When developer Martin Kenny first looked at Addison Mill in Glastonbury, he saw the dilapidated shell of a 19th-century water-powered textile mill that lost its commercial value years ago. He also saw the beauty of its setting and the potential for the historic building to be reborn as an upscale residential community.
That was in 2005, when all things seemed possible in real estate. But transforming the four-story mill was a tough job that got tougher when the bubble burst. While others shelved their projects, Kenny stayed with Addison Mill and kept polishing his diamond in the rough.
He battled through loan issues and structural complications, through regulatory setbacks and a doubting marketplace. He even went back to the drawing board and revised his plans. Kenny originally planned to convert the brick building into an upscale condominium but instead shifted to luxury apartment units.
“I spent two years figuring out a design and fixing the environmental and structural issues,” said Kenny, who spent another year chasing the money. He secured an $8 million bank loan and another $3.6 million from a private equity partner.
“Just before we started construction in early 2008, Wall Street pulled back and the banks stopped lending,” said Kenny, who had already successfully lined up his financing before the economic meltdown. “It’s fair to say we got in just under the wire.”
Today, Addison Mill is up and running as a 55-unit apartment complex that’s drawing notice from the real estate community. Last month, the Connecticut Real Estate Exchange in Hartford named the Addison Mill Apartments its 2010 Best Specialty Project.
The Hartford-based group is a member organization of the CREW Network and represents more than 100 professionals in design, construction, sales, law, management and development across the state.
“This award is significant because it represents how much of a major undertaking this development was,” said Kenny, who is president of Lexington Partners LLC. He is also sole developer and managing member for Trumbull on the Park, LLC, which completed the $40 million Trumbull Centre in downtown Hartford.
“This was a complex project that had a lot of structural and environmental issues that we had to work out,” said Kenny. “We removed the asbestos and lead, replaced the concrete piers over the water since the building was starting to sag and got a permit so we could install steel supports for the dam.”
The floors, windows and support beams throughout the entire building had to be replaced. Kenny spent $1.4 million for the development and then another $12 million to rehab the mill, which was constructed during the 1850s.
Addison Mill includes a mix of modern, upscale studio-, one- and two-bedroom units. Rental rates range from $950 to $2,600 per month. The bigger, more expensive units include views of the pond and two waterfalls. Today, 53 of the 55 units are rented.
“They had to overcome endless structural, environmental and waterway challenges,” said Carolyn Bligh, a chairperson with the Connecticut Real Estate Exchange responsible for reviewing applicants for the annual awards.
“This is a historic section of Glastonbury, much of which has been paved over and gentrified with little regard to history,” said Bligh. “The building connects the town to its roots and creates a terrific place for professionals and families to live. It’s an incredible rebuild to a brownfield site, adding tremendous value to the community.”
Top of Kenny’s list of things to do: preserve every historic feature he could in the building’s high ceilings, brick interior walls and exposed columns. He also wanted to highlight a little history in the new building. Lining the main hallway of the complex are photos of people who once worked in the former Glastonbury Knitting Co., which made wool “long john” underwear for Civil War soldiers.
The building also includes the original small-pane windows located under segmental brick archways from the typical Neo-Classical Revival mode. Kenny also preserved the wood column connections and recreated a tower at the west end of the building that was destroyed by a fire in the late 1930s. ”
