Oh No! Not Another Poorhouse!

Just what Hartford needs. Another Pourhouse. Could the news on nightlife in Hartford get any worse? The Brickyard is over and our sources tell us that it's going to be a new club owned by the same people behind the Pourhouse. Great. Just f*cking great!

So this "yet to be named" club should appropriately be called the Sh*thouse, if you ask us. Rumor has it that they're trying to turn it into an upscale lounge club, which will ultimately get lost in translation as it did with NV and Life. Does anone really think that $1 pitchers, Top 40 music, nickel nights and beer pong will appeal to the so-called upscale crowd? The Pourhouse has specialized in this act for ages and appeals to the lowest-of-the-nightclub-low. It won't be any surprise to us when they go trash from the get go.

Now that you know how "cool" this place will be, we'd love to hear your thoughts on what the owners should name it. Any ideas?

RIP - Brickyard

Cool promos at the Pour House! Cheap beer , happy holidays and penis envy (see "Size Matters" above windows!)

Here We Go Again

Here we go again!! How is it that a city rampant with political corruption over the years creates a new job and gives it to our ex-convict governor, John Rowland?!? You have to wonder if people even remember the scams, scandal and corruption of Rowland. I doubt many do. So with that said, good luck Waterbury and keep him out of Hartford!!!

Wine a Go Go

Finally. For those of us who are downtown residents, we can finally walk out of our door and buy a bottle of wine. It's something that's long overdue and we salute the good people at Spiritus Wines for making the move downtown.

They've been a fixture on Main Street next door to Peppercorn's restaurant, but will now be in the new Hartford 21 building with an official address of 220 Asylum Street. After months of delays, they're finally opening and as we speak they're depleting some of their stock at the old shop on Main Street. Hurry on by if you're thirsty- there's lots of great bottles marked down 20% or more.

Official opening date is "sometime" during the week of January 14th. We give them "big props" for being the first official business to move into the Hartford 21 building. Let's hope they stay.

I Solemnly Swear...

Three time's the charm. That's the magic number for Hartford Mayor Eddie Perez who will be inaugurated for his third term tonight. Throughout his campaign, Perez touted all the good he's done for the city and asked voters and the city to let him finish what he started. Can he?

The Hartford Courant ran a solid article that highlights some of Perez's accomplishments and plans for the future, but it just begs for more questioning, doesn't it?

"Perez is expected to urge that economic development serve as the tie to bind the city's North End to downtown; to push for ways for Hartford to secure affordable health care for its uninsured; and to pledge to determine the future of the Civic Center, now renamed the XL Center." - from the Courant.

Oh boy. Connecting the North End to downtown? Is this really a good idea? Has anyone taken a trip down the North End lately? The last time we found ourselves down that end of town was during the sleazy days of the nightclub Sanctuary (RIP) looking for, well, never mind. If you were there, you know.

Sure, scoring a big title sponsor is cool and all, but what will it really do for the city? Will it help to attract the hordes of live acts and shows that prefer the venues at the Foxwoods and Mohegan Sun casinos? We're optimistic that the "powers-that-be" can turn things around and start making use of the Civic Center again. We'd pay top dollar to have a full on gladiator style show and toss a bunch of those mindless city planners throughout the years who have ruined downtown Hartford in the pit. Feed 'em to the lions!

So, what are your thoughts? Can Perez deliver on his promises, or is it just more political empty talk? We shall see.

Smile Joe, smile...

Ok, we're back.

Go ahead, sue us. We've been away for a while. That's the beauty of running your own blog I suppose. There's no boss to answer to, no reports to fill out and you can post whenever you damn well please to. Sorry for our absence. We're back!

So with the new year comes the resolutions that so many of us never keep. New Year's resolutions just make us feel good, right? Shouldn't we be doing these good things all year long?

So instead of boring you with our promises to lose weight, exercise more and other nonsense, we've come up with our Top 5 resolutions that the city of Hartford should follow. They are:

1. Get moving on Adriaen's Landing
Enough is enough. Wake up and get this moving.

2. Rename the Civic Center
XL Center? Are you kidding? From the subhead of the press release: Northland AEG secures historic partnership, affirming Hartford’s status as the US Insurance Capital. Isn't it exciting to be known as the insurance capital of the US? Dream on baby, we lost that title long ago.

3. Three words: Downtown grocery store.
When, oh when, is this ever going to happen? If you live downtown, you feel our pain. Word is that the Northland group is building their own since they can't find anyone to dare open anything in the new Civic Center shopping spaces.

4. Less parking lots.
Someone ought to make it criminal to raze another landmark and put in another parking lot or garage. I personally salute the big middle finger to LAZ and ProPark. Hasn't the city over the last 30 years destroyed enough of downtown? New city law - all new parking facilities must be built underground. Can I get a second on this motion?

5. Affordable downtown living.
nstitute rent control and get people into downtown that get it. Young people, not the empty nesters. Young people get it and will make the city a fun, lively place to be. Right? And speaking of downtown, there are a number of downtown living projects that are simply on hold because of squabble and other bullsh*t. Get it together, or give it to someone who can.

Welcome to 2008! Now, back to work.