Issue link: https://nebusinessmedia.uberflip.com/i/1040984
www.HartfordBusiness.com • October 22, 2018 • Hartford Business Journal 7 Reporter's Notebook Gregory Seay | gseay@HartfordBusiness.com Real Estate, Economic Development/Construction, Banking & Finance and Manufacturing TECHNOLOGY/COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT Survey: 84% of CT households have broadband internet Access to broadband inter- net is seen as a major eco- nomic issue in Connecticut and elsewhere as states aim to shrink the digital divide between people who have internet and those who don't. But it appears access to broadband internet, such as cable, fiber optic or DSL, in Connecticut is fairly wide- spread. In fact, 84.1 percent of households in the state have a broadband-internet connection, according to a new American Community Survey report published by the Census Bureau. Nationally, 81 percent of households have a broad- band-internet subscription, the survey found. Why does broadband ac- cess matter? The survey points out that the internet has im- pacted multiple areas of our lives, from performing basic tasks like shopping or paying bills, to using social media to connect with fam- ily, friends and the larger community. More importantly, from an economic and workforce-de- velopment standpoint, it has become an avenue to pursue online college degrees. Even grade-school students are routinely using internet for research and homework. It has also impacted work life by facilitating greater ability to work from home and collaborate across physical and geographical boundaries. Access to broadband in- ternet is also credited with having effects on individual empowerment, economic growth and community development, the survey said. ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT Rail station, hotel, housing fill Newington's bucket list N ewington, whose Berlin Turnpike corridor is popular with shoppers and diners, is the scene of several proposed development projects that could one day raise its destination profile even more. Aside from the recent $3.2 mil- lion sale of the Sears Outlet store, a developer and Eversource are pend- ing with a sale of the utility operator's 24-acre hilltop former service-center site at 3333 Berlin Turnpike. Accord- ing to Andrew Brecher, Newington's economic-development director, the developer's initial vision is for housing. At 550 Cedar St., Massachusetts de- veloper-landlord Dakota Partners, which owns Hartford's Capitol Lofts and 179 Allyn St. apartment buildings, is propos- ing an affordable-housing development near one of Newington's two CTfastrak busway stations. Next spring, work is slated to begin on developer Michael Frisbee and his partners' $60 million Villas at Cedar Mountain assisted- and independent- living community. But just a short walk up Cedar Street from the Dakota project would rest the largest and potentially biggest economic-development spur for New- ington: the state Department of Transportation's (DOT) proposal for a new, $55 mil- lion train station at 565 Cedar St., across from Cen- tral Connecticut State University. Included in the $55 million, Brecher said, would be funding for DOT upgrades to Route 9 and arteries to and from the train-station site. The rail-station site would be an al- ternative to the DOT's original plan for one at Francis and Willard avenues, in the town's Newington Junction neigh- borhood, named for a time when a train station once sat there, Brecher said. However, junction neighbors' con- cerns about traffic and noise from a nearby rail station prompted DOT to rethink its scheme, Brecher said. As a result, the town and DOT scheduled an Oct. 18 "informational meeting'' for residents and town lead- ers to hear more about the proposed rail station. Also contemplated is relat- ed parking, to accommodate Hartford Line and CTfastrak riders. Meantime, still under discussion, Brecher said, is a new hotel in town adjacent to the CCSU campus. An Albany, N.Y., developer is proposing a 120-room hotel, with 65-seat restau- rant and 5,000 square feet of confer- ence space. The unnamed developer recently completed a second market study that showed significant market demand for a lodging facility with that size and amenities, he said. But for the state's fiscal woes, which held up DOT's rail-station planning, the hotel might have been built already, or at least begun construction, Brecher said. Meantime, Town Planner Craig Minor, Brecher says, is working on a "transit vil- lage design district'' overlay of the town's existing zoning layout, to help residents and officials choose the most ideal long- term development options. DEAL WATCH Hartford Cajun eatery lease West Hartford restaurateur Hecheng Chen has leased space on Hartford's Park Street for a new Cajun-style seafood eatery. Chen, owner of Ichiro in West Hartford, leased 5,500 square feet from landlord Carlos Mouta in a portion of 2074 Park St., home to J's Crab Shack and formerly home to Majorca, for his planned Chosen 1 restaurant, according to West Hartford commercial broker NAI Elite. No opening date has been set, but Chosen 1 will feature Cajun- style seafood, full bar and patio seating, brokers say. O'Reilly's Middletown store A retail shopping center rising on Washington Street in Middletown will house an O'Reilly Auto Parts store, brokers say. Kaoud Real Estate is developing the center at 808 Washington St. — ultimately as many as three buildings totaling 36,000 square feet. O'Reilly will occupy the first phase, totaling 8,400 square feet, according to landlord's broker The Proto Group LLC. True Commercial Real Estate was O'Reilly's broker. $380K Scarpo site sale The former Scarpo Motors site in Hamden has sold for $380,000 Henry Scarpo sold the 0.32- acre parcel at 1515 Dixwell Ave. to Sajjad Chaudhary, of East Haven, according to seller's broker The Proto Group LLC. The parcel contains two buildings: one with 2,263 square feet; the other with 1,900 square feet. Hamden shipper's lease The operator of a domestic- international shipping service has leased 799 square feet in Hamden. Chunyin Sun leased for three years space at 220 Whitney Ave., Unit C-3 from landlords Charles and Carol Sue Spinaci, according to landlords' broker The Proto Group. Diversified's Wallingford space Diversified Building Services LLC leased 7,050 square feet of flex space in Wallingford. Landlord Harvest Park Associates LLC, a unit of Verna Developers, owns the space. 2074 Park St., Hartford. PHOTO | CONTRIBUTED Newington's former National Welding site at the corner of Cedar Street and Fenn Road is open to redevelopment. HBJ PHOTO | GREGORY SEAY