CT bond panel OKs $850M in finance, including $60M for local projects
With the autumn stretch of Connecticut’s election season
less than two months away, the State Bond Commission approved more than $850
million in financing Friday, including more than $60 million for dozens of
projects in lawmakers’ home districts.
The projects endorsed by the 10-member panel, chaired by
Gov. Ned Lamont, include a major $490 million investment in highways, bridges,
local roads and transportation safety measures.
The panel also approved financing for several housing
projects, economic development initiatives and more than $150 million for
renovations and equipment upgrades for state buildings and parks.
“We’ve tried really hard over the last 3 1/2 years to hold
the line on our fixed costs,” said Lamont, who challenged the legislature to
curtail borrowing and embrace a debt diet when he took office in January 2019.
“I think we’ve done that pretty effectively.”
Connecticut’s bonded debt has grown just 4% during Lamont’s
first biennial budget cycle. But with more than $27 billion in bonded debt, Connecticut still
ranks among the most indebted states, per capita, in the nation.
“Today, I think, you’re going to see … what we’re doing in
terms of quality of life, what we’re doing in terms of, you know, those
investments in our towns that make an enormous difference,” Lamont added.
The commission traditionally approves a significant amount
of financing for local projects during the summer or fall in state election
years, spread among Democratic and Republican-controlled districts.
All items endorsed Friday passed unanimously.
Connecticut’s largest cities again fared well.
A total of $7 million was approved for the city of Hartford,
including $2 million for brownfield remediation, $1.5 million to plan a walking
and cycling park between the capital city and Bloomfield, $1 million for the
Elizabeth Park Conservancy and another $1 million for capital improvements to
various city-owned properties.
The Northside Neighborhood Alliance, the YMCA of Greater
Hartford and the Boys & Girls Club chapter for Hartford each were slated to
receive $500,000.
The commission approved $2.6 million in financing for
renovations to the Institute Library of New Haven and to relocate the New Haven
Trowbridge Youth Center, along with another $6.8 million to support affordable
and senior housing projects.
Bridgeport was slated to receive $200,000 to reconstruct
Ellsworth Park Field.
The state reserved nearly $1.35 million to replace an
emergency generator at Griffin Hospital in Derby, almost $900,000 to upgrade
community and school auditoriums in East Hartford, $500,000 to renovate
Greenwich’s volunteer fire house, $3 million to upgrade a residential care home
in Norwich and $1 million to rehabilitate sports fields in Stamford.
Lamont said these and other investments in Connecticut’s
communities would accelerate the state’s recovery from the coronavirus
pandemic, help generate activity in municipal downtown areas and help economic
growth.
To complement these community investments, the bond
commission approved nearly $70 million in financing for various housing
projects — most involving affordable units — and another $70 million for small
business supports and other economic development initiatives.
The largest investments approved Friday involved $490
million earmarked for transportation, including $143 million for bus and
railway equipment and other enhancements, $64 million for local road
improvement grants and $20 million for new systems on state highways to detect
and deter wrong-way driving.
Large-scale industrial, apartment developments clear East Hartford’s wetlands board
East Hartford’s Inland Wetlands Commission signed off
Tuesday on two major developments that are seen as key pieces to the revival of
the long-declining Silver Lane commercial and retail corridor.
The commission approved a massive industrial development on 300
acres of Rentschler Field and a 470-unit apartment complex at the former
Showcase Cinema site. The Rentschler Field development was approved with
standard conditions.
Wetlands commission members imposed additional conditions
for the development at the former cinema, including requiring more detail as
one of the proposed buildings will avoid wetlands impacts.
New Britain-based Jasko Development and Zelman Real Estate
of West Hartford are partnered on plans to acquire the 25.1- acre cinema site
from the town, then build eight apartment buildings, a clubhouse, mail
facilities and a maintenance building, along with several enclosed garages and
carports.
National Development, operating as ND Acquisitions LLC,
plans to build a 1.2-million-square-foot logistics building,
1.3-million-square-foot logistics building, and two 100,000-square-foot
buildings. ND Acquisitions has previously stated the smaller buildings will be
used for high-tech manufacturing and research and development.
