[BPt111]

What of this of this ? A start for New Britain


NEW BRITAIN — The keys to the Berkowitz Building are in the hands of its new owner, Hartford developer Douglas Bromfield, who will transform the eyesore into retail and apartment space.

“It’s an incredible feeling,” said Mayor Erin Stewart, who worked to get the deal completed. “Everyone has known for years that this has been an eyesore. It goes to show you that transit-oriented development opportunities can happen. This is definitely tied to CTfastrak.”

The building, which sits at the gateway between Main Street and Little Poland, has been vacant for years. Bromfield and the city closed on the property last week, turning over the keys to the developer who is known for his restoration work in Hartford.

The plan for the building is to include retail space on the first floor and 27 apartments on the upper floors. The building and two additional related parcels stretching to Beaver Street were sold to Bromfield for $130,000. Bromfield did not return phone calls Friday.

“Finally!,” said Bill Carroll, the city’s business development director, who will likely be working with the project when it comes time to get new businesses in the building. “It was one of the biggest eyesores, if not the biggest eyesore, coming in as the gateway to Little Poland. I know this was a priority of Mayor Stewart’s, and she should be congratulated for closing the deal. She got the job done.”




New Britain closes deal on Berkowitz Building - News - Mobile

[EUPL]

Allot of great things are happening in New Britain as far as development, Erin has done a great job

[hyechica]

Originally Posted by EUPL

Allot of great things are happening in New Britain as far as development, Erin has done a great job

totaly agree with you i grew up in new britain and it has made so much progress this same building was ssupposed to be demolished years ago but no one ever jumped on it.

erin has done an amazing job they just opened up a dairy bar on the site of the former guidas dairy bar, these same owners put a gas station/dunkin donuts ( building is built they just need to finish whatever else they have to get done. same people are putting a Italian restaurant and Alzheimer facility in the back of the property as well.

new britain tends to get a bad rap and when people would ask me where i was from and they would turn there nose not all of new britain is bad i was fortunate to grow up between stanley quarter and aw stanley park.

at one time new britain was the hardware city of the world a lot of things were manufactured in new britain and shipped all over the world. new britains downtown in the 30s 40s 50s 60s 70s was booming shops restaurants the whole nine yards. stores my parents used to tell me growing up.


i tell people dont judge a book by its cover check out new britain one and then make your observations

[ctguy87]

That's a stunning old building - glad to see it being restored. Curious to see what the rents will be.

[MrGompers]

I hate to be the party pooper, but that building is located next to one of the worst areas of the city (North St)
They WILL NOT be attracting any yuppies or hipsters to that property. Perhaps a few Polish immigrants who don't know any better will rent there.

Very unfortunate because from that location you can walk to Fast track bus station, a grocery store, and many restaurants on Broad St. City should have demolished it and put in a park instead.

[JayCT]

Originally Posted by MrGompers

I hate to be the party pooper, but that building is located next to one of the worst areas of the city (North St)
They WILL NOT be attracting any yuppies or hipsters to that property. Perhaps a few Polish immigrants who don't know any better will rent there.

Very unfortunate because from that location you can walk to Fast track bus station, a grocery store, and many restaurants on Broad St. City should have demolished it and put in a park instead.

There are already more than enough parks and empty lots in New Britain and most cities in our state for that matter. I hope the developer can turn the building around and save it. This does not have to be a luxury building, just a nice clean one. That could help turn the area around. The city really should do as much as possible to make this a success since it will set the direction for the area. Jay

[ctguy87]

Originally Posted by MrGompers

I hate to be the party pooper, but that building is located next to one of the worst areas of the city (North St)
They WILL NOT be attracting any yuppies or hipsters to that property. Perhaps a few Polish immigrants who don't know any better will rent there.

Very unfortunate because from that location you can walk to Fast track bus station, a grocery store, and many restaurants on Broad St. City should have demolished it and put in a park instead.

In it's current state, yes. The goal is for gentrification in and around the FASTRAK stops. It might be a little ambitious and lofty since for the most part, CT residents are averse to our cities, but at least the effort is being made.

[MikefromCT]

Originally Posted by ctguy87

In it's current state, yes. The goal is for gentrification in and around the FASTRAK stops. It might be a little ambitious and lofty since for the most part, CT residents are averse to our cities, but at least the effort is being made.

Not sure I'd go so far as to say CT residents are adverse to our cities (Middletown, Stamford and New Haven have become popular for young people), but they're definitely adverse to that city. And let me emphasize, I've always supported the idea of taking old buildings and former industrial sites and rehabbing them for uses like this. Having said that, as someone else already stated, the location of this particular building will deter young millenials or middle-income renters. The whole neighborhood would have to undergo transformation in order for there to be a significant improvement, and I don't see that happening there.

[ctguy87]

Originally Posted by MikefromCT

Not sure I'd go so far as to say CT residents are adverse to our cities (Middletown, Stamford and New Haven have become popular for young people), but they're definitely adverse to that city. And let me emphasize, I've always supported the idea of taking old buildings and former industrial sites and rehabbing them for uses like this. Having said that, as someone else already stated, the location of this particular building will deter young millenials or middle-income renters. The whole neighborhood would have to undergo transformation in order for there to be a significant improvement, and I don't see that happening there.

Middletown? A large town that's mainly suburban. Stamford? "New" and has access to the city. New Haven? Yale-ies and an Apple Store.

Bridgeport, Waterbury, Hartford, New Britain? Nothing going for them and awful reputations - and without a single gentrified neighborhood.

I agree that we should reutilize our old buildings and encourage infill in existing built up areas, and logically this location may not be the BEST place to start. Additional work needs to be done surrounding this building and really on the whole stretch to the busway stop....but the fact that someone is actually investing in one of our cities is encouraging.

[JayCT]

Originally Posted by ctguy87

Middletown? A large town that's mainly suburban. Stamford? "New" and has access to the city. New Haven? Yale-ies and an Apple Store.

Bridgeport, Waterbury, Hartford, New Britain? Nothing going for them and awful reputations - and without a single gentrified neighborhood.

I agree that we should reutilize our old buildings and encourage infill in existing built up areas, and logically this location may not be the BEST place to start. Additional work needs to be done surrounding this building and really on the whole stretch to the busway stop....but the fact that someone is actually investing in one of our cities is encouraging.

I have to disagree with you on a couple of points. Downtown Middletown is not suburban, it is small city urban. Main Street has a lot of dense commercial development along it with some really great stores and restaurants. The city has however been slow IMHO in revising its zoning to allow conversion of commercial buildings along Main Street and nearby to allow residential. Except for homes on streets off Main Street and one or two apartment complexes nearby, there is not much residential in the heart of downtown Middletown. That appears to be changing though since the city just relaxed some of its parking requirements to allow space over first floor retail to be used for residential purposes.

As for Hartford and Bridgeport, do you even know these cities? Both are experiencing a massive boom in downtown housing. In Hartford, hundreds of new housing units have been built in new or renovated commercial buildings in recent years. There are currently something like 900 more units that have been approved or are under construction. Plus Hartford has one of the tightest rental markets in the country. Between that and the other new development going up there (Front Street, Ballpark, UConn, Science Center, Convention Center, etc.) I would say that Hartford has a lot going for it. Certainly a lot more than most other small cities around the country.

Bridgeport has had several hundred housing units also built there over the past several years and several hundred more are currently under construction. Downtown Bridgeport has been discovered as a cost effective alternative to the outrageous housing costs of lower Fairfield County. A number of new restaurants have been added there and the once abandoned north section is abuzz with construction activity to convert buildings to residential and retail/commercial space. Again hardly nothing going on for them either. Jay