7 major projects to watch this summer in CT city. Why they bring change, what could come next.

As some long-delayed development projects break ground this summer in Hartford, a shake-out in the struggling downtown office market will start taking shape with a half dozen proposals expected for office-to-residential conversions.“There’s a sorting process that is going on how best to convert the buildings,” Michael W. Freimuth, executive director of the Capital Region Development Authority, said. “What strategy makes the most sense? Their value, interest rates and construction costs are all kind of in the stew.”The proposals could boost the downtown area’s apartment inventory by the hundreds, even as other apartment projects downtown and in the neighborhoods break ground or launch leasing campaigns.Freimuth, who heads the quasi-public agency that helped fund dozens of Hartford residential conversion projects in the last decade with state-taxpayer backed loans, said some of the potential deals are already on his desk.He declined to name the buildings involved because discussions are still in the early stages. But Freimuth said he expects proposals to begin surfacing later this summer.An apartment conversion plan for of  long-vacant Travelers Education Center on Hartford’s Constitution Plaza fell apart last year. (Aaron Flaum/Hartford Courant)Constitution Plaza is likely to be in the mix. The largest portion of the 1960s-era complex is facing foreclosure, and while its high-rise office towers are well-leased, other structures are largely vacant.A residential beachhead on the plaza was established nearly a decade ago when a hotel was converted to apartments. And one of the vacant structures, the former Travelers Education Center at 200 Constitution Plaza, was targeted last year for apartments but the deal fell apart.In addition, other potential residential conversions loom in the heart of the city’s central business district.One of them is 150 Trumbull St., a six-story, 1909 structure that houses Max’s Trumbull Kitchen. The structure was purchased in 2021 by Shelbourne Global Solutions LLC of Brooklyn, N.Y., downtown’s largest commercial landlord and an active residential developer around the corner on Pratt Street.Another possible conversion could be the long-vacant 275 Asylum St., at the corner of Ann Uccello St. The 4-story structure is now for sale with city-approved plans for 50 apartments. The 1920s building was most recently used as a magnet of the Hartford Public Schools.In the last decade. more than 3,000 new apartments have been built in downtown Hartford, the majority of them in converted, often outdated, office space. Another 1,000 or so are on the drawing boards, not counting long-term expectations for Bushnell South, near The Bushnell Center for the Performing Arts, and North Crossing, around Dunkin’ Park, Hartford’s minor league ballpark. The former office building at 275 Asylum St. in downtown Harford is up for sale. (Aaron Flaum/Hartford Courant) From office to apartmentThe office buildings now moving toward apartment conversion are older and cannot compete with prime office addresses such as City Place, Goodwin Square or One Financial Plaza, “the Gold Building.”The office towers are wrestling with rising vacancies in the aftermath of the pandemic, offering attractive rent and incentive deals. COVID-19 redefined the workplace, shifting more emphasis to working from home.The residential conversion of older office space in downtown Hartford is seen as a post-pandemic strategy to reduce office space in favor of apartments. Rental demand remains high, with occupancy rates generally 95% or better for projects that have come to the market in the last decade.At the same time, the strategy — underpinned by nudging tenants in older buildings to upgrade to affordable, prime space — preserves prime space for any future office leasing recovery.The Hartford skyline can be seen from one of the windows at the former Fuller Brush Co. factory in Hartford. Construction is well underway converting a portion of the complex to apartments. (Aaron Flaum/Hartford Courant) “We need to continue to convert to residential [older office buildings] at as fast a rate as we can because our occupancy rate in converted buildings is so high,” David Griggs, chief executive of the MetroHartford Alliance, the region’s chamber of commerce, said.‘Ongoing downsizing trend’Overall office availabilities — space that is vacant plus what is occupied but will become vacant in the near future —stood at 22.6% in Hartford’s central business district, as of March 31, according to CBRE, the commercial real estate services firm.That compares with 29.1% at the same time in 2023, CBRE said.But availabilities of prime, or “Class A” space in the central business district rose to nearly 27%, as of March 31, compared with 24.7% at the same point in 2023.John M. McCormick, executive vice president at CBRE in Hartford, said downtown leasing this year has benefitted from tenant relocations to the city and key renewals.