Stonington Wendy Bury, the executive director of the Southeastern Connecticut Cultural Coalition, outlined an opportunity Tuesday for the town to form a designated cultural district that she said would provide a host of benefits for the community.
Last week, New London voted to begin the process of forming a designated cultural district. The cultural coalition will help shepherd New London s effort through the state approval process. Bury said the City of Groton, Norwich and Lyme also are considering establishing districts.
At a meeting of the town s Economic Development Commission, Bury explained a cultural district is a specifically designated area of town that contains cultural facilities, activities and assets, and which is walkable.
It was inevitable that state government’s response to the COVID-19 pandemic would wreak havoc on the leisure and hospitality industry, a “supersector” of the Connecticut economy.
Hundreds of restaurants have closed, some for good, due to capacity restrictions, while theaters and other entertainment venues have been dark.
Just how many?
“How many restaurants have failed during the pandemic?” asked a reader who responded to The Day’s CuriousCT feature. “What other entertainment venues will not be opening when permitted?”
Precise answers proved elusive.
Back in November, some eight months into the pandemic, the Connecticut Restaurant Association estimated more than 600 restaurants in the state had closed, either for an extended period or permanently, and that many more likely would experience a similar fate. The number has been bandied about since, but never officially updated. No organization, including the Connecticut Restaurant Association, the National Restaura
New London The city is taking stock of its history, arts scene and cultural assets with the formation of a cultural district that will act as a central hub for the coordination of events, exhibitions and promotions.
The City Council on Monday unanimously approved an ordinance that establishes the district and is likely to lead to the formation of a special commission to provide oversight.
The district will encompass the downtown’s historic district and include Howard, Bank and State streets. It would allow the district to showcase the waterfront and key attractions such as Hygienic Art, Custom House Maritime Museum and Garde Arts Center.
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It’s one thing to approve $1.9 trillion in American Rescue Plan aid for the country, including $65.1 billion for its 19,000 municipalities. It’s another to sort out how all those cities, towns and villages can spend the money.
The federal largesse, meant to mitigate the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, will funnel $2.6 billion to municipalities in Connecticut, including $1.6 billion for general government and $1 billion for schools. The general government portion includes $870 million in aid to cities and towns and $691 million for counties, which, because there is no county government in the state, will be distributed to municipalities on a per capita basis.