Demand Public Forum for Dillon Stadium Redevelopment

In October 2017, the Capital Region Development Authority (CRDA) issued a request for proposals on behalf of the City of Hartford to redevelop and manage Dillon Stadium. CRDA offered just one month to submit proposals; a "public" forum was held at the Convention Center with only six days notice -- limiting community participation and avoiding public scrutiny.

On December 1, CRDA recommended Mayor Luke Bronin accept Hartford Sports Group's proposal to renovate the stadium for use by a new semi-pro soccer team.

Hartford Sports Group, led by Bruce Mandell, envisions Dillon Stadium as a private enterprise designed for one user group: their soccer team. Mandell will invest his own money ONLY in building the USL team; he expects city and state taxpayers to pick up the $6 to 10.7 MILLION tab to upgrade the stadium to his specifications.

Dillon Stadium is an anchor of Colt Park and the Coltsville neighborhood; the Hartford community owns this property. It should be developed for use by city residents and the people of Greater Hartford before giving it away to a private venture. Despite its embarrassing state of disrepair, Dillon Stadium is still used by Hartford students and local residents -- they should have a say in its redesign.

Let's instead invest our resources in building a public park for everyone to use and build community wealth, not individual profit. We must build Dillon Stadium together so that it works for “we” first, not “me” first.