Program Highlights

Entrepreneurship

Chairman Eric Dale initiated a new task force focused on identifying opportunities to support entrepreneurs and entrepreneurship. Linking small business owners in the City to training and financial resources through WBDC and CEDF’s targeted loan pool has been one of its accomplishments. Another initiative is the Entrepreneurship Lecture Series, a quarterly topical presentation held at UConn Stamford. The first symposium Getting From Concept to Business Plan and Beyond, featured Joseph Carbone, President and CEO of The Workplace and panelists Bruce Angus, founder of Kids U; Duane Hill, Partner TSG Capital Group LLC; Trina Jones, COO Off Campus Partners; Fran Pastore, President, the Women’s Business Development Center; and Jonathan Rubin, Managing Director, Westbury Group LLC. The series continued with a timely discussion about China After the Olympics. John Fritsche, Senior Vice President NBC; Yu Zheng, Assistant Professor of Political Science, UConn Stamford, and attorney Paul Edelburg shared knowledge from their unique perspectives of the media, academia, and the law.

Neighborhood Revitalization

The West Side Neighborhood Revitalization Zone (WSNRZ) marked a major milestone in the fall in achieving its 501(c)3 status. Support continued to focus on connecting residents with city and state services, economic development, expanded neighborhood skills, affordable housing, beautification, public health and safety and employability. Business Development Consultant Juan Uribe counseled family-owned businesses and connected teens and adults with temporary and permanent employment opportunities. The Partnership also collaborated with a dozen community organizations to support a Construction Trades Jobs Fair at the Yerwood Center, attracting 119 applicants from the area.

Physical improvement projects remain a key component of the West Side revitalization effort. The Parks Department installed new playground equipment in Carwin Park, including the City’s first modern spray park, a smash hit with the neighborhood and Yerwood Center children. In June, Lt. Governor Michael Fedele helped cut the ribbon at its grand re-opening celebration that attracted a crowd of wellwishers from around the city.

The East Side Partnership continues to strengthen its organizational foundations, completing its 501(c)3 application and selecting a new executive director. East Side Commons and Glen View Condominiums, new mixed use developments under construction and the Holiday Inn redevelopment are scheduled for completion in 2009.

The final transition of the Waterside Coalition to a fully independent neighborhood organization occurred this year. The Partnership continues to link them with a broad range of resources to support economic development and improve the quality of life for their community.

Workforce & Family Financial Stability

The Partnership collaborated with the IRS, the City of Stamford, and the CT Association for Human Services to expand the number of Volunteer Income Tax Assistance (VITA) Centers and increase the number of households using the free service. Two thousand and eight saw a forty percent increase in households having their tax returns completed and receiving the Earned Income and Child Care Tax Credits to which they were entitled. The Partnership helped publicize the initiative through distribution of tax credit paycheck stuffers and flyers to local employers and day care centers, convening a financial assistance workshop, and soliciting CT Transit to develop a system-wide solution to make informational flyers available to riders. Another example of connecting resources to a specific demographic was the successful linking of Stamford 19-21 year olds with EMS, Hazmat, and EMT services certification training.

Education and Youth Development

Building on its success, the Student Conservation Association’s Stamford Internship program more than doubled its participation rate. Working with the Stamford Public Schools, the Boys and Girls Club, and the Yerwood Center, the SCA brought 38 teens from southern Fairfield County together for six weeks of fun, education and hard work. The youth had an opportunity to develop skills, make friends and learn about the natural environment while beautifying four sites in Stamford.

Supporting UConn`s University Pals program for middle schoolers for a second year, Kathleen invited experts from the community to share their knowledge during the summer program for seventh graders. In What Makes a Great City, students explored urban design and gained a new confidence that will serve them well in college and beyond.

Land Use and Development

Parking, traffic and circulation (pedestrian and vehicular) has been a focus of attention. Partnership staff and board members participated in traffic calming charettes targeting downtown and surrounding neighborhoods. Complementing traffic calming initiatives has been a heightened interest in improving the quality of the pedestrian experience throughout the downtown and along the corridors to and around the station, leading to Project for Public Spaces August 2008 Walkable Stamford recommendations. Next steps: a more detailed study of key intersections and preliminary design of improvements, leading to a Pedestrian Master Plan that can guide public and private investments. As transit oriented developments at Harbor Point, Metro Green and RBS mature, a long-range plan for the transportation center is needed; the city will coordinate the initiative with stakeholders, including Partnership members. Updating downtown zoning to reflect master plan goals and current “best practices” is also under way.

Mill River Playground celebrates its third birthday in May, and Mill River Park programming increased in frequency, heightening its visibility with Saturday events for families and children and the Bennett Cancer Walk.

Army Corps of Engineers’ work was successfully bid and federal funds committed to the $5.7M project. Implementation of the new master plan for the Park’s redevelopment has begun. Phase one will remove the dam and restore the natural course of the river, allowing people access to the waterway. For Make A Difference Day, Partnership staff brought together Citizen’s Bank and Rotarians for a Saturday cleanup in October to improve water quality by removing invasive species and trash.

Harbor Point infrastructure moved ahead with approval of Tax Increment Financing district. Building & Land Technology has begun the development phase of the planned projects.

Meeting the Challenges and Opportunities of Immigration

ESL for Work teacher Susan Benthall has been busy developing “tutoring kits” for a fall program designed to accelerate the jornaleros’ progress in acquiring literacy and English language skills. Jump-started by a funding commitment from an anonymous donor, a pool of high school student volunteers will use the kits in Saturday afternoon one-on-one sessions with day laborers that reinforce and supplement Susan’s weekly class.  For more information about ESL for Work see: Language Lessons: The Stamford Advocate

Led by Juan David Paniagua, creative ways to help immigrant families acculturate is a hallmark of the Latino Initiative. One example is the development of a graphic novella series complemented by Kairos Latino, a Spanish language website.