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In Progress: Crossing at Killingly Commons


Lowerdeck

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http://www.atlanticretail.com/pdf/KillinglyCT_Commons.pdf = project's official info packet

A new Lowe's and Staples store for Windham County. The old, small Stop n' Shop down Route 12 gets moved to the other side of I-395 and gets a new building. Target might be likely to be an anchor tenant as well.

I've mostly seen projects like this closer to larger cities, such as Lisbon Landing (Norwich) and the proposed Crossing across the street or the Shoppes at Blackstone Valley (Millbury MA, southeast of Worcester). Should be a nice add for the area storeswise, it'll help out Killingly. The only problem is, while this site takes care of the old Anchor Glass complex, what now happens to the old Ames plaza? Or the plaza where Stop n' Shop now is?

Pictures probably coming later...

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Later has come...

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Coming off I-395 south at Exit 93 down to Route 101. They have been doing ramp work here, including relocation (note the directional signs at the end. Before it was on the right side of the ramp, now it's on the left.) This new ramp is also now two lanes wide, before it was one, and will head directly into the Killingly Commons complex.

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The end of the new ramps. Straight across will eventually be the entrance to the complex. The traffic lights were moved down here.

I wonder how bad it was when Anchor Glass was still open, people trying to get in and out of the complex to/from 395 with the old lane/ramp configurement.

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Route 101 will now be a divided highway at the point of this intersection.

And I drive a white car... :whistling:

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This is looking northeast, from the parking lot of the Chucky's gas station towards 395 and 101.

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And now for the actual site itself. Anchor Glass building is a couple years gone. Foundations of the new Commons complex are somewhat starting to come along.

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Looking southeast, towards the future Stop n' Shop

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Looking southwest. I think another access road from 101 will meet in the vicinity of the heavy equipment with the main entrance road. Or that's my guess based on the site plans I saw.

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A better look...

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Looking southeast again. More zoom, looking further downfield.

So there you have it. Some progress being made in Dayville. Yes, it's another sprawling shopping center. But this when complete might be the largest complex in Windham County, so it's kinda special.

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  • 2 weeks later...

I don't have pictures, since I didn't have my camera. (Best view is from the onramp to 395 South anyway). Went by the site today. There's a lot of progress being done. Traffic lights and poles are being put up at 395 and 101 on both sides of the highway now. The Exit 93 ramps have been completed, or at least look really close to it. (395 S to 101 is now three lanes wide instead of one, 101 to 395 N is two lanes now. The paved median on Route 101 is filled in now. Turning lanes and widening has been fully added on 101 between Owen Bell Plaza and Route 12.

As for the project itself, there's been a significant amount of paving done in the past few weeks, and formations of a parking lot have been drastically visible over the last couple weeks. Walls are starting to sprout on the future (my guess) Stop n' Shop building.

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HOLY PARKING LOT BAT MAN!!!

I hate this kind of development, but I think this is likely a very good thing for this part of the state in terms of the potential for future economic growth, job retention, and the like....

that being said, I hope this does not spawn more and more shopping centers

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This is probably going to be the largest single shopping center in Windham County. The largest parking lot might go to the Stop N' Shop/Sears/Dollar Tree plaza in Putnam a few exits north. Total waste mostly.

There isn't enough of a population or a demand for more of these to sprout up in the area, that's at least a good thing. The Putnam-Killingly area finally has one, (thankfully) we're not gonna end up with out of control retail development like Manchester.

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  • 2 months later...
  • 5 weeks later...

No new pictures.

The exterior of the Lowe's went up fast. It might open late Spring. I imagine the Stop n' Shop will move over sometime in the summer, May to July probable. Target opens in October, according to the Commons' sign put up on Route 101. And Staples got their logo smeared on the giant plaza sign as well, though I haven't seen any building go up for them.

