Commercial real estate firm RJ Development & Advisors has started work on a second waterfront apartment complex in New London.
The planned 250,000-square-foot building is positioned in the Fort Trumbull neighborhood, close to Electric Boat’s New London engineering building.
The $95 million development will include 251 studio, one- and two-bedroom residential rental units with 232 parking spaces. The company says the first apartments are likely to be ready to lease in mid-2028.
It’s adjacent to RJDA’s first foray into the New London market, an apartment complex called The Beam, which includes 203 apartments that were completed in late 2022.
“When we came into the market in 2021, there really was no proof of concept that new Class A construction was viable at scale,” said Yves Joseph, the CEO of RJDA. “The Beam leased up to 90% in 90 days. We’ve been building all over the state and have never experienced an absorption that effective and that rapid.”
RJDA acquired the 6.28 acres for The Mizzen — the last remaining parcel on the once-disputed Fort Trumbull peninsula — in early 2023.
Joseph said they have adjusted the mix of apartments in the new building to provide more two-bedroom apartments, which they see as a gap in the market.
Teammates — an investment firm co-founded by NBA veteran Torrey Craig — is an investor in the project.
Electric Boat announced earlier this year that it was seeking to hire 8,000 additional workers by the end of 2026, a goal the shipyard recently said it’s on track to meet. The rapid increase in workforce is causing a housing crunch across southeastern Connecticut.
RJDA says two further phases are planned after The Mizzen, with more apartments and a retail component. RJDA says it’s collaborating with the city on a rebrand of the neighborhood as New London Landing.
