FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
September 28, 2009
Town of Mansfield to receive $200,000 grant for Storrs Center Development
Appropriation is approved at September 25th State Bond Commission meeting
Storrs, CT…The Storrs Center development planned for downtown Mansfield received a major financial commitment with the announcement by Governor M. Jodi Rell of a $200,000 grant. The grant comes from the Connecticut Small Town Economic Assistance Program (STEAP), which provides financial assistance for projects that encourage economic development, community conservation and quality of life. In February, 2008, the Town of Mansfield submitted a formal request to the Connecticut Office of Policy and Management for a STEAP grant that would be used for the Town Square and related infrastructure. In a September 25th session, the Connecticut State Bond Commission approved the grant.
The STEAP funds are designated for infrastructure construction to be done in the Town Square area of the project and would include site work, road realignment, building demolition, utility work, and landscaping and streetscaping. The Town Square is one of the key areas in the Storrs Center plan and is designed as a centrally-located, vibrant neighborhood with a mix of stores, restaurants, services, and apartments.
Mansfield Town Manager Matthew Hart, states, “This is certainly good news for Storrs Center and the Town of Mansfield. We are very appreciative of the State’s grant and are committed to putting it to productive use. We extend our thanks to Governor Rell, our state legislators Senator Don Williams and Representative Denise Merrill, and the Bond Commission.”
Speaking for the Mansfield Downtown Partnership, the organization guiding the Storrs Center development, Executive Director Cynthia van Zelm adds, “We’re thrilled and gratified that the State has responded favorably to last year’s grant request. This re-confirms the confidence that Connecticut’s leadership has placed in Storrs Center and the future of Mansfield.”
Macon Toledano, Vice President of Planning and Development for LeylandAlliance, states, “We extend our thanks to the State for this generous funding. The Town Square at Storrs Center is critical to the project and will begin to establish the pedestrian-friendly network of streets, sidewalks and infrastructure that will define the new civic heart of Mansfield.”
Storrs Center will be a mixed-use town center and main street corridor at the crossroads of the town of Mansfield, Connecticut and the University of Connecticut. Located along Storrs Road adjacent to the University, the Town Hall, the regional high school, and the community center, Storrs Center will include a new town square across from the University’s improved fine arts center. The new town center will occupy approximately 17 acres of the overall 47.7 acre site and will include a new Town Square and a smaller Market Square across from Town Hall. The remainder of the site will be preserved primarily for open space and conservation. The town plan will knit architecture, pedestrian-oriented streets, small lanes, and public spaces into a series of small neighborhoods that will make up the new fabric of the town center. Ground floor retail and commercial uses opening onto landscaped sidewalks and intimate streets will reinforce traditional street front activity and shared community spaces and will be supported by residences above and throughout the neighborhood. Storrs Center will combine retail, restaurant, and office uses with a variety of residence types including studios, town homes, condominium apartments and rental apartments. Structured and surface parking will be provided.