Start-up ceremony held for Wall Street revitalization project

Construction will begin next week on the first phase of a $27 million project to revitalize the Wall Street area, which Mayor Harry Rilling said “used to be a thriving, vibrant area” that has struggled mightily since devastating storms in 1955.

“There were studies done trying to revitalize this area. I’m very proud of our administration finally going to be doing something,” Rilling said Tuesday as he presided over a groundbreaking ceremony attended by city and state officials.

Rilling noted that he grew up blocks from Wall Street and recalled experiencing its devastation after hurricanes Connie and Diane saturated Connecticut with rain in August 1955, causing the worst flooding in the history of the eastern United States, according to the Connecticut Flood Recovery Committee.

Tuesday’s ceremony inside Freese Park was for the start of Phase 1 of the revitalization project, which will extend from just east of where East Wall St., Brook St., and Smith Street intersect to just west of the intersection of Wall and Main streets.

In a news release, the city said the project includes the construction of sidewalks, streetscape, bike lanes and roadway improvements with the aim of right-sizing travel lanes and increasing walkability and connectivity for all modes of transportation.

The first phase also will include installation of a gateway arch over Wall Street in the area of Coal’s restaurant, with the city planning to gather community feedback for its design.

In the same area, a plaza will be built extending out into Wall St. between High and Knight streets, where the outdoor seating area for the Aji10 restaurant is located.

“Here we are in a place that is sort of the missing piece to the revitalization of the city of Norwalk,” said Rep. Jim Himes (D-4th Dist.). “This is going to be really, really remarkable once we put the investment into it (and) may end up being the jewel of Norwalk.”

The city says the total cost of the project will be around $27 million, with $7 million in funding still being sought.

Phase 1 is being funded by a $2.4 million grant from the state’s Local Transportation Capital Improvement Program, which is administered by the Connecticut Department of Transportation and the Connecticut Council of Governments.

Funding for the overall project also has come from other state entities and the federal government. The city is providing $1.6 million and the Norwalk Parking Authority $2 million.

Asked about the overall goal of the project, James Travers, the city’s Director of Transportation, Mobility and Parking, said, “At its core, this is a transportation and traffic project. But it is our belief, and my experience, that when we make investments in traffic and transportation, and we improve that, it has a residual impact on economic development. The two go hand in hand.”

Travers said construction will begin next week and is anticipated to continue to the end of the calendar year.

Work will probably close up for several months during the coldest part of winter, he said, and then resume, with Phase 1 scheduled to be completed around this time of October next year.

Future phases of the project will include Main Street from Wall to Hoyt streets, the remaining portion of Wall Street to Belden Avenue, and Burnell Boulevard, Travers said.

Asked his opinion of the project, Jason Milligan, the predominant owner of commercial property in the Wall Street area, said, “I think it’s fantastic. It’s great to see it getting going.”

Milligan, owner of Milligan Realty, said he has more people interested in leasing locations than he has empty spaces to give them.

In selecting the right partners and tenants, Milligan said he’s working with the general theme of arts, cultural and entertainment.