HHC opening talent development center in Hartford's Gold Building

PHOTO | COSTAR Downtown Hartford’s Gold Building.

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By Zachary Vasile

Hartford HealthCare is expanding its presence in downtown Hartford with the addition of a talent development center, which will be set up on the ground floor of One Financial Plaza, better known as the “Gold Building.”

HHC President and CEO Jeffrey Flaks said the 7,000-square-foot leased space will be used for company orientations, as well as regional medical meetings, conferences and symposiums. The orientations could bring in up to 250 people on any given day, a likely welcome prospect for small business owners in the area, especially restaurateurs, who have seen their earnings hammered by the COVID-19 pandemic and the ongoing work-for-home movement.

“This is about so much more than a building,” Flaks said. “This is about leaning in and investing in Hartford. It’s about reigniting the spark in the capital city.”

The space, which will undergo a redesign, is expected to be ready for use by late fall or early winter, he said.

The Gold Building is located across the street from HHC’s new headquarters, at 100 Pearl St.

The health system is leasing 110,000 square feet in that building and ultimately plans to have around 550 workers based there.

Together, the two sites form the core of what HHC calls its “urban campus.”

“We believe that for us to transform healthcare, we need a space that’s conducive to idea generation, to innovation,” Flaks said. “We want a space that people want to come to, not feel they have to.”

Flaks also pointed out that numerous company departments, including legal and compliance, investments, recruitment, marketing and lease management, will all be based downtown.

“These are people who will eat at the restaurants, park in the parking garages, stay at the hotels,” he said. “It’s about creating vitality.”