Now that National Development and the Jasko-Zelman
partnership have wetlands approval, they can submit for needed site plan
approval from the town’s Planning and Zoning Commission. The developments also
need sign-offs from the Office of the State Traffic Administration.
National Development expects a 12-month construction
schedule, with completion at the end of 2023, according to Eileen Buckheit,
East Hartford’s director of development. Construction of the Jasko-Zelman
apartment development is expected to take up to two years, she said.
Stamford’s deteriorating West Main Street bridge now too dangerous to use, officials say
STAMFORD — Children born the year Stamford's West Main
Street Bridge closed are college-aged now: For more than two decades, Stamford
officials have restricted movement on the once-purple bridge.
That won't change anytime soon, but the city is nearing a
new era in the West Main Street Bridge conversation regardless.
City engineers are poised to install a new, pre-fabricated
pedestrian bridge next to the 134-year-old structure, head engineer Lou Casolo
told the Zoning Board this past week. At the same time, the existing bridge —
which has been closed to cars since 2002 — will remain intact.
"I'll be so happy not to have to cross the
bridge," board member Rosanne McManus said during the meeting, "But
as a citizen of Stanford, I am disgusted that it has taken this long."
Casolo showed the board pictures of the "highly
deteriorated" current structure to emphasize just how necessary getting
people off the bridge is. The deck is collapsing, he said, causing large gaps
in the floor beams. Sunlight pokes through them.
The stone abutments and piers underneath show similar signs
of wear; masonry has started to fall into the river. Because of the damage,
pedestrians can only walk on very specific parts of the structure.
The bridge's future has divided
Stamford's residents and lawmakers politically for as long as it has
been closed.
The city, in years past, has attempted to make the Purple
Bridge pedestrian-only permanently, to the chagrin of some. Longtime
West Side residents and their city representatives say that a bridge closed to
cars cuts the neighborhood off from the rest of the city and increases
emergency service response times on the way to Stamford Hospital.
Representatives for the city and Mill River Park, which the
bridge abuts, have consistently argued that cars would interrupt the largest
pedestrian path in Downtown Stamford and create a five-way intersection on the
West Side.
The new bridge won't put an end to those disagreements.
The administration wants to discuss options for what could
come next for the historic bridge, including replacement of the existing
structure and rehabilitation. The administration must also decide whether the
permanent replacement will be open to pedestrians and emergency traffic only or
to all road users.
"Those decisions haven't yet been concluded, but all
those options are being deliberated," he told the board.
Since the West Main Street Bridge is in a coastal area, city
engineers needed Zoning Board approval to move forward. The board voted
unanimously to authorize the bridge.
Though the second bridge is entirely new, it evokes the iron
bridges built throughout the United States in the mid-1800s. The arched shape
is said to look like a bow-and-arrow, whereas the structural supports on the
current West Main Street Bridge are lens-shaped. The new structure will go five
feet north of the existing one, will be 10 feet wide and will span the 142-feet
across the river, with no piers in the water.
City documents show that 51 companies have applied to
install the pre-fabricated bridge. The bidding process will remain open until
Aug. 3.
During the construction period, the city will detour
pedestrians looking to get from Downtown to Stamford's West Side. Instead,
people looking to cross must go down Clinton Avenue and Tresser Boulevard to
reach West Main Street.
New London approves site plan for recreation center at Fort Trumbull
Greg Smith
New London — The city’s planned $30 million community
recreation center at Fort Trumbull reached another milestone earlier this month
when the Planning and Zoning Commission approved a site development plan for
the project.
The plan presented to the commission at its July 21 meeting
outlines the placement of the building and parking lot , storm water drainage
plans and landscaping. Construction is expected to start later this year.
With the approval, Felix Reyes, the director of the city’s
Office of Planning and Development, said the project can continue to move
forward as planned.
“The next phase is to put together bid packages and get a
better understanding of costs, material availability and lead times on major
infrastructure components - all things everyone can imagine with any
construction project going on right now.” Reyes said.
