Christopher Peak
Titus Kaphar, one of the artists behind the PostMasters Project.
A multimillion-dollar arts center that will replace an abandoned factory in Dixwell won the zoning board’s unanimous approval Tuesday night.
The PostMasters Project, which aims to transform an industrial complex at 169 Henry St., into a 38,000 square feet of apartments for visiting artists, studios and gallery spaces, offices, an assembly hall and a cafe, received approval from the Board of Zoning Appeals for a number of waivers: special exceptions to open a nonconforming use in the residential zone and to permit a far lower number of parking spaces, as well as variances to extend the front steps, widen a loading dock and construct a third story for apartments.
“I’d just say how important art is to the City of New Haven,” said Benjamin Trachten, the board’s chair who noted he’d spent the last two weekends at this year’s City-Wide Open Studios. “To see an arts-related use going this far out of the comfort zone of downtown is a great thing.
Trachten said he was impressed the applicants were willing to invest so much money — around $5.8 million — into overhauling a building that’s “wholly unsuited for an artistic use.” That shows their “commitment to the process,” he added.
The project’s backers can now start getting permits to begin construction, which they’ve said could wrap up as early as Sept. 2018.