Transformation Of Historic Mill Building Into Brewpub Moves Forward In Manchester

MANCHESTER, CT — Plans to transform a historic mill building into a craft brewery and taproom took a step forward when the Manchester Planning and Zoning Commission recently approved the project’s special exception preliminary plan.

The commission unanimously approved Hop Brook Bend, LLC’s plan to convert part of the building at 176 Hartford Road into Lost Realm Craft Co. at its meeting last week.

The project will “adaptively reuse an existing historic mill building for brewpub use, including on-site brewing, food service, and on-premises consumption at 176 Hartford Road,” according to minutes from the Feb. 2 meeting.

“The reasons for the approval are that the proposed activity preserves the historic character of the building, is a good adaptive reuse of the building, and meets the special exception criteria in Art. VI, Sec. 18.10.3 and general preliminary plan requirements of Art. VI Sec. 18.6.1,” the meeting minutes state.

The Hartford Business Journal reports the brewpub will occupy about 6,700 square feet on the first floor of the roughly 27,500-square-foot building, and will accommodate up to 100 patrons and include brewing operations, a kitchen, bar and seating areas, restrooms, and back-of-house functions, with limited outdoor seating.

The owners of Lost Realm Craft Co. shared the news of a “major milestone” with the approval of the special exception preliminary plan, which they called the “first step among many approvals and permits,” according to a post on the company’s Facebook page.

“The path ahead remains long, but this moment matters,” the post reads. “Every dream begins as an idea. Before the doors open, before the vessels are filled, before the walls carry voices and music, there is simply a place, and the people who believe in what it could become.”

The post shares a video of a pre-demo walkthrough of the building that the owners said “captures the space as it stands today, tired, quiet, and waiting, at the very beginning of its transformation.”

“We’re deeply grateful to our town, our neighbors, and everyone who has walked alongside us so far,” the post reads. “We build slowly, thoughtfully, and together, rooted in this community and guided by care for what comes next.”

For more information, visit Lost Realm Craft Co. on Facebook here, and its website here.