The City Council has approved $30 million for the project
though officials are hoping construction estimates come in lower. The latest
design for the facility, developed by Silver/Petrucelli + Associates and
presented publicly in March, slightly downsized the facility and replaced the
initially planned steel building with a brick and concrete structure to keep
costs in check.
The design calls for a two-story, 58,000-square foot
facility with a 100-space parking lot separated from the building by an
existing road. The center will have a two-court gymnasium, eight-lane pool,
indoor track, workout and game rooms and a wing dedicated to the city’s
Recreation Department and programs. There will be a community lounge, classroom
space for an early childhood program, instructional kitchen and other
amenities.
The facility will be located on two- city-owned parcels
totaling about 7 acres on the Fort Trumbull peninsula, adjacent to a planned
104-unit residential development and extended stay hotel.
Jim Rossman, representing New London-based Stadia
Engineering Associates, noted during the Planning & Zoning Commission’s
July 21 meeting that plans call for parking lot with a permeable surface as
opposed to typical pavement. The surface is porous and allows water to
percolate through the pavement into the ground. It reduces the amount of
stormwater runoff, he said.
“Yes, it is a little unique for a city like the city of New
London to have a permeable parking lot of this size,” he said. “It should serve
as an example to other developers in the area (who could) mimic this type of
LID (Low Impact Development)”
The plan raised questions among commission members about the
maintenance of the surface by the city. Rossman said the only restriction is that
sand cannot be used. The use of sand will clog the porous surface and require
vacuuming.
“It’s a different management regime over time but just as
durable as normal pavement,” he said.
Reyes said the city continues to seek funding to chip away
at debt costs and ease the burden for taxpayers. The Office of Development and
Planning recently submitted an application for a $25 million grant from the
state’s Community Investment Fund program, which is designed to bolster
economic or community development in underserved communities.
Reyes said the request is ambitious but he feels the
community center is what the grant was intended for.
“A project that encompasses community wellness, recreation,
youth and senior engagement and amenities that improve the quality of life for
all of our residents,” he said. We feel this is the right investment for our
city and the timing couldn’t be more perfect.”
The city has already obtained a $1.2 million grant through
the state’s Brownfield Remediation program towards the cost of cleaning up any
environmental contamination at the site. U.S. Senators Richard Blumenthal and
Chris Murphy on Friday announced inclusion of $2 million for construction as
part of an appropriations bill being considered by Congress.
The future cost for maintaining the building is estimated to be more than $2 million per year and dependent on revenue from memberships, rental fees for the facility and providing income-based memberships to residents. City officials have said the plan is to have revenues outpace operational costs by year four.
Public hearing Monday on proposed $385 million Norwich school construction project
Claire Bessette
Norwich — The City Council will hold a public hearing Monday
on a proposed $385 million school construction project that would build four
new elementary schools, renovate one middle school and move both central
offices and adult education into one of the vacated school buildings.
But at the same time, three council members will introduce a
$255 million alternative plan that would place priority on building the four
new elementary schools. A proposed $99 million complete renovation of the
Teachers’ Memorial Global Studies Middle School and a $25 million renovation of
the Samuel Huntington School for adult education and central offices would be
delayed for two years.
Monday’s 7:30 p.m. City Council meeting will be held at the
Kelly STEAM Magnet Middle School auditorium, 25 Mahan Drive, because the City
Hall elevator is out of order. The public hearing on three
ordinances, including the $385 million school plan, will be held at the start
of the meeting.
A public hearing on the proposed alternative plan, sponsored
by Mayor Peter Nystrom, Council President Pro Tempore Joseph DeLucia and
Alderwoman Stacy Gould, would be held Monday, Aug. 15.
The full, $385 million plan to be considered Monday,
endorsed by the School Building Committee, calls for building new schools on
the grounds of the John B. Stanton, Uncas and John Moriarty elementary schools
and one at the site of the former Greeneville School and other contiguous land
owned by the city.
Once the new schools are completed, students would move in,
and the old buildings would be demolished. Then sports fields and playgrounds
displaced by the construction project would be built where the old buildings
stood. Huntington, Veterans’ Memorial, Wequonnoc and Mahan elementary schools
would be closed, though Wequonnoc could become a virtual learning center.
