CT company’s iconic headquarters targeted for demolition. Time running out for effort to save it
Time is running out to save the Timex Group headquarters, considered by some as a
gem of 21st-century corporate architecture but by others, a property that has
left a small western Connecticut town divided over its place in future economic
development.
Built on a hillside in Middlebury in 2001, the
pill-shaped building’s exterior walls are made entirely of glass, conceived as
visually moving fluidly between inside and the nearly 100 acres that surround
the building. The structure’s interior is an early example of an open-floor plan,
coming at least a decade before other businesses started adopting such designs.
In the face of unfolding plans for demolition and
redevelopment for warehousing and distribution, preservationists fighting for
the building’s survival view one of the structure’s greatest attributes being
the physical incorporation of Timex’s identity as the iconic watchmaker into
the main floor.
An embedded line runs through the floor of the space and an
oculus — a circular window — in the domed roof filters a band of sunlight onto
the line which is marked off by bronze medallions. Those medallions track
solstices and equinoxes, a nod the company’s long history of measuring time.
“There’s other buildings that look like what the company
makes,” Nick Stuller, founder and president of the nonprofit Save Historic Middlebury, Inc.,
said. “We did an enormous amount of research, and it’s the only building in the
world that we are aware of where the building is what the company makes. The
building is actually a timekeeping piece. It’s a functioning example.”
The nonprofit, formed last May, has a long-term goal of
advocating for the passage of local historic preservation ordinances in
Middlebury. But the all-volunteer Save Historic Middlebury’s most urgent issue,
Stuller said, “is to stop this from getting knocked down.”
The group is now pressing its case with the National Park Service, which
oversees listings on the National
Register of Historic Places.
Some high-profile supporters have lined up behind the
fledgling nonprofit. Those include the U.S. chapter of Docomomo International,
a nonprofit that documents and advocates for the preservation of buildings,
sites and neighborhoods that mark the modern and post-modern architectural
movements.
Liz Waytkus, executive director of the U.S. chapter, said
the organization typically focuses on post-World War II architecture and has
recently moved into the 1970s and 1980s.
“Which bring us to Timex, right?” Waytkus said. “It is the
very first time our organization has advocated for the preservation of a 21st
century building, which from a timeline perspective is a huge leap. But if you
look at this building, it’s clearly expressed in a very classically, modern
way.”
The roots of Timex in Connecticut stretch back to 1854 and
its iconic advertising campaign “takes a licking and keeps on ticking” is known
to generations of consumers. That combined with embedding the idea of time in
the architecture “made it a very easy project to support because it’s an
exceptional building,” Waytkus said.
Tough push to preserve
Even with that provenance, the push to preserve the building
more than a quarter mile off Christian Road will be a tough one.
In December, the Connecticut
Historic Preservation Review Board unanimously declined to support a
nomination to the National Register. According to the board’s draft
minutes of the meeting, the application from Save Historic Middlebury
painted a picture of an architecturally interesting building. But the
application did not provide enough context of how the building fit into the
history of watchmaking or how its attributes such as the open-floor plan fit
into broader architectural trends, according to the minutes.
“The problem really wasn’t necessarily with the building as
with the nomination,” said Christopher Wigren, the board’s chairman and deputy
director of Preservation Connecticut,
the former Connecticut Trust for Historic Preservation. “It’s possible that the
building could meet the requirements for the National Register nomination.”
The usual requirement is that structures be at least 50
years old — and at 24 years old, the Timex Building falls far short of that
hurdle. But the requirement is not hard-and-fast. Some buildings below the
half-century mark — Hartford’s
Phoenix Mutual “Boat Building,” and The Glass House in New Canaan, for
example — have been listed early on the National Register.
“The register is set up to allow younger buildings,” Wigren
said, “if they can demonstrate they have exceptional significance. That is
especially important. Context comparisons — if you’re saying it’s exceptionally
important, that’s compared to what?”
Stuller said the nonprofit now will directly press its case
for the National Register with the park service. But Save Historic Middlebury
also has another obstacle: properties won’t be listed if there are objections
from the owner — and there are.
Timex, which is downsizing its space and is expected to
relocate to Shelton this spring, sold the building and grounds in 2023 to a
development partnership for $7.5 million. The developer — Southford LLC — plans to
construct a warehouse and distribution facility of 670,000 square feet in two
buildings, nearly 10 times the size of Timex.
“If a third party tries to register your property and you
object — and we did — it will never be listed,” David Drubner, a principal in
Southford, said.
