IN THE NEWS

New downtown landlord signs tenant

March 29, 2009; As originally appeared in The Connecticut Post

BRIDGEPORT -- A former People's United Bank property on Main Street, vacant since 2002, will have a new tenant before the end of the year.

Casey Family Services, a nonprofit child welfare agency, plans to relocate to a two-story office building downtown at 779 Main St. in November. The agency has been at its current 789 Reservoir Ave. offices for 11 years.

The Main Street building is part of the portfolio of downtown properties, totaling 255,548 square feet, sold by the local bank in December to Main State Ventures, a partnership between real estate investment firm Forstone Capital and Spinnaker Real Estate Partners, both of Norwalk.

The partnership acquired nine buildings, which sit on 4.81 acres on two city blocks bordered by State Street and North Frontage Road to the north and south and by Main and Broad streets to the east and west, for $8.65 million. The city assessor's Web site shows the properties are assessed at nearly $12 million, a figure that reflects 70 percent of their market value.

Raymond Torres, executive director of Casey Family Services, estimated the interior and exterior renovations to the 21,000-square-foot Main Street site could cost more than $1 million. "We will be using a combination of some of our funds and some from Main State Ventures," he said. The agency has signed a 10-year lease for the property.

Torres said the proximity of the site to Interstate 95, the bus depot, train station and ferry boat dock will help make the agency's services available to more people. "We will be more centrally located. More families can get there using public transportation," he said.

The property is located across the street from the People's United Bank headquarters and next to Ralph 'n' Rich's Restaurant at 815 Main St., a building also sold to Main State Ventures. The other properties sold are: 155-215 State St.; 880 Broad St. and 855 Main St. The buildings house Roberto's Restaurant, Playhouse on the Green, State Street Bistro, Take Time Cafe and several law offices.

The adoption and foster care agency is the third new tenant Main State Ventures has signed since it purchased the properties four months ago. Last month, U.S. Rep. Jim Himes, D-4, opened his new district office at 211 State St., and the Housing Development Fund, a nonprofit organization that helps finance the development of affordable housing, moved into the same building, at 940 Broad St.

Kim Morque, principal and director of development at Spinnaker, said the new owners are renewing leases with some of the current tenants and plan to renovate some of the other buildings to attract more retail downtown.

"All the buildings are great buildings, they are beautiful historic buildings. Our plans are to renovate buildings over time. In general, we want a mix of new business and commercial tenants. We want local retailers with unique stores," Morque said.

"We're excited. We're encouraged we have been able to do three leases in a relatively short time," he added. Downtown Bridgeport "is really undiscovered, and we would really like to get the word out."