Hartford 21 loses downtown grocery store

There’s no Bliss in Hartford. The developers of Hartford 21 last year announced they were bringing Wethersfield’s Bliss Market to downtown Hartford. Today, the Bliss owners and Northland Development acknowledge that the deal is dead. Bliss owner John DeFrino told the Hartford Business Journal that because development costs doubled to $2 million, he asked to be released from the 10-year lease he signed last year. Northland said it is trying to find another grocer to come to the development. After nearly a year on the market, there have been no takers for retail space at the site.