Stuller said the nonprofit is not deterred and is still
pressing ahead. Even if the property were not listed on the National Register —
winning certain protections against demolition — it would be possible that it
could obtain a lesser designation from the park service. The designation — “a
determination of eligibility”— recognizes that if there was support from the
owner, the property likely would be listed.
The Timex headquarters — its design led by architect Doug
Disbrow — also would appear on the National Register’s website as a significant
property, Stuller said.
“It’s an honorary thing, but it’s also quite meaningful,”
Stuller said. “And God forbid that the building does come down, at least it
will be, in perpetuity, memorialized on the park department’s web site. But we
hope, obviously, that it doesn’t come down.”
Timex did not return a call seeking comment.
Reprieve from demolition?
At least for now, there may be a bit of a reprieve from
demolition, but it has little to do with architectural preservation.
The town of Middlebury had approved the plans for the
controversial warehouse, eyeing the property tax revenue, that, by one
estimate, could be as much as $1.7 million a year.
But a recent Waterbury Superior Court decision has halted
construction following an appeal by a local group, Middlebury
Small Town Alliance, that opposes warehouse construction, particularly at
the Timex property.
The group’s lawn signs proclaiming “No Distribution
Facilities in Middlebury” are posted on properties around the Timex property.
The court’s decision turns on a legislation
buried in the approved state budget in 2023 that was narrowly tailored
to block warehouse construction in Middlebury — specifically on the Timex
property — by a state legislator who lives in the area.
The law bars towns with populations fewer than 8,000 from
approving the construction “or use of a warehousing or distribution facility”
exceeding 100,000 square feet on any site of less than 150 acres, that contains
more than 5 acres of wetlands and is within two miles from an elementary
school. All those attributes fit Middlebury and the Timex property.
Further appeals are expected.
Since the construction of the Timex headquarters, five
residential subdivisions have been approved by the town and built in the
surrounding area.
Gary Kline, president of the homeowners association of one
of them, Avalon Farms, said the town approvals demonstrated that Middlebury saw
the area as prime for residential construction. The homeowners did know that
they were buying in an area that also had industrial development, Kline said
But Kline said the scale of the warehouse is something that
homeowners could never have anticipated.
“The feeling is, it just doesn’t belong here with the truck
traffic and the noise pollution,” Kline said. “Then there is our pond. So we’re
worried about all the runoff and the chemicals and everything else that will
head there.”
Town officials say the Timex property is the ideal location
for warehouse and distribution, a mile from I-84 and close to Waterbury-Oxford
Airport.
“Historically, corporations — when they build — they usually
build a building that is absolutely tailored to their specific needs,” Curtis
Bosco, Middlebury’s zoning enforcement officer, said. “And sometimes, they go
overboard to build a monument to their industry or to their companies.”
But when they move on, “they leave a building that is very
difficult to transition into repurposing,” Bosco said.
Just knocked on the door
Stuller, the founder of Save Historic Middlebury, said he is
a fairly recent transplant to Middlebury, having moved into the town five years
ago.
Stuller, the founder and chief executive of the tech
company BenFi, said he only learned
about the Timex property in early 2023 after hearing about the debate over the
warehouse. He did some googling and saw photos of the building and thought that
might make for an interesting topic for a school report for his daughter, then
in third grade.
“We knocked on the door one day and asked for a two-minute
peek,” Stuller said. “Next thing you know, they gave us this tour, and an hour
and 15 minutes later, we left. We met the CEO and the head designer who
happened to have flown in from Italy that week. They gave us watches. They gave
us a book about Timex and a walking tour guide of the property.”
Stuller’s daughter had plenty of information for her report,
and Stuller came away with something, too.
“Walking out of that building, I said to myself, ‘Wow. This
building cannot be demolished,’ ” Stuller said. “‘It’s insane. It’s crazy to
even think of knocking this building down.'”
“If I’d never seen the inside of the building, I never would
have had the emotional connection or architectural historical connection to the
building,” Stuller said.
Middletown YMCA has major renovations and larger facilit ahead: 'We have to upgrade everything'
MIDDLETOWN — The Northern Middlesex YMCA is getting
closer to raising the millions it needs to renovate its historic building,
transforming it into a modern, state-of-the-art community center. Ad
The 99 Union St. facility, listed on both the National
Register of Historic Places and Middletown’s Historic Properties List,
was built in 1928 and last renovated in 1972.
Work will include adding handicap accessibility, moving the
entrance near the parking lot, a new elevator, relocating the welcoming center,
increasing the wellness, health and fitness areas, and transforming recreation
places for youth into something a lot more “friendly,” YMCA President & CEO
Michele Rulnick said.
