IN PROGRESS: Front Street @ Adriaen's Landing

[Luca Brasi]

I heard today that two new retail tenants are very close...

[Theophrastus Bombastus]

http://courantblogs.com/ct-real-estate/uconn-west-hartford-campus-relocated-to-hartfords-front-street/

 

Do this ASAP. I just hope there is enough space (I think across the street near Arch St Tavern can also be developed).... also posting on UConn thread.

[HartfordTycoon]

I heard today that two new retail tenants are very close...

 

Awesome! Things are really looking good over there right now.

[Luca Brasi]

Awesome! Things are really looking good over there right now.

 

I heard a seafood restaurant and a brewpub. Didn't ask how close they were but that is who is in the mix right now.

[beerbeer]

3,000 students and facility would make a huge difffernce.

 

I am a big fan of critical mass. Add housing and UConn to Front Street and you have all the ingredients for long term success of this project. If Front Street is important, this is the site.

[HartfordTycoon]

3,000 students and facility would make a huge difffernce.

 

I am a big fan of critical mass. Add housing and UConn to Front Street and you have all the ingredients for long term success of this project. If Front Street is important, this is the site.

 

I really can't argue with that logic at all. We need Front Street to not only succeed but thrive, grow, and spur further development around it.

[beerbeer]

Infinity Music had it's ground breaking yesterday. Expected to open early next year. Ground breaking for Phase Two Front Street apartments is set for the fall (we'll see).

 

http://www.courant.com/business/hc-infinity-hall-groundbreaking-20130326,0,1463809.story

 

http://www.hartfordbusiness.com/article/20130326/NEWS01/130329892/1002

Edited March 27, 2013 by beerbeer

[The Voice of Reason]

i noticed the date creep in that article too Beer beer

 

seems strange that they would push things back, they have funding up the wazoo, they have some retail tenents lined up... are they slowing it down because of UCONN maybe hoping to do phase 2 and 3 at the saem time to save cost?  that way my only thought.

only if they win of course

[beerbeer]

More infinity.

 

The hall will seat 500. 400 below and 100 on the mezzanine

 

[Theophrastus Bombastus]

damm, look at #7 Portland, that could be us......

 

http://www.businessinsider.com/us-cities-with-the-best-parks-2013-6?op=1

 

why is hartford not even listed? we are <top 50 in terms of size or population??

Edited June 6, 2013 by Theophrastus Bombastus

[The Voice of Reason]

that photo of Portland is enticing isnt it.

 

all we need to do is bury or move I-91.... no problem!

 

easy way to add a few hungred acres of awesome parkland

[Hartfordfan]

By KENNETH R. GOSSELIN, [email protected] The Hartford Courant

7:00 a.m. EDT, June 26, 2013

A casual, mid-priced family restaurant may soon join the growing roster of tenants at Hartford's Front Street entertainment district, which includes a live music venue and an upscale steakhouse under construction

Developer HB Nitkin Group is close to a deal with the restaurant, which would lease space on the same side of the development as a movie theater, now open for six months, Nitkin's director of development Peter Christian said Tuesday.

Christian declined to name the restaurant, but if a lease is finalized, the venue would occupy about 4,500 square feet. The lease would reduce the space left to lease to about 20,000 square feet, down from the original 60,000 square feet.

"In the last six months, interest has picked up because of the construction activity," Christian said. "Front Street is finally — after a long period of time — at the tipping point."

The entertainment district is the first phase of the heavily taxpayer-subsidized Front Street, which will be followed by an apartment building in the second phase, and redevelopment of the former Hartford Times building in a third phase. Front Street is part of the larger Adriaen's Landing development, which includes the Connecticut Convention Center and the Marriott Hartford Downtown hotel.

On Monday, news that the University of Connecticut will likely redevelop the 1920's Hartford Times edifice for relocating its campus in West Hartford to downtown provided another boost for Front Street.

"If this ends up being the site chosen for UConn, it will be great for the area and a boon for the project," Christian said.

Christian said Nitkin thinks other restaurants would be viable options for Front Street as well as an ice cream or frozen yogurt shop and coffee shop.

