The city has chosen a developer to build a new downtown frontier above the ashes of the Coliseum.
Following a four-month selection process, the city announced Thursday it has chosen Northland Investment Corporation, of Newton, Mass., to develop the 4.5‑acre parcel once occupied by the iconic Veterans Memorial Coliseum into a new mixed-use stretch called “Tenth Square” (on the periphery of downtown’s original nine squares). The stadium was imploded in January 0f 2007; now it’s a surface parking lot.
Six developers responded to a Request for Qualifications for the chance to remake the parcel at the gateway to downtown. Click here to read about the other responses. The plans had to include the Long Wharf Theatre, which is relocating downtown from Long Wharf.
Northland partnered with architect Robert AM Stern, dean of the Yale School of Architecture. They proposed over a million square feet in new development, including the theater, housing, street-level retail, office space and parking.
Plans showed a 30-story elliptical residential tower, 550 residences of mixed home-ownership and rental, an eight-story office building, and parking for nearly 1,000 cars. A number of “green roofs” dotted the project. (The above picture shows how the plan would look as one drives into town off I‑95 onto the Route 34 Connector.)
The plans were intended to be conceptual, however, not set in stone. The city hopes to reach a final agreement with developers on the project components over the next 120 days, according to mayoral spokeswoman Jessica Mayorga.
Northland’s and the other teams’ proposals were whittled down over the summer by a seven-member review committee.
Northland was chosen for three reasons, according to Kelly Murphy, the city’s economic development director: a secure financial position, experience working in similar-sized communities, and existing relationships with Connecticut state officials and staff that would help move the project forward.
“Northland’s exciting ideas and designs for this site and the investment they are prepared to make to achieve this project demonstrate the strength and vitality of our Downtown,” said Mayor John DeStefano in a press release. He applauded the project’s use of mixed-income housing.
The name Tenth Square is a reference to Colonial times. According to New Haven’s Town Plan: “The activity of Colonial New Haven focused on the ‘tenth square’, a group of streets plotted to the southeast between the harbor and the original Market Place. The ‘square’ held the active mercantile quarter.”
Once a deal is reached between developer and city, the terms would be written into a land transfer agreement and a development agreement, both of which need city approval.
Thursday’s announcement drew immediate plaudits from the union representing downtown janitors — mostly for the city’s decision to bypass a competing developer.
“We commend the city’s decision to prevent Archstone, a developer known to undercut
workers’ wages and benefits, from coming into New Haven,” Local 32BJ spokesman Matt Nerzi stated in a press release. “In order for the redevelopment of the Coliseum site to be a true success for the community, Northland and the city must make commitments to creating new permanent jobs that provide the wages and benefits workers need to support their families.”