The Middletown Press (Middletown, CT)
Paving the way for future development
Garage demolition will allow Middletown to market riverfront
MIDDLETOWN — The demolishment of the downtown parking garage positions the city a step closer to securing interest in prime real estate that would best suit Middletown’s sweeping views of the Connecticut River.
The city has replaced nearly three-quarters, or 171, of the 225 spaces lost when the Arcade lot on Court Street was knocked down in May. It was replaced by a temporary gravel surface lot with 90 spaces for permit-only use from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. weekdays on Dingwall Drive. Use is free from 8 p.m. to midnight and all weekend .
An additional 81 spaces with meters were created on Melilli Plaza Drive, Court Street, DeKoven Drive, William Street and Dingwall Drive, according to Middletown Parking Director Geen Thazhampallath.
The lower level of the arcade was closed in December 2013 due to crumbling concrete and other hazards. The entire structure was closed to traffic in early March. The 50-yearold garage had been experiencing damage from crumbling concrete for years and posed a significant safety risk.
That danger was realized once heavy equipment operators began knocking it down, prompting Mayor Dan Drew at the time to say, “We were expecting major chunks to have to be ground down, but the structure is falling apart as it’s being demolished,” he said, comparing the concrete to “flaky plaster.”
“It’s a beautiful piece of property. It faces the water, it has tens of thousands of cars going by on Route 9, so I wouldn’t be surprised if you see something really positive happen in that location,” Thazhampallath said.
“It won’t have all the bells and whistles of a fullfledged parking lot, but it will be functional, and our goal is to get as many parking spaces back online as quickly as possible,” Thazhampallath said in April.
The well-lit space includes security cameras. “If you’re coming downtown, we encourage you to go ahead and use that parking lot. It’s free of charge, you don’t have to feed a meter, you don’t have to worry about the amount of time you’re there,” said Thazhampallath, who cautioned motorists about leaving their cars there overnight — which would risk a ticket or tow.
“We feel that we’ve alleviated some of the shortterm stress that existed and created a viable way for people to enjoy the downtown and not worry about their parking after 4 p.m. and on the weekend. We did a nice job of squeezing out as many spaces as we could. It’s the perfect use,” Thazhampallath added.
Now, visitors can also take advantage of the private Middle Oak tower on Court Street, as well as other public city lots. “We believe we have effectively weathered this supply/ demand issue for the time being,” the director said.
He often hears from those exasperated by Metro Square’s customer parking policy. The owner of that lot has aggressively towed vehicles after people leave their cars and don’t patronize a business in the plaza. However, Thazhampallath said, “It’s a private parking lot. (The owners are) not doing anything wrong.”
In early April, after hearing from many business owners, customers and others looking for a place to park, Larry McHugh, president of the Middlesex County Chamber of Commerce, wrote a column addressing what he termed a “serious” problem at the time.
He said Wednesday the situation is “much, much better,” and praised the swift efforts of Drew and Thazhampallath.
“We didn’t put any parking kiosks or meters in (the surface lot), because we continue to market the site as a possible development site. We thought the best use for the lot would be to allow some free parking in the downtown corridor here in the next months or year or so until a firm development comes into play,” Thazhampallath said.
The return of spaces throughout downtown has alleviated a good deal of the stress people undergo while searching for spots, but McHugh said he’s still hearing some complaints.
“I think they worked awful hard to try to restore as many as possible, and make all the constituents in the downtown happy. There is some concern the police department got so many reserved spaces in the area, and that got taken away,” McHugh said.
Some Court Street businesses are still having issues, which he believes will be alleviated once city employees are no longer using Melilli Plaza for their vehicles.
He criticized business owners who park in spots in front of their establishments or those who allow employees to do the same. “Some complain about parking, and yet they park in front of their business and take up the spots. You can’t complain about lack of parking and then park in the metered parking spaces on Main Street. That doesn’t make sense,” McHugh said.
He’s very eager for the city to begin developing its riverfront, which is expected to be accelerated by decommissioning of the River Road sewage treatment plant on the east side of the waterfront. That will happen once construction on the Francis T. Patnaude Inter-municipal Pumping Station on East Main Street is complete next summer and the city is hooked up to the Mattabassett District in Cromwell.
“It’s the best view of the Connecticut River on that side,” said McHugh, who thinks the perfect use of the arcade area would be upscale, market-rate apartments and/or a hotel with retail on the street level.
“There’s been ongoing interest in that site from commercial to office to housing to hotel, and I think you’ve got to make it work financially. The city has always been a good partner to the people we’d be bringing in,” he said.
That plan would hinge on whether Hajjar Management Co. is successful in securing rents for its sixstory, 93-unit Midd-Town Apartments at 136 College St.
Studios will be priced between $1,340 and $1,672 a month, while one-bedrooms will lease in the range of $1,600 to $2,250. Two-bedroom units will rent for between $2,370 and $2,450.