After repeated vandalism, smoke shop may close

TORRINGTON — “Torrington’s just not a very welcoming community,” said Chris Valerio, who in January opened Mix Tobacco & Vape at 118 E. Main St.

Over the last two months, vandals have thrown rocks through the store’s plate-glass windows, which now are covered with large sheets of plywood. Valerio opened the store with his father, Abdhulla Abdou, of Salt Point, N.Y.

The family owns several delis and vape/tobacco stores in New York, and saw an opportunity to do the same in the Torrington area, Valerio said.

“Things were starting to pick up and we were getting more customers, but since the windows got broken, people aren’t coming in,” he said. “So we’re not making any money. We’re spending it all on repairs and security.”

Now, Abdou and Valerio say they’re ready to close their store should the issues persist.

“We are staying at this time, but if anything else happens, we will have to close,” Abdou said Thursday. “We don’t want to leave.”

The shop includes a spacious retail space that hadn’t been fully stocked. The family was planning to install shelving and standing displays with more inventory. The store’s displays include glass cases of pipes, rolling papers and other paraphernalia. One wall has a huge display of standing glass water pipes. The back wall is also filled with vapes, wraps and other merchandise. The store also sells tobacco, rolling machines, tubes and other smoking accessories.

Valerio said unknown youths stand across the street from the store in front of St. Peter Church, then hide in the shadows on the side of the store building; in spite of their security cameras, bright lighting and alarms, the vandalism has continued.

“This week after they broke the front door window with a rock, they tried to break the door frame,” he said.

Abdou contacted Torrington Mayor Elinor Carbone about the vandalism. This week, the mayor said she felt badly for the owners, said police were involved.

“The biggest problem we have is establishing positive uses for businesses on downtown streets,” she said. “It’s heartbreaking when this happens. This is a challenge we face when we think about economic development.”

This month, another smoke shop on Water Street also had its front window smashed. On March 30, the business was closed and a piece of plywood was taped over the window, with a “closed” sign on the door.

Police Chief William Baldwin said the department is aware of the incidents of vandalism.

“Of course, we’re investigating this,” the chief said. “We have extra patrols keeping an eye on the area. The incidents aren’t falling by the wayside, by any means.”

Torrington has a number of other smoke and vape stores: Shawn’s City Smoke, 333 Winsted Road; Smoker’s Club, 644 Main St.; Tobacco Mart, 7 S. Main St.; Vape & Tobacco Mart, 338 N. Elm St.; Smoker’s Ape, 225 High St.; Wasteland Gift Shop, Water Street; Vape Empire, 451 Main St.; and Smooth Vaporz, 954 E. Main St.

Emily M. Olson/Hearst Connecticut Media Mix Tobacco & Vape, which opened in January on East Main Street, Torrington, has been vandalized four times in the last month, according to the owners, Abdhulla Abdou and his son, Chris Valerio.