“Unfortunately, that was not enough to offset the ongoing downsizing trend impacted by hybrid workforce strategies,” McCormick said. “The increase in inventory of available Class A office space was anticipated for 2024.”The alliance’s Griggs said despite the troubles in the office market, he sees positive momentum behind the recovery from the pandemic, which dealt the city a setback in its revitalization efforts.The light from a skylight shows an area on the top floor of the former Fuller Brush Co. factory in Hartford where apartments are now being constructed. (Aaron Flaum/Hartford Courant)Griggs points to the strength of how quickly new apartments are snapped up. Last week, a grand opening of the rentals at 99 Pratt St. was marked with just one of 97 apartments still available, Griggs said.There’s the resurgence of shops and restaurants along Pratt Street, buoyed by the city’s Hart Lift storefront revitalization grant program, funded by city pandemic relief funds.Griggs also said visitors are increasingly returning to the city. He pointed to last weekend’s concert by rapper 21 Savage at the Xfinity Theater, a Yard Goats game and a Hartford Athletic match, all heavily sold with parking accommodated.“That’s the kind of activity that gives me a lot of hope for where we’re going,” Griggs said. “We want that active, liveable, vibrant downtown core. So we’re attracting people to the city, but what we have to do is figure out how to keep them there longer.”“How do we get them to visit the restaurants and other places that exist to really start to build up Hartford as a destination?” Griggs said.Here are seven development projects in Hartford to watch this summer:Mark Mirko / Hartford CourantThe concourse at Hartford’s XL Center arena.(Mark Mirko/Hartford Courant)1. XL CenterNeighborhood: DowntownCost: To be determinedDeveloper: State of ConnecticutCompletion: To be determinedWhat to watch: A major upgrade to the lower half of the XL Center arena hit another roadblock this spring when bids for the project came in far over budget of $107 million. A second round of bids is expected this month, likely forcing another downsizing in the project’s scope.But state lawmakers threw a lifeline to the long-debated renovation in May, bumping up from $80 million to up to $125 million the total of state funds that could be invested to pay the bill. The venue’s operator, Los Angeles-based Oak View Group, must still commit at least $20 million as part of a public-private partnership.Why it matters: Major renovations are seen as crucial to the nearly 50-year-old arena keeping up with more modern venues. The investment by OVG, critical to the renovation, would boost the XL’s competitive muscle for attracting big-name concerts and sports tournaments. The goal is to make the traditionally money-losing venue profitable. Supporters say more bookings would benefit economically both the city and the region.Sean Patrick Fowler / Special to the CourantThe skyline of downtown of Hartford is visible about a mile from the development at Albany Avenue and Woodland Street in the city’s Upper Albany neighborhood. (Sean Patrick Fowler/Special to The Courant)A rendering shows the redevelopment of the long vacant corner at Albany Avenue and Woodland Street. (Crosskey Architects)2. Albany/WoodlandNeighborhood: Upper AlbanyCost: $19.5 millionDeveloper: Grow America, of New YorkCompletion: Late 2025What to watch: Construction at the corner of Albany Avenue and Woodland Street in Hartford’s North End are now underway. Two tenants have been lined up for storefront space — Liberty Bank and La Perle Restaurant & Bar in Stamford — but leases still need to be signed. The new block also will provide new quarters for a relocated city health department and WIC offices. Financing includes low-cost loans from the state and city.Why it matters:  A development at this location — contemplated for nearly two decades — is finally coming to fruition. The sit-down restaurant, long sought in a neighborhood dominated by take-out food, would help begin establishing Albany Avenue as a destination, rather than a pass-through between the suburbs and downtown.The atrium inside of the Pratt Street annex to 242 Trumbull St. in downtown Hartford. The University of Connecticut plans a conversion of office space into a residence hall for its regional campus in the city. (Aaron Flaum/Hartford Courant)3. University of Connecticut residence hallNeighborhood: DowntownCost: $28 millionDeveloper:  Shelbourne Global Solutions LLC, of Brooklyn, N.Y.; LAZ Investments and Lexington Partners, both of HartfordCompletion: Fall, 2026What to watch: UConn has indicated officially that it aims for the residence hall to be ready by the fall of 2026. But if the conversion of office space into 50 suites in the annex at 242 Trumbull St. gets a quick jump this summer, the fall of 2025 could be possible. The entrance to the annex is on Pratt Street.Why it matters: The residence hall will house up to 200 students, primarily at the UConn regional campus in downtown Hartford. The residence hall could make the Hartford campus more attractive for students who couldn’t get into UConn’s main campus in Storrs. A survey among those now attending classes in Hartford found strong interest in housing,The residence hall is seen as increasing foot traffic downtown and contributing to efforts to transform the city into a stronger college town.Kenneth R. Gosselin / Hartford CourantThe former Phoenix Insurance Co. building at 30 Trinity St., long been occupied by the Secretary of State, is being sold by the state along with