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Showing posts from April, 2025

Enfield Square Redevelopment: What Enfield Could Have Asked For—And Didn’t

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The town approved millions in public support—without tying the deal to walkability, entertainment, or shared spaces residents said they wanted. Proposed project presented to Town Council last year. The Target store is to the right rear. Redeveloping Enfield Square is critical. Once our downtown—a hub of activity and identity—the mall is now a shell of its former self. In public comments and a survey of over 1,000 people, residents voiced a clear desire for the redevelopment: not just retail, but gathering places—entertainment venues, a movie theater, live music, family-friendly spaces, and walkability. Yet on June 2, when Enfield had the most leverage, the Town Council approved a generous package of financial incentives without securing any binding commitments to many of those community goals. Progress, But Not Vision   For sure, the town is taking steps to address the problems at Enfield Square.  The developer, Woodsonia Acquisitions, will redevelop the site into a mix of hou...
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Amazon Buys Bacon Road Site for $20 Million

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  Amazon stock art image available on its news media resources page Amazon has purchased a Bacon Road site in Enfield approved for warehouse development, for $20 million, according to a town official. Public records confirm the sale. The transaction took place on April 23. Lauren Whitten, Enfield’s director of planning, informed the Planning and Zoning Commission of the sale of 35 Bacon Rd., at its regular meeting on April 24. "As far as we know, things are going to progress as they were approved," Whitten told commissioners during the meeting. ( See PZC YouTube April 24 at approximately 2:58) But it is not definitively clear how much land Amazon has acquired. Public records show “two parcels,” but do not specify whether the purchase covers the full 181-acre development area. Amazon and Winstanley Enterprises were not immediately available for comment. The site is where Winstanley Enterprises had proposed an 819,000-square-foot distribution warehouse. Amazon purchased the la...
Location: Enfield, CT 06082, USA
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25% of Budget, 5 Minutes of Questions: What are the Council Republicans up to?

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  Enfield Town Council budget workshop The Town Council is currently preparing the 2026 budget. Department heads present their proposals at public workshops where council members usually ask detailed questions. However, something notable occurred during this week's Department of Public Works (DPW) budget presentation. Despite DPW accounting for nearly 25% of the town's non-education spending, the questioning lasted less than five minutes, with only a few basic inquiries from Republican council members. The Democrats, as the minority party with limited influence on the budget, remained silent. [YouTube video: Q&A starts at about 1:31. The DPW presentation begins at about 1:16) There were no substantial questions or debate during the presentation itself, and nothing raised about the pending outsourcing study—despite its direct relevance to the DPW budget. This limited discussion raises legitimate questions, particularly as the Council is actively exploring outsourcing trash ...
Location: Enfield, CT 06082, USA
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The Public Deserves to See the Trash Outsourcing Report

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Art generated by AI following author's prompt: Report locked in safe The Enfield Town Council is considering a consequential issue: outsourcing our public works trash removal service. However, the town has not released the consultant's report, which likely examines the pros and cons of such a move, even as the Council begins its budget deliberations. The town council authorized the hiring of the consultants in November, 2024. On April 7, 2025, the Town Council discussed the report in executive session. I submitted a Freedom of Information Act request for a report copy this week. The Town Manager's office responded that the report is still in draft format and is not eligible for public disclosure under the Connecticut Freedom of Information Act. I was also told: "The contract has not provided us a completion date at this time." That means the report could be withheld from the public indefinitely. Draft is not an automatic exemption This was my response: "My un...
Location: Enfield, CT 06082, USA
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The Way We Counter China, Ten Approaches

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Art generated by Ideogram in response to author's prompt (Not about Enfield) The way we counter China: 1. Destroy our R&D basic research capability. Check. 2. Scare off foreign students. Check. 3. Discourage investment by putting economy at risk of recession. Check. 4. Let China and EU lead in EV and alternative energy development. Check. 5. Prompt our allies to rebuild supply chains away from America. Check. 6. Undermine the global standing of our leading research universities. Check. 7. Implement mass deportations without a plan to counter our low population replacement rate. Check. 8. Impose an incoherent tariff policy. Check. 9. Prompt China and the EU to spend more on R&D and education in response to trade restrictions. Check. 10. Get into a trade war with China without alternative sources, or a stockpile, of rare earth minerals. Check. 
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Location: Enfield, CT 06082, USA
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