Fairfield County Business Journal 050117

Page 1

5 | NEW PRESIDENT AT FAIRFIELD U May 1, 2017 | VOL. 53, No. 18

15 | OFFICE GLUT westfaironline.com

YOUR ONLY SOURCE FOR REGIONAL BUSINESS NEWS

Shopping center success

See story on page 4

Looking inward

FAIRFIELD’S ECONOMIC PLAN COMES IN SHADOW OF GE’S DEPARTURE BY KEVIN ZIMMERMAN kzimmerman@westfairinc.com

S

Under the terms of its 2010 agreement with the state, Sportech can operate 18 OTB venues in Connecticut, consisting of parimutuel wagering on horse racing, greyhound racing and jai alai. Sportech has 15 operations, with construction of one within Bobby V’s Restaurant and Sports Bar in Stamford expected to be completed in time for the June 8-10 Belmont Stakes. A number of Danbury residents have been vocal in their objections to the Two Steps venture, same with moral and ethical concerns about any form of gambling, fears about drawing undesirable patrons to “Danbury’s backyard” — the family friendly CityCenter Green — and the perceived speed with which city government has acted to amend its zoning regulations to allow OTB. An April 11 Zoning Commission public

ome 18 months in the making, “Creating a Strategic Vision for Fairfield,” a newly issued report from the Fairfield Economic Development Commission, couldn’t have come at a better time, according to FEDC Director Mark Barnhart. “We became aware of General Electric’s decision (to leave Fairfield) in the midst of putting the report together,” he said. “That just added further impetus to getting it done.” The report — prepared with the assistance of the Connecticut Economic Resource Center, a nonprofit corporation in Rocky Hill — focuses on several key areas, including improving the regulatory process; supporting mixed-use development opportunities around transit; strengthening cooperation with the town’s two universities, Fairfield and Sacred Heart; and developing a consistent marketing and communications plan. It’s the town’s first such effort in at least a decade. “I’m not sure when the last one was done,” Barnhart said, “and I’ve been here for 10 years.” The report involved high-level stakeholder interviews, focus group sessions, public workshops, and a business and resident survey. “We were pleased by the conversations we had with various stakeholders,” Barnhart said. “Generally, most people had positive things to say about the business climate locally. It’s always good to get some confirmation that you’re going in the right direction.” “I think it’s vitally important that we periodically re-examine the work that we are doing in view of the competition and industrywide best practices,” First Selectman Mike Tetreau said. “Fairfield continues to be a great place in which to live, work and have a business, but we are constantly searching for areas in which we

» Danbury, page 6

» Fairfield, page 6

Willing L. Biddle, president and CEO of Urstadt Biddle Properties Inc., in his Greenwich office.

Opponents see Danbury OTB plan as city's odds-on favorite BY KEVIN ZIMMERMAN kzimmerman@westfairinc.com

A

plan to bring an off-track betting operation to downtown Danbury has become a political football and will continue to be kicked around following a second public hearing on April 25. At issue is London-based gambling and entertainment company Sportech’s plan to add an approximately 1,200-square-foot

OTB operation to the second floor of Two Steps Downtown Grille, a longtime fixture at 5 Ives St. Sportech — which has exclusive licensing rights to OTB in Connecticut — is spending $750,000 to renovate the eatery and has said that it will provide 1.6 percent of its gross revenue to CityCenter Danbury, the special taxing district formed by merchants in the late 1980s with the goal of drawing more people and business to the area. City officials have estimated that sum could be as much as $100,000 per year.


Turn static files into dynamic content formats.

Create a flipbook
Issuu converts static files into: digital portfolios, online yearbooks, online catalogs, digital photo albums and more. Sign up and create your flipbook.