Plans For Hartford Stadium, New Municipal Offices Revealed

HARTFORD Two bidders have submitted broad plans for developing land north of the city's downtown, which include a minor league baseball stadium and a municipal office building.

A group led by New York-based LeylandAlliance and Middletown-based Centerplan has proposed building a ballpark, more than 210,000 square feet of municipal office space, more than 600 residential units, and retail space that features a grocery store.

Boston-based CV Properties LLC submitted a plan that includes a new municipal office building, a ballpark and a garage. The company, which called the proposal a "catalytic project," said it would partner with other interested developers "to advance the housing and retail components of the project."

A third proposal was submitted by Bloomfield-based Thomas Hooker Brewing Company. Its owner, Curt Cameron, has said he intends to build a 50,000-square-foot brewery, restaurant and beer garden on North Main Street, across from the proposed stadium.

The total cost of his plan is estimated to be $10 million to $15 million. Cameron said he expects that his beers would be among those sold in the ballpark.

"The entrance to the brewery's tasting and event room is directly across the street from the entrance to the proposed new ballpark, creating a dynamic and active corner," Cameron said in his proposal to the city.

The overall development could cost $500 million or more, officials have said. The city on Wednesday disclosed portions of the proposals. City officials did not reveal financial details of the plans, and declined to discuss how much the developers or the city would contribute. .

"We want to thoroughly vet the proposals and have a clear understand[ing] of all aspects of the proposed deal," Thomas Deller, the city's director of development services, said in a text message Wednesday. "This will take us a few weeks."

Hartford officials said they received four bids for the project, but only three met the criteria of the city's request for proposals.

Deller said Wednesday that his staff would begin evaluating the proposals with a goal of interviewing bidders the week of Aug. 18. A "selected development approach" will be submitted to the city council in late August or early September, he said, which could include one or more of the development plans.

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Plans For Hartford Stadium, New Municipal Offices Revealed