Downtown Middletown Apartment Proposal Wins All Needed Approvals

MIDDLETOWN A proposal for a six-story, 89-unit apartment building at the corner of Broad and College streets has all the necessary approvals, and construction is scheduled to start in the spring.

Massachusetts-based Hajjar Management Co. received approval Wednesday from the town's planning and zoning commission and its redevelopment agency. The Design Review and Preservation Board also issued a favorable opinion on the project.

"They say they want to start construction as soon as spring begins," Planning Director Michiel Wackers said on Friday.

He said the planning and zoning approval came with a condition that Hajjar officials meet with the Design Review and Preservation Board to go over the materials that will be used on the exterior of the building.

Hajjar only needs to apply for a building permit before it can begin construction.

The company owns the 12-story MiddleOak office tower, and will build the new apartment building on a vacant lot next to the tower.

The $20 million project will include 3,400 square feet of retail space on the first floor and a mix of studio, one-bedroom and two-bedroom apartments on the five floors above that.

Each unit will be between 570 and 1,150 square feet, with rents ranging from $1,100 to $2,300 a month, Hajjar said last year.

"It's been a longstanding goal of the city to bring high-quality housing that can attract a diversity of income downtown," Wackers said. "We want downtown to be home to a broad range of Middletown residents."

The common council on Feb. 3 approved an incentive plan for the project that will freeze taxes at the current level for seven years and caps building permit fees at $142,600.

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Downtown Middletown Apartment Proposal Wins All Needed Approvals