New Haven Independent

Posted by: king james v | April 23, 2008 10:04 PM

Um, i thought the reason the mayor had our only venue blown up was to put a college there?

Posted by: Esbe | April 23, 2008 10:29 PM

There is some major fire-power on this list, if I recall correctly much more so than on the Shartenberg proposals. What is particularly different here is the potential financial weight of some of those involved, like the gigantic Related Group, who are hooked up with the local "urbanist" architect Robert Orr. McCormick Baron has had local success in 9th Square and Herbert Newman is a great local architect whose firm always produces sensitive designs. Pelli is obviously one of the world's greatest architecture firms and they are teamed up with major national developers of apartments and shopping centers, as well as local developer/owner C.A.White, who did the great Centrepoint rehab downtown.

A very promising start.

Little New Haven is attracting some big-time attention here.

Posted by: omerta | April 23, 2008 11:49 PM

You walk around Shartenburg, and all it got is blue tarpalins so no one can see that nothin bein done. Look like the subprime crisis already hit the up market development in NH. Look like the old Collisieum site gonna be a parkin lot for the next 20 years.

Posted by: pedro | April 24, 2008 1:27 AM

This lot because of it's size and location as the literal gateway to New Haven definitely has the chance to become a signature iconic building or set of buildings much the way the Coloseum was, but more tightly integrated into the city.
The fact that 6 high-caliber developers submitted proposals (Related, Heymann Archstone??? good lord!). This s is serious firepower and as esbe said, bit time attention. I can't wait to see the proposals!!

Posted by: cedarhillresident | April 24, 2008 8:32 AM

Gee that Archstone looks like a promising contender! :)

Posted by: Esbe | April 24, 2008 11:42 AM

King James -- no, Gateway College is going up on the old Macy's/Malley's site on the other side of Church.

Omerta -- exactly wrong: the tarps are up precisely because work is already beginning on the Shartenberg site. The city's emphasis on a developer with secure financing has really paid off, as the project is going forward even in the middle of the current real estate crisis.

Cedarhill -- your bosses are certainly working with some big-name talent! Good luck.

Posted by: pedro | April 25, 2008 9:08 AM

Esbe's right in all 3 cases :)
Omerta, Shartenberg has officially broken ground! They plan to be done in a little less than 2 years. That project is actually happening, unlike Bob Landino's Centerplan down on the corner of college and crown. While they have a great architect lined up, it now looks like a hotel is going up first,
and then at some unspecified point rentals or condos...

Posted by: Your Tax Dollars at Work | April 25, 2008 10:28 AM

Great! Shartenberg has started! Proposals are coming in from national developers for the Coliseum site! All of this represents substantial progress. Everyone hopes they're all completed as planned.

BUT, no real estate project should be judged as successful until it's substantially completed and occupied. All the pending mega-developments (including but not limited to Shartenberg) have a long way to go particularly in the context of a worsening economy.

Posted by: Robb | April 26, 2008 4:39 PM

You know the old saying; talk is cheap. What happened to the whole hotel and conference center proposal? Oh yeah, the plan fell apart because it was such a horrendously bad idea. Especially with Mohegan Sun and Foxwoods opening hotels and conference centers.

They "mayor" has only proved one thing in my opinion regarding the Coliseum site. He's making it up as he goes along.

Posted by: Bill Saunders | April 29, 2008 2:13 AM

My crystal ball picks the proposal that get's Fusco on the payroll.