Copyright Hartford Courant
Ever since immigrating from Jamaica in 2011, Adrian Dennis dreamed of opening his own food market in Connecticut and spent years learning the business in city markets run by his uncle. Now, with the help of a $250,000 Hartford city loan, Dennis hopes to open his Jam-Dung Supermarket — a name loosely drawn from Jamaican slang for “welcome home” — next month on Albany Avenue in Hartford’s North End, a short walk from the towering Liberty Christian Center International church. “This is going to help me improve in the neighborhood and serve the community and help me finish up the store,” Dennis said Monday. The loan is drawn larger, $16.5 million Hartford Neighborhood Investment Fund announced last fall by Hartford Mayor Arunan Arulampalam created to boost city homeownership, foster economic development and develop programs benefiting children and youth outside of downtown. Two-thirds of the investment fund, about $11.5 million, is focusing on homeownership and economic development, exclusively for city neighborhoods. Of that, $5 million is aimed at revitalizing vacant storefronts on some of the city’s most heavily-traveled, highly-visible commercial corridors, including Albany Avenue, Maple Avenue and Park Street. In a recent announcement, Arulampalam announced storefront “forgivable” loans of $1.6 million divided among Dennis’ supermarket and other businesses, organizations or projects: Spice & Soul, Island Head Fish Restaurant, South End Pizza, Fung Chinese, Caribe Restaurant, plus the renovation of office space on Park Street. In addition, the nonprofit Upper Albany Main Street, which focuses on the revitalization of the Albany Avenue commercial district also won funding. Forgivable loans act like grants if all lending conditions are met over time. While the loans — up to $250,000 each — didn’t need to be “matched,” city officials said those seeking funding needed to demonstrate their ventures had other sources of financing. The eight awards are expected to attract another $481,250 in separate investment. “This program is about people, not just projects,” Arulampalam said. “Each storefront that we help open or renovate brings new energy, jobs and pride to our commercial corridors. This is how we build a more equitable Hartford, block by block.” The storefront revitalization has drawn its inspiration from the success of the Hart Lift storefront revitalization that divided funding between downtown and the city neighborhoods. Since becoming mayor, Arulampalam has said he wants to place more emphasis on city neighborhoods and the investment fund is one avenue. Dennis said he was mentored by his uncle, Carlos Salmon, who started Carlos Supermarket on Farmington Avenue and others in the city and in Bloomfield. Salmon immigrated from Jamaica in 1974 and also started at the ground level, bagging groceries at a local supermarket after graduating from Weaver High School. Dennis said he was welcomed by the Jamaican community in the Albany Avenue neighborhood when he arrived in Hartford and he once lived in an apartment above where he now hopes to open his store. He wants to fill what he sees as a much-needed service in the neighborhood. “A lot of people have to walk all the way to lower Albany Avenue to buy groceries,” Dennis said. “With me being where I am on Albany Avenue, I think its the best fit for the community where its convenient for people to walk who don’t drive.” Jam-Dung, to be located at 651 Albany Ave. will certainly specialize in Jamaican food, simply because of the growth of the Jamaican population in the Hartford area, Dennis said. But Dennis adds that he wants “an open door for the community” carrying American and African and Asian lines of groceries. Dennis said he has been working on food market project since late last year in a storefront that encompasses 2,900 square feet. City council president Shirley Surgeon said strengthen the city’s small business community will pay big dividends in neighborhood revitalization. “These are spaces where jobs are created, culture thrives and residents come together,” Surgeon said. Kenneth R. Gosselin can be reached at kgosselin@courant.com.
