Wüsthof ’s HQ plan include EV chargers

MILFORD — German knife manufacturer Wüsthof will make the former Subway headquarters property its primary continental distribution center with the construction of a 160,000-square-foot warehouse and by occupying two nearby office buildings.

The four-page statement of use that Wüsthof recently filed with city planning officials describes the property as Wüsthof ’s “Americas Headquarters and primary distribution center.” The proposal outlines how the property will be used once landowner Robert Scinto of Sheltonbased R.D. Scinto, finishes preparing the 10.5 acres at 305 Sub Way and builds the warehouse. Wüsthof plans no major changes to the buildings on 12.5 acres at 300-336 Sub Way, the company’s officials said in the document.

Headquartered in Solingen, Germany, Wüsthof describes itself as “one of the most innovative knife manufacturers in the world” of highquality, forged knives for home and professional use. It is a seventh-generation family business operated by cousins Viola Wüsthof and Harald Wüsthof, exporting to more than 80 countries worldwide. Scinto said Wüsthof is one of the largest high-end knife-makers in the world.

The Planning and Zoning Board will begin its review of the company’s plans at a meeting on May 7, City Planner David Sulkis said.

“Any new business that comes to town is a bonus for Milford,” Sulkis said. “We are putting an empty property back in use. We are utilizing a new building that the board has approved. It’s a win for everybody.”

The company’s Norwalk operations will move to Milford as part of the plan. The business will employ as many as 55 workers — 25 to 30 warehouse and 25 office personnel. The business will have 175 as-yet unbuilt parking spaces at 305 Sub Way and 81 spaces at the other addresses. Eighteen electrical vehicle chargers will be included, officials said.

The warehouse’s primary functions include “general office work in approximately 20,000 square feet of the space; the additional space is used for warehousing, packing bulk deliveries into various product configurations (such as various knife block sets), and final packing for delivery to its partners or consumers,” according to the proposal.

Its loading docks and truck traffic will include: Daily drop-off and pickup by FedEx, United Parcel Service and the U.S. Postal Service; three or four inbound and three to five outbound truck deliveries per month; with four to six trucks a month “during heavy season (mid-September through mid-December),” according to the proposal. All site traffic will use Sub Way, primarily southeast from Route 1 and Interstate 95.

It is unclear what the property’s former suitor, Milford-based online auto parts supplier FCP Euro, will do next. It had been slated to move operations and 200 workers onto the Subway property, with Subway having moved to a Scinto property in Shelton last fall. But FCP’s move stalled, and the company has said it is considering relocating to another town, because city regulations prohibit oil-storage tanks at the Milford location.

FCP collects used oil from its customers as part of its service and planned to store it on site, but the planning board objected because such storage isn’t allowed in the property’s zone. FCP CEO Scott Drodz has said in a recent text message that company leaders are reviewing their options.

Wüsthof, meanwhile, will likely have a finished warehouse by the end of the year, Scinto said.