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January 31, 2025

East Hartford mayor touts progress on large apartment, other developments

Connor Martin

From demolition of a portion of the former Founders Plaza office park to the sale of town-owned property for a 400-unit apartment complex, 2025 will be another year to push ahead large-scale economic redevelopment projects in East Hartford.

In his “State of the Town” address Thursday night, East Hartford Mayor Connor Martin outlined the headlining economic development projects for the year ahead. Most will be continuation of ambitious, multi-year efforts.

Town staff are setting the stage to invest a portion of a $6.5 million state grant to demolish the former Bank of America office building at 99 Founders Plaza, making way for a 300-unit apartment building facing the Connecticut River, Martin noted.

This is the first installment of a multi-year effort to build roughly 1,000 apartments mixed with retail, entertainment and other commercial uses along the riverfront. Martin said the investors behind “Port Eastside” have invested more than $22 million into the acquisition of various parcels for the project.

“That shows a real commitment to East Hartford,” Martin said. “This is going to help put East Hartford on the map and give people a reason to come to East Hartford.”

Martin also announced progress on other projects, including:

Concourse Park: Martin said he expects to sign over the 25-acre former Showcase Cinemas site off Silver Lane in February to developers for a project adding apartments in an amenity-rich community.  

This transfer was made possible after officials finalized the conditions for investing $10 million in state funds into infrastructure upgrades to facilitate the development, Martin noted. Construction is expected to begin this summer, he said.

Roberts Street hotel: New owners are transforming the former Hartford Hotel and Conference Center on Roberts Street into a new facility under two Marriott brands, Martin said. 

A space that will host a Starbucks is taking shape.

The Rentschler Field logistics center: Massachusetts-based National Development completed these neighboring warehouse buildings, totaling 2.5 million square feet of logistics space, last year. While Lowe’s Home Improvement has occupied one building, internet retailer Wayfair has only occupied a portion of the second building it has leased and is searching for sublease tenants. Martin said Wayfair has told town officials it has “interested parties” looking at the space.

Commerce Center apartments: West Hartford-based developer Simon Konover is advancing plans to build 150 apartments in five, three-story buildings on East River Drive, Martin said. 

This will complement the nearby Port Eastside development. It will also tie into the town’s Great River Park along the waterfront, he said.

Silver Lane Plaza redevelopment: Last year, a town-led effort spurred the demolition of a 107,148-square-foot retail building on the 22-acre “Silver Lane Plaza” site. The town acquired the blighted retail property for $4.6 million through eminent domain in early 2023. 

Investors have offered a plan mixing retail, restaurant and housing on the site, but the town has not yet sealed a deal. 

Meanwhile, Martin said, the town is preparing to demolish the last two existing retail buildings on the property.

New single-family housing development: The Capital Region Development Authority, working with the town, is expected to launch the demolition of the former McCartin School building in February, Martin said. 

This will create a 7-acre blank slate set among single-family neighborhoods near the Glastonbury town line. 

The town wants the property redeveloped into 16 to 20 single-family homes, and has grant funding to help defray infrastructure costs.

Church Corners Inn: The town is continuing its effort to redevelop a historic downtown building that had become a crime and problem-ridden boarding house. 

The town has partnered with developer Parker Benjamin in the effort to redevelop the property into 24 apartments above three retail spaces. 

With hazardous building materials testing complete, the town is working to hire an architect ahead of an effort to demolish the interior, Martin said.

Downtown events plaza: Work continues to transform a stretch of Bissell Street, right off Main Street, into a downtown events plaza surrounded by retail and restaurant offerings – akin to Hartford’s Pratt Street. 

Martin said the street will be closed to traffic this year in order to create a vibrant, pedestrian-only space. 

In the meantime, the town is studying ways to reconfigure roads behind Bissell Street in order to avoid any traffic delays from the change.

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