Tollja brothers plan another downtown Norwich redevelopment project

Daniel Drainville, The Day, New London, Conn.The Day

Norwich — New York-based developers Ernest and Alfred Tollja have submitted plans with the city to turn two vacant downtown buildings across from the courthouse into apartments and a street-level commercial space.

Last November, the two brothers purchased 138-142 and 146 Main St., two historic Main Street buildings located between Statewide Bail Bonds and the Harp & Dragon Pub, for a combined price of $418,000, and announced plans for apartments there.

Before that, the three-story 138-142 Main St. building, built around 1846 according to City Historian Dale Plummer, had been most recently owned by longtime local attorney Mark Block through an LLC — and housed his firm, Block, Janney & Sisley.

Meanwhile, the five-story 146 Main St. building to the east, built in 1910 and known as the Plaut-Cadden building, once housed Abraham Plaut's jewelry store and musical instruments.

The Tolljas recently submitted plans that call for the buildings to be combined and turned into 20 apartments — 13 studio, three one-bedroom and four two-bedroom — with 3,992-square-feet of space on the ground level for two commercial businesses.

The plans call for the adjoining wall between the buildings to be opened to allow free access between them, and a single elevator will serve both. The exterior of the buildings would not be expanded.

A public hearing on the plan was scheduled to take place at the meeting of the Commission on the City Plan Tuesday night, but was tabled to the commission's October meeting.

They have a few more things to take care of," said Director of Planning and Neighborhood Services Deanna Rhodes.

Ernest Tollja said the brothers need to "clarify some details on the layout" of the apartments, before their plan is ready to be heard by the commission. He said the city asked for a few more details, including "where the garbage is going to go," after Building Official Dan Coley, in his comments on the plans, described the trash placement as an item of concern for him. Coley said a properly-designed indoor trash/recycling room should be incorporated into the updated plans.

It's another project for the Tolljas, who own considerable real estate in the city.

Ernest Tollja said to date, he and his brother own 18 Norwich properties, which include the declining Fairhaven building on lower Broadway, which has been included by Norwich Community Development Corporation in an $8.8 million Community Investment Fund grant application that seeks to revitalize the area.

"Hopefully this month we’ll get an answer and we can get that grant," Tollja said. "And with some financing we’ll be able to do this really quick."

In addition to the Fairhaven, the brothers also own two formerly-vacant buildings on either side of Billy Wilson's Ageing Still on Broadway, which they have turned — similarly to their plans for the Main Street buildings — into a mix of commercial and real estate space.

A ribbon-cutting for both those buildings will be held on Sept. 26, said Kevin Brown, president and executive director of Norwich Community Development Corporation.

Ernest Tollja said almost all the apartments are rented out. Neither building has commercial tenants yet, but the brothers are in talks with some who are interested, including a sandwich shop, a tea shop/book store and a health-oriented Mexican-food restaurant.

"We've been talking to different people," he said.

"We rent it out, and we get the money," Tollja added. "But it's also important to us who's coming in. A tea/coffee place in front of the City Hall would be nice.

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