Update on Sportsbook & Bar @ the XL Center

[Ha Who]

My concern is the food aspect of this. Why not bring in Black-Eyed Sally's or another longtime Hartford restaurant. The thought of the XL providing the food has me nauseous

 

[HCCForever]

My concern is the food aspect of this. Why not bring in Black-Eyed Sally's or another longtime Hartford restaurant. The thought of the XL providing the food has me nauseous

Vito's or Bear's Smokehouse are good options as well. Not sure if Vito's is still open since I haven't been there in a few years.

 

[Waquoit]

Anything is better than what the serve at The Tavern.

 

[Ha Who]

Vito's or Bear's Smokehouse are good options as well. Not sure if Vito's is still open since I haven't been there in a few years.

I liked Vito’s but I think they are closed

 

[HCCForever]

I liked Vito’s but I think they are closed

Thanks. I used to like their Chicken Pesto pizza. We used to go there in the early aughts when Jackie was the bartender and they were across the street from Bushnell Park. She made a delicious Crown Royal Manhattan.

 

[August_West]

My concern is the food aspect of this. Why not bring in Black-Eyed Sally's or another longtime Hartford restaurant. The thought of the XL providing the food has me nauseous

What? You dont like Chicken tenders cooked in broken down Fryer grease?

 

[August_West]

Isn’t the quote fat drunk and stupid? Being condescending and mistaken is always a tough combo.

It seems to work for me. ;-)

 

[August_West]

And of course when it's a UConn game you won't even be able to bet the game.

 

[Durks07]

What? You dont like Chicken tenders cooked in broken down Fryer grease?

That section of the XL Center smells like a war prison.

 

[CTBasketball]

I had high hopes they’d turn this into a Vegas-style Sportsbook. But it ended up looking like Winners in New Britain.

 

[Hunt for 7]

For someone who left CT in 1991, I really find it sad how much downtown Hartford has dissolved. Such good memories of going bar hopping in the 80’s. And there was always somewhere to get good food. Tough to see anyway they can revive it to some degree. Real estate developers need to start over. Office buildings have to be converted to housing, retail services leaving much less office space. People don’t want to sit home all the time so there is opportunity….like what they did at Parkville. City planners need to do more of that as they reconfigure what/how our cities can function and thrive.

 

[HooperScooper]

Office buildings have to be converted to housing,

That's been happening downtown for at least 5-10 years. For example, the old Connecticut Bank & Trust building on Main Street is now apartments. But remember that not every office building has the ability to be converted to housing.

 

[zls44]

I had high hopes they’d turn this into a Vegas-style Sportsbook. But it ended up looking like Winners in New Britain.

Did you want a Beyoncé residency or something?

 

[CTBasketball]

Did you want a Beyoncé residency or something?

There’s no way in hell the Rio Sportsbook should be better than one built in 2023…who’s in charge of this project?

 

[zls44]

There’s no way in hell the Rio Sportsbook should be better than one built in 2023…who’s in charge of this project?

The CRDA, who stinks, but this also looks like every Vegas Sportsbook I’ve been in?

 

[Waquoit]

The CRDA, who stinks, but this also looks like every Vegas Sportsbook I’ve been in?

It has to be better than the sports book at Foxwoods.

 

[Deepster]

For someone who left CT in 1991, I really find it sad how much downtown Hartford has dissolved. Such good memories of going bar hopping in the 80’s. And there was always somewhere to get good food. Tough to see anyway they can revive it to some degree. Real estate developers need to start over. Office buildings have to be converted to housing, retail services leaving much less office space. People don’t want to sit home all the time so there is opportunity….like what they did at Parkville. City planners need to do more of that as they reconfigure what/how our cities can function and thrive.

Nah. Won't happen. Too many other non-Hartford options now. It's just not worth driving, parking and not being close enough to walk between establishments. And the remote work has drained what was left of any lunch/happy hour crowd.

And, I'll say it again. How long have the Yard Goats been around with that great stadium? And what else is there to do around that park? Nothing. They haven't put a single new eating or drinking establishment that takes advantage of it to this day.

 

[UConnJim]

Nah. Won't happen. Too many other non-Hartford options now. It's just not worth driving, parking and not being close enough to walk between establishments. And the remote work has drained what was left of any lunch/happy hour crowd.

