Hartford Business Journal

4 HARTFORDBUSINESS.COM | FEBRUARY 23, 2026 Deal Watch To date, Point Stratford Renewal has razed roughly 500,000 square feet of space, while the U.S. Army has demol- ished about 150,000 square feet. Cleanup work now underway includes soil remediation and the placement of roughly 1 million tons of fill to elevate the site above the flood plain as part of a coastal resiliency plan, a process expected to be completed by the end of 2027. Cabrera said he and Lane were drawn to the Stratford site because of its complexity and long-term potential. Cabrera is the founder of Greenwich-based Eagle Ventures, which focuses on distressed prop- erties, while Lane is the founder of New Canaan-based Cannon Green Advisors, a firm specializing in brownfield redevelopment. Both developers have worked on major Stamford projects, including Harbor Point, a large mixed-use waterfront rede- velopment on the city's former industrial South End. "Our work focuses on carefully reducing risk and restoring these sites so they can become assets again, not just for us and our investors, but for the people who live and work in the communities around them," Cabrera said. Lane said projects like the Stratford Army Engine Plant and Harbor Point illustrate what can happen when rede- velopment efforts are approached with patience, technical expertise and a long-term outlook. "What motivates us most is seeing these once-challenging places come back to life as sources of pride, beauty and economic vitality that will be enjoyed long after our role is complete," Lane said. PSR's formation Lane co-founded Point Stratford Renewal (PSR) in 2012 with brownfield-fo- cused real estate investors Sedgwick Partners and Development Resources LLC, along with environmental consultancy Loureiro Engineering Associates. That By Michael Juliano mjuliano@hartfordbusiness.com T wo developers are making a multimillion-dollar bet on one of Connecticut's largest and most complex brownfield sites: the 77-acre former Stratford Army Engine Plant. But what ultimately becomes of the property remains unsettled, with options including large warehouse development or a mixed-use district combining commer- cial, residential and recreational uses. Ted Lane and Jim Cabrera, principals of Point Stratford Renewal, are investing nearly $50 million to clear and remediate the long-vacant property, a massive undertaking that includes demolishing 54 buildings totaling about 1.5 million square feet and removing asbestos and PCBs found in building paint. About one-third of the demolition work is complete and expected to wrap up by the end of 2026, Cabrera said. The bulk of the effort centers on an 860,000-square- foot building facing Main Street. Big Bet Developers invest nearly $50M to clean up former Stratford Army Engine Plant site as redevelopment options loom STRATFORD ARMY ENGINE PLANT — A CENTURY-LONG HISTORY ▶ The former Stratford Army Engine Plant site has been tied to aviation and defense manufacturing for more than a century. ▶ Sikorsky Aero Engi- neering Corp. developed the 124-acre property in the 1920s as a 49-building manufac- turing complex for seaplanes, which were launched into the Housa- tonic River from an on-site dike for testing. ▶ Sikorsky later merged with Chance Vought Co. to form the Sikorsky- Vought division of United Aircraft Corp., according to Sikorsky, which is now owned by Lockheed Martin. ▶ The division split in 1943. Sikorsky Aircraft left the overcrowded Stratford facility that year to focus on heli- copter development, while Chance Vought remained to produce Corsair fighter planes during World War II before departing in 1948. ▶ In 1951, the U.S. Air Force acquired the property and desig- nated it Air Force Plant No. 43. The Department of Defense transferred the site to the U.S. Army in 1976, renaming it the Stratford Army Engine Plant, where contractors manufac- tured aircraft, tank and industrial engines. ▶ The plant closed in 1998 after the Army ended its operating contract. The prop- erty has remained largely vacant since then, except for the Connecticut Air & Space Museum, which occupied about 107,000 square feet from 2000 until early 2025. An aerial view of the former Stratford Army Engine Plant site. Contributed Photo

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