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March 12, 2025

Community Investment Fund Board OKs $77.14M in grants for Enfield mall redevelopment, other CT projects

CONTRIBUTED This rendering shows the proposed redevelopment of the Enfield mall site, which would include retail, recreation and multifamily housing.
By Michael Puffer

A roughly $250 million plan to transform Enfield’s dying mall into a mix of apartments, hotels, retail and restaurant space is in line for a $10 million state grant after a state panel included the project among 35 grants tentatively approved for $77.14 million in state bonding. 

“…that could really be transformative for all of our communities as we are seeing malls in general needing to be repurposed,” said House Minority Leader Vincent J. Candelora (R-North Branford), a member of the Community Investment Fund 2030 board. “A lot of them are dying around the state, and Enfield is sort of leading the way potentially as to what that project should look like. I think we have other malls down the road that might need the same sort of redevelopment.” 

Approved by state lawmakers in 2021, the Community Investment Fund 2030 Board has a mandate to approve up to $875 million in grants over a five-year period for community-building and economic development efforts in distressed communities. Tuesday’s vote was the sixth round of funding. 

Grants approved by the CIF board require final approval from the state Bond Commission but are virtually certain to meet approval after passing the CIF board. 

The next CIF funding round application will open April 28. Applications are due June 6, and the CIF board is expected to vote on its funding recommendations for that round on Sept. 30.

The $10 million approved for Enfield will go to help defray infrastructure costs for a redevelopment of the roughly 570,000-square-foot mall by Nebraska-based Woodsonia Real Estate Group Inc. 

Other grants approved Tuesday include: 

•    $8 million for environmental remediation of the former InterRoyal Mill property in Plainfield, a site the town is working to redevelop into a mixed-use community. 
•    $6.12 million to help the Greater Dwight Development Corp. in New Haven build 11 units of affordable housing and community space. 
•    $5 million to help Danbury advance streetscape upgrades in its downtown. 
•    $4.92 million for Access Community Action’s plans to renovate a Killingly church property to expand its food pantry and other services, as well as create affordable housing. 
•    $4.89 million to help Norwich reconstruct Fontaine Field. 
•    $4 million to help New London and the Garde Arts Center Inc. renovate and expand the Mercer Community Hall, creating affordable events space, while supporting arts and workforce opportunities. 
•    $4 million to help Waterbury continue its multi-year, multi-phase downtown streetscape and utility upgrade project. 
•    $3.78 million to fund Hartford’s Asylum Hill Congregational Church’s plans to remodel its Earl Exum Community Resource Center to better offer community programs. 
•    $3 million for upgrades to the Naugatuck Industrial Park, including new access roads and utilities. 
•     $2 million to help restore the Barnum Museum in Bridgeport. 
•    $2 million to upgrade the Friendship Service Center facility in New Britain, increasing emergency shelter capacity and other improvements. 
•    $2 million to help Planned Parenthood of Southern New England renovate a property into a new home for its New London health center. 
•    $2 million to help an affiliate of the Stamford Housing Authority improve Oak Park.
•    $2 million to support the United Way of Greater New Haven support a mixed-income, mixed-use downtown New Haven housing project. 
•    $1.8 million to help West Haven install traffic-calming, pedestrian safety and accessibility measures in the neighborhood around the Veteran Affairs Medical Center. 
•    $1.79 million to help New Britain advance plans for a redevelopment of 251 “obsolete” public housing units along Myrtle Street into a 330-unit, mixed-income housing development. The project will include new roads and infrastructure to connect the isolated parcel to the broader neighborhood. 
•    $1.6 million to help Hartford acquire and redevelop three properties in its Homestead Redevelopment Corridor. 
•    $1.5 million to help build a portion of the Norwalk River Valley Trail. 
•    $1.24 million to help the Capitol Region Education Council renovate a specialized educational and therapeutic facility in Windsor for autistic students. 
•    $1.15 million to help he YWCA Hartford Region Inc. renovate its Hartford building to establish The Center for Racial Justice and Gender Equity. 
•    $700,000 to help the Mary Wade Home senior care organization in New Haven plan a renovation and expansion of its Boardman Residential Care Home.
•    $250,000 to help Hartford advance plans for a mixed-use redevelopment of its Talcott Street Plaza. 
•    $250,000 to help Meriden plan a renovation of its Stoddard Municipal Building into a “one-stop” facility for human services. 
•    $250,000 to help Norwich plan for a redevelopment of the city’s portion of the former Norwich State Hospital.
•    $250,000 to help the Clay Arsenal Community Development Corp. plan for mixed-use redevelopments of two blighted properties. 
•    $250,000 to fund a study by the Connecticut Humanities Council of the needs of 560 cultural organizations in 55 Connecticut communities. 
•    $250,000 to help the Green Village Initiative Inc. in Bridgeport plan a countywide food hub. 
•    $250,000 to help the Housing Corp. of East Windsor plan a development to complement a planned senior and disabled apartment complex. 
•    $250,000 to help Bridgeport’s Mercy Learning Center prioritize capital renovations and expansion plans. 
•    $250,000 to help New Haven’s Mount Hope Temple Church expand its food pantry services. 
•    $250,000 to help Norwalk’s Open Door Shelter expand its housing portfolio. 
•    $250,000 toward a renovation and expansion of East Haven’s Family Resource Center. 
•    $250,000 to fund a community engagement and feasibility study for Hamden-based Transcend the Trend Inc.’s plan for a renovation of the former Paier College of Art campus into an arts and cultural hub. 
•    $250,000 to help Windham Preservation Inc. plan a restoration of the historic Windham Inn as housing, possibly with community flex space. 

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