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For more B2B news visit APRIL 10, 2017 Volume 25, Number 16 $3.00 Subscribe online Don't miss being a part of biggest sales lead generation day of the year on June 8th 2017 Introducing the ALL NEW In nuke debate, dueling claims fly By Matt Pilon mpilon@HartfordBusiness.com W hat do power plants, environmentalists and the largest association of Ameri- cans aged 50 and up have in common? They're all fiercely opposed to a bill that would allow Waterford's Millstone Power Station nuclear plant to sell a large amount of its electric- ity in a new and possibly more profitable way. Major operators of natural-gas-fired power plants — including NRG, Dynegy and Calpine — have linked up with AARP and the Connect- icut Fund for the Environment (CFE) to form an unusual coalition against the legislation. The opponents often have divergent objec- tives, but their joint aim is to paint Millstone as an already profitable plant seeking millions of dollars in additional revenues — which would eventually be shouldered by individual and commercial energy ratepayers — through a specially designed state-run bidding process. "This is an unusual constellation of different folks that don't get together every day," said Dan Hendrick, director of external affairs for NRG, which owns seven Connecticut power plants. During a recent interview with Hartford Business Journal, Hendrick was seated near G R E AT E R H A R T F O R D ' S B U S I N E S S N E W S w w w. H a r t f o rd B u s i n e s s . c o m Index ■ Reporter's Notebook: PG. 5 ■ Week in Review: PG. 6 ■ The List: PG. 10 ■ Nonprofit Notebook: PG. 18 ■ Movers & Shakers: PG. 19 ■ Opinion & Commentary: PG. 20 Growing Pains There are an increasing number of Connecticut lawyers who own a solo or small legal practice, and whose challenges of running the business end of the profession is as important, if not more complicated, than practicing law itself. PG. 3 FOCUS: SMALL BUSINESS Boston Bound Fifty-year-old New Britain architectural firm Kaestle Boos Associates has just opened a Boston office to take advantage of that region's booming education construction market. PG. 8 Ghosts of Hartford's past power brokers hover over insurers' $50M pledge By Gregory Seay gseay@HartfordBusiness.com T he recent $50 million pledge to Hart- ford from three major insurers head- quartered in the city recalled a time generations ago when the civic, economic and cultural interests and future of the city and region were in the powerful hands of a few business leaders. Known as the "bishops'' or the "bosses,'' those dozen or so men — and a handful of women who also played a role — intervened as necessary, either through their businesses or the then-influential head of the local chamber of commerce and local and state politicians, to bring to or get done whatever the city needed. The financial pledge from The Hartford, Continued on page 16 BISHOPS R E D U X ? P H O T O | S T E V E L A S C H E V E R The Hartford's CEO Christopher Swift, shown in the insurer's Capital City headquarters, joined with the chiefs of Aetna and Travelers in pledging support for the city. The Millstone Power Station nuclear plant is the largest generator in Connecticut. P H O T O | H B J F I L E Continued on page 14