Allan Appel Photo
Nearly an acre of lonely riverfront property near the confluence of the Quinnipiac and Mill rivers will be vacant no longer.
At their regular Tuesday morning meeting members of the New Haven Development Commission approved two resolutions that will permit a woodworking company currently on River Street to expand and a janitorial supply company currently in East Haven to build a facility right next to it.
The commissioners in two separate land disposition agreements approved arrangements for Galicia United, a manufacturer of cabinets currently at 90 River St., and the M.D. Stetson Company, a janitorial and paper products distributor, to share the 0.93- acre plot on River Street at Poplar that runs down to the river. The land has long been empty.
Plans call for M.D. Stetson to build a 10,000 square foot facility, which will create three new jobs — in addition to the 17 coming from East Haven — and for Galicia United to build an 8,000-square foot facility “for the purposes of expanding its woodworking company for manufacturing cabinets, furniture, and other wood products,” according to Economic Development Officer Latoya Cowan.
Cowan stated that Galicia’s expansion is anticipated to create from seven to 15 new jobs, in addition to the seven existing positions.
Specifically, the resolutions state the proposed usages are consistent with the River Street Municipal Development Plan. The positive recommendation next goes to the Board of Alders and the City Plan Commission, then back to the alders for the final approval.
Well, it is better than being vacant. Still, I can't help but think that in any other city, the property in question would be considered prime: at the confluence of two rivers, not far from downtown. I'm not sure it's a good idea to continue reserving this land for industrial use and delay the cleanup and re-zoning that should probably happen for more optimal use of the land.