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http://www.norwichbulletin.com/homepage/x1224706958

News: eastern side to open in May. Western side still getting tenants. Target and Staples are looking for workers, which will be great for the jobs scene out here... it's horrible right now.

Now only if downtown Danielson seen a rebirth. That's ripe for foot traffic and it's got plenty of open storefronts.

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http://www.norwichbulletin.com/homepage/x1224706958

News: eastern side to open in May. Western side still getting tenants. Target and Staples are looking for workers, which will be great for the jobs scene out here... it's horrible right now.

Now only if downtown Danielson seen a rebirth. That's ripe for foot traffic and it's got plenty of open storefronts.

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It is a shame that there is not more out that way in the jobs department. Sadly Target and Staples will only create maybe 3 decent jobs a piece for the area. Here is to hoping that this retail development makes the area more attractive for employers and their target employees to move to the area.
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About a month ago, a company in Danielson was looking for seasonal temp workers to help with their operations this spring/summer. 140 people applied for 15-20 open positions, stuff I couldn't imagine paying more than 9-10 an hour. People came from a 20 mile radius, putting in applications.
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Killingly is an interesting place. The two major villages, Danielson and Dayville, both have suffered in recent years.

Downtown Danielson has shriveled, and there's been many empty storefronts along the Route 12 strip over the last decade. It hasn't found a niche like downtown Putnam to ail this situation. There's a few small restaurants and a few shops that remain, but there have been better days.

In Dayville, there's a couple of shopping centers around the intersection of Routes 12 and 101.

Map: http://maps.google.com/maps?f=q&hl=en&...mp;t=h&z=15

- 101, east of 12: The Ames that closed 10 years ago, still lies vacant. There is an old IGA store next door which keeps on somehow. The only other business left in this plaza is an old four screen movie theatre in the back, which has taken huge blows thanks to the giant multi-screens that opened in Worcester/Millbury, the Providence area, and Lisbon. Now it runs budget second run flicks for families.

- 12, south of 101: there's the Stop n' Shop, but that's moving into the new plaza. EbLens closed, that's been vacant at least a year, possibly two now. With Stop n' Shop's departure, there will be no anchor and the only stores remaining will be FYE, Blockbuster Video, a liquor store, Domino's Pizza, Subway, and a nails place. Giant holes in the main plaza will exist.

As you could see on that map, the site of this project is 101 west of 395. Before it was the site of the Anchor Glass company... which closed in the mid 1990's. It wasn't demolished until a couple of years ago. For a while, it was rumored the Putnam Wal-Mart would close and be replaced with a Supercenter at this site... which would be far far worse than the project actually going up.

Basically, Kill Commons to me... it removes one major blight issue (Anchor) and brings new development. It brings a centralized shopping issue for northeastern CT, limiting the amount of travel locals have to do (before you had to go to Worcester, Providence, Providence, or Norwich) if you wanted anything besides Stop n' Shop or Wal-Mart. I like Target, and this is a lot closer to go than Millbury MA for me. But overall, it's another sprawled out shopping center and will probably have some adverse affect on the village centers, which is counter productive to the desires of some local residents who still want the rural feel in the Quiet Corner. Would Kill Commons make Killingly become the next Manchester? No. If anything, it's a northern rival to Lisbon Landing. But this is more poor land use ... because we already have plenty of ailing shopping plazas in the region... and what to do with them?

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  • 1 month later...

Was down there yesterday. Should have brought a camera. Your typical new era big box shopping center has sprouted. Stop and Shop is pretty much done, Lowe's is moving in for an opening within a month and workers are being hired. Looks like the Target has already started to go up. I imagine with the warmer weather, things will be heating up in the next couple months. Signage is well posted.

I know people who have gotten hired at the Lowe's store. This helps the craptastic economy here in the Quiet Corner. Getting people into jobs roughly eight dollars an hour.

