Waterbury economic development officials have signed off on tapping $2.1 million in state assistance to provide extra water and electrical capacity for two important manufacturers.
The Waterbury Development Corp. Board of Directors unanimously agreed Friday to use $2.1 million approved in July by the state Bond Commission.
The Urban Action Grant will pay for a new water main and electrical transmission upgrades serving the 209,186-square-foot industrial building at 400 Captain Neville Drive.
The upgrades are intended to help marine chemicals and services company Drew Marine and electric tankless water heater manufacturer Eemax Inc. boost production.
Between 2020 and 2021, Drew Marine spent about $8.2 million on a manufacturing and research center located in leased space at 400 Captain Neville Drive. Eemax celebrated its move to the building in 2013.
“I think both companies are extremely valuable to the city of Waterbury, and this is the way the city can provide benefits to both those companies,” WDC Interim Director Thomas Hyde told his board Friday.
The upgrade will “enable some of our largest manufacturers to continue to expand operations,” Hyde wrote in a summary to the board. Current water flow to the building is so inadequate that Drew Marine must fill production vessels overnight, Hyde wrote.
The roughly 48-year-old building at 400 Captain Neville Drive – part of an industrial park – is owned by 400 Connecticut LLC, whose principal is Cornerstone Realty Inc.
Cornerstone is headquartered at the same Waterbury address as Albert Bros. Inc. and has extensive ties to the prominent Waterbury recycling business.
Two of Cornerstone’s principals – Eric and Jonathan D. Albert – are the principals of Albert Bros. Other Cornerstone principals include Jeffrey D. Mclellan and Timo Makkonen.
Hyde said his agency still needs to work out the details of an agreement with the Connecticut Department of Economic and Community Development to tap the funds, then issue requests-for-proposals to identify a contractor or contractors. He aims to queue up construction for a start in spring.
WDC Board Chair Catherine Awwad called the utilities expansion “a prudent investment” that will allow expansion of important local manufacturers. Awwad said she believed the expansion capacity could eventually aid other nearby industrial buildings.
Awwad is also president and CEO of the Northwest Regional Workforce Investment Board, a publicly funded career counseling, training and placement agency. Awwad said her agency is regularly fielding requests from both Eemax and Drew Marine for workers.
