Post by SyZyGy on May 20, 2007 9:45:53 GMT -5
courant.com
Horse And Buggy Rides Planned
By ANN MARIE SOMMA
Courant Staff Writer
May 18 2007
WETHERSFIELD -- For years, the town has been promoting walking tours of Old Wethersfield, luring tourists to view its historic homes and museums and to walk the same footpaths once used by its Native American inhabitants.
Now, thanks to a $25,000 state grant, the town will offer horse and buggy rides through the same historic center to attract more tourists and to promote downtown commerce.
Town Manager Bonnie Therrien said the rides will be available Friday, Saturday and Sunday nights, from 5 to 9 p.m., beginning in June and running through the fall.
The state money, secured by state Sen. John Fonfara, D-Hartford, will be used to help pay the horse and buggy driver's set pay rate for the night, Therrien said.
The town is considering charging riders $20 for a 20-minute trip through the district.
The town had hoped that a new trolley bus, designed to transport conventioneers and their families from Hartford to Old Wethersfield and back, would attract traffic to the district, but the project never got off the ground.
The plan was to contract with tour groups that arrange day trips for visiting conventioneers at the Connecticut Convention Center and to offer day tours of the Webb-Deane-Stevens Museum and the Solomon Welles House, as well as access to restaurants and stores in the historic district.
Peter Gillespie, the town's director of planning and economic development, said the horse and buggy rides will be a nice addition to the district.
"We welcome the grant and the opportunity that this creates for tourists, as well as residents," Gillespie said.
Contact Ann Marie Somma at asomma@courant.com.
Copyright 2007, Hartford Courant
Horse And Buggy Rides Planned
By ANN MARIE SOMMA
Courant Staff Writer
May 18 2007
WETHERSFIELD -- For years, the town has been promoting walking tours of Old Wethersfield, luring tourists to view its historic homes and museums and to walk the same footpaths once used by its Native American inhabitants.
Now, thanks to a $25,000 state grant, the town will offer horse and buggy rides through the same historic center to attract more tourists and to promote downtown commerce.
Town Manager Bonnie Therrien said the rides will be available Friday, Saturday and Sunday nights, from 5 to 9 p.m., beginning in June and running through the fall.
The state money, secured by state Sen. John Fonfara, D-Hartford, will be used to help pay the horse and buggy driver's set pay rate for the night, Therrien said.
The town is considering charging riders $20 for a 20-minute trip through the district.
The town had hoped that a new trolley bus, designed to transport conventioneers and their families from Hartford to Old Wethersfield and back, would attract traffic to the district, but the project never got off the ground.
The plan was to contract with tour groups that arrange day trips for visiting conventioneers at the Connecticut Convention Center and to offer day tours of the Webb-Deane-Stevens Museum and the Solomon Welles House, as well as access to restaurants and stores in the historic district.
Peter Gillespie, the town's director of planning and economic development, said the horse and buggy rides will be a nice addition to the district.
"We welcome the grant and the opportunity that this creates for tourists, as well as residents," Gillespie said.
Contact Ann Marie Somma at asomma@courant.com.
Copyright 2007, Hartford Courant