Teachers’ Memorial would undergo a complete, $99 million
renovation in the costliest portion of the overall project, and Huntington
School would become the adult education and central office building, with
additional use as a community recreation center.
Nystrom said the $385 million price tag for the entire
school construction project is “a big ask” of city voters at a time when
inflation is in full swing and anticipated high winter fuel costs will be on
the horizon by the Nov. 8 election.
He said he would rather prioritize the elementary school
projects, building all four schools at once, rather than the phased plan being
considered. Nystrom pledged that the city would bring back the Teachers’
Memorial project and the Huntington School renovations for central office and
adult ed in two years.
Nystrom said he was concerned that if the school projects
referendum fails in fall, the city would face spending millions of dollars on
necessary repairs on school buildings that ultimately must be closed and
discontinued.
Mark Bettencourt, chairman of the School Building Committee
and former council president pro tempore, conceded that funding decisions for
new schools is up to the City Council. But he said putting off part of the
project means the city’s middle school students at Teachers’ Memorial would be
left behind for years longer. Kelly Middle School was renovated several years
ago.
“I don’t think it’s the way to go, because you run the risk
of having an inferior middle school compared to the rest of the district,”
Bettencourt said. “But I think it’s something we have to consider.”
School Superintendent Kristen Stringfellow said in an email
comment on the alternative plan that there’s no doubt that the entire project
is needed, “for the health, safety and academic success of the students in our
city.”
She said it is up to the City Council to decide how to
proceed with the plan.
“I believe they will map out a plan that the community will
be able to support,” Stringfellow said in the email.
After growing up in town, developer helps lead Windsor downtown revitalization
WINDSOR — Greg Vaca grew up in town and is now spearheading
a new downtown development. He attended the high school down the road, fell in
love with the center of town and he came back after college hoping to
rejuvenate the area that was once bustling.
“I grew up near Windsor Center,” Vaca said. “We would ride
our bikes into town, and we'd go to the baseball card shop and we go to the ice
cream shop. We had a Baskin-Robbins — there was all this stuff to do. The
drugstore felt like more of a community center, right? And all of that is
gone.”
Vaca is the founder of Grava Properties and he plans to
convert the Windsor Center Plaza into a three-story building with apartments
above first-floor retail space.
The existing building is set back from the road, but Vaca
plans to change that with this project.
“We're going to rebuild the street line, and with very
traditional architecture, so that the town of Windsor now again, has the three
walls to their room, which is like the town green,” Vaca said. “We're basically
going to put the the historic street wall back to where it was.”
Grava Properties plans to own and operate the buildings
under an agreement with the Mastriani family, who owns the Windsor Center
Plaza.
The property is within walking distance of the Windsor CT
Rail and Amtrak station, making it part of the town’s transit-oriented
development district. The project will be funded with $2.5 million in federal
money.
The Planning and Zoning Commission will vote on the future
of the project in September. Planning and Zoning Commission Chair Anita Mips
said the project is a great way to bring people back downtown, but declined to
say whether the panel will be inclined to vote in favor of it.
If approved, the construction will occur in tandem with a
$1.2 million “road diet” project funded by state bonding on Broad Street (Route
159). State Rep. Jane Garibay, D-Windsor, has supported the project from her
role in the legislature and co-executive director of the First Town Downtown
organization in Windsor.
“We have actively been working for the last 10 years to get
a plan of what people want to see in their town,” said Garibay, who lives on
Broad Street. “I love smart streets. I want to be able to walk our town.”
Part of the research First Town Downtown has been doing
revealed that 70 percent of people who drive downtown use the road as a
through-way and do not stop at any businesses. She hopes the updates will
attract and retain young people.
“(Young people) want walkability,” Garibay said. “They want
services, shops and restaurants. It’s a certain style of living.”
The road diet would decrease the number of lanes from four
to two with a center turning lane on Broad Street in the downtown area.
“The road design will slow that traffic down,” Garibay said.
“People will learn that traffic slows down in downtown and will stay on the
highway. It’s a whole different way of thinking of it.”
Most of the concerns about the project relate to traffic,
according to Vaca. He said a traffic study indicated it would not adversely
impact the area, particularly since the goal of the project is to increase foot
traffic.
