Original Tommy K’s Takes An Intoxicating Turn

Several years after streaming services saw the mass extinction of video rentals, the original Tommy K’s Video at 1636 Dixwell Ave. in Hamden will be revived by a trio of package store pros promising to bring fresh spirit to the abandoned house.

The property’s owners Tuesday night brought their proposed site plans, which feature a new two-story building with a first floor package store and upstairs apartment units, to the Hamden Planning and Zoning Commission. After hours of debate, the commission voted to approve the plans.

Ankit Patel, Nirali Patel, and Swati Bidja of A‑L-K Wine & Liquors have operated out of the building across the street from the property, at 1651 Dixwell, for years. Back in late December of 2019, they purchased the childhood home of Tom Kelleher (Tommy K himself) for $300,000.

Kelleher first opened the video rental service out of the house in 1984. It gradually became Connecticut’s largest independent video chain, with 18 stores around the state. Tommy K’s Video closed its last location in 2010; the original spot was converted into office and storage space five years before that.

Chris DeAngelis, the engineer representing the three applicants, said in Tuesday’s Zoom meeting that replacing the old house would offer more storage space for the liquor store, create distinct apartments on a second floor, and allow Bidja and the Patels to own the parcel instead of paying rent as they did at their former location.

The project includes demolishing the old 2.5‑story building and constructing another of about the same size in its place. A‑L-K Wine & Liquors will occupy the ground floor, and a full basement will be designed to house dry storage. Three two-bedroom apartments will be built on top, with an open balcony on the backside of the building. The sidewalk stretching along Homestead Avenue will also be entirely replaced, as will the dilapidated fence that currently divides the parcel from its residential neighbors.

To the west of the property is a Gulf gas station, to the north a single-family home.

The commission members all agreed the proposed plan seemed like a great improvement to the current abandoned ​“eyesore.” The next-door neighbors, Patricia and Richard Carney, were less than enthused about the project. Their house is located on Homestead Avenue, directly behind the old Tommy K’s.

In a letter to the commission, the ​“lifelong Hamden residents” stated that as senior citizens they felt the development would jeopardize their security and comfort.

Their daughter, Sue Jannitto, spoke on her parents’ behalf during the public meeting. ​“We all know what’s going to happen at a package store,” she said. ​“The gas station across the street has already been broken into three times. Who’s going to protect my 85-year-old parents?”

“It’s a mixed use zone, and that’s exactly what we’re providing you with,” DeAngelis responded. ​“It’s been shown that mixed-use environments are actually safer than single-use. When you combine retail and residential, you get the most walkable, safe, and integrated neighborhoods.” He also pointed out that since there will be renters living above the liquor store, the owners would no doubt be informed if customers were hanging out in the parking lot after hours or becoming disruptive.

“And there will be plenty of security cameras,” he added. ​“It’s only a betterment of what’s out there today.”

The couple also asserted that they had received inadequate notice about the project. ​“As far as them being contacted, they were not,” Jannitto asserted. ​“They were contacted last week by a letter. If you emailed them, then guess what? They’re not getting it!” Her older parents rarely use their computer, she said.

The family cited concerns over noise levels, increased traffic, and lighting.

The commission spent two hours delving into these details — and debating what landscaping would best suit the area.

An older tree lying between the Carneys’ home and the parking garage for the soon-to-be package store would have to be taken down. DeAngelis said the idea was to plant an American elm in its place, and to grow flowering dogwoods along the five foot vinyl fence which the owners also plan to install.

“Dogwoods?” questioned Town Planner Dan Kops. ​“If you’re looking for extra screening from the neighbors’ yard, I wouldn’t pick only ornamental trees.”

Commission member Robert Roscow chimed in. ​“I don’t think trees would even have enough space on the western fence to develop properly,” he said. ​“Maybe some ivy would make more sense. Or my personal favorite, wisteria.”

Another member, Robert Cocchiaro, asserted that ​“there is a correct tree for the correct location.” He said a licensed arborist should determine the fate of the current tree, and that the new landscaping plan should be passed by the commission.

“We’ll endeavor to come up with something you like,” DeAngelis responded, ​“but please don’t hold up our application on tree selection.”

The P&Z Commission takes August off. To postpone the application would mean waiting until September for another public hearing and vote.

Chairman Brack Poitier countered, “These are not little things; they’re big things that have a lot to do with your neighborhood and your neighbors!”

Member Joseph Banks noted that the site plan included five condensers, which would most likely have to be relocated to avoid breaking the Hamden noise ordinance of 55 decibels in a residential area. “I like this project, and I don’t want to hold it up,” he said. “But there has to be something in the conditions of the site plan.”

As for lighting, DeAngelis said that he originally planned to include two light poles for security, but reduced it to one, partly in an effort to be more considerate of the neighbors. “LED lights are very directional,” he remarked. He also promised to use a light shield.

Roscow commented that the hours of operation for the package store, which will be open until 10 p.m. from Monday through Saturday, seemed too late for the residential neighbors.

“I didn’t realize liquor stores were open that late,” Commissioner Joseph McDonagh remarked with mild surprise. “I guess I’ve never been desperate that late.”

“I have,” said Roscow. “But not anymore.”

McDonagh ultimately suggested that the project pass with a few new conditions: that the applicants revise their landscaping plan for the west side of the property, put wheel stops within the parking lot as an additional safety measure, and make sure that the final plan conforms to the Hamden sound ordinance.

They agreed that the vinyl fence to be erected should also be four feet for the first 25 foot length, before being raised to six feet to offer a larger shield between the building and its neighbors.

Poitier still expressed hesitancy about approving the project. ​“There’s a lot of mess in here,” he said. ​“I’m not comfortable with it.”

McDonagh maintained that the plan was ​“a better use of the property than what exists right now, which is terrifically bad!” He reasoned that ​“the three or four changes are pretty small, and postponing this until September would be a pretty significant inconvenience for the applicant.”

DeAngelis stated that ​“Dixwell Avenue is a state road and already has high traffic and noise,” adding that ​“the Carneys have grown accustomed to a vacant site with no traffic and lights. I’m certain that’s not what you want as a town. You want development!”

He promised to build the fence to any height, to work with the commission to redesign the landscaping, and to move the compressors if necessary.

After the long debate, all six present commission members voted unanimously in favor of the project.

DeAngelis thanked them in a spirit of conciliation. ​“We’ll be happy to be good neighbors,” he said.