Melissa Bailey Photo
New Haveners are calling on the new owner of a long-vacant downtown spot to “fix the ugliest storefront on Chapel Street.”
Pete Persano of Orange opened an AT&T retail store on Jan. 11 across from the historic Green. The building at 936B Chapel St. is the former home of the Edge tattoo shop, which had been closed for years.
Persano said he noticed that although AT&T has corporate headquarters on Orange Street, there were no retail stores downtown. Several competitors have retail wireless stores nearby.
“AT&T needed a presence in downtown New Haven,” Persano said. “I took the advantage of going down there and doing it myself.”
He spotted the empty storefront on Chapel near the corner of Temple Street and saw “a great opportunity.” The building, once the penultimate location of the Malley department store, is still owned by the Malley family. A booted downtown liquor store owner tried to move there, but gave up when a nearby wine store tried to block his way in court. Most recently, the space held a makeshift fireworks shop over the summer.
Persano worked out a deal with the landlords to subdivide the 1,600-square-foot space. Persano opened his store in the right half. Edible Arrangements plans to move in next door, Persano said.
Persano said he completely remodeled the interior of the store. It’s now up and running, with four full-time staff who sell phones as well as AT&T services.
“I built the store from soup to nuts,” said Persano, who owns three other AT&T outlets in the area.
A number of downtown enthusiasts, including the district’s alderwoman, are calling on the new storeowner to seize the chance to fix up the property. Comments have focused on the unusual facade. The first story is pitch black and has a texture that some say looks like rugged Styrofoam. Persano didn’t come up with the design—the facade has looked that way for years. He said it is made of stucco covered in black paint.
Before the new store opened its doors, a public campaign was already gaining momentum on the watchdog site SeeClickFix. A month ago, “Liz” saw that AT&T was moving in and posted this request: “Please fix the ugliest storefront on Chapel Street.” Since then, 42 comments have seconded that call.
“This poor building is a dagger in the heart of New Haven,” wrote Pedro Soto, a recent appointee to the city Development Commission.
“This building is horrendous. It brings down property values of the entire city,” added an anonymous voice.
“This building hurts to look at,” said Juli.
“If ATT really lets the building stay like that it would be disgusting,” wrote neighborhood activist Ben Berkowitz, who runs the watchdog website.
Persano said he hasn’t received any criticism on the facade, except from one person who suggested he paint the store bright orange.
He said when he moved in, he put on a fresh coat of black paint and added a glowing AT&T globe.
Downtown Alderwoman Bitsie Clark said she’d like to see it further improved.
“I would think that an upscale organization like AT&T would try to put their best foot forward,” she said in an interview. “They should have some pride. Their great big headquarters in New Haven. They should really try to make it really upscale.”
In a phone interview, Persano cleared up an apparent misunderstanding.
“A lot of people don’t understand,” he said. “It’s not a franchise. It is my own separate business. AT&T has nothing to do with the running of the business.” He said his business, Wireless4U LLC, contracts with AT&T to use their name and services.
Clark said she has heard a lot of complaints about the facade, including from nearby property owners who are trying to improve the block. Further up the hill, Chapel Street looks “absolutely gorgeous,” she said.
But the old tattoo shop and its surrounding storefronts lag behind. On the same block as the former tattoo shop, two storefronts at the Bulldog Apartments building are vacant (one bears a sign of progress, promising a “Bulldog Food Court”). The large picture windows of the former Kaye’s art supply store, owned by Yale University, now look into an empty room. Next door, another Yale property at 986 Chapel lies empty, its front wall blank with white paint. One downtowner estimated it has been vacant for at least 15 years.
The stretch of Chapel lies in the heart of downtown, blocks away from bustling restaurants, Yale’s campus, and the historic churches on the Green.
“So much could happen to that block,” Clark said.
Persano said he’s building an office space inside his store so he can move his business’s home base to New Haven. He also owns stores in East Haven, Fairfield and Bridgeport. The New Haven store is open Monday to Friday 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. and Saturdays from 10 to 6. He said he’s considering opening on Sundays, too, depending on how business goes.
Persano said he’s been in touch with a downtown ambassador about getting involved with the Town Green Special Services District.
“I want to get in with the community. I want to work with them and hopefully get involved with some programs,” he said.
An affable guy, Persano said he’s open to suggestions on how the store looks.
“I’m willing to make changes,” he said. He welcomed anyone who’d like to talk to him to visit him at the new store—he’ll be there starting next week.
“I want to play nice with the neighbors,” he said.