Few would have imagined this much hubbub at Front Street just a few years ago. After years of delays and a change in scope and developer, Front Street began construction in 2008. They finished the shell of the buildings in 2010. Then, the buildings stood vacant for two years. Front Street's opening originally was intended to be timed to the opening of the convention center in 2005.

Tens of millions of dollars in public subsidies have boosted the project — much of it going toward two parking garages. More recently, Infinity Hall received a $1.3 million state grant to help pay for construction.

Last year's opening of Spotlight Theatres is expected to be followed by Capital Grille in September and Infinity Music Hall & Bistro in the spring. Infinity had initially targeted an opening for earlier in 2014, but a spokeswoman said Tuesday there were delays in securing permits. As a result, construction did not begin in earnest until May, even though a ceremonial groundbreaking was held in March, the spokeswoman said.

Christian said construction on the 121-unit apartment building with a floor of ground level retail space is expected to begin in late October or early November and take about 20 months to complete.

[The Voice of Reason]

The last sentance is the most interesting.

 

Christian said construction on the 121-unit apartment building with a floor of ground level retail space is expected to begin in late October or early November and take about 20 months to complete.

 

wait a minute, when did it become 121 units?

it was 115

lets hope that if UConn become official it become 221

[beerbeer]

Given the footprint of the Front Street site (see link).

 

http://www.courant.com/business/real-estate/hc-map-front-street-projects-20130625,0,2491560.flash

 

Assuming 25 apartments per floor. And a ground floor of retail.  The building would be six floors tall.  Which seems about right for the surroundings.

[The Voice of Reason]

the project that there was a rendering of was 115 apartments and 5 stories and that included retail.

 

I will be cirious to see what the final plan is and honestly if it ends up changing if/when Uconn becomes official.  I think it likely would be smart to increase the scale of this building with having the school next door taking away space previously earmarked for housing.  just seems like an easy win.

 

 

for me, I think Ideally we would be looking at ~200 units in 8 or so floors

 

I know that If I could live in any location in all of Hartford it would either be on this lot, West facing, or the YMCA area right on the park with a southern view.

[Hartfordfan]

By BRIAN DOWLING, [email protected]The Hartford Courant

2:53 p.m. EDT, July 29, 2013

 

HARTFORD — The city's new restaurant and entertainment cluster, Front Street, added a new name Monday: Ted.

Ted Turner and his Montana Grill, that is.

HB Nitkin Group, the firm busy filling Front Street with restaurants, confirmed that Ted's Montana Grill will take up about 4,700 square feet of the development, a name held close by developers after news of a casual mid-priced restaurant broke late June.The news is the latest in a string of bookings for the urban business: Infinity Hall and Bistro, UConn's downtown Hartford campus, Front Street Bistro, Capital Grille.

"Leasing and moving forward on residential, and the announcement of UConn moving, we will have really created — and are in the process of creating — a dynamic urban environment," Helen Nitkin, co-founder and chairman of the Greenwich-based HB Nitkin Group, said in an interview Monday.

Ted's Montana Grill doubles the number of "grills" on Front Street, raising some questions about whether there's room in this town, at least this part of the town, for restaurants so similar. Nitkin says the similarities don't concern her because they are focused on "different markets."

"One's more of a middle market, and Capital Grill" —announced by developers in November — "is … considered one of the more premium steakhouse's in the country," she said. Ted's, she said, is more of "a casual type of restaurant."

Ted's Montana Grill, which also has a South Windsor location, should be open in six to nine months, Nitkin said. The booking puts the development's occupancy at 72 percent. Another restaurant, which Nitkin declined to name, has also signed onto the development, she said. That addition would push the occupancy rate to 76 percent.

 

[The Voice of Reason]

I like Teds.

 

I think thats actually a perfect kind of national chain to move in there.  While it competes with other burger places in town, it also is a unique brand, and should succeed.

 

Now the article mentions another lease that sounds small, so I am guessing more like fast casual, maybe a Chipotle or a subway.

 

I want to see the housing start because they will certainly need more retail space to fill soon and also, the housing will help drive additional leasing.

 

oh and UConn plans?

[Hartfordfan]

i am kind of disappointed that there are no shops or other retail.  downtown hartford has plenty of good restaraunts already.