The member child care center for infants and toddlers, which
will be located where the front desk is now, will also be made bigger, and
security measures will be added.
So far, the All Together Better
campaign has garnered about $15 million in state, local and federal
money.
The Y recently received $8 million in state
Community Investment Funds, aid the agency applied for three times, Rulnick
said.
Staff initially received a $2 million Urban
Act Grant from the State Bond Commission.
“That helped us get rolling with the fundraising and was
helpful with the state money as well,” Rulnik said.
Last year, a
$1.1 million award came in from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban
Development Community
Project.
Middletown-based Liberty Bank also donated $1 million toward
the campaign last summer.
“That showed commitment by the community for this project,”
Rulnick said.
In addition, Durham Manufacturing has pledged $200,000, and $100,000 is
promised by Pratt & Whitney/RTX.
The Y already has pledges totaling $1.4 million from
about 53 members and other benefactors.
“We want to get to about $3 million in philanthropic
fundraising,” she said.
The Y has an online donation campaign at midymca.org/giving.
Because of the building’s historic nature, Rulnick
said, it will be eligible for tax credits.
Although the project is estimated to cost between $15
million and $16 million, Rulnick added, “inflation in these construction
projects is so significant.”
Other factors play into it, she said.
“When you are doing a project with a lot of state and
federal money, it is that much more expensive,” Rulnick added. “There are
extra rules you have to follow. You’re talking about prevailing wage, and other
things.”
The facility will increase in size by 8,800 square feet.
“We want to touch as much of the footprint of the building
as possible,” Rulnick said, “and the more money we raise, the more
opportunity we have.”
Work will also be done on the Schwarz men’s residence,
including a separate entrance for those living there.
Many historic features of the building will be retained,
such as the multiple fireplaces, she said.
The spin and fitness rooms will be moved upstairs, out of
the basement.
The hope is to begin the first phase of construction in
2026, while still keeping as many services going as possible, and maintaining
safety, she noted.
Another goal is to increase membership by 35%.
More support is still needed, Rulnick said.
“This is a very, very big and expensive building," she
said. "We have to upgrade everything, so it’s going to be quite costly to
do this right.”
West Haven to close parts of Spring Street to replace the culvert after years of waiting
WEST HAVEN — The city expects to close parts of Spring
Street this summer as it begins a project to replace a culvert.
Mayor Dorinda Borer announced on Facebook this week that the
city procured
the funding from the Department of Transportation for the project, a
significant stride forward for a project that began in 1999.
City Engineer Abdul Quadir said the project "was ready
to go to bid in 2005 but due to lack of funding has been postponed many
times."
Borer said in her Facebook post that the city needs to
upgrade the stormwater infrastructure and replace the bridge and part of the
road.
"These projects are extremely costly but necessary to
prevent the corroded road from collapsing," she wrote.
Quadir said the culvert has poor subsurface conditions and
extensive piling — the installation of new columns — will be required. The
current wooden piles will be replaced, he said. The project will also require
the relocation of a number of utilities, including gas, electric and a water
main, he said.
He added the delay in having the project funded is in part
due to seeking different funding streams; initially with the state funding 32%
of the project through a local bridge program. A federal bridge program was
then going to cover 80% of the costs with the state providing an additional
10%. Now, the city will fund the project with Local Transportation Capital
Improvement Program funds, which supports the entire project besides design
costs.
The delays require the city to apply for new permits from
the state Department of Energy and Environmental Protection and to modify its
design because of new guidelines, Quadir said.
"Costs have escalated and now will be around $3 million
depending on the final cost estimate from the Regional Water Agency for water
main relocation," he said.
Borer said in her post that the city would share information
about detours during construction closer to the project's start date. When
presenting the project to the Planning and Zoning Commission last year, Quadir
said the construction was expected to be about 150 days.
Stamford residents worry reopening West Main Street bridge could 'disrupt' parts of city
STAMFORD — There just isn't enough green space in the city, said Elizabeth Jenkins-Sahlin.
That's part of why the Stamford resident isn't in
favor of rehabilitating the West
Main Street bridge, to allow it to reopen to car and foot traffic. During a
Board of Representatives meeting on the project, Jenkins-Sahlin said reopening
the bridge could destroy the "tranquility" of nearby Mill River Park.
“I sincerely believe that Mill River Park is one of
Stamford's greatest assets,” Jenkins-Sahlin said. “It's a rare walkable,
car-free green space that enhances the quality of life for all residents.”
She said adding vehicular traffic to the area would
"fundamentally disrupt" the sanctity of the park.