“We are the perfect town for this type of development,”
Garibay said.
HARTFORD — The first apartment building in the North
Crossing development around Hartford’s Dunkin’ Donuts Park is pumping up the
amenities for urban dwellers: a fitness center on steroids, a rooftop lounge
and cabanas around a pool.
Yes, cabanas around a pool in downtown Hartford.
An enclosed outdoor courtyard with the pool, grilling
stations, bluestone walkways and an amphitheater built into the property’s
sloping terrain is at the heart of the $50 million development of 270 rentals,
the first of what could be as many as 1,000 apartments that could be built on
around the ballpark in the coming years.
“This is really our signature place where we expect people
to be gathering,” developer Randy Salvatore, said, pointing to the courtyard
during a tour of the building.
The apartments, named “The Pennant,” a nod to the ballpark
across Trumbull Street, are still being finished, work that is expected to wrap
up in November. But the first 19 tenants have moved in, and leasing has been
strong with 104 units — 40% of the total — now rented and demand exceeding
leasing projections, Salvatore, of RMS Cos. of Stamford, said.
“We’re leasing them as fast as we can build them, it’s that
simple,” Salvatore said. “If it continues, I’m going to say another six months
and we’re going to be done.”
Salvatore is already looking ahead to the next phase of
mixed-use development, across from the main entrance to the ballpark. But the
original developers of the ballpark and the land around it — fired from the job
in 2016 — are seeking in court to regain control of the property Salvatore was
subsequently chosen to develop — part of a much larger legal battle over the
termination.
“The lawyers are all talking, but from my understanding, we
are going ahead,” Salvatore said. “I can’t control what the courts say or do,
but unless someone tells us otherwise, we are planning on starting in
September. And clearly, the market warrants it. If we were bullish before, we
are more bullish now.”
New era of redevelopment
North Crossing marks a new phase in Hartford’s
redevelopment. In the last decade, apartment projects have focused largely on
converting older, often vacant, commercial buildings into residential rentals.
The efforts seek to boost long-elusive 24/7 vibrancy in the city and give a
much needed lift to the city’s tax coffers.
Since 2014, 2,800 apartments have either been added or are
now in construction in and around downtown Hartford, the majority of them
partly financed with low-cost, state-taxpayer-backed loans from the Capital
Region Development Authority. The financing for the first phase of North Crossing
includes a $12 million, low-cost loan from CRDA.
The new, from the ground up, mixed-used construction near
the ballpark is aimed at constructing a new neighborhood. North Crossing could
be followed by similar development in “Bushnell South” on parking lots east of
the Bushnell Center for the Performing Arts along Capitol Avenue and elsewhere
in the city.
In apartment projects with CRDA financing, occupancy has
remained resilient coming out of the worst of the pandemic, after dipping in
2020, according to the quasi-public agency.
Salvatore said 75% of the tenants who have signed leases so
far are moving in from outside Hartford or another state, evidence, he said,
that North Crossing is attracting people new to the city. Leasing, Salvatore
said, is not solely a game of musical chairs with apartment landlords trying to
attract tenants who already live in rentals in the downtown area.
Strong apartment demand has pushed rents higher in Hartford,
throughout Connecticut and across the country. A recent report from rent.com
showed the average rent for a one-bedroom apartment in Hartford rose 14% from a
year ago, to $1,747 a month.
Starting rents at The Pennant range from $1,500 for a studio
to $2,200 for a two-bedroom unit. The sizes range from 537 square feet for the
studios to 1,228 square feet for the two-bedrooms. There also are two
three-bedroom apartments at 1,379 square feet, starting at $3,300 a month.
But those price points don’t include a $50 monthly amenity
fee, and parking adds another $100 a month per car in the 328-space parking
garage connected to the apartment building.
The city of Hartford also has agreed to help support affordable
units in the first phase through federal funding, contributing up to $900,000
over 20 years.
In a development where the majority of apartments are
market-rate, the addition of affordable units became crucial to winning
neighborhood backing. An agreement calls for a minimum of 10% affordable
rentals, including 5% for families earning up to 80% of the area’s median
income.
