Stamford Receives Funds To Remediate Atlantic Street Property

STAMFORD, CT — On Thursday, Gov. Ned Lamont announced that his administration awarded $17.9 million in state grants to 13 municipalities across Connecticut to help with the cost of remediating 40 blighted parcels.

Stamford received $950,000 to abate and preserve the existing buildings and remediate soil and groundwater at 650 Atlantic St., also known as the Blickensderfer Building.

The 2.5-acre site will be used for a mixed-use, transit-oriented development, in partnership with BLT Live Work Play. The area is designated as a State of Connecticut Enterprise Zone and U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development Federal Opportunity Zone. It was also identified as the fastest growing census tract in the State of Connecticut, the city of Stamford said.

Ten percent of the proposed dwelling units will be set aside for affordable housing.

"Access to affordable and accessible housing has been a top priority of mine, and I believe it is a crucial part to our continued and responsible economic growth," said Mayor Caroline Simmons in a news release Thursday. "I am hopeful and excited that there will be incredible opportunities for our business community, renters, and homeowners as a result of this state funding. I want to thank Governor Lamont, our great state delegation, and Anita Carpenter and our grants team who worked to ensure that the City of Stamford receives this critical funding.

Simmons thanked Lamont, Stamford's delegation to Hartford and Anita Carpenter and the city's grants team who worked on the grant process.

"This is the first step to long term investment in an area that is a prime location for transit-oriented development and economic growth," Simmons added.

The grants are from the Connecticut Department of Economic and Community Development’s Brownfield Remediation Program. Lamont's office said they are expected to leverage $427 million in private funding and will help in the investigation and clean-up of approximately 78 acres of land in Connecticut.

"Cleaning up blighted properties that have been vacant for decades and putting them into productive use will ultimately generate back many more times the amount of these grants through private investments,” Lamont said in a news release. "If we remediate these properties now, we can turn an eyesore into an asset, revitalize neighborhoods and transform otherwise unusable property into new space for businesses and residents."

Department of Energy and Environmental Protection Commissioner Katie Dykes pointed out the environmental impacts of remediation.

"It provides for the removal of contaminants from these areas that may have been negatively impacting the environment for many years," Dykes said in a news release. "Removing pollution from these properties unlocks new and varied uses for these properties, including housing, mixed-use commercial and retail options, office and business space, and community recreation that fill needs and expand opportunities for those who live and work in and around these spaces."