Hartford council approves consent grants and appointments, postpones solid‑waste ordinance hearing and proclaims Women’s History Month

The Hartford Court of Common Council on March 10 approved a consent calendar of grants and appointments, referred two agenda items to committee, withdrew a proposed renter‑insurance resolution, postponed a public hearing on a solid‑waste ordinance and adopted a proclamation recognizing March 2025 as Women’s History Month.

The actions taken at the meeting included routine acceptance of state and federal grant awards and confirmations of appointments; a postponement of an ordinance amendment related to the Central Connecticut Solid Waste Authority to March 24, 2025, with a public hearing set for March 17, 2025, at 7 p.m.; and approval of a small settlement after an executive session.

Most of the meeting’s business was handled on the consent calendar, which the council moved and approved without extended debate. The consent items included applications for and acceptance of grant funds and confirmations of appointments important to city public‑health and community services operations.

On the consent calendar the council approved items described on the agenda as: application to the Connecticut Department of Transportation Highway Safety Office (item 3.2); acceptance of a $575 stipend from Connecticut Children’s Medical Center for the “Bridging the Gap” pilot project (item 3.3); acceptance of Highway Safety Office funds for “Click It or Ticket” enforcement (item 3.4); acceptance of grant funds from the Connecticut Department of Energy and Environmental Protection for improvements to the Goodwin Park entrance and the Maple Avenue streetscape (item 3.5); confirmation of Lisa J. Herrera to the Commission on Refugee and Immigrant Affairs (item 6.1); acceptance of a $1,376,327 grant from the Connecticut Department of Public Health for HIV, hepatitis C and sexually transmitted infection prevention services (item 6.2); authorization for the Department of Health and Human Services to accept and distribute $500 in gift cards from Granby Congregational Church (item 6.3); acceptance of opioid‑related funding from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (item 6.4) (the committee report described this as approximately $1,090,000 annually); confirmation of Claudette M. Graham to the Commission on Refugee and Immigrant Affairs (item 6.5); and an authorization to increase the school building project budget at the Petonsas Learning Lab Magnet School (item 6.6). The consent motion was moved by Councilwoman Rosetti and approved by roll call; council members present voted yes and two members recorded as "pass" during roll calls (the agenda shows Council President Sturgeon and Councilman Thomas as passing during some roll calls).

Separately, the council voted to receive committee reports and communications including the mayor’s annual State of the City report (item 3.1) and Health and Human Services Committee reports tied to the appointments and public‑health grants listed above.

The council referred two items to committee: item 7.3 (a resolution supporting an adjustment of Connecticut’s fiscal guardrail) was sent to the Operations, Management, Budget and Government Accountability (OMBGA) Committee; and item 3.6 (a resolution to increase the forgivable down‑payment assistance program loan cap) was sent to the Planning, Economic Development and Housing Committee. Both referrals were moved and approved without discussion.

Council members also withdrew one resolution from the agenda. Councilman Clark explained he had discussed a proposed resolution to host a renter’s insurance fair with the mayor and said the mayor had committed to working on the issue; Clark then asked to withdraw the resolution so the city and mayor can coordinate. As Clark put it on the record, “he has given me his word that we will be working on this.” The maker of the resolution requested the withdrawal and the council recorded the withdrawal motion.

The council postponed an ordinance (item 5.1) that would amend sections 15‑32, 15‑33 and 15‑34 of chapter 15 of the Municipal Code of Hartford pertaining to the Central Connecticut Solid Waste Authority. The motion set the ordinance for a public hearing on Monday, March 17, 2025, at 7 p.m., and to be considered again on March 24, 2025. The postponement motion was moved and carried by roll call.

On a separate item the council took up a resolution recognizing March 2025 as Women’s History Month. Councilwoman Rosetti spoke in support of the proclamation, citing historical Connecticut figures and saying, “this is something that I ... think about often, as a woman in history.” The council approved the proclamation by roll call.

After moving into executive session, the council returned and voted to accept a settlement in the matter cited on the agenda as Johnson v. the City for an amount read into the record as $69.05. The motion to accept the settlement was moved and carried by roll call; no additional details about the claim or the plaintiff were provided in open session.

Votes at a glance

- Consent calendar (items 3.2, 3.3, 3.4, 3.5, 6.1–6.6, 7.2): Approved by roll call. Key items: $575 stipend (item 3.3); $1,376,327 Connecticut Department of Public Health grant for HIV/HCV/STI prevention (item 6.2); authorization to accept approximately $1,090,000 annually in CDC opioid funding per the committee report (item 4.4). Other amounts and details were not specified on the public agenda or during the recorded motion.

- Receive communications and committee reports (3.1, 4.1–4.6): Approved by roll call.

- Referrals: 7.3 to OMBGA (fiscal‑guardrail resolution); 3.6 to Planning, Economic Development and Housing (increase down‑payment assistance loan cap): Approved by roll call.

- Withdrawal: Item 7.4 (renter’s insurance fair / policy exploration): Withdrawn at the request of the resolution’s maker; Councilman Clark stated the mayor committed to working on the issue.

- Postponement: Ordinance amendment (item 5.1) pertaining to Municipal Code chapters on the Central Connecticut Solid Waste Authority: Postponed to March 24, 2025; public hearing set for March 17, 2025, at 7 p.m.

- Proclamation: March 2025 declared Women’s History Month: Approved by roll call; Councilwoman Rosetti offered remarks in support.

- Settlement: Johnson v. the City — settlement accepted for $69.05: Approved by roll call; no further details provided in open session.

What the meeting did not resolve or specify

Several items on the agenda were listed without amounts or with inconsistent figures in the spoken agenda language. Where the committee report provided an amount (for example, the CDC opioid funding was described in the committee report as approximately $1,090,000 annually), this article reports the committee figure. Other items — including the Goodwin Park/Maple Avenue improvement grant amount, the exact amount for the Highway Safety Office awards, and the specific budget increase for the Petonsas Learning Lab project — were not specified in the public remarks recorded in the transcript.

Next steps and public participation

The council will hold the public hearing on the postponed solid‑waste ordinance on March 17, 2025, at 7 p.m.; the ordinance will be taken up again at the March 24, 2025 meeting. Several grant acceptances and appointments will proceed under the approvals recorded on the consent calendar and will be administered by the relevant city departments as listed on the agenda.