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www.HartfordBusiness.com September 14, 2015 • Hartford Business Journal 3 Downtown Hartford next stop in Noble's tasty brand buildup By Gregory Seay gseay@HartfordBusiness.com N ow that Ellington entrepreneur Michael W. Frisbie is off the ground with his initial $4.5 million self-serve gasoline market and adjacent ice-cream parlor in New Britain, he's turning his sights and investment into expanding his fledgling retail gasoline operations within nearby Hartford's city limits. Frisbie and business partner Abdul Tammo of South Windsor in mid-July debuted their Frisbie's Ice Cream shop concept on acreage abutting New Britain's western border with neighboring Farmington. That was followed in early August with their third Noble Energy Inc. gas station-convenience store in 3,500 square feet, all on 6 ½ acres of what was once the Guida family's homestead, including their landmark dairy barn. Today, the Guida's dairy-farm legacy is evident in black-and-white photos of the demolished barn and other vistas on the walls of the 2,000-square-foot Frisbie's ice cream shop that sells desserts, using ice- cream mix supplied by Guidas' commercial dairy across town. Debuting within a year or so — sandwiched between the dessert shop and the Noble convenience-store/gas station — will be a casual-dining restaurant that the Frisbie -Tammo partnership will operate. "My idea is more of a family-style restau- rant with good food at a fair price,'' Frisbie said. Later, they intend to partner with an assisted-living operator to build, perhaps as early as spring, a 126-bed facility on acreage directly behind all three businesses, he said. It's all part of Frisbie's and Tammo's William Barnett, Ph.D. Dean of Graduate Studies Trinity College gradstudy@trincoll.edu http://gradstudy.trincoll.edu Most of us are looking for answers. We search for how our organizations can become more effective, more creative, even more profitable. And employers want colleges to turn out graduates who have mastered the skills to help provide those answers. And yet, in the rush to find solutions, we sometimes overlook the importance of asking the right questions. Consider the much-maligned English major. What can one do with that? Well, we've learned that Trinity graduates who've earned an M.A. in English achieve many things: they write screenplays, produce films, run not-for-profit organizations, hold executive positions in finance, and teach at all levels. Their study is not confined to reading dusty old books but includes analysis of culture, development of empathy, practice in critical thinking, and enhancement of communication skills. Trinity's English program pushes students beyond learning facts. And that has helped them to excel in our rapidly changing global economy. Education, beyond training, produces better questions and, therefore, better answers. THREE-YEAR FLAT TUITION RATE FOR M.A. STUDENTS LOOKING FOR QUESTIONS? Noble Energy's newest gas station and its Frisbie's ice cream shop sit on New Britain acreage where the Guida family's dairy barn once stood. Continued H B J P H O T O S | G R E G O R Y S E A Y