Salvatore said he has just begun marketing the ground floor
storefront space of 3,500 square feet.
Salvatore, also a major developer in New Haven and a partner
in the conversion of the top floors of downtown Hartford’s Hilton into rentals,
is upbeat about long-term leasing trends. But Salvatore also said he is keeping
a close eye on economic conditions, especially as growth has slowed and
concerns about a recession deepen.
“It would be foolish not to be watching what is happening
there,” Salvatore said. “So I do think we’re probably going to go into a
recession, but I am taking a very long-term approach to all of it. In past
recessions, we have built right through them. We have to be a little more
careful and have to make sure financially the whole thing is set up accordingly
so we can weather it.”
‘A grocery store will do well here’
Completion of the first of four phases of North Crossing
also is notable because it represents a major step forward in decades-long
hopes for reconnecting downtown Hartford with city neighborhoods to the north.
The construction of I-84 in the early 1970s tore them apart
and eventually became an expanse of desolate parking lots, a physical and
psychological barrier. The mixed-use redevelopment planned nearby at Main
Street and Albany Avenue also seeks to strengthen the connection.
North Crossing’s second phase on so-called “Parcel B” would
have 532 rentals and a 541-space garage, plus 10,000 square feet of storefront
space, at a cost of $120 million. The development would be split into two
parts. The first to be worked on would include 228 apartments and the parking
garage. The balance of the rentals would be completed in the second half.
As Salvatore pushes ahead, he said he is still actively
pursuing a full-service grocery store for the development. The grocery store is
a top priority for the city to address the “food desert” in the area, made more
dire by the recent fire that destroyed the Sigourney Market in neighboring
Asylum Hill.
“We all believe there is a need here, and a grocery store
will do well here, but the grocer needs to see the success and momentum of the
development,” Salvatore said. “It’s one thing for them to see renderings of
what we’re doing, and it’s another thing for them to see the actual building
and people living in the building who will be future customers.”
And that there will be hundreds more in the next phase, he
said.
Salvatore said the best probable location for the grocery
store is on “Parcel A” near the city’s public safety complex. He said it could
be built at the same time as the second phase on “Parcel B” or after.
On a recent tour, Salvatore showed off model apartments and
amenities. Dining areas in one-bedroom units that can double as work-at-home
spaces separated from kitchens with pocket doors to provide a less distracting
backdrop in virtual meetings. In studios, pocket doors can separate beds from
living areas.
The Pennant will be showcased on Oct. 13 when the building
hosts the annual “Big Mo’” event. The event is typically held at a development
project that is a sign of revitalization in city, with “Mo’” short for
momentum.
The rooftop lounge isn’t yet cleared for visitors, but
Salvatore points out the two-lane bowling alley and a multisport simulator.
Clear garage-style doors open from the first floor lounge with its billiards
and foosball tables to the courtyard, spaces also intended as an alternative
for tenants who are working in their apartments and want a less formal place
than the building’s co-working space.
“Maybe they are going to sit by the pool with a laptop in a
lounge chair during the day and be working,” Salvatore said.
Middletown luxury apartment developers seek tax deal for small businesses
MIDDLETOWN — A $65 million luxury apartment complex proposed
near the Cromwell line is seeking a tax stabilization agreement from the city
to allow project leaders to set aside $1 million for economically disadvantaged
business owners.
The housing complex, to be built on the grassy field at the
rear of 494 Newfield St., would consist of 414-unit one- and two-bedroom
apartments constructed with eco-friendly and energy-efficient materials, and
include a community garden that waters itself with rainwater collected from the
rooftop. Other amenities will be included.
A construction timeline has not yet been determined,
according to Landmark Investment Group project liaison Alan Marshall.
There will also be electric bikes and car-charging stations,
access to public transportation, trash recycling and hydrodynamic separators to
keep pollution out of nearby wetlands, he explained.
“We really took a lot of time and effort to make sure we had
green-friendly tax policies related to this project, and make sure the project
is green for our city — one of the things that was crucial for us,” said
Marshall, referring to the site owned by Landmark developer Glen Russo.
