$712,500 in Infrastructure Financing from Budget Bill Signed by President Obama for UConn Area Downtown Center 

The town of Mansfield, CT announced substantial funding in the amount of $712,500 has been approved for the Storrs Center Downtown Development. This is yet another important step in moving forward with the first phase of the development.  The appropriation bill signed on Thursday by President Obama was sponsored by Senator Joseph Lieberman and Congressman Joseph Courtney and was initiated by a request from the Town of Mansfield in February 2008. 

The project has received a total of $18.5 million in federal and state funding and the current bill is designated for a range of uses, from streets and utilities to open spaces, parks and landscaping for Phase 1 of the project. This first phase includes plans for a pair of buildings on Dog Lane as well as a realignment of Dog Lane with a new intersection on Storrs Road (Rte 195).  Timing of Phase 1 for the Storrs Downtown will coincide with Storrs Road improvements. The current plan is for site work and building preparation to begin Winter 2009-2010.

Downtown? What Downtown?

We are often called on to help introduce potential new UConn faculty members to the area and are frequently asked these two questions:

• “Why doesn’t a community that hosts UConn have a downtown area?”

• “And……. where is “everything?”

• Although there are downtown areas in communities about 20-35 minutes away from UConn like Glastonbury, South Windsor or Manchester, it would certainly be great to have more amenties closer to campus.  Many in the Mansfield community are excited that additional funding to reinvent The Storrs Downtown (or should we say invent it??)  has been green-lighted. The positive economic and lifestyle impact will be felt throughout the UConn community and the entire surrounding area with the additional residential, commercial and investment real estate opportunities the Storrs Center project brings to Mansfield.

The Last Green Valley Between New York and Boston

Well known as  the “Last Green Valley”  between New York and Boston, the combination of stunning rural landscape with a central downtown development will be amazing.  How can it get any better than this in Connecticut? - miles of peaceful walking trails, acres of protected land, winding rivers and pretty neighborhoods with great dining, shopping  and retail opportunities!  What about a great loft style apartment right in the center of it all?  Let us know if you have any questions about “The Last Green Valley” and the Storrs Center’s  development as well as the impact this will have on your property, you can always give us a call at 860-429-2853 or drop us a note.