200+ Apartments Planned At Empty Eyesore

A local developer plans to knock down a blighted Westville commercial building and build in its stead 200-plus luxury apartments, now that he and his partner have purchased the property for $3.1 million.

That was one of two multi-million-dollar transactions among the latest property transfers recorded with the city. The other was on Norton Street.

According to city land records, on Sept. 26, 50 Fitch LLC, a holding company owned by local developers Mendel Paris and Sim Levenharz, purchased the two commercial buildings at 50 Fitch St. / 781 Whalley Ave. from a trio of holding companies owned by New York-based investor Edward Roubeni for $3.1 million.

Roubeni’s companies, 613 Bapaz LLC, 87 Bapaz LLC, and Bapaz Whalley LLC, purchased the complex in 2007 for $2,789,452. The city last appraised the property as worth $3,389,600.

Paris, who lives in Beaver Hills, just a few weeks ago closed on a $4.65 million purchase of a Mill River office complex. He told the Independent Wednesday that he and Levenharz plan to demolish the existing boarded-up, Whalley Avenue-facing building at 50 Fitch and replace it with a four-story, 200-unit apartment complex. (The building last housed the Community Action Agency.) Paris said that, for now, they plan on not demolishing the back office building on Fitch Street.

The project is still in pre-development, he said, and will likely be so for another year. The proposed design and number of units are liable to change pending further regulatory research. He said he hopes to begin construction on the project in late 2020.

Thanks to the recent rezoning of Westville Village to encourage denser residential development, he said, the project will likely be as of right. If it requires any kind of zoning relief, he said, that will likely pertain to setback requirements, as opposed to number of apartments.

“The plan is to build Westville’s first ​‘Class A’ apartment complex,” Paris said. ​“We want to do something really high end, comparable to some of the new buildings downtown.”

He declined to refer to the project as ​“luxury,” but compared it to existing high-end residential developments in East Rock and downtown such as the Corsair, Audubon Square, and College & Crown.

The planned development for 50 Fitch will include a pool, a full gym, roof-top recreational space, and access to the West River, he said.

He added that apartments at this new complex should rent at prices 10 to 15 percent less than their downtown and East Rock counterparts, where studio rentals can reach nearly $2,000 per month.

Paris said that he and Levenharz are working with an established developer who has built projects of this scale before. He declined to share the name of the partner quite yet.

Before they knock down the Whalley Avenue-facing building, he said, they’re working with Lizzy Donius and Noé Jimenez at the Westville Village Renaissance Alliance to liven up some of the boarded windows with paintings and murals by local artists.

Donius confirmed that she and Jimenez hope to work with neighborhood artists to create panels to cover some of the building’s existing ​“problem spots, and we are exploring a few projects that might take a month or so to get up and running for the Fitch side of the corner building.

“The developers reached out immediately to connect with us and get this rolling, and we are glad to have new owners willing to invest in the appearance of this building right away.”

Donius added that she remembers not too long ago debating with neighbors as to the pros and cons of having 50 Fitch converted into a self-storage facility. At that moment, she told the Independent by email, she and many Westville neighbors had serious doubts that the neighborhood could attract a developer capable of purchasing the property from the current absentee landlord.

“I’d like to think the work we did on zoning and the exciting growth we have seen in the village contributed to the turnaround,” she wrote.

“We are excited to work with the developers to ensure the best possible development — one that is attractive and in scale, enhances awareness and enjoyment of our most hidden asset, the West river, and perhaps most importantly, connects our newest residents to the Village in a meaningful way. What gets built here we will live with for a long time!”

Norton Complex Sells For $2.9M

In other recent property sales, on Sept. 16, NHCD 4 LLC, a holding company owned by New Jersey-based investor Yonah Schwartz and local investor Chaim Vail, purchased a 31-unit apartment complex at 90 – 98 Norton St. from NHR-Norton Court LLC, a holding company owned by NHR Properties’ Juan Salas-Romer, for $2.9 million. The property last sold for $1,692,000 in 2012. The city last appraised the property as worth $2,064,100.

Al Porto, a 62-year-old tenant on Section 8 federal housing assistance at the Norton Street complex, said he’s been living at 90 Norton for the past 35 years.

“I’ve seen it all,” he said as he sat in the sun in the complex’s courtyard Wednesday morning, ​“from slumlords to good people.”

When the apartments were owned in the mid-2000s by someone named Stephen Johnson, he said, they were in serious disrepair: heat never working, dumpsters never emptied. ​“He never did nothing for nobody,” he said about that landlord. ​“He was close to being a slumlord.”

Porto said he never had any problems with NHR when that company took over the complex. He said he’s feeling optimistic about the new landlords. He said one of their representatives has already visited his property and promised him a new stove and a new refrigerator.

Previous property sale coverage:

• Annex Apartments Sold For $3.95M
• Mill River Office Building Sold For $4.65M
• Local Landlords, Albertus Magnus Expand
• Mandy Buys Warehouse For $1.6M
• Pike Collects $890K On Wooster Sq. Sales
• Springside Apartments Sell For $3.2M
• Family Dollar Sells For 1.8M Dollars
• Pike Sells 2 Buildings To Yale For $3.8M
• Mansion Sells For Only $1.45M
• Landlord Tops 340 Units
• High Street Apts Sell For $25M+
• St. Michael’s School Sold, For Apartments
• Ocean Management Acquires Perrotti Westville Properties
• Paris Realty Picks Up 6 Q Meadows Condos
• Landlord Boosts West River Condo Holdings
• $21 Million Changes Hands In 2 Days
• 50 Factory Jobs Coming To Fair Haven
• Brendan Towers Sold For $6M+
• Investors Drop $917K On West Side Condos
• Mandy’s 2018 Buying Spree Nears $13M
• Mandy Empire Buys Up The Block
• Roots Planted In Newhallville
• Latest Sales: Mandy Buying Spree Continues
• Latest Sales: Mandy Expands In City Point
• Latest Sales: East Rock Home Buy Tops $1M
• Latest Deals: Beulah’s 5th Rehab On Block
• Latest Sales: NHR Sheds Small To Focus Big
• Latest Sales: Mandy Buys In Heights
• Home Sale Price Doubles In 13 Years