the neighboring 18-20 Trinity St. Plans call for both to be converted to apartments. Both buildings are part of the Bushnell South area. (Kenneth R. Gosselin/Hartford Courant)4. Trinity Street buildingsNeighborhood: DowntownCost: $45 millionDeveloper: Pennrose LLC, of Philadelphia and The Cloud Co., of HartfordCompletion: To be determinedWhat to watch: Two historic buildings at 30 and 18-20 Trinity St. near Bushnell Park would be converted into 108 mixed-income apartments, the two structures connected by a pedestrian plaza. The state has agreed to sell the structures, used as state offices for decades, to the developers. But the deadline for the sale has been extended a couple of times, as the developers seek financing. The new deadline is by the end of 2024.Why it matters: The conversions are seen as difficult, but they would bring more housing along Hartford’s Bushnell Park, adding to a growing number of options. Conversion of the Trinity Street buildings, originally constructed for insurance companies in the early years of the last century, also would anchor the northwest corner of the larger Bushnell South area, where more than 1,000 apartments are planned in the coming years.Mark Mirko/The Hartford CourantA redevelopment of the Arrowhead Cafe building and a triangular-shaped property, at right, that are owned by the city will also include the “Flat Iron” building, at far right, and a historic building, at left, where there is now a housing cooperative. The properties are at the intersection of Main and Ann Uccello streets, northwest of Dunkin’ Park. (Mark Mirko/Hartford Courant)A rendering shows an addition to the Arrowhead Cafe building at Main and Ann Uccello streets in Hartford, at left, and the “Flat Iron” building, at far left. Both historic buildings have been long vacant but are part of the Arrowhead Gateway redevelopment (The Monroe Partnership/Carabetta Development)5. Arrowhead GatewayNeighborhood: DowntownCost: $19 millionDeveloper: Carabetta Development, of Meriden and San Juan Center, of HartfordCompletion: Summer, 2025What to watch: Financing for the long-delayed, mixed-use development, at Main and Ann Uccello streets, is expected to close this week. Preliminary work has already started on the site where 45 mixed-income apartments over storefront space will be created, all opening on a new pedestrian plaza built by the city.The project encompasses the reuse of three historic buildings, including the “Flat Iron” building. The Arrowhead Cafe building, owned by the city, will be paired with a new addition. A third, historic structure, a housing cooperative, also will be integrated into the development.Why it matters: This redevelopment is seen as pivotal for reconnecting Hartford’s downtown to the city’s northside neighborhoods. The connection has been disrupted for decades ever since the construction of the interstate highways in the late 1960s and early 1970s. Although Arrowhead Gateway is separate, it would build on the nearby North Crossing area, which includes apartments and  Dunkin’ Park, the city’s minor league ballpark.In the early 2000s, an attempt to resurrect the 1940s Aetna Diner diner as Dishes was short-lived, though the structure still bears the name over the front entrance in this file photo.6. Aetna DinerNeighborhood: Asylum HillCost: $6 millionDeveloper: Wayne Benjamin, of BloomfieldCompletion: 2025What to watch: A classic, but long vacant, chrome-and-steel diner that narrowly escaped demolition in 2017 will be renovated beginning this summer and reopened as a restaurant. A restaurant still needs to be signed as the tenant.The project is heavily financed by state grants, including $3 million approved by the State Bond Commission Friday. The 1940s Aetna Diner, later reborn as The Comet, was named to the National Register of Historic Places in 2021.Why it matters: The reopening of the diner is viewed as a critical component of neighborhood efforts to revitalize the heart of the business district along Farmington Avenue between Sigourney and Woodland streets. The restaurant also will contribute a push to get more people walking on the street, fostering a more comfortable, secure atmosphere.The former headquarters of the Fuller Brush Co. in Hartford dates to 1922. A portion of the complex is being converted into apartments under the name Bristle and Main, a nod to the building’s roots. (Aaron Flaum/Hartford Courant)7. Bristle & MainNeighborhood: NortheastCost: $42 millionDeveloper: Shelbourne Global Solutions LLC, of Brooklyn, N.Y.Completion: Summer, 2025What to watch: Three of the 10 buildings in the former Fuller Brush Co. factory on Main Street are now being converted into 155 apartments, all but five of them are market-rate.Why it matters: The Northeast neighborhood has long seen the redevelopment of the factory, its earliest portions dating to 1922, as anchoring the neighborhood’s revitalization. The focus on market-rate housing is deliberate to better balance the range of housing options available in the neighborhood.SOURCES: Capital Region Development Authority, developers, City of Hartford, Hartford Courant reportingKenneth R. Gosselin can be reached at kgosselin@courant.com.

Buy cryptocurrency

Source link

Refer And Earn Demat Account – Get ₹300 | Referral Program

Open Demat Account In Angel One For FREE