Kevin Brown, president of the Norwich Group Growth Corp., proper, describes deliberate enhancements to decrease Broadway in downtown Norwich to U.S. Rep. Joe Courtney, 2nd District, throughout a tour on Thursday, Aug. 4, 2022 to see downtown tasks that used American Rescue Plan Act funding. (Claire Bessette/The Day)
David McCarthy, president of Heritage Housing, Inc., proper, exhibits proposed ground plans to U.S. Rep. Joe Courtney, D-2nd District, for proposed renovations to the previous Reid & Hughes constructing at 193-201 Principal St., Norwich into 17 market-rate flats and a pair of,000 sq. ft of retail house. Courtney toured downtown Norwich Thursday, Aug. 4, 2022 to see tasks funded by American Rescue Plan Act grants. (Claire Bessette/The Day)
Norwich ― Beginning on the former Elks Membership at one finish of Principal Road and ending on Broadway in entrance of Metropolis Corridor, U.S. Rep. Joe Courtney acquired a closeup look Thursday of how the town has awarded $1.37 million in federal American Rescue Plan Act grants to help financial improvement.
Inside the previous Elks Membership constructing, the historic Greek Revival house of John F. Slater, proprietor/developer Amit Patel gave a tour of the longer term Resort Chelsea, a boutique resort with 24 visitor rooms, a gathering room and banquet corridor, catering kitchen and bar.
Patel hopes to open the visitor rooms and assembly room by the tip of this 12 months. The second part shortly after will embody the kitchen and banquet corridor and refurbishing the previous Elks Membership bar will comprise the third part. A number of rooms and suites, to be priced at $100 to $500 per night time, have already got king-size beds, accomplished loos, mirrors and different wall hangings. Hallways are painted with broad horizontal black stripes.
Becoming a member of Courtney and his Second District Director Ayanti Grant on the tour had been Norwich Group Growth Corp. President Kevin Brown, Metropolis Council President Professional Tempore Joseph DeLucia, Metropolis Supervisor John Salomone and Director of Planning and Growth Deanna Rhodes.
Patel instructed the group he expects the resort to achieve success as a family-run, unbiased, non-chain operation, particularly “as soon as Preston Riverwalk will get going.”
Mohegan Gaming & Leisure is scheduled to develop the almost 400-acre former Norwich Hospital property in Preston as soon as that city completes the environmental cleanup.
The resort obtained a $165,283 ARPA grant via NCDC for constructing code corrections within the former Elks constructing. Patel estimated the resort improvement price at $450,000.
Standing in a single resort room, Brown requested Courtney to look out the big entrance window to the previous YMCA throughout the road. Mattern Development of Baltic plans to maneuver its headquarters into the constructing and create restaurant or house, together with a doable brew pub and sandwich/espresso store. Brown instructed Courtney the town is in search of an $850,000 federal environmental cleanup brownfields grant for the YMCA venture.
After strolling previous the brand new Franklin Sq. roundabout, Courtney donned a face masks to enter the dank, darkish former Reid & Hughes constructing. David McCarthy, founder and president of Norwalk-based Heritage Housing Inc., which co-owns the Wauregan Residences throughout Principal Road, described Heritage’s plans to buy the Reid & Hughes and develop 17 market-rate flats and a pair of,000 sq. ft of retail house.
McCarthy mentioned he expects to shut on the acquisition inside the subsequent two weeks. The town will contribute a $300,000 ARPA grant to the renovations, Brown mentioned. The town additionally utilized for a $500,000 grant via the state Group Funding Fund to assist fund the venture.
McCarthy mentioned usually, the Wauregan should flip away potential tenants on the income-restricted inexpensive housing flats and appears ahead to with the ability to steer them to the market-rate models throughout the road. The venture will search state and federal historic tax credit to finance a part of the venture.
Citadel Church Pastor Adam Bowles met the group following the Reid & Hughes cease and walked with it to the brand new Jubilee Park and mural on the church wall that honors distinguished Nineteenth-century Black residents, James L. Smith and Sarah Harris Fayerweather.
The town allotted $50,000 to the Yale Design Group to check additional public enhancements to decrease Broadway from Principal Road to Union Sq. in entrance of Metropolis Corridor. Brown described the plan to develop the Jubilee Park in entrance of the mural and create a small, terraced park on the city-owned lot along with the constructing at 59 Broadway, the place one other massive new mural can be painted quickly.
The town has allotted $961,000 in ARPA grant cash to 2 constructing renovation tasks alongside decrease Broadway and has utilized for $10.1 million in Group Funding Fund grants to finish the Yale Design Group’s proposed public upgrades and make structural repairs to the Reliance Well being and Norwich Arts Heart buildings on the block.
After the tour, Courtney mentioned Norwich has made “nice selections” on use the ARPA cash to enhance housing, help personal funding and make public enhancements. He mentioned naming NCDC because the lead company was “actually good,” as a result of the company can preserve shut contact with builders and constructing house owners within the metropolis.
Brown mentioned the downtown enhancements ought to turn into seen very quickly.
“Come see us in eight months, and there can be a enterprise in there, a enterprise in there and a enterprise in there,” Brown mentioned, pointing to now-vacant house on decrease Broadway.