“It's not like we have an abundance of green spaces that are
car-free,” Jenkins-Sahlin said.
She was one of 13 people who spoke during the public comment
period at Monday's Board of Reps meeting in favor of keeping the West Main
Street bridge closed.
The board was considering a resolution that supported
rehabilitating the existing structure of the West Main Street Bridge, allowing
the bridge to reopen to vehicular and pedestrian traffic.
Eventually, the board unanimously voted to sent the
resolution back to its Operation Committee for a public hearing. The
hearing will take place during the next Operations Committee meeting March 20.
The rehabilitation of the bridge was estimated to cost $6.7
million, according to a report from construction and engineering firm BL
Companies.
The bridge was built in 1888 and closed to cars in 2002. It
deteriorated as lawmakers argued over how to replace it. The city put a
prefabricated bridge, which cost $1.6 million and was open to pedestrian
traffic only, next to the bridge in 2023 after the original bridge was closed
to all traffic.
Multiple representatives during a previous Operations
Committee meeting last month, wanted to hold a public hearing on the project.
The committee, however, voted 6-3 to move through the resolution on the bridge
rehabilitation.
But at Monday's meeting of the full Board of
Representatives, there was strong public opposition to the project.
Michael Moore, president of the Stamford Downtown Special
Services District, said bringing more vehicle traffic along West Main Street
would “negatively impact the crucial connection between UConn Stamford's
residence hall and its campus building.”
He also said he was worried that Augustus Manor, an
independent senior housing facility on West Main Street near the bridge, “may
feel negative impacts of increased vehicular traffic.”
He also worried that more eastbound traffic through Main
Street in downtown “could threaten the viability of outdoor dining,” which he
said became “vitally important” to the restaurants in that area.
Nette Compton, president and CEO of Mill River Park
Collaborative, said she wanted the bridge open to only pedestrian traffic. She
said the bridge was a “lifeline” that connected the Whittingham Discovery
Center, ice rink, fountain and “our beautiful new inclusive playground” that
she said will reopen this summer.
“But if we allow vehicles back onto this bridge, we're
putting that connection and those children at risk,” Compton said. “As a
mother, that's something that keeps me up every night.”
Teachers from Hart Magnet Elementary School will walk along
the greenway to take their students on field trips to Mill River Park, Compton
said. However, she also said those teachers call Stamford police to help them
and their students cross Broad Street to go there.
“If we open this bridge to traffic, we're creating another
hazard in the heart of a space that is meant for people, not cars,” Compton
said.
Chris Dawson lives in North Stamford and said reopening the
bridge to vehicular traffic was “completely unnecessary and fiscally
irresponsible,” especially because bridges on Broad Street and Tresser
Boulevard are nearby.
He said he thought the money for the bridge improvements
would be better spent on pedestrian infrastructure and that West Side residents
he spoke with are “fed up with driver behavior.”
“I've run all around the West Side for exercise, which has
given me a terrifying understanding of the pedestrian dangers throughout the
community,” Dawson said.
In a departure from many of the other speakers, lifelong
Stamford resident Cynthia Bowser lives on the West Side and said during the
meeting she wanted the bridge to be reopened to vehicular and pedestrian
traffic. She said the bridge gave West Side residents access to downtown
Stamford when it allowed motorists.
“We need that bridge open to cars and to people to address
the vehicles that come in and out of that area,” Bowser said.
Portland waste and field remediation company acquired by NJ firm
Aprivately held waste remediation company in Portland, RED
Technologies LLC, has been acquired by an out-of-state sustainable waste
business.
The buyer is Reworld Holding Corp., which is based in
Morristown, New Jersey.
RED Technologies is a “profiled waste and field remediation
company” that operates a transfer station with on-site rail transloading
capabilities.
The facility identifies, sorts and manages or remediates
waste streams, including contaminated soils, asbestos, PCBs, and containerized
hazardous and non-hazardous waste. It handles more than 300,000 tons of
material annually.
RED Technologies also has a fleet of 36 railcars and more
than 100 vehicles and pieces of equipment.
The acquisition will strengthen Reworld’s operational and
logistical capabilities in the Northeast, according to an announcement.
"Joining Reworld is an exciting step for our team and
the communities we serve," said Adam Westhaver, vice president of RED
Technologies. "By combining our expertise and services with Reworld, we
will enhance our ability to deliver innovative and sustainable waste management
solutions."
Reworld said it will leverage the new Portland facility to
expand profiled waste services at its nearby facility, Bristol Resource
Recovery Facility, previously known as Covanta.