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September 29, 2020

Developer breaks ground on mixed use city project

PHOTO | New Haven BIZ Renderings of two buildings which will comprise The Whit Wooster Square on Chapel Street in New Haven.
By Michelle Tuccitto Sullo

A dirt lot in New Haven is about to be transformed into a large mixed use development featuring 230 rental apartments and 5,600 square feet of street level retail space.

Construction is underway on The Whit Wooster Square, which will include two buildings at 630 and 673 Chapel St. 

Hines, an international real estate firm based in Texas, joined with city officials for a groundbreaking ceremony on Tuesday morning. The project is Hines’ first multifamily development in Connecticut.

Michael Piscitelli, the city’s economic development administrator, said the project is bringing jobs to construction workers and will help address the need for housing.

“It will help create density, which helps our small businesses in the area,” Piscitelli said.

The location most recently had been a parking lot and vacant office building. 

The site of the future The Whit Wooster Square on Chapel Street in New Haven.

Tommy Craig, Hines’ senior managing director, said the firm will work to be a good neighbor for the city. While the firm often focuses on office buildings, he said there is a demand for residential real estate in the region. 

“The Whit Wooster Square is particularly notable in that it will enhance our already strong multifamily portfolio and demonstrate the transformational power of quality rental housing,” Craig said.

The Whit Wooster Square buildings will feature brick façades and steel accents, and the design will be in keeping with the architecture of the surrounding area.

The development will have a mixture of studio, one-, two- and three-bedroom residences. It will feature communal work spaces with private offices, a club room, dining room and catering kitchen. A social space will connect to a roof terrace featuring grilling stations, bar and lounge seating, a fire pit and views of the tree-lined Olive Street and Wooster Square Park. The project also includes a pool, fitness center, coffee bar and bike room.

Grant Jaber, managing director at Hines, said the city’s “innovation-based economy” attracts people from around the world.

“There is a distinct need for well-appointed rental housing,” Jaber said. “The Whit Wooster Square will play an essential role in reinvigorating the first few blocks east of downtown as one of the first large-scale rental developments in the Wooster Square neighborhood.”

Contact Michelle Tuccitto Sullo at msullo@newhavenbiz.com.

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