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6 HARTFORDBUSINESS.COM | MAY 1, 2023 Deal Watch Amber "Ace" Andaleeb outside of 270 Albany Ave., where his family's small real estate development company plans to create 40 apartments and first- floor retail spaces in two buildings. HBJ PHOTO | MICHAEL PUFFER Small realty investor goes on buying spree in long-neglected Hartford commercial corridor By Michael Puffer mpuffer@hartfordbusiness.com A family-owned real estate company recently chosen by Hartford officials to redevelop a fire-scarred, half-acre site on Albany Avenue has already amassed an impressive portfolio in an area long-starved for investment. The Hartford City Council, in late February, authorized Mayor Luke Bronin to lease 270 Albany Ave., and three adjacent properties to Bloomfield-based Andaleeb Enter- prises LLC for up to 98 years. In return, the Andaleeb family agreed to pursue a $10.7 million development transforming the blighted corner into 40 apartments with 3,000 square feet of ground-floor retail space in two buildings. Today, the property hosts two retail properties gutted by fire, and a boarded-up, brick building intended to house a mix of ground-floor retail and apartments. The Andaleeb family has — either independently or with investors — committed more than $6.3 million buying at least a dozen commercial and mixed-use apartment properties in Hartford over the past three years. Eight of the properties are on Albany Avenue, a well-traveled thor- oughfare that serves as a gateway to downtown Hartford, but has also been plagued by extensive blight. The family got its start on the turnpike in 2008, when Amber "Ace" Andaleeb, who handles the real estate investments, opened a small convenience store with his mother, Kavita Ahmed, and sister, Neha Andaleeb, at 690 Albany Ave. The 2,858-square-foot retail building was one of several Andaleeb managed for a New Jersey landlord. Over time, the store evolved into a Boost Mobile location, one of several owned by the family. The Andaleebs bought that prop- erty in 2020, along with an adjacent 10,572-square-foot, mixed-use building for $950,000. "We have been here for so long that, over time, you kind of fall in love with the neighborhood," said the 37-year-old Amber Andaleeb. "That's one factor (in why we are investing in Albany Avenue). It's where we made everything. It's where we got every- thing. So, we want to contribute to the area." The 2020 purchase represented the Andaleebs first foray into larger multifamily and commercial property investments. Prior to that, they owned a handful of two- and three-family rental homes in the Hartford area and beyond. Over the last three years, the Andaleebs have remained active Hartford buyers, with a focus on Albany Avenue, where they could find attractive prices on commercial properties in a familiar area with little competition. Other properties were acquired on nearby stretches of Maple and Farm- ington avenues and Park Street. "When people come from out of state, they go to West Hartford to develop, where you get a lot of money for your investment," Andaleeb said. "Or, you go down- town. There is nobody going in here. Nobody does it. So, it has to be small guys like us who can take smaller projects and take support from the city and whatever other places we can get it, and put (deals) together." Changing the neighborhood Andaleeb has upgraded several of his buildings, tapping into city resources to defray costs. Those investments have been boosted, Andaleeb said, by the recent $30-million upgrade of a portion of Albany Avenue's streetscape, and larger-scale projects that have added thousands of new apartments to Here are Hartford properties purchased by the Andaleeb family, with help from investors, since 2020: 635-651 Albany Ave. 690 Albany Ave. 696-714 Albany Ave. 885 Albany Ave. 919-921 Albany Ave. 1136-1150 Albany Ave. 1154-1170 Albany Ave. 1468-1470 Albany Ave. 641-651 Maple Ave. 455 Farmington Ave. 698-700 Park St. 741 Park St. Source: HBJ research of city property/land records downtown Hartford. Andaleeb last year began renovating the exterior of 690 Albany Ave. Plans call for new awnings, windows and replacing roll-down security shutters with more attractive retractable ones. Renovations have also begun at 696 Albany Ave., with the help of a $500,000 grant from a portion of Hart- ford's annual funding from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD). The Andaleebs bought the building, which has eight apartments over first-floor retail space, in June 2020. Exterior upgrades are nearly complete at the 15,738-square-foot "Magnolia Building" on the opposite corner of the intersection of Albany Avenue and Magnolia Street. The family paid $775,000 for the building in September 2020, and received a $200,000 HUD grant for renovations. A dozen interior apartments are being upgraded and the HVAC system has been replaced. Several blocks west, the Andaleeb family has received a $500,000 HUD grant to help restore the Weaver Building, a 1920-vintage, 23,786-square-foot, mixed-use building at 1154-1170 Albany Ave. The family paid $840,000 for the property in late 2020. It hosts 18 apartments, with rents ranging from $930 monthly for a studio to $1,400 for a two-bedroom apart- ment. The ground floor has a money transfer shop, Caribbean restaurant, cell phone store, mini-market, phar- macy and fashion boutique. Andaleeb hired veteran attorney and real estate investor Coleman Levy to help him navigate Hart- ford's redevelopment processes, including land-use approvals and grant applications. Levy said he enjoys Andaleeb's enthusiasm and vision, comparing the young investor to Carlos Mouta, a developer who has made a big impact in Hartford's Parkville neighborhood.