A new auto collision repair shop is under construction in Waterbury’s East End after a former city mayor sold a 3.7-acre development site to a New York real estate company.
In a deed recorded Aug. 3, a limited liability company headed by former Mayor Joseph Santopietro sold the property at 3584 East Main St. to an affiliate of Manhattan-based Getty Realty Corp. for $2.35 million.
Getty is a publicly traded real estate investment trust that, according to its website, specializes in the acquisition, financing and development of convenience, automotive and other single-tenant retail real estate.
The company’s portfolio, as of June 30, included 1,245 properties in 46 states and Washington, D.C.
Waterbury Economic Development Director Joseph McGrath said the city had been approached by developers interested in building an auto collision repair shop at the site. In February, the city’s Zoning Commission signed off on a special permit allowing development of a “vehicle services facility” for national chain Crash Champions.
“We welcome it up there,” McGrath said Wednesday. “It will be another building on the tax rolls.”
The property sits along a busy city artery near the city border with Cheshire. The location is between two highway interchanges with Interstate 84, in a heavy retail area that includes Kohl’s, Costco, Restaurant Depot and other retailers and restaurants.
Middlebury-based Drubner Commercial marketed the property with a $2.8 million asking price, noting that it had previously been approved for a car wash and is passed by about 12,000 vehicles daily.
Santopietro served three terms as Waterbury’s mayor from January 1986 to January 1992. A limited liability company headed by the Republican former mayor acquired the East Main Street property for $1 million in 2021.
Santopietro, on Wednesday, said he shared the investment with his two daughters.
Santopietro said he initially thought of redeveloping the former nursing home into apartments, but the building had previously been left unheated, leading to severe water damage and mold. So, the decision was made to demolish the building and sell the strategically located site for redevelopment, Santopietro said.
“The point is I love Waterbury and I believe in Waterbury and I put my money where my mouth is,” Santopietro said. “I think it’s going to be a great thing for the city.”
