Hartford Business Journal

12 Hartford Business Journal • April 22, 2019 • www.HartfordBusiness.com Gary Anderson, Manches- ter's director of planning and economic development, said there's no apparent reason why the town has so little office space compared to its neighbors. In recent years, how- ever, the town has welcomed several major industrial and mixed-use developments, he said, in addition to a newly minted 103,000-square-foot headquarters for Bob's Dis- count Furniture and other projects at the Buckland Hills mall. Creative uses The armory isn't Bonzani's first project in town. In 2006, the former Pratt & Whitney engineer purchased Hilliard Mills, a sawmill that has since been converted into a 103,000-square- foot mixed-use development. Two of that property's six build- ings are now dedicated to office space, which is near capacity with 43 tenants. Three other Hilliard Mills buildings are being renovated by year-end into a ban- quet hall and bridal suite for weddings. Bonzani, who said he has an enthusi- asm for buying and flipping historical buildings, is also converting Manches- ter's former Glastonbury Knitting mill into a senior-housing complex. The armory, built in 1923 and formerly occupied by the National Guard for train- ing, vehicle storage, recreational activities and military dances, is now being used by a wide variety of small-business tenants. It hasn't yet drawn interest from businesses in the healthcare industry, ac- cording to Gasper, despite being flanked by Eastern Connecticut Health Network, Community Healthcare Credit Union and the Manchester Pharmacy. To date, 17 of 21 office units have been leased for three-to-five years. Occu- pants include several artists working in ceramics, painting and drawing, and a massage therapist, tennis racquet distributor, drum instructor, recording studio and wig shop. A 10,000-square-foot gymnasium in the rear of the building is also being used by Gasper's other business venture, Manchester Vehicle Storage, which safeguards cars, trucks and boats. Gasper and Bonzani, part- ners in Armory Group LLC, have invested about $200,000 into renovating the former military facility with new electrical updates and other cosmetic improvements like new lighting and paint, among other changes. They plan to spend another $250,000 to add an elevator, additional staircase, brick re- pointing and decorative fencing outside. Gasper and Bonzani say they are confident they will fill the remain- ing four suites and five others that will come online when they complete the next phase of renovations to the armory's third floor. "We have amenities in town, there are tons of restaurants and retail," Bonzani said. "I think that has been a big boon to the success" for early ten- ant growth at the armory. FOCUS >> For Rent continued By Joe Cooper jcooper@hartfordbusiness.com A s more innovation hubs and co-working spaces sprout in downtown Hartford, a grow- ing number of nearby municipalities are also trying to offer services that attract and support small businesses, ranging from consulting to financing. Economic development officials in Manchester are currently rolling out a new no-interest loan program for entrepreneurs and landlords on Main Street looking to spruce up their aging facilities. Launched in January, the program aims to deliver no-interest loans up to $250,000 to a number of the 200-plus small businesses on Main Street in an effort to encourage private investment and bring aging structures there up to WINDSOR JUN 2, 2019 JUN 23, 2019 REGISTER › BIKEMS.ORG SPONSORSHIP OPPORTUNITIES ARE AVAILABLE STAMFORD/FAIRFIELD COUNTY *Msg. and data rates may apply. Max. 15 msgs/mo. Terms and conditions and privacy policy at nationalMSsociety.org. Text STOP to 68686 to stop. Text HELP to 68686 for help. More towns rushing to aid small-business development Office market snapshot Here's a breakdown of the total office space in Manchester and surrounding towns. The data doesn't include medical office space. Office bldgs. Total sq. ft. Vacancy rate Glastonbury 34 1,543,259 13.3% East Hartford 22 1,518,932 34.4% Manchester 7 144,958 10.1% South Windsor 2 27,410 45% *All data is from 4Q 2018 Source: CBRE

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