Edited July 30, 2013 by Hartfordfan

[HartfordTycoon]

I think Ted's is a good fit for Front Street and a very solid mid-level establishment to balance the much more upscale Capital Grille.  I'm just happy to finally see this momentum at Front Street.  I can't wait to see the final rendering for the apartment building and the UConn campus.  Getting this thing extended to Prospect can't happen soon enough.  I feel like so many people still don't really realize that Front Street is now in pretty damn good shape.  

 

I'm thinking that the other signed lease is for something much more fast-casual, like Chipotle or Five Guys.  Doubt it's a Subway, there is one 2 minutes away on Main.  Getting well regarding national chains to open Downtown was only a pipe dream five years ago, with the exception of Morton's.  This really bodes extremely well for Downtown's future.

[The Voice of Reason]

i am kind of disappointed that there are no shops or other retail.  downtown hartford has plenty of good restaraunts already.

 

not exactly disagreeing, but I think the shops/retail will only come as the residential population increases.

 

Front Street is meant to entertain visiting conventioneers, and then lure them further into the city.  As a resturant district I think it will work to that end.

 

I think in the apartment piece, the 35,000 SF of retail will have more of a mixed feel.

 

Also, you can pretty much guarantee some kind of UConn themed store in Front street now that the campus will be there.

 

Might even be a book store type thing?  who knows??

[Luca Brasi]

A UConn bookstore / coffee shop (assuming UConn will take the Times space) that sold UConn and Whaler gear would be a nice fit in the apartment building retail

[Luca Brasi]

I was talking to some people in zoning and they were telling me that the Downtown Marriott does very well. If this is the case then it's time for another hotel in this area to start attracting bigger conventions. And I can't think of a better space than the surface lot right in front of the CC to continue the street wall down Columbus. Thomas Hooker Brewery and restaurant would be a very nice ground floor tenant of a boutique hotel.

[The Voice of Reason]

Hmmm what about the Phase II of the Mariott?

 

 

Remember it was designed as expandable to 700 rooms

 

I would prefer to see the phase @ happen and honestly think that the convention ceter should use the space you mentioned for future expansion.

 

honestly hotel size affects the viability of the Convention center, and if there were a business reason to do so I would be all for an expansion up to the street for the comvention center.

I would add that any expansion into this space would need to include ground floor retail facing the street .

 

That would make this a very interesting district.

 

I think in a world of best uses, there are plenty of locations where there cuold be more hotel roms added, but very few where you can expand the exebition space.  the biggest thing is contigious space for conventions.  for that reason I would not want to encroach and cage in future growth (even if it never happens)

 

 

Also, I like Hooker in the area, so it would be cool to include something like that.   I like the lot behind the federal building for a hotel/brewery

[HartfordTycoon]

I think the city needs to work hard to convince Hooker to find a spot somewhere in this vicinity and actually try to use the UConn investment as proof that this area is on solid footing and poised for growth.  I definitely like the idea of a boutique hotel, maybe AI should tweak his vision again. 

 

It's pretty exciting to me that we now have two interested tenants fighting over the Times building on Front street.  Who'd a thunk it just a year ago?  This proves that just because it's Hartford doesn't mean you can take forever to decide to make a move.  Hooker waited too long and now have to go with plan B, which the city should work very hard to help secure.  As I posted in the UConn thread, I'd like to see Hooker next to the Arch Street Tavern as part of phase 3.  I don't know if that's logistically possible, but the Arch Street building is deceptively large so I'm sure a pretty large building could be accomodated there.

[The Voice of Reason]

I do hope they can find a place on the edge of downtown, I really do!

I dont see a true brewery in the heart of downtown, but there are a ton of options on the edge.

 

problem is, I think the edge is not a place most people want to go still, so thats what makes it tough.  Front street is kind of the best of both worlds for Hooker.

 

If Hartford were larger maybe, or more vibrant or seen as safer, Im sure Hooker would beg to be in Coltsville, or back where they started in Parkville, or even Asylum Hill or NODO

 

but those all seem just a little scary for visitors, and for that reason he wants to be downtown.  Mr Cameron is no fool and is trying to make the best move he can, so this will surely be interesting.