Hartford Business Journal

4 Hartford Business Journal • October 29, 2018 • www.HartfordBusiness.com Briefs Amazon-Whole Foods delivery service launches in CT Connecticut's online grocery delivery and pickup market has a fresh player. Amazon announced the expansion of its grocery delivery and pickup service of Whole Foods Market goods through Prime Now in Hartford and Stamford. Under the service, which is available in 63 cities nationwide, Prime members place orders via the Prime Now app and choose the pickup option at checkout. Customers can choose free pickup in as little as an hour on orders of $35, or in 30 minutes for $4.99. Stores have designated parking spots for pickup orders and a Prime Now shopper will carry groceries into a customer's car within minutes. Amazon also recently expanded same- day delivery services for Prime members in Hartford. The Amazon-Whole Foods Market delivery service arrives in Connecticut as more investments are being made in online grocery delivery, creating demand for order fillers and drivers. Sept. homes sales down 20% Hartford area home sales plummeted in September, while the median price rose slightly, Realtors say. There were 885 single-family home sales last month, down almost 20 percent from the 1,106 sold in Sept. 2017, the Greater Hartford Association of Realtors (GHAR) said. Median price for those sold rose 3.1 percent to $228,000 from $221,000 in the year-ago period, GHAR said. New listings for the month dropped to 1,498, down 4.65 percent vs. 1,571 a year ago. The region's condominium sales were down 2 percent to 251 in September, and sale prices also dropped 7 percent to $139,000 compared to $149,540 in 2017. For the year, area home sales are down 3 percent, to 9,109 and median sale prices are up almost 4 percent to $231,850. W. Hartford seeks development feedback The town of West Hartford is inviting public feedback as it prepares to update its plan of conservation and development. Connecticut requires municipalities to update their plans of conservation and development (POCDs) once every decade. POCDs are described as "a road map for the future of the community.'' It identifies a long-term vision, goals, strategies and action steps necessary to support the town's vision and goals, according to town Planning and Zoning Chair Kevin Ahern. The plan covers areas such as economic development, housing, transportation, infrastructure, open space, sustainability, environment and town services. Reimagined Hartford market includes food trucks, makerspace A consultant hired to develop options to spruce up Hartford's Regional Market has released a conceptual plan that includes space for food trucks, live music and winter use. Capital Region Development Authority (CRDA), the quasi-public agency slated to take over the market's ownership, hired East Hartford's Goman + York to recommend ideas on how to redevelop the aging parcel in Hartford's South Meadows. In a recent report, Goman + York pitched several upgrades to the 32-acre lot including space for food trucks, live music, winter use, a community garden and gathering areas, according to a preliminary report. The recommendations also include a makerspace for food processing, and sponsorship or branding partnerships. Common area ideas include rooftop Week in Review TOP STORY UConn Health solicits financial partners F ollowing through on a directive from state lawmakers, UConn Health is taking the next step in searching for a potential partner to help bolster its financial future. The Farmington health system — anchored by the 234-bed John Dempsey Hospital — has released a solicitation of interest letter, hoping to attract suitors for a public-private partnership of its clinical operations. It's the first time UConn Health has taken such a step in about a decade, when a similar process led to it proposing a merger with Hartford Hospital in 2009, which ultimately did not happen. An arrangement involving the hospital and UConn Medical Group — the health system's physician practice — could take the form of a merger or some other arrangement, and partners could include other hospitals or hospital systems, or even managed care organizations, large physician groups or some other entity. UConn Health has not set any defined structure for potential partnerships, and it intends to look both at local partners as well as those in other states, said Dr. Andrew Agwunobi, UConn Health's CEO for the past three years. Any deal would only include the hospital and medical group — not the medical or dental schools, he said. "We're casting a very wide net," Agwunobi added. UConn Health's solicitation letter details its various financial challenges, including high costs from a unionized workforce. BY THE NUMBERS $228,000 The median price for a Greater Hartford home sold during the month of Sep- tember, which was up 3.1 percent from a year earlier, according to the Greater Hartford Association of Realtors. 3.4 The percentage point lead Democrat Ned Lamont has over Republican Bob Stefanwaski in the gubernatorial race, according to an Oct. 23 Sacred Heart University and Hearst Connecticut Media Group poll. 4.2% Connecticut's unemployment rate at the end of September, which was down from 4.5 percent in August despite the state shedding 500 jobs last month, according to the state Department of Labor. 30 The total acreage of trees the Con- necticut Airport Authority is proposing to cut down at Brainard Airport. TOP 5 MOST READ On HartfordBusiness.com • 1. UConn Health solicits financial partners • 2. Amazon unveils same-day delivery in Hartford • 3. Berlin's Hartford line station bows • 4. UTAS ending SoCal parts making • 5. New developer, plans for W. Hartford convent STAY CONNECTED For breaking and daily Greater Hartford business news go to www.HartfordBusiness.com HBJ on Twitter: @HartfordBiz HBJ on Facebook: www.facebook.com/HartfordBiz HBJ on Linkedln: www.linkedin.com/company/ the-Hartford-Business-Journal Daily e-newsletters: HBJ Today, CT Morning Blend www.HartfordBusiness.com/ subscribe Weekly e-newsletters: CT Health Care Weekly www.HartfordBusiness.com/ subscribe UConn Health CEO Andrew Agwunobi is searching for a financial partner. PHOTO | CONTRIBUTED A rendering of a revamped Hartford Regional Market. RENDERING | CONTRIBUTED

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