David Chess has attached a big number to a long-dormant property: $1 billion. Point Stratford is a proposed redevelopment of the former Stratford Army Engine Plant.
Chess touted the Point Stratford plan to the business community, according to Westfair Communications. The town's economic development office was also undergoing a reshuffling: Chess replaced economic development director Jim Capra and small business development manager Anne Gaydos, named chief of staff Caryn Kaufman as interim economic development director, and brought on veteran development consultant Mike Freimuth to provide strategic guidance. Kaufman will temporarily take over with help from Freimuth, according to the outlet.
Freimuth is a familiar name in Connecticut development circles. He served as executive director of the Capital Region Development Authority in Hartford and was preparing to retire, according to the Hartford Business Journal.
What's Planned for the Old Engine Plant
Point Stratford is envisioned as a prospective mixed-use waterfront district with public spaces. A hotel and conference center may also be part of the mix, per Westfair's account of the presentation.
Who's Building It, and How the Land Changed Hands
The site is owned by Point Stratford Renewal LLC, whose principals acquired the property from the U.S. Army on April 2, 2024. Under the Environmental Services Cooperative Agreement governing that transfer, the developer took on the 77 acres for $1 while committing roughly $44 million toward building demolition and asbestos removal, according to the Hartford Business Journal. The company was originally formed as a joint venture among Loureiro Properties, Development Resources and Sedgwick Partners.
A tidal-flats remediation effort is part of the development, addressing contamination left behind by years of industrial use at the site. The effort includes a dredging project involving 233,000 tons of contaminated sediment. A 36-month plan calls for abatement, structural demolition and re-grading to bring the property out of the floodplain.
Point Stratford Renewal's principals say they are working with the Town of Stratford, the State of Connecticut, the U.S. Army and DEEP as the project moves forward. The Stratford Town Council has already approved a $2 million state bond grant to support Point Stratford planning work, and developers plan to submit a formal master plan by December.
A Development Roster With Deep Bench Strength
The project's design and planning team spans more than a dozen firms. Cooper Robertson, operating as Corgan, is serving as master planner, with Field Operations as landscape architect and Langan handling civil, environmental, traffic and lighting engineering. Moffatt & Nichol is managing coastal engineering, while HR&A Advisors is running market, economic and fiscal impact analysis.
On the legal and financial side, Carmody Torrance Sandak & Hennessey is serving as land use counsel, Greenberg Traurig as environmental counsel, and Pullman & Comley as counsel for the project's tax increment financing district. Sullivan & Leshane is handling public affairs and community engagement, Entact is the site contractor, and Cumming Group is serving as cost estimator and scheduler, according to the mayor's presentation as reported by Westfair.
Nearly Three Decades in the Making
The site's path to redevelopment has been long. The Stratford Army Engine Plant closed in 1998.
The property has a storied industrial history. Sikorsky developed the property in the 1920s and used it for seaplane manufacturing. Chance Vought later produced Corsair fighter planes there and departed in 1948. The site later became Air Force Plant No. 43 in 1951 before transferring to the U.S. Army in 1976.
Chess has framed the redevelopment as central to his broader push for property tax relief, arguing that expanding the town's commercial tax base takes pressure off residential homeowners. He said economic development is central to building a vibrant, resilient and business-friendly community, and that growth of this kind is essential to delivering that relief.
