Hartford Business Journal

HARTFORDBUSINESS.COM | JUNE 12, 2023 31 this summer, in Enfield, East Lyme and Sturbridge, Massachusetts, according to Frisbie, Noble Gas' co-owner. Noble is on pace to add 20 stations over the coming five years, Frisbie said, including in Hamden, East Hartford and Windsor. Frisbie, 54, comes from a blue- collar household in Westfield, Mass., and he put himself through Nichols College, a small business school in Dudley, Mass. He graduated in 1990, and went to work as a financial analyst for MassMutual. In 1995, Frisbie moved to Atlanta and took a job scouting and permit- ting locations for RaceTrac Petro- leum, a service-station chain located across the southern U.S. Tammo, 55, is an ethnic Kurd who grew up in northern Syria and worked in a small-scale apartment develop- ment before immigrating in 1997 to the U.S. seeking opportunity. Michael Freimuth M ichael Freimuth is widely known and well regarded as the steady and capable hand behind the quasi-public Capital Region Development Authority, an agency that has been a prime mover for Capital City redevelopment. Since its launch in 2012, the agency has used about $150 million in state funding to leverage $665 million in housing development, yielding roughly 2,800 new apart- ments by Freimuth's accounting. Most of that state funding went out as low-interest loans that helped make the arithmetic "pencil out" for developers. That also means most of the money is slowly returning. The agency's work extends beyond Hartford. For example, it has been an active player in East Hartford's efforts to revitalize its long-deteriorating Silver Lane commercial artery. The CRDA is also responsible for managing the XL Center, Rentschler Field, Connecticut Convention Center, Front Street Entertainment District, Hartford Regional Market and several public garages. Freimuth's agency works with developers on a constant churn of proposals and projects. Last year, it oversaw completion of 89 apartments in the Sage Allen development along Temple Street in downtown Hartford, as well as the debut of 97 apartments above the historic Pratt Street retail district nearby. CRDA also helped finance a 270-unit apartment building that opened next to Dunkin' Park in 2022. This year, the agency aims to finish the stalled sports-betting venue under construction inside the XL Center. Freimuth also recently outlined a $107.2 million renovation plan for the aging XL Center, in hopes of securing private funding from Los Angeles-based sports and live entertainment company Oak View Group to help offset some of the costs. CRDA and OVG have been in negotiations that could lead to the company contributing millions of dollars to the project through an agreement that extends its management of the facility another 20 years. Among the many projects Frei- muth and his staff will continue to advance is the creation of a new neighborhood on parking lots south of Bushnell Park, additional apartments around Dunkin' Park, the transformation of a former downtown state office building on Elm Street into 169 apartments, and more Mike Goman & Tom York M ike Goman and Tom York are two stalwarts in Greater Hartford's commercial real estate industry, having teamed up in 2011 to start their own firm, Goman+York Property Advisors LLC. Goman oversees the firm's governmental and institutional advisory practice and does work in Connecticut and around the country. Most of his focus lately has been on structuring financial incentives for commercial projects in multiple communities across the state, and assessing and reporting on the fiscal and economic impact of warehouse/logistic and multi- family projects as cities and towns consider land use applications. He said warehouse and logistics activity will continue to be one of the most active sectors of the commercial real estate industry. However, he expects growth to moderate in New England over the next 24 months as supply begins to catch up with demand. On the multifamily front, he said higher-end apartment develop- ments will continue to be an active sector across the region, driven by demand from young working couples, empty nesters and retirees. There will be increased focus on the development of work- force housing for teachers, public safety employees and service industry workers, he added. York has been in commercial real estate for a quarter-century, formerly serving as a broker for CBRE before hanging his own shingle. He oversees Goman+York's brokerage division. On the leasing front, his group advised United Way of Connecticut on its 42,000-square-foot relocation from The Meadows office building at 1344 Silas Deane Highway in Rocky Hill, to 55 Capital Blvd., also in Rocky Hill. That deal, he said, reflects a "flight-to-quality" trend in the office market, where employers are increasingly seeking out ameni- ty-rich, higher-quality properties that have become more affordable post-pandemic. As a result of that trend, and an overall reduction in demand for office space, York said he is seeing several owners of Class B and C office buildings consider redevel- opment plans for their properties, which are effectively becoming economically obsolete. As an example, after losing United Way as a tenant, the owner of the 50,000-square-foot Class B Rocky Hill property at 1344 Silas Deane Highway, opted to pursue an office-to-apartment conversion, which was recently approved for 59 apartments. "Our sense is that this trend will continue and grow for several years as tenant leases expire and the new post-pandemic market realities continue to set in for office property owners with lesser-quality proper- ties," York said POWER 25 | REAL ESTATE Nicholas Morizio N icholas R. Morizio is a veteran commercial real estate broker in Greater Hartford and beyond, who is also a member of the UConn School of Business Hall of Fame. Morizio, who largely focuses on the industrial market, has been involved in several significant deals over the past year, including the $15.2 million sale of the 235,000-square-foot warehouse at 35 Manning Road in Enfield, to a group of Massachusetts investors. He also brokered the $6.1 million sale of the 135,470-square-foot Cheshire industrial property at 150 Knotter Drive. The building, which houses manufacturers AI-Tek Instru- ments and WANHO, was purchased by New Jersey investors. Morizio said the industrial real estate market remains strong, with new manufacturers coming into the market. However, rents aren't moving up as fast as they were a year ago, and sales could slow amid rising interest rates and the continued threat of a recession. Over his entire career, Morizio has been in the middle of some of the largest deals in Greater Hartford, including the sale of three major office buildings in Hartford: the former Bank of America tower at 777 Main St.; the "Stilts" building at 20 Church St.; and the Metro Center at 350 Church St. Aside from being a deal-maker, Morizio has been a leader in the industry, having been appointed a Counselor of Real Estate and past president of the CT chapter of the Society of Industrial & Office Realtors

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