Development of the old Carroll’s Home Improvement site, with frontage along Howe Avenue, appears to be moving forward, at least in part.
The Planning & Zoning Commission, at its meeting Tuesday, June 11, asked department staff to prepare a positive resolution on phase one of the Cedar Village at Carroll’s proposal. A final vote could occur at the commission’s next regular meeting.
In phase one of the project, the application calls for much of the Carroll’s building along Howe Avenue remaining, with an addition to be built toward Hill Street. Three new stories containing 33 apartments would be built on top.
All the retail space would be on Howe Avenue, with the first floor also having an office and fitness room. The building would be about 50 feet tall and have entrances on Howe Avenue and in the rear, near a new parking lot.
While the commission appears poised to approve phase one of this project, the second phase — a new five-story building with 30 apartments proposed to be built close to Coram Avenue and Hill Street — was put on hold, with commissioners asking developers to resubmit their application. For the second phase, the new building would have two interior parking levels and be up to 60 feet tall, although it would appear to be three stories high from Coram Avenue due to the substantial grade change from Howe to Coram.
The overall Cedar Village at Carroll’s application, as originally proposed, called for two buildings with 63 apartments and 8,000 square feet of ground-floor retail space on 0.95 acres. Four small parcels would be combined, and two older homes demolished to create the development site, which borders Howe Avenue, Hill Street and Coram Avenue.
A total of 69 garage and surface parking spaces would be provided, plus another six outdoor tandem spots in a parking lot. Only one parking space per living unit is required downtown, so the project would have slightly more than that.
Carroll’s Home Improvement closed in 2014 after six decades in business and has been vacant since then. The current structure was built in 1972.
brian.gioiele@hearstmediact.com