When Russo approached Marshall, who has served on the
Middlesex United Way Racial Equity and Inclusion impact team about being a
consultant on the project, he pitched an idea to make it stand out from others.
“We should include a socially and economically disadvantaged
option for minority contractors,” Marshall said, which would include
historically underserved populations, including women and LGBTQ+ individuals.
The minority set-aside is a federal
standard and form of affirmative action.
Marshall surmises there are a number of reasons why socially
and economically disadvantaged small business owners have not been able to
secure such jobs in the past. “Maybe it’s the history of the country … or the
opportunities (and resources) to bid on projects this massive.
“There are so many reasons why people have been
disenfranchised from putting their bids in. For me, it’s a matter of giving
(them) a shot and convincing our investors to do so as well,” he added.
The project is estimated to have a $55.8 million economic
impact in the first phase, Marshall said. Over the 100-year life of the
endeavor, the developer expects to generate $1.52 billion dollars of local
economic activity.
During the first two phases, as many as 629 contractor jobs
would be created, said Marshall, who hopes this will set a precedent for these
types of developments. “It gives so much back to our city,” he said.
Marshall called the proposal a “monumentally progressive
deal for the city that incentivizes businesses and minority contractors” at the
July 14 council meeting.
“That’s something that no private developer has ever done in
Middletown to provide equity to minority communities,” Marshall explained.
Russo already has a tax stabilization agreement with the
city, however, he is proposing it be transferred to Newfield Residential, a
newly created limited liability company, Acting Director of Economic and
Community Development Bobbye Knoll Peterson said.
Robert Dale of Rye, N.H., Jeffrey Albert of Princeton, N.J.,
and James O’Donnell of Moorestown, N.J., are partners at Newfield Residential.
Their past projects include Kensett in Darien, Woodside Trumbull, Evan’s Mill
in Cherry Hill, N.J., Palmer Hill in Stamford and Kingfield in Rye Brook, N.Y.
Landmark also developed the apartments on George Street, off
Route 66. “This will be double that,” Marshall said.
In an April 28 letter to Mayor Ben Florsheim, Russo wrote
that he purchased the land in 2002 when the tax rate was 32.8, including fire
services.
Now, the combined rate is 44.2 — a 34.7 percent increase,
Russo wrote. The rate is higher than comparable towns, such as Glastonbury,
Avon and Farmington, which “command substantially higher rental rates while
offering lower property taxes.”
Tax incentives, Russo said, are “a critical step forward.”
Another unique feature is an effort to draw tenants downtown
with a “Discover Middletown” program. The developer will purchase $100,000
worth of Downtown
Business District gift cards to encourage support for small local
proprietors, Marshall said.
As part of these housing developments, new tenants are given
a “luxury” gift basket with chocolate, champagne, local maps and other items as
a welcome gift.
Attorney Natasha Ortiz spoke in favor of the
more-than-year-long project proposal at the council meeting. “It is definitely
needed for the minority contractors whose interest (in the project) has only
grown exponentially,” she said.
Ortiz asked for the application to be treated with “critical
urgency.”
Marshall told councilors the proposal would be a big boon
for the city. “The one thing to think about is the economy is down. We’re
nearing an economic crisis and things couldn’t look more bleak for our country
— even for our city,” he explained.
“It’s been reported that households are now losing $6,000 a
year out of their income because of rising costs,” Middletown Ministerial
Alliance liaison Deborah Hopkins said at the meeting.
She’s concerned about the “ripple effect,” asking
rhetorically, “what is it going to look like down the road?”
Contractor Jerome Holley, who owns Middletown-based Holley
Electric; and city native, Xavier High School alumnus, and former Detroit Lions
starting safety Amari Spievey lent their voices to the plan.
“I’m very proud to be a part of it, and I hope we can get it
going,” Spievey told councilors.
“They have a product that has shown to be successful in
other communities. It’s something we’re excited to do,” Peterson said this
week.
“What we can see is what this development group has created
and how it looks. It’s a very high-quality product that will last this
community for many, many years,” she explained.
The council will consider the tax measure at 7 p.m. Monday
at City Hall.