A long-running reshuffle of the state’s Hartford office portfolio that began under Gov. Dannel Malloy is approaching its next phase, as workers vacate two historic Capitol-area properties that could be offered up for development by year’s end.
The adjacent buildings at 18-20 Trinity St. and 30 Trinity St., built in 1905 and 1900, respectively, total more than 164,000 square feet in an area seen as key for the ongoing redevelopment of Bushnell Park South.
The latter address was fully vacated as of early January, with state workers relocating mainly to the nearby State Office Building at 165 Capitol Ave., where a $205 million renovation wrapped up last fiscal year, making room for various state officials including the offices of the Attorney General, Comptroller and Treasurer.
Meanwhile, 18-20 Trinity should be empty by the end of May, according to the Department of Administrative Services, which oversees the state’s realty holdings.
The two properties are the latest pieces in a years-long, money-saving effort by the state to reduce its leased square footage and concentrate its Hartford workforce into newer buildings.
The amount of office space state government leases fell by more than 14% in fiscal 2020 and is now below 2 million square feet for the first time in years. Along with renegotiating lease rates, that helped the state save approximately $9.1 million, according to DAS’ most recent annual property report.
Besides 165 Capitol Ave., other taxpayer-owned buildings that state workers have moved into include 55 Farmington Ave. and the 450 Columbus Blvd., towers. The state acquired both properties in 2013 for a combined price of nearly $53 million.
If sold for redevelopment, the Trinity Street properties would be the largest Hartford transaction for the state since DAS unloaded 25 Sigourney St. — a 667,000-square-foot office tower with a condemned parking garage and other challenges — two years ago to a Florida-based commercial realty developer who is seeking to lease to corporate office tenants.
DAS spokesman John McKay the agency has begun taking internal steps that would lead to a request for development proposals for the Trinity Street properties, which have a combined assessed value of $6.1 million, city records show.
DAS has surveyed state agencies for any interest in the two properties and found no takers. Next, the agency will offer the properties to the city of Hartford, and if there is no interest expressed, an RFP will be issued for private development ideas.
CRDA Executive Director Michael Freimuth said the properties are key pieces that could bring housing to the neighborhood around The Bushnell.
New rental units on Trinity Street would complement the mixed-use conversion of a historic office building at 55 Elm St., which has been used in recent decades by state workers, including the Attorney General’s office.
Norwalk developer Spinnaker Real Estate Partners is leading the Elm Street conversion and recently proposed a $63.3 million, 164 unit mixed-use apartment redevelopment that will include co-working and restaurant space. Up to 70 of the units will be constructed so they can be available for hotel rooms, if the market justifies the need.
The redevelopment of the Trinity Street parcels would presumably get them back onto the city’s tax rolls.
“The governor wants to put buildings back on tax rolls to support economic vitality of the city,” said Office of Policy and Management Secretary Melissa McCaw, who sits on CRDA’s board.
Buy or sell?
State government’s downtown Hartford real estate strategy has come under scrutiny over the last decade as significant moves have been made to both buy and sell properties.
Most notably, the Malloy administration spent tens of millions of dollars to purchase 450 Columbus Blvd. and and 55 Farmington Ave., from private parties, removing hundreds of thousands of square feet of office space from the city’s tax rolls.
Given Hartford’s fiscal challenges, and the fact that more than 50% of city property is tax-exempt because it’s owned by the government, nonprofits, hospitals, colleges or churches, the move was controversial.
However, 450 Columbus had been vacant for several years at the time, significantly pushing up downtown Hartford’s vacancy rate, which was detrimental to the overall market.
“If the state didn’t buy the Columbus Boulevard office building, most likely that building would be empty today and you’d have a city with a vacancy rate of 35%,” said Mark Duclos, president of Hartford-based brokerage Sentry Commercial.
Larry Levere, Duclos’ director of office brokerage, agreed. Both properties would be relatively difficult to lease, he said, were they not filled with state workers today.
“Those two buildings the state bought are on the outskirts of downtown and not as attractive as buildings in the center of the city,” Levere said. “I think you would have an extremely tough time leasing them.”
Hartford Mayor Luke Bronin, who is a CRDA board member, said during the quasi-public agency’s most recent board meeting that he hopes the state conveys the Trinity Street properties to CRDA with an allowance for maintenance costs, which he said would be the most agile route to redevelopment.
