News

It’s not that unusual to see Bald eagles in parts of the Northeast, but Golden eagles are rare here. In all there are only one to two thousand in eastern North America. As part of a collaboration of Northeast stations, WNPR’s Nancy Cohen reports from a windswept hilltop in Connecticut where a rescued Golden eagle was released into the wild.

One day this winter, farmer Brian Hawks was snowmobiling in Amenia, NY, when he saw something on the side of the trail. It was a Golden eagle with an injured foot.

In Hartford, convicted former Mayor Eddie Perez is gone from city hall.  But he’s not gone from city politics.  As WNPR's Jeff Cohen reports, former Perez allies are questioning the judgment of current Mayor Pedro Segarra. Segarra says it’s kind of strange to be criticized by allies of the man who's going to prison. “To blame me for transactions that were done by the previous administration by members of the previous administration are a little bit incoherent.” Perez was found guilty of taking a bribe from a city contractor last year.

Location: The setting that Mohawk State Forest offers is so serene and untouched that it's hard to believe it's located right off of Route 4. According to the Department of Environmental Protection, the Mountain covers 3,943 acres, making it one of the state's largest parks. 3,703 of those acres make up Mohawk State Forest, the six largest state forest in Connecticut. Its spectacular views of the Berkshire Mountains in western Connecticut are some of the most breath-taking in the state.

Forests across much of the Northeast are still home to bobcats, and Canada Lynx can still be found in Maine. But the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service recently declared the region’s biggest wild cat – the eastern mountain lion -- is officially extinct. That might sound like the end of the story, but a growing number of biologists think mountain lions could return to reclaim their territory in the Northeast. As part of a collaboration with Northeastern Public Radio stations, Brian Mann has our story.

The state’s main economic development agency gets a new chief this week. On Thursday, insurance executive Catherine Smith will take up her post as Commissioner of the Department of Economic and Community Development. As she prepared for her new role, she sat down with WNPR’s Harriet Jones.

Many people might feel daunted by the challenge that Catherine Smith has taken on. But she says when the call came from Governor Dannel Malloy, she didn’t hesitate.

Fourteen cities and towns in Connecticut are part of a new progam, funded by the U.S. Department of Energy, to see which town can reduce its energy use the most. 

It's getting harder to find a place that has live jazz on a regular basis.  Even harder to find is a place that presents jazz and serves Chinese and Japanese cuisine.  But for the last decade or so West Hartford's Szechuan Tokyo has successfully managed this tri-fecta of music and food from two cultures.  But now, sadly the establishment closes its doors for good this weekend.  We talked to Paul Lewis, the owner of Szechuan Tokyo.

WASHINGTON--In 2009, Bolton and Vernon were moving full speed ahead on a vital $25 million sewer project to replace inadequate septic systems serving the area's residents. But as construction was about to start, local officials got bad news from Washington: $2 million in federal aid was suddenly being yanked.

I’m Ray Tessier and I’m Canadian . . . well, I’m a US citizen now, but  I come from Canada.  It was unusual how it happened.  My mother married a Navy man and because he went right in the Navy after they got married my mother stayed in Canada.  So we had a house there, we had a place and when my father got out, we stayed there.

Governor Dannel Malloy was in Washington D.C. today (Thursday) to meet  with U.S. Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood. They discussed Connecticut’s application for high-speed rail funding. WNPR's Jason Cunningham reports.

Governor Malloy says he's confident that Connecticut will receive a portion of the $2.4 billion in federal transportation funding released last week. Speaking by phone to reporters he said he'll continue to pursue the $100 million in transportation funding that Florida’s Governor passed up.

Insurers in Connecticut say they’re in dialogue with state officials as the new federal health care exchanges are constructed. The exchanges are due to go into effect in 2014. 

The Malloy administration has put new efforts into implementing the federal health care reform law, and special adviser to the governor, Jeanette DeJesus says many stakeholders, including the insurers are active in the process.

WNPR’s Small Business Project is taking an in-depth look at the health care crisis facing small employers. In the second of our two reports, WNPR’s Harriet Jones reports on what’s being done to address the problem.

Almost everything about health care reform is controversial. But one thing everyone does agree on. It’s time to act.

One of the biggest financial concerns most small businesses face is providing health care. This week, WNPR’s Small Business Project is taking a two-part look at the health care crisis facing small employers. In the first of her reports, Harriet Jones talks to the businesses that are feeling the pinch.

Adchem Manufacturing Technologies in Manchester is a very successful Connecticut small business, employing 35 people.

"Street newspapers" are designed, written and sold by the homeless. They are small, usually no more than a few pages, and feature articles, photographs and poetry about what it's like to live in shelters or on the street. They're easy to find in cities like Portland, Oregon or Providence and as WNPR's Patrick Skahill reports, now Hartford has its own street newspaper.

Governor Dannel Malloy has talked a lot about the importance of big business in his first few weeks on the job, and he’s sat down with many of the state’s largest employers. Monday in New London he visited with a small company, that ten years ago was just one man and his computer. WNPR’s Harriet Jones went along.

As the world watches the nuclear crisis unfolding in Japan, Federal lawmakers, including Connecticut's Washington delegation are rethinking nuclear power.  We talk to the Connecticut Mirror's Washington correspondent Deirdre Shesgreen.  So what are Connecticut lawmakers saying?