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I noticed this little piece of bad news for killingly

30 lost jobs. pretty decent jobs for that area too.

http://www.norwichbulletin.com/news/regional/x225270223

<H1 class=p5h>AT&T to close center in Killingly</H1>

The move, scheduled for June, will transfer approximately 30 workers to other locations in the state, including to Hartford and Willimantic

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It was probably some box on the side of the article talking about the plaza. I don't think it's that terribly out of place. Especially for a place like eastern Connecticut where much of nothing really happens. (Can't you tell I don't like it out here?)

I don't get all the excitement or concern over the new Stop n' Shop. There's one right across 395 and 12. It's not like Dayville has gone without a grocery store. There's been a Sn'S all along, plus the IGA everyone's worried about closing.

In my eyes, Blackstone Valley is still going to be better than Killingly Commons. Lisbon Landing probably outdid K.C. with the Super Walmart and the movie theatre. K.C. just fills a regional void.

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  • 3 weeks later...

News:

The Lowe's is now open. It is the first place open on this site since 1997, so good to have jobs back in that area and something useful.

The Stop n' Shop opens on May 23rd... and the one on the other side of 395 will close.

The rest of the plaza, including a Target and the Quiet Corner's first Starbucks (no, really, there isn't any out here yet) will come later this fall.

More/Source: http://www.villagernewspapers.com/pdf/KIL.2008.05.02.pdf (link probably good for only the next couple weeks)

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  • 4 weeks later...

More news: The Stop n' Shop has moved from it's location on North Main St. (Route 12) and into its new custom made building in the Commons.

I haven't been in that area in a while, but I'd imagine the North Main St. plaza is roughly deserted with it's main tenant gone. Unfortunate, there's enough deserted plazas near that 12/101 intersection already (the old Ames now mostly a parking lot for truckers, and the four screen cinema behind the Beit Bros IGA struggling to stay open.

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More news: The Stop n' Shop has moved from it's location on North Main St. (Route 12) and into its new custom made building in the Commons.

I haven't been in that area in a while, but I'd imagine the North Main St. plaza is roughly deserted with it's main tenant gone. Unfortunate, there's enough deserted plazas near that 12/101 intersection already (the old Ames now mostly a parking lot for truckers, and the four screen cinema behind the Beit Bros IGA struggling to stay open.

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Millbury MA to the north (closest for me), Lisbon to the south (probably the fastest from Killingly), Providence Place or Greenville RI to the east. All are pretty lengthy drives.

The one in Dayville is an older four screen. I remember going to the place when I was way younger, then Showcase North in Worcester opened and Killingly's rapidly became unimportant. It has closed several times in recent years, including a month or two ago. It has only reopened in the last couple of weeks with another new name. Most of these new incarnations tend to be several weeks behind on new releases, show family friendly (mostly secular) fares, and I'd assume the place is cheaper than Lisbon/Millbury/Prov. Place. According to Yahoo Movies, the place also has limited operating times... open between 6 pm and whenever the last movie finishes (probably around 10-10:30 at the latest)

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  • 1 month later...

I drove by the place on Thursday. Didn't have the camera or a chance to stop, but I saw there's a lot of building going up on the western side of the property. It looks like the Target store is close to completion, but IIRC the store wasn't supposed to open until October. Much of the rest of the plaza has frame built already.

One of these days I'll try and get down to Dayville with the camera.

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  • 4 months later...

Most of the plaza is now open, all pretty much all of the construction is complete. A few stores have yet to come up for business, and will by early 2009. The McDonalds on Route 12 has closed and now moved over to the new plaza, that transition was done a couple weeks ago. The TJ Maxx in Putnam closed and moved to this new plaza. Target has been open almost a month. This place is doing a bit to help out with getting people jobs, granted these jobs are nowhere near the best in the world.

There was once rumors of Wal-Mart building a supercenter at the corner of Route 101 and 12, where currently there's a vacant Ames, an IGA, and the old movie theatre. Now those plans have shifted towards Route 6 in the eastern side of Brooklyn, and the residents there are fighting hard against it.

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