Mansfield Residents Receive Update on Storrs Center

Mansfield residents and local union workers filled a Bishop Center meeting room Wednesday as all parties involved with Storrs Center came together to bring the community up to date on the project's progress.

“We’ve been working hard for a long time to try to bring you the right project for Storrs Center, and we appreciate your continued support," said Philip Lodewick, president of the Mansfield Downtown Partnership.

“We hope you appreciate what we’re trying to accomplish.”

Over the past several months, developers have been working on buildings located at 1 and 9 Dog Lane, which will house both commercial and residential units.

The buildings are on schedule to be complete by July, while construction of Phase 1B – additional commercial and residential units – will begin in the spring and is scheduled for completion in the summer of 2013, Thomas Trubiana, executive vice president and chief investment officer for Education Realty Trust (EDR), said.

“I hope the community views [the project] and sees it the way we do,” Trubiana said.

“It is very exciting. The architecture is wonderful and we’re just really proud to be a part of it,” he said.

Meanwhile, The Oaks on the Square, Storrs Center’s apartment homes, has been accepting leasing applications. Of the initial 127 residential units, 60 percent of them have been leased-out, Trubiana said.

“We’re confident that by the time this opens this coming summer, we’ll be 100 percent leased,” he said. “All in all, we’re very, very pleased.”

Commercially, ; , a tattoo and piercing shop; Dog Lane Café; Froyoworld, a self-serve frozen yogurt lounge; ; Insomnia Cookies, a late-night bakery delivery service; Moe’s Southwest Grill; ; ; ; and the have signed leases to be among the first businesses to open in Storrs Center, Howard Kaufman, managing member of Leyland Alliance, LLC, the project's master developer, said.

Negotiations are still on-going with several other businesses, Kaufman said, and officials are looking to acquire leases for a high quality burger joint, a candy shop, clothing stores, medical offices and a supermarket, among others.

Work on the parking garage has also begun, and additional materials for the structure's foundation will be delivered by the end of the month, or early February at the latest, Lon Hultgren, Mansfield's director of public works said. That aspect of the project is slated to finish in August.

Most recently, for "infrastructure improvements" along Village Street, which has been designed to be “pedestrian-oriented” and accessible to buses, vehicles, cars and bicycles, according to developers.

Concerns voiced during the public comment portion of the meeting focused primarily on local contractors - or what union workers believed was a lack thereof, and .

Representatives from Erland said the company was not aware of undocumented workers on their site, and made it clear that they had not received any official notices stating otherwise.

"There's been nothing issued to Erland about any undocumented workers," said a spokesperson.

Charles LaConche, business manager at Connecticut Laborers' District Council, told developers that issues such as minority contractors, minority workers and the use of local goods and services still need to be addressed.

“If labor representatives have a concern, we want to be able to maintain an open dialogue,” Town Manager Matthew Hart said. “I think that would be the most productive way to discuss these issues…and I think we’d be much better off having a collegial working relationship," he said.

Those who spoke out were also reminded by developers that at least six local residents were hired by subcontractors, according to Wednesday's presentation. A engineering student was also hired by Erland, Eric Greene, vice president at Erland Construction said.

Greene also pointed out that 85 percent of contract values were to companies with Connecticut offices and said that close to 70 percent of individuals on the work site are state residents.

In addition, and talk with residents about their companies and the job opportunities available to them.

The event, scheduled for 7:30-8:30 p.m., will be held in the gymnasium of the .

For inquiries about future job fairs, contact StorrsCenterInfo@erland.com.