The city of Bristol is looking for developers interested in revitalizing the old J.H. Sessions industrial building as a workforce housing centerpiece to its larger downtown improvement project.
City officials are aiming to turn the remediated 3.5-acre property and abandoned mill building at 273 Riverside Ave., into “a vibrant workforce housing apartment community,” with roughly 60 mixed-income units.
This housing project is part of a city effort to revitalize the Riverside Avenue corridor, which runs parallel with the popular Memorial Boulevard Park and is a key gateway to the city’s reenergized downtown, officials said in a release.
The 80,000-square-foot J.H. Sessions and Son Building is a brick former industrial building with high ceilings, wooden floors and exposed beams, and would be the centerpiece of the Riverside Revival effort, city officials said.
The Sessions company, a former trunk hardware manufacturer, ceased operations in 1984, and several businesses had been using the building since.
Last year, the city and New Colony took over management of the building, which is now vacant. The state contributed $2 million toward cleanup of the site.
A state-funded streetscape reconstruction will enhance Riverside Avenue development and business activity along the corridor.
The endeavor is a partnership with the city of Bristol, New Colony Development Corp. landbank and the Connecticut Department of Economic and Community
Development.
The city will accept bids through April 16. More information can be found at bristolct.gov/bids.
