The Broad Brook Brewing Company, which opened in East Windsor in 2013, becoming that town’s first brewery, plans to move operations to Suffield, where its owners want to build a newer, bigger brewery.
That’s according to an application filed last month with the Suffield Planning and Zoning Commission, where the brewery’s owners are seeking a special permit to build a 12,000-square-foot brewery on a 2-acre lot in the Mach One Industrial Park off of Route 75 in Suffield.
A public hearing on the application will be held Oct. 17 before the Suffield Planning and Zoning Commission.
According to a statement of purpose filed with the application, the brewery’s owners stated that in the three years since they opened at 2 North Road in the Broad Brook section of East Windsor, they’ve reached capacity and want to expand.
But another reason why the owners decided to move out of East Windsor may have been explained at Tuesday night’s East Windsor Board of Selectmen meeting.
According to East Windsor Selectman Steven Dearborn, the owners originally wanted to build a more spacious building in East Windsor but decided to move the business out of town “because of all the things that have been going on between (the owners) and Town Hall.”
“They’re moving on,” Dearborn continued. “Where they are is just too small and because of what went on with inspections, it’s a mess. They felt that they probably couldn’t get fair treatment if they stayed here.”
Dearborn made those comments during the public comment portion of the selectmen’s meeting at Town Hall, in response to a resident’s question about why the brewery’s owners decided to leave town.
When that same resident asked Dearborn for details of just what that friction between the brewery’s owners and the town involved, Dearborn declined to comment further.
The owners of the brewery, Eric Mance and Tom Rossing, could not be reached for comment.
“I’m really disappointed that the town couldn’t do more to help a popular local business survive and thrive in East Windsor,” said East Windsor Selectman Jason Bowsza, who also declined to provide greater detail on the matter. “The town should have done a better job.”
According to Mark O’Neill of Hamlet Homes LLC of Suffield. the developer on the project, the Mach One location in Suffield is ideal for the brewery.
O’Neill said that while for most businesses the lot would be difficult to build on because of its topography, a natural hill on the property works in the brewery’s favor, allowing the large tanks used for fermenting beer to fit next to the building without digging into the ground.
O’Neill also said the building would be visible from the road, and architects have worked hard to design a building with a style that will fit with Suffield’s farm town image.
Suffield First Selectwoman Melissa Mack said she is thrilled about the prospects of having the company in town. She said it’s exactly the kind of business she wants to attract.
It will be Suffield’s first brewery.
O’Neill said opening a brewery in Suffield would be a win for the town, the company, and patrons.
In Suffield, the brewery will be double the size of its location in East Windsor. With the extra space, the owners plan to expand production capacity to 12,000 barrels of beer a year from its current 5,400 barrels, and increase production by 300 percent with an automated canning line, according to its statement of purpose filed with its application in Suffield.
The new building would also house a larger taproom where patrons can enjoy the various beers on tap and the brewery would also serve food while offering views of the production facility. The owners hope to host live music and create a casual atmosphere, the statement of purpose says.
As for food, the owners describe the menu as limited but with options that pair well with their beer. An example of a limited menu that was included with the statement of purpose lists salads, soft Bavarian pretzels, and brick oven pizzas as the types of food to be offered.
According to the brewery’s website, in September 2010, co-founders Mance and Rossing began brewing their own beer, and not too long after, entered brewing contests, which they won. On Oct. 3, 2013, they opened their brewery in East Windsor.