And, I'll say it again. How long have the Yard Goats been around with that great stadium? And what else is there to do around that park? Nothing. They haven't put a single new eating or drinking establishment that takes advantage of it to this day.

That's a pretty negative view. Remote work is here to stay, but back to the office is a trend in every city right now. Being in the office 3 days a week is a strong trend with 4 days increasing as well. Stats back that up. Will office occupancy get back to pre-Covid levels? No, but they will be higher than what they have been.

In my opinion, what Hartford has lacked is a start up/growth company ecosphere. Growth companies drive employment, not mature industries like insurance. The Hartford area has a lot going for it with cheap housing and office rents (relative to Boston, NYC, Providence), a great location for outdoor recreation with the mountains and ocean very close, good schools in the suburbs,... I live in the Boston suburbs and a comparable house in West Hartford sells for less than half of what it sells for in my town and property taxes are half. And, West Hartford schools are better. Office rents are less than half of what they are in Boston. Putting apartments in Hartford is a start to rejuvenation of the city.

Development around the baseball stadium has been held up by the lawsuit which needs to be resolved.

 

[huskiemaniac]

I would love to see a sold out XL where everyone could bet the game. Would get loud. Hopefully at some point we will be able to bet UConn legally from in-state. I’d also love a few poker tables in there too.

We use Bovada to place UConn bets…

 

[Palatine]

Covid did a number on downtowns all around the country not just Hartford. Commercial real estate has taken a nose dive. In turn, many businesses that depended on office workers for a big part of their income have gone under. It will take a revived economy and an increase in back to the office trend to make a difference. Don't blame Hartford for a national trend.

 

[DSquiz]

Nah. Won't happen. Too many other non-Hartford options now. It's just not worth driving, parking and not being close enough to walk between establishments. And the remote work has drained what was left of any lunch/happy hour crowd.

And, I'll say it again. How long have the Yard Goats been around with that great stadium? And what else is there to do around that park? Nothing. They haven't put a single new eating or drinking establishment that takes advantage of it to this day.

The reason the ballpark hasn't developed more is the lawsuit with the previous developer that halted construction. There are massive plans for new restaurants and shops that will go forward as soon as the suit is resolved.

Pratt Street on the other hand is in the mist of a billion dollar development bringing hundreds of new apartments, a brewery, sports bar, and a bunch more shops and restaurants. You can check them out on Pratt Streets site or the CT insider article.

 

[Deepster]

That's a pretty negative view. Remote work is here to stay, but back to the office is a trend in every city right now. Being in the office 3 days a week is a strong trend with 4 days increasing as well. Stats back that up. Will office occupancy get back to pre-Covid levels? No, but they will be higher than what they have been.

In my opinion, what Hartford has lacked is a start up/growth company ecosphere. Growth companies drive employment, not mature industries like insurance. The Hartford area has a lot going for it with cheap housing and office rents (relative to Boston, NYC, Providence), a great location for outdoor recreation with the mountains and ocean very close, good schools in the suburbs,... I live in the Boston suburbs and a comparable house in West Hartford sells for less than half of what it sells for in my town and property taxes are half. And, West Hartford schools are better. Office rents are less than half of what they are in Boston. Putting apartments in Hartford is a start to rejuvenation of the city.

Development around the baseball stadium has been held up by the lawsuit which needs to be resolved.

I don't think it's negative. It's realistic. The back to work "trend" is 2-3 days a week at most and no one's going in on a Friday, then going out to eat and drink in town afterwards. That's reality.

I can see your point about a startup type foundation to get things back on the right path, but...at the end of the day, Hartford is set up poorly. For example, it's February and you are going to a UConn game. You eat at Bear's first. It's a pain in the neck to walk from Bear's to XL. You're at Parkville Market and you want to go to the Yard Goats. No public transit. Parking is a PITA. No real flow to the city's grid. No "core" or "heart" of the city that everything flows off of.

 

[CTBasketball]

No one wants to build near Dunkin’ Park because if you stumble the wrong direction a few blocks you get shot.

 

[DSquiz]

You're at Parkville Market and you want to go to the Yard Goats. No public transit.

There is literally a bus that runs every 10 min that links both directly.