Thomas Breen file photo
The current surface parking lot at 315 Winchester Ave ...
Twining Properties / L&M Development Partners image
... slated to be turned into hundreds of new apartments.
“Any time we can turn a parking lot into residential living, especially with affordable housing available, that’s a worthwhile investment.”
State Sen. and President Pro Tem Martin Looney offered those words of support Thursday morning in an email press release celebrating a $5 million state grant that the governor recently OK’d for the next phase of Science Park’s redevelopment.
The press release, sent out by the Science Park Development Corporation, comes roughly a month after the State Bond Commission signed off on sending $5 million to the city to support the “Winchester Center” redevelopment plan at the site of the former Winchester Arms factory complex.
Led by the Science Park Development Corporation, Twining Properties, and L+M Development Partners, the planned redevelopment of the former industrial area should see a new “284-unit mixed-income residential building on a former parking lot where no less than 20 percent of the apartments will be set aside for households earning 50 percent AMI,” according to Thursday’s press release.
The $5 million will also go towards helping to “reopen neighborhood streets through the old factory complex, rebuild infrastructure and create new public open space.”
Click here to read about a recent City Plan Commission meeting and approval of the first stage of redevelopment for the “Winchester Center” plan. And see below for Thursday’s email press release in full.
SCIENCE PARK DEVELOPMENT CORPORATION RECEIVES $5 MILLION FROM STATE URBAN ACT GRANT TO ADVANCE NEXT PHASE OF WINCHESTER CENTER
The Science Park Development Corporation (SPDC) announced today that it received $5 million of Urban Act Grant (UAG) subsidy to advance the next phase of growth and innovation at Winchester Center, which will reconnect the Dixwell and Newhallville neighborhoods and has been a long-held priority of the City of New Haven. The funds will be used to reopen neighborhood streets through the old factory complex, rebuild infrastructure and create new public open space. The public realm improvements will also support the development of a 284-unit mixed-income residential building on a former parking lot where no less than 20 percent of the apartments will be set aside for households earning 50 percent AMI. Twining Properties and LMXD, an affiliate of L+M Development Partners, are developing Winchester Center.
Support from the City and State is helping drive forward the revitalization of the area into a vibrant campus with jobs, shops, and housing. State Senators Martin Looney and Gary Winfield and State Representatives Robyn Porter, Juan Candelaria, Al Paolillo and Toni Walker also played a vital role in helping to secure the UAG funds for the project. Their letter of support for UAG funding highlighted the transformational qualities of the project, as well as the local jobs it will create within the community.
“This state funding will be used to help reinvigorate New Haven’s Dixwell and Newhallville neighborhoods by bringing unused and blighted properties back to life and transforming them into new space where families can live and jobs can grow,” said Governor Ned Lamont, who serves as chairman of the State Bond Commission, the group that approved the funding. “I am glad that the state can serve as a partner in helping advance the Winchester Center project and make this vision become a reality.”
“This subsidy will play a significant role in aiding and improving New Haven’s resources, the result of a long effort to improve our city’s neighborhoods,” said Senate President Pro Tempore Martin Looney (D‑New Haven). “This project is the latest transformation in a city full of them. Any time we can turn a parking lot into residential living, especially with affordable housing available, that’s a worthwhile investment. Add in additional neighborhood reconnections, rebuilt local infrastructure and new open space for residents to enjoy and I couldn’t be happier that this long-term project, after significant hard work, is reaching fruition.”
“Affordable housing is one of the most pressing needs in all of Connecticut, especially In New Haven,” said Senator Gary Winfield (D‑New Haven). “That alone makes this agreement extremely encouraging. In addition, new open space for residents to enjoy and reopened streets to ease transit will help transform Winchester Center into New Haven’s next vibrant community neighborhood.”
“This project will have far-reaching impacts for our city and its residents, creating new opportunities for housing, job growth, and economic development. I’m pleased to have worked alongside the New Haven delegation and city leaders to move this project forward,” said State Representative Alphonse Paolillo (D – New Haven).
“Winchester Center will have a resounding impact on the Dixwell and Newhallville neighborhoods for generations to come. I want to thank Governor Lamont and the New Haven delegation in supporting this bonding request,” said State Representative Robyn Porter.
“The City has been a longstanding partner with Science Park Development Corporation on inclusive growth and innovation, which is driving economic development of statewide significance. Our entire team looks forward to implementing the Winchester Center plan and connecting residents to meaningful career pathways,” said Michael Piscitelli, Economic Development Administrator for the City of New Haven.
“We are excited to be moving ahead on our first new residential development at Winchester Center and creating a strong and lasting partnership with the City and State,” says Alex Twining, CEO of Twining Properties. “By working together on the transformation of Winchester Center, we can continue to create a place of innovation, as well as a vibrant residential community, that strengthens New Haven as a place to live and work.”
“We want to extend our gratitude to our city and state elected officials for their unwavering support of the next phase of Winchester Center,” said Jake Pine, Senior Director of LMXD. “This critical funding will help us advance their longstanding vision for this area by delivering much-needed housing, retail and infrastructure improvements.”
“For decades, the old factory buildings and parking lots sat vacant, leaving a once bustling industrial hub quiet and under-utilized,” said David Silverstone, Chairman of SPDC. “This next phase will continue to add to the progress made toward building out Science Park – starting with the 2012 construction of the first new Class A office built in New Haven in more than 20 years at 115 Munson Street and now bringing new housing next door.”
This is great! But 200 apartments is a drop in the bucket. To address the state’s housing crisis, the state should be giving $500 million in grants each year to private developers in New Haven and other in-demand areas like Norwalk.