As Gov. John G. Rowland unveiled the creation of a new public authority to revitalize Hartford, the corporate sponsor behind a $1 billion downtown development project said it is now attempting to toss a professional football team into the mix.
Phoenix Home Life Mutual Insurance Co. is the backer of the $1 billion waterfront entertainment complex known as Adriaen's Landing set for downtown Hartford. The company is in discussions with Hartford Mayor Michael P. Peters over the possibility of adding a large open-air stadium to lure the New England Patriots from Massachusetts, his spokeswoman said.
Talks between the National Football League team and Massachusetts lawmakers over refurbishing the Patriots' Foxboro Stadium have gone nowhere, and legislators will not consider the funding issue again until they reconvene for their September session.
The mayor's spokeswoman described the plans for a stadium as "preliminary," and said it could complicate parts of Rowland's downtown renewal plan.
Last spring, Connecticut lawmakers approved Rowland's proposal to use $300 million of bond proceeds to redevelop the capital's downtown district.
The seven-year plan includes a makeover for the Hartford Civic Center, housing development, a new higher education facility, and a new domed convention center and sports arena that would allow the University of Connecticut's Huskies' football team to upgrade to Division I-A from Division I-AA.
The 35,000-seat convention center-college football stadium was promoted as the centerpiece of Adriaen's Landing when it was first proposed. But this would be too small for an NFL team, the mayor's office noted.
And an open-air stadium could not house a convention center.
Work on the Adriaen's Landing site is slated to begin in October, the mayor's office said.
"I think the Patriots issue will be dealt with over the next four or five months," Peters said in a statement. "I don't think it will hold anything up."
Phone calls to the Patriots about negotiations with Hartford were not returned. Phoenix Home Life officials had little to say except that they are moving forward with the plans already in place.
"These issues are part of an ongoing process," a Phoenix spokesman said.
Rowland yesterday announced seven appointments to the board of directors of the Capital City Economic Development Authority, which was created in the last legislative session solely to manage the state's investment in the city's downtown.
The governor sought to put a damper on the various rumors concerning the Patriots at a press conference, according to Nuala Forde, a Rowland spokeswoman.
"Talk of changes to the revitalization plan and a possibility of a professional football stadium entering the picture is premature at this point," Forde said.
While Adriaen's Landing is expected to become the centerpiece of Hartford's revitalized downtown, Forde noted that the state is not involved in that project, and uncertainty over what facilities it will include should not disrupt the other work.
