The strategic plan identified more than 150 storefronts downtown, about 20% of which are vacant, or about 30. “There does not appear to be a defined pattern of vacancy,” according to the downtown strategic plan. There are, however,  several vacant storefronts in the new Mint development at Main and Monroe streets, as well as Block 326 (Main Street between Lewis Street and East Milton Avenue), and in the Tesla building on Block 158, at the corner of Irving and Coach streets.

There is very little vacant land available downtown as the majority of downtown is developed and occupied, however, there are vacancies in this area. There are currently 14 vacant lots downtown, two of which are part of Phase II of The Mint development, at Poplar and Main streets, specifically Block 318.01, Lots 1.01 and 2.

The Mint Phase II received preliminary and final site plan approval in July 2021 and the properties are under construction. Block 226, Lot 1 is currently in the process of becoming temporary parking for the Meridia Brownstones development.

The strategic plan estimated about 20 vacant buildings downtown, most of them located along the fringe of downtown. All of the vacant buildings, with the exception of three, are within an existing Redevelopment Area.

The three vacant buildings that are not currently in a Redevelopment Plan are within Block 151 and have been designated as an area in need of redevelopment. Those properties, along with two other that are occupied, are planned for a senior housing development along Esterbrook Avenue between Central and Elm avenues. City Council recently designated a redeveloper for a proposed 60-unit project.

There are several areas of downtown that can be classified as underutilized, according to the strategic plan. The target/opportunity sites section of the plan addresses alternative development options for some of these areas, which will be the focus of the next post in this series.