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TD Bank Leases Space At Hartford 21 For Offices, Branch

By KENNETH R. GOSSELIN

March 30, 2012

The two-level, glass-walled space in the Hartford 21 tower at the corner of Trumbull and Asylum streets — a highly visible spot in downtown Hartford but tough to lease — is now getting its first tenant, TD Bank.

The bank has leased the 10,000-square-foot, street-level space for its Hartford regional hub operations, one of four in Connecticut. The bank expects to begin improvements to the space in the next two months, with the goal of moving in by November.

"We love the visibility of the space," Michael LaBella, TD Bank's Connecticut president, said. "We really had a desire to grow our presence and move into downtown."

TD Bank's plans include a branch on the first floor and offices for employees in various business lines, such as commercial lending, wealth management and government banking, on the second level. The bank will have 40 employees in the office initially, with the potential for future expansion, LaBella said.

Northland Investment Corp., the building's developer and owner, has had a tough time leasing street-level space in the Hartford 21 tower since it first opened in 2006. A grocery store that opened last year to much fanfare closed after just six months and a cell phone store also moved out after just a few months.

The space that will be occupied by TD Bank, while architecturally interesting, has been particularly tough to lease because the tenant had to work with a two-level space.

There have been successes, however, in leases to First Niagara Bank and the Spiritus wine shop.