From Mayor Finch:
Mayor Bill Finch today announced that POKO Partners LLC, www.pokopartners.com will be the fourth proposed developer for the planned Downtown North Village District project, a six-acre parcel spanning six city blocks. An initial set of three developers were announced on April 17.
POKO Partners of Port Chester, NY, was selected for City Block 311, which is bounded by Golden Hill Street, Middle Street, Gold Street and Housatonic Avenue. The block contains vacant lots and a small tavern building formerly known as “Dolan’s Corner.”
“POKO Partners is one of the Northeast’s most respected firms in urban redevelopment” said Mayor Finch. “We are very fortunate to have them participating in the future of our downtown.”
The project proposed by POKO Partners includes demolition of the tavern, and new construction of 60 units of new housing, 37,000 square feet of commercial space, and an as yet undetermined number of off-street parking spaces.
Donald Eversley, Bridgeport Director of Planning & Economic Development, noted that “POKO brings a strong background in development, construction and property management in one package.”
POKO Partners has been active throughout the Tri-state area including the Bronx, Queens, Brooklyn and Harlem in New York; Carlstadt, NJ; and Stonington and Norwalk here in Connecticut. In Bridgeport, POKO recently started construction on the Clinton Commons housing project on the West Side in partnership with the Bridgeport YMCA and also manages the CitiTrust, Arcade and Golden Hill buildings downtown.
KUDOS to Donald Eversley for adding another developer to Bridgeport’s revival. Eversley is a man of action–let’s hope the new parties respond the same way. There’s nothing in downtown North a few shovels wouldn’t cure. Besides, there’s gold in that dirt!
KUDOS?
Knocking down another historic building?
This building was a thriving restaurant, a building totally rebuilt. This building was taken by eminent domain by the City almost ten years ago.
Why has nothing been done for ALMOST TEN YEARS! on all these parcels that are owned by the City? How many holes in the roofs have not been repaired that let water in that ruins these structures.
What is the story with POKO Development who the City designated to develop a two-acre lot on Reservoir and Yarmich FIVE YEARS AGO to construct housing, who were approved for extensive subsidy but who did nothing with this parcel for five years except to bring Green Village Initiative of Westport into the picture to put an urban farm there, approved by the Finch Administration for a ten-year, one-dollar-a-year agreement? The vacant rubble-strewn lot remains. KUDOS? Love these out-of-town developers.
YES, kudos to Donald Eversley … but what about economic development throughout the city?
My biggest complaint and irritant is the zoning dept. That department is understaffed and not run professionally. Where is Mr. Eversley’s oversight on this matter?
We do not have enough zoning enforcement officers doing the work that has to be done.
When sites are tagged for zoning violations, where are the fines, how are they collected, what about the back taxes for many sites that are seriously overdue and would help our budget crisis?
Millions of dollars are out there and we are just sitting and doing nothing. There has to be a way to enforce violators and get the monies that are far overdue.
Is it because these sites are owned by large donators to the current administration in this corrupt city?
Trying to get information from the GIS site is a laugh. It is dated 2011, not updated and unable to get information online.
Why is it obsolete? There was a employee to keep this updated and he was let go. Why? It is a shame when a serious developer comes to this city for information and advise, there is no one to help. It’s a disgrace.
Mr. Eversley, you are the Director of the Zoning department. Please do something. Do your job. Let’s be professional and not be embarrassed by the Most Important Dept. in any city. Fix it!!!
*** P&Z is another understaffed, undermanaged city dept. with little bark and no bite, unless politically motivated to act on a particular case and there’s overtime involved, no? ***