nothin Substation Showdown Produces A Promise | New Haven Independent

Substation Showdown Produces A Promise

Paul Bass Photo

New substation site.

It began with accusations of rewarding” a slumlord” with city money. It ended with a hug, and promise to ensure that a rundown stretch of Whalley Avenue will get cleaned up.

That was the trajectory of a contentious meeting at City Hall. (Click on the video for highlights.)

The meeting concerned the city’s plan to move its Whalley-Edgewood-Beaver Hills police substation from the corner of Whalley and Norton up to 332 Whalley (pictured at left), a vacant three-story building next to Minore’s Market. Pat Minore owns both of them.

The police department is currently in lease negotiations with Minore, who said Tuesday that he plans to spend at least $500,000 fixing his storefront and parking lot and renovating 332 Whalley, leasing the 2,500-square-foot first floor to the cops while renting out the top floors as apartments. He also plans to allow cops to park in his meat market’s parking lot. (Read a background story about that here.) The City Plan Commission has approved the move.

Inside Meeting Room 3 on City Hall’s second floor Monday afternoon, Rabbi Daniel (pictured) and Eli Greer, who serve as the substation’s current landlord (through an entity called Edgewood Corners), made a last-ditch attempt to stop the deal. They confronted four top cops as well two top city economic development officials with accusations that they’re doing business with a landlord who has let two properties drag down the neighborhood for two decades.

The cops wanted a larger, more visible space, said top neighborhood cops Lt. Makiem Miller (at right in photo with top west side cop Capt. Jeff Hoffman). Meanwhile, the Whalley Avenue Special Services District (WASSD) has for years seen the rundown block with Minore’s as ripe for redevelopment, so it supports the move, said Executive Director Sheila Masterson.

Minore’s storefront.

Minore’s store has remained rundown for that time, as has the long-vacant storefront and house that the substation would occupy. (Back in the 1980s it housed Third World George’s reggae dance club.)

The Greers brought photos and police and city building inspection reports to detail ongoing problems on those two properties, as well as at properties across the street owned by another neighborhood landlord (including the vacant former Chuck’s Lunchette, pictured, which changed its named to Chuck’s Luncheonette in its final years under a short-term owner). The Greers noted that those two landlords serve as president and vice-president of WASSD, which voted to approve the substation move.

The rear of the former Chuck’s.

The problem here is that WASSD has been co-opted by two major slumlords,” Daniel Greer remarked. They’re not business people. They’re piranhas. And they’re … bottom-feeding on the neighborhood. You’re rewarding them.”

Minore said in an interview at his store Tuesday morning that for years he understands his neighbors’ concerns. He said for years he had contemplated closing the store; now he has decided to stay put and planned to invest in renovations at both properties before Lt. Miller approached him about moving the substation. He said he originally bought 332 Whalley because it was going to be another club. We don’t want that on Whalley Avenue.” He said he turned down offers over the years to rent it to a convenience or a pawn shop.

Lt. Miller shot back at the Greers at Monday’s meeting that they failed promptly in the past to fix problems at the substation such as inadequate heat and signage. Eliezer Greer (pictured) responded that repairs were made, that signage is the tenant’s responsibility, and that more can be done in the context of a lease renewal.

That location, regardless of the landlord, is a great location,” with lots of visibility and easy pedestrian access, Miller said.

The Greers pressed officials to reconsider the deal. The city’s lease for the current space expired last July; it has rented the space on a month-by-month basis since then pending completion of the deal with Minore.

I know we have a vested interest” as landlords, said Daniel Greer. But he said that he would support the move if the city contracted with a responsible property owner, such as Peter Dodge, owner of Edge of the Woods Plaza.

Matthew Nemerson, the city’s economic development administrator, called it a done deal.

Decisions have been made. It sounds like there are a variety of reasons for that,” Nemerson said. The conversation we should have now is: What can we work with you in terms of the Main Street program?” (The city is working on obtaining help from a state program to revitalize commercial Main Streets.”)

The meeting’s tone turned when Chief Dean Esserman — who had earlier bristled at the Greers’ accusations and complained about the presence of a reporter in the room — offered a solution. He suggested that the police refrain from moving in to the new space until Minore makes promised repairs, not just to the new home for the substation, but to his rundown meat market.

If it does not motivate him to fix up both stores in that area, then we have an obligation” to pull out of the deal, Esserman said.

You make real arguments that I hear. Your concerns are about what’s better for the community; you’ve invested your blood and your sweat and your children’s life … And I hear that. I respect that … We agree together here,” Esserman said.

He turned to other participants in the deal: Can we put into the lease that both stores, the issues must be addressed, back and front, signage, clean up, parking lot, back and front of both buildings?”

The answer came back yes.

That would be wonderful,” Daniel Greer remarked as the meeting broke up.

Then he hugged both Esserman and Nemerson.

On Whalley Avenue, meanwhile, Pat Minore (pictured) promised to make good on his end of the bargain.

If necessary, I’ll put up a bond” to guarantee renovations get done, he said. It’s something I was going to do anyway. I don’t blame then for having concerns.

I’m sorry the Greers got so upset about it. They’re neighbors; they do a nice job with what they’ve got.”

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