Melissa Bailey Photo
Digitalsurgeons CEO David Salinas and property manager Kathi Telman.
David Salinas peered into a former brewery being rehabbed as the “nucleus” of a re-envisioned Mill River business district — and saw a potential new home for his growing shop of “new-media junkies.”
Salinas, 32-year-old CEO of a digital marketing company on State Street, took a tour Tuesday of 458 Grand Ave., the former New Haven Brewery on the bank of the Mill River, at the gateway to Fair Haven.
Casper “Cappy” Amodio bought the century-old building from the city for $1 in 2010 and commenced a gut rehab. Amodio subdivided the building and is recruiting as many as 42 small businesses to rent out office space. He said he expects to be done with renovations “by the end of the fall.”
On Tuesday, Amodio sent construction crews home and invited neighboring businesses and city and economic development officials to tour the space. Mayor John DeStefano called the spot “a great starting point” for a re-imagined business district along the Mill River. The city and the quasi-public Economic Development Corporation (EDC) hired consultants to come up with a plan to promote the growth of industry there; click here and here for background stories.
The vision for the district combines building on the strength of existing plumbing, paint and other home improvement and contractor outlets with the kind of new-media, digital age “creative” enterprises drawn to lower-rent former industrial spaces.
Enterprises like Salinas’.
Salinas showed up to Tuesday’s tour as a member of the EDC board looking to see New Haven prosper — and as the head of a burgeoning company looking for a place to expand.
Salinas, who’s 32, has been growing his business, digitalsurgeons, in New Haven for six years. A native New Yorker, he came to Connecticut to get a bachelor’s in business administration at the University of Bridgeport, then chose New Haven to set down roots. He now employs 23 people. The company offers clients web development, design and media strategy.
When Lady Gaga was looking to hold a holiday event at the high-end fashion outlet Barneys New York, the rock star’s agency chose Salinas’ company to “aid with digital conception, planning and execution” of the promotion, according to the company’s website.
Salinas and his 23 employees, a band of “new media junkies,” now work out of an office space on State Street at the former Robby Len swimsuit factory, which has been reborn as a workout mecca.
Salinas pulled out his phone on Tuesday’s tour and showed off a panorama of his current office space to Amodio and property manager Kathi Telman. His company occupies 3,000 square feet now. That’s fine for now, but he plans on investing in tech startups, which would be housed in the same space. So he’s looking for 5,000 square feet to accommodate the expansion.
Telman suggested the front space may just be the right size for him.
Its semi-circular windows look out onto Grand Avenue and the Mill River.
Overhead is a brand new roof.
Amodio spent a half-million dollars on the roof alone, according to his son Vinnie.
Amodio said when he found the building, it was “a disaster.” He discovered the entire roof needed to be “torn off” and replaced. And the second floor was falling through, so that had to go, too. He tore out everything until only the walls were left standing. He kept the historic brick facade, and got city money to fix it up.
A photo pinned to a hallway bulletin board hints at the building’s rich history. It was built in 1900 as the powerhouse for the city trolley system. It housed six generators, according to Amodio. In 1987, the spot became a brewery for Elm City beers. The second floor became a restaurant, where diners could taste oysters while looking down on micro-brewery tanks and sipping a mug of ale. After over 10 years of brewing, the building landed in the city’s lap due to foreclosure.
The building lay vacant for over a decade as the city tried, six or seven times, to find a developer to fix it up. One deal involving former Democratic Town Committee Chairman Dominic Balletto gained city approval, but never took off. After that project fell through, Amodio approached the city with an offer.
“This place is worth one dollar,” Amodio recalled saying. “That’s all it’s worth to me.”
Amodio had earned a reputation as a developer who does good work and sticks around, said city Economic Development Adminstrator Kelly Murphy. Amodio took over the former Erector Square factory in 2000 and rented it out to artists and dance and yoga studios. He stayed in the picture as the landlord.
The city agreed to sell Amodio the building for $1 — and pay for the significant environmental cleanup.
“They got a good deal,” Amodio said Tuesday as he toured the space. Restoring the building has been expensive, he said. (Asked how expensive, Vinnie replied, “As many hairs as you have on your head.”)
He showed off the subdivided rooms he created, including a brand new floor on the second story. Each unit has its own A/C, heating and electrical controls. Nine out of 10 units will have windows, he said.
“What’s better than to sit here and have that breeze and the view?” — well, “eventually, when they get that stinking building down.”
He was referring to English Station, the hulking abandoned power plant just across the river.
Amodio said he has gotten a dozen requests from potential tenants, but he wants to wait until he has a firm completion date before signing any leases. He’s looking for small businesses, perhaps medical offices, to fill the space.
“I’m very fussy with tenants,” he said. He doesn’t want a wood shop next to a doctor’s office, for example.
When he learned Salinas was interested in renting from him, Amodio put his hand on Salinas’ shoulder.
“I want tenants who will stay,” he said.
Salinas assured him his company is sticking around New Haven. He said he’s looking for a “cool environment,” a creative space for his crew.
“I love this building,” he said.