Final Business Sprouts Up For Vernon Development Years In The Making

VERNON, CT — The final piece of a commercial development puzzle that was first laid out well more than a decade ago on Route 83 in Vernon is in place.

The area encompasses several parcels along the 100 block of Talcottville Road, also known as state Route 83.

Signs are up and a building permit is in the window for Poke Sushi at 129 Talcottville Road. The permit was secured in November, according to the window posting. Vernon Community and Economic Development Coordinator Shaun Gately said logistics have been sorted out and work should be able to begin.

Poke Sushi bills itself as fast-casual restaurant featuring a merge of traditional sushi and Hawaiian-style poke. There is also a location in Hartford.

It is next door to a Verizon store.

The development of that commercial block goes back more than a dozen years, when the town acquired some of the land in a tax foreclosure case. After it was sold to a developer, plans evolved for commercial buildings to sprout from the Taco Bell parking lot westward.

In 2013, the former Connecticut National Bank-turned Fleet Bank-turned Blockbuster became vacant when the video rental giant announced closings amid financial woes and a changing market.

That building was then used for police training, but was replaced in 2015 when Farmington Bank opened a branch in a new building. It is now Dime Bank, which opened in December 2022 after a slight remodeling effort.

Starbucks has been a neighbor for some time and was more recently joined by Kingdom Vape as close neighbors of the bank.

Wendy's opened in 2018 in a new building close to Taco Bell amid a bunch of hullabaloo from residents eager for another fast food option locally. .

A massive self-storage facility had been part of the plans for more than a decade, Gately said, but StorageSpace has now been constructed behind the stores and fast food joints.

The development also included a conservation easement for the trail system along the Hockanum River.

Taco Bell has remained open through all the construction activity.