Paul Bass Photo
Catalbasoglu at work; he bought the old Keyes Home.
Kadir Catalbasoglu is known for making great pizza. He’s about to take on another occupation: landlord.
The owner of the Brick Oven on Howe Street is now the owner of the former Keyes Funeral home in the Dixwell neighborhood. He has plans to transform the former first stop for those no longer living into a seven-unit apartment complex for some lively new residents: students.
Catalbasoglu and Fernando Pastor, principal architect of SEEDnh, appeared before the City Plan commission Wednesday to seek approval of a site plan to convert the property located at 59 and 65 Dixwell Ave. into apartments. The commissioners granted the approval.
Fernando Pastor
The future complex.
The plan calls for renovating the building and adding three more floors to the existing building. The 9,500-square-foot building at 59 Dixwell Ave. has been empty for at least five years, according to Pastor. There is also a asphalt parking lot and a two-car garage at 65 Dixwell Ave. that is part of the conversion.
Pastor told commissioners that the plan calls for preserving nine of the 11 existing parking spaces on the lot, and then convert the rest of the lot into a green courtyard space. A bike rack also will be provided onsite.
Markeshia Ricks Photo
Architect Pastor and Catalbasoglu show plan for former Keyes Funeral Home.
Pastor said the plan is to create one four-bedroom apartment and the other six will be three-bedroom apartments. Catalbasoglu said he’s getting into the rental housing business mostly because his son, Hacibey, is a Yale University student.
The building today.
“He needs a place to live,” Catalbasoglu, who immigrated from Turkey, said with a grin. He said the complex, which is close to Lake Place, where many Yale students already rent, is mostly aimed at other students like his son who want to live off campus but within close proximity to the university.
Construction is expected to begin in February 2017 and take about a year to complete.
Commissioners had some concern about whether a trash truck would be able to get in and cart away garbage, but once they were reassured that a truck would be able to turn around in the lot, and would not be backing out onto Dixwell Avenue, they gave their unanimous approval of the plan.
“It will be good to see that place with live people in it,” Commissioner Leslie Radcliffe said.
