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HARTFORDBUSINESS.COM | NOVEMBER 17, 2025 15 The Day The Day newspaper in New London — which covers southeastern Connecticut — sold its 50,041-square- foot former Eugene O'Neill Drive headquarters in early 2024 for $1.87 million to Bangor, Maine-based High Tide Capital, a developer that special- izes in converting historic buildings. The deal, along with High Tide's 2023 purchase of a neighboring property, gives the firm control of a key downtown New London block, located just west of the Thames River waterfront and near the 83,000-square-foot National Coast Guard Museum now under construction. High Tide Capital Principal Dash Davidson said his firm plans to trans- form The Day's former complex into 65 apartments above retail spaces for a café, restaurant and a 1,500-square- foot museum dedicated to the history of New London and the newspaper. He estimates the project will exceed $20 million. High Tide expects to secure final zoning approvals in December, start construction in early 2026, and complete the project within two years. The finished building will retain The Day's iconic lettering. Meantime, the news organization has relocated to about 10,000 square feet within a renovated, one-story building at 208 State St., in downtown New London. High Tide also owns that 20,738-square-foot former call center building, which it purchased for $825,000 in mid-2024. High Tide is now adding two floors The former Republican-American building in downtown Waterbury, topped by a 245-foot clock tower, is now slated for redevelopment. Photo | CoStar according to a 2025 report by Northwestern Univer- sity's Medill School of Journalism. The industry has lost more than three-quarters of its jobs in that span, including another 7% in 2024. Mergers and closures claimed 136 more newspapers last year, leaving fewer than 1,000 print papers nationwide, according to the Medill study. Those pressures have forced many newspa- pers — including the Los Angeles Times and Baltimore Sun — to leave behind their longtime with 40 apartments above The Day's new offices. Davidson said The Day is "an extremely vital element of the commu- nity," and that selling its former head- quarters allowed the paper to shed unused space and move into a freshly renovated office that's a better fit. "We couldn't have done this project without the newspaper," Davidson said. "We feel it's a very symbiotic partnership. We are thrilled to be able to support their mission." Dwindling space needs The rapid evolution of digital media has drained advertising dollars and audi- ences from traditional daily newspapers. Over the past two decades, U.S. print circulation has fallen by about 80 million — a 70% decline since 2005 — downtown headquarters, said Richard Hanley, professor emeritus of jour- nalism at Quinnipiac University. Such buildings once entrenched newspa- pers near seats of power and symbol- ized their civic importance, he said. "It was a symbol of a newspaper publisher's commitment to a community," Hanley said. While a few outlets maintain flagship offices, he said, those days are largely over. "The New York Times and the Washington Post still have a sense of physical presence," Hanley said. "Outside of major urban hubs, you don't have that flagship civic hub of a news organization. It's valuable real estate. And that valuable real estate is monetized in the form of condos or some other enterprise. That's just how capitalism works." Jeffrey Teplitzky Partner jteplitzky@citrincooperman.com FOCUS ON WHAT COUNTS C I T R I N C O O P E R M A N . C O M PROVIDING PROFESSIONAL SERVICES & INDUSTRY INSIGHTS FOR OVER 45 YEARS Citrin Cooperman is one of the nation's largest professional services firms, helping middle-market companies and high-net-worth individuals with innovative guidance. Whether your operations and assets are located around the corner or across the gloEe, we provide new perspectives and comprehensive solutions that will help you achieve your short- and long-term goals.