Hartford Business Journal

6 Hartford Business Journal • June 15, 2020 • www.HartfordBusiness.com LATEST HEADLINES We've awarded almost $6M in grants in the past 2 months. With your help, we can do even more. Learn about the Hartford Foundation's COVID-19 Response Fund at hfpg.org/covid19 pose the same health risks during the coronavirus pandemic, yet hair salons were allowed to reopen June 1, while the reopening date for nail salons was pushed back to June 17. "The state must treat similar businesses equally and fairly," said Steve Simpson, senior attorney at Pacific Legal Foundation (PLF), a nonprofit that defends clients it says are threatened by "government overreach." Manufacturing exec DiPentima named CBIA CEO Connecticut manufacturing executive Chris DiPentima has been named the next president and CEO of the state's leading business lobby. DiPentima, who is currently division president of Leggett & Platt Aerospace, which includes Pegasus Manufacturing in Middletown, was elected June 11 to lead the Connecticut Business & Industry Association by the group's board of directors. He succeeds Joe Brennan, who retires Aug. 3 after 32 years with CBIA, leading the organization for the past six years. In addition to the Middletown facility, DiPentima currently leads operations for locations in Washington, California and France that support customers worldwide as part of Leggett & Platt Aerospace, a unit of Leggett & Platt, an S&P 500 company with 15 business units, 23,000 employee-partners, and 145 facilities in 18 countries. Developer eyes 111-unit apartment complex in Bloomfield Avner Krohn, one of the most active developers in downtown New Britain, is proposing to build a 111-unit multifamily housing development on vacant Bloomfield land. Krohn's company, Jasko Development LLC, which is partnering in the project with Brian Zelman of Zelman Real Estate LLC, plans to build the four-story structure at 54, 56, 65 and 80 Jolley Dr. The site is less than a half-mile from where Jasko Development and Zelman recently completed a 14,459-square-foot medical office building at 10 Jolley Dr. The residential building, which still needs final town approval, will include a mix of studio, one-, two- and three- bedroom market-rate apartments as well as 8,000 square feet of community and amenity space with a courtyard, pool and other amenities. Windsor's Addison Corporate Center acquired A California-based real estate investment firm with partial ownership of Windsor's Addison Corporate Center says it's taken full control of the sprawling campus. MacKenzie Realty Capital Inc., a senior and junior equity holder of the 75-acre property, announced it recently recapitalized and acquired a portion of the nearly 600,000-square- foot campus it did not previously own. MacKenzie says the acquisition valued the property at about $38 million. QuEST Global, Belcan LLC and Triumph Group are current tenants of the campus, which has a mix of Class A office/warehouse space at 175 Addison Road. PURA: Too soon to rule on Frontier's $10B restructuring plan Connecticut's utilities overseer says it won't act to approve or deny Frontier Communications' restructuring proposal until the plan is firmed up. The Public Utilities Regulatory Authority (PURA) issued an interim decision June 9 dismissing a petition from the heavily in-debted Frontier, which has been in Ch. 11 bankruptcy since April, seeking approval of its change in ownership. PURA said the company's proposal, which aims to eliminate $10 billion in debt from its balance sheet by converting senior notes into equity common stock, is not yet "ripe for review," as Frontier's plan could change as a result of its ongoing bankruptcy court case in Delaware. Cromwell manufacturer launches $2M innovation center Cromwell manufacturer Ripley Tools has spent $2 million to open a new innovation lab within its 40,000-square- foot Nooks Hill Road facility. Ripley Tools makes products for the utility cable and fiber optic cable industries, including tools utility workers use to install cables. The new innovation lab will allow engineers to use 3D printers and CNC machining tools to prototype new products and improve existing ones. Westfield Meriden mall sold to Long Island group Westfield Meriden Mall has been acquired by Namdar Realty Group, of Great Neck, N.Y. Financial terms were not disclosed. The mall, at 470 Lewis Ave. in Meriden, was sold by French conglomerate Unibail-Rodamcar- Westfield (URW), which has owned the property since 1994. The shopping facility, to be rebranded as Meriden Mall, will continue to operate during the ownership transition. Founded on Long Island, N.Y. in 1999 with the acquisition of a single storefront, Namdar today is a privately held commercial real estate investment firm that owns and operates some 31 million square feet of commercial real estate throughout the U.S. In Connecticut it also owns and operates Enfield Square Mall. >> Latest Headlines continued Chris DiPentima, incoming CEO, CBIA A rendering of the proposed 111-unit apartment development in Bloomfield. RENDERING | CONTRIBUTED

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