David Adam Realty
Rendering of the 44 Olive Street development.
The new developer of a Wooster Square property said he plans to move forward on schedule to build 299 new apartments and 6,000 square feet of stores as planned on land at the gateway to Downtown.
The developer, Darren Seid of Epimoni Corps, is working with Adam America of New York, which has the property at 87 Union St. on contract.
A local builder, Noel Petra, originally won approvals and planned to build the development on that site, one of two large apartment complexes planned for the area around Olive, Chapel and Union. He and a Westport builder (named David Adam Realty, no relation to Adam America) formed a limited liability corporation to buy the property for $4.5 million in 2016.
Then, Petra said Monday, he concluded that the project was too big for his firm to handle; instead he plans to partner with local builder NHR Properties on mid-market projects elsewhere in New Haven, more in the 20 – 110-unit range.
Petra began negotiations on the 87 Union development — now dubbed “44 Olive Street” — with Adam America in June 2017, according to Seid. Adam America has the property under contract with a $1 million on deposit, according to a Dec. 26 filing in the city land records. Adam America is partnering with Seid’s building firm, Epimoni, to carry the project forward. Seid and Petra declined to divulge the full sales price or the planned cost of construction.
Seid said Monday that Epimoni Corps plans to begin construction in 2018, as originally planned, though the exact date is still uncertain. The developers expect that construction will take about two years.
David Adam Realty
An aerial view of 44 Olive Street and the surrounding area.
“We’re very happy with the design. We’re happy with the city. They’re very pro-development,” Seid said. Though the overall design remains unaltered — including parking as well as numbers of apartments and retail space — details including the size of apartments and the exact kind of amenities available remain to be worked out. Seid said that Epimoni Corps plans to include a whole floor of amenities including a swimming pool and a courtyard.
“We hope they will be staggering and well received,” Seid said.
The complex is set to include a mixture of studio, one, two, and three-bedroom apartments, in addition to townhouses. Seid said that the townhouses are a unique feature of this development, paying homage to the city’s architectural heritage. New Haven, Seid said, is experiencing high demand for multi-family rentals, driven by close access to Yale University, Yale New Haven Hospital, the biotech industry and associated venture capital firms.
Seid predicted that the Olive Street development will appeal to tech-savvy and app-friendly tenants, though he hoped that tenants would include families, older locals and a full spectrum of the city’s population. Seid said that rent would be market rate, and would likely be similar to other developments in the area, including 360 State Street.
“Once I set foot in New Haven, I was completely sold,” Seid said.
Epimoni and Adam America are looking at other properties in the New Haven area, as well though they have yet to purchase any, Seid. Adam America, a New York real estate company founded in 2009, manages hundreds of housing units in the New York area.
Matthew Nemerson, city economic development chief, expressed hope in a recent interview that 44 Olive will start construction this spring as legal action failed to block development. A second development planned for the site of the old Comcast building nearby remains stalled because of lawsuits.
Wooster Square Alder Aaron Greenberg could not be reached for comment for this story.