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: 36
A few words on the sunflower plaque:
It was created and executed by local artist Jackie McKinney, who is a longtime Asylum Hill resident.
It’s based on the plaque next door at 181 Collins Street, further uniting the two houses in common design elements.
We believe, read air quotes here, believe that the sunflower was a particularly favorite motif of local architect George Keller, which lends credence to our theory that he designed 181 Collins Street.
And you’d almost think we picked the colors for the house to match the plaque!
Don Poland took this week’s group around Bushnell Park, highlighting the park’s history and how it relates to the surrounding architecture and environment.
Intrepid Mike McGarry came out and decorated the front yard of 54 Huntington Street for Hartford Blooms.
This week, representatives from DOT led us on a tour of planned and proposed changes to the Interstate 84 Viaduct. The viaduct, which is the elevated portion of the highway as it runs through Hartford, forms the southern border of Asylum Hill, and it’s one of the most important access points for both The Hartford and for Aetna. This tour was arranged to answer any questions people might have about just how miserable their commute may come when the work gets started.
We just dig buildings in twilight.
A couple of days ago, Morgan Ferrarotti of The Hartford got in touch with us. For awhile now, The Hartford has had a model kitchen on display in its main lobby, but the exhibit is now coming to an end. Morgan wanted to know: could NINA use a new kitchen?
It's not the sort of offer we get everyday, but Ken Johnson and MIke Stockman went over to have a look and take some measurements. It's actually lovely -- it's a "butcher block" with everything it, from cabinets to the stove to electric outlet to, yes, the kitchen sink. It was designed to keep everything low and within reach, which reminded us of the kitchen we installed over at 1 Imlay, but really this one was made with seniors in mind. And it bears the AARP seal of approval, AARP being a co-sponsor of this model kitchen exhibit with The Hartford.
Just plain dumb luck, but it looks like the kitchen on the second floor at 94 Ashley Street is big enough for this kitchen. The stars may really have aligned for us on this one!
Here's a better look at it. Many thanks to the Hartford United Methodist Church!
We made the local news this evening, but we’re not bothering with the link to it because the local news media preferred to ask Governor Malloy something about state politics or some other such nonsense, blah blah blah. They should have asked him about the building! Which is why he was there in the first place. Or perhaps the local news media didn’t forgive us for that podium snafu after all ….
We did have one small snafu: the podium was initially placed in a less than ideal location for the news media. Fortunately, Governor Malloy drafted Mayor Bronin and Representative Ritter into action, and we had the problem solved quickly!
The podium, by the way, was provided by the Hartford United Methodist Church.
