A plan to build 70 residential units near a Connecticut riverfront has been shared in a way that allows the public to weigh in on whether the project “may significantly affect the environment.”
The plan, dubbed Oyster Harbor Village, has been shared in that is called