 3 bedrooms, 2.5 bath, master bedroom suite with walk-in closet, spacious kitchen with granite counters, first floor study/family room that could be used as bedroom, and unfinished bonus space on the third floor. Owner-occupancy restrictions apply - please contact for more information. Please note: house currently under construction. Opportunity to get in now on Asylum Hill's next modern Victorian!
By the way, the picture here is our "artist's rendering" of the final house, but we didn't put it out on MLS. There, we included photos of where the house actually is as well as the floor plans for the first and second floors. We just thought it would be fun to put the artist's rendering here!
It's a nice sunny day, and it seemed a good day to show off how 52 Huntington Street fits with its neighbors. The gable matches what we did at 52 Huntington Street, and both match the gable at the rear of 181 Collins Street, which is at the corner of Huntington and Collins Streets. The house at 181 Collins Street has been there since the 19th century (supposedly designed by George Keller -- we're working on figuring that out for sure!), and we think the effect of the gables implies that both 54 and 52 Huntington Street have been there at least as long as 181 Collins. You be the judge, though: what do you think?
It's definitely a house now! The roof is on, complete with copper flashing, the windows are in, and the siding is being applied.
A nice shot of the award, taken in NINA's conference room.
Tonight, the Asylum Hill Neighborhood Association held its 20th anniverary gala atop The Hartford's Office Tower. AHNA recognized NINA's contribution to the revitalization of Asylum Hill with a "Neighbor with a Heart" award, and the photo is Ken Johnson receiving that award. That’s Jackie McKinney of AHNA standing to his right.
It's a terrible photo. Really. Your intrepid blogger was desperately ill that evening, and he stuck out the ceremony only long enough to get this photo. He'll work on getting better photos now.
We had a small group of volunteers come down from The Hartford today to help us install sheetrock on the first floor at 52 Huntington Street. The group was organized by Andrew Daly, who also serves as the president of NINA's board of directors, and it included Kelechi Ndu and Sarah Needham. They were joined by Chris Young, a former colleague who now works at the Travelers. They hung sheetrock in the foyer closet, the study closet, and the half bath. Andy, Sarah, and Chris have all worked for us before, but this was Kel's first time volunteering on a NINA site.
I think this is the first time we’ve had snow on the ground for Caroling in the Park, which was a very nice touch. We started per usual at the “North Pole” (aka Veeder Place), where Santa climbed into his “sled” (a fire truck from the Sigourney Street Station) before heading over to Glory Chapel for hot chocolate. Still not sure what to make of the elves on stilts. Entertainment was provided by Hartford Proud Drum and Drill Corps.
This evening, Tiana Hercules accepted the 2017 Public Service Honor Award from the Connecticut Chapter of the American Institutes of America (AIA) on behalf of NINA. AIA selected NINA for this honor because of NINA's commitment to revitalizing Asylum Hill in partnership with neighborhood residents and community partners. AIA Connecticut specifically cited NINA's "multidimensional skills at rehabilitation, marketing, and finding the funds" to undertake its historic rehabilitation and preservation efforts.
We are very grateful to AIA Connecticut for selecting our work for recognition this year, and many thanks to Tiana for accepting this award this evening
A beautiful, sunny day after Thanksgiving. A perfect day for roofing.
