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CHFA Chooses Development Team For Downtown Hartford Apartment Project

By JENNA CARLESSO

October 31, 2012

HARTFORD —— The Connecticut Housing Finance Authority has chosen Lewis and Pearl Street Ventures, a Hartford-based team, to spearhead development for a $40 million project at 95-101 and 111 Pearl St. that would include new apartments and retail space.

The team includes: Sanford Cloud Jr., CEO of The Cloud Co., a Hartford real estate development firm; Alan Lazowski, chairman and chief executive of LAZ; Martin J. Kenny, the developer of Trumbull on the Park; and Timothy Henkel, Sr., a Philadelphia-based developer.

Mayor Pedro Segarra said Wednesday that while negotiations were still ongoing, the project could include as many as 91 new apartments and 15,000 square feet of service, entertainment and retail space at 95-101 Pearl St. and 121 units and 9,500 square feet of retail space at 111 Pearl St.

CHFA last week approved the sale of 111 and 101 Pearl St. and the 100-unit luxury apartment building, Trumbull on the Park — just down Lewis Street from the two empty buildings — to Lewis and Pearl Street Ventures.

CHFA owns Trumbull on the Park and 111 Pearl St., while the city owns 95-101 Pearl St. The two sides agreed to sell the three properties as a package to create "a more cohesive, centralized development downtown," said Lisa Kidder, a spokeswoman for CHFA.

The group had put out a request for proposals from late March to early May. Paperwork for the sale has yet to be signed as terms are still being negotiated, officials said.

"Our mission is affordable housing, so it made sense for us to sell it," Eric Chatman, president and executive director of CHFA, said Wednesday.

It was the first time the three properties had been offered together.

"Because of the proximity of the buildings, it made sense to handle all three together," Chatman said.

The city had put out requests for proposals on 95-101 Pearl St. in recent years, but each time a developer came in wanting to create housing, the task proved too daunting and plans were scrapped.

Chatman said he was optimistic the deal would be finalized. "My sense is it should happen," he said.

Segarra said he is poised to submit a resolution to the city council that would establish a 15-year tax fixing agreement on the two newly constructed buildings. The resolution would also extend a tax fixing agreement for Trumbull on the Park an additional three years and its adjacent parking garage for an additional eight years.

"While this represents a terrific step forward for Downtown Hartford, there is still much to be done before we see a shovel in the ground," Segarra said in a prepared statement Wednesday. "Nevertheless, coupled with the Intermodal Triangle project that's scheduled to break ground in early 2014, significant development designed to generate greater vibrancy and excitement throughout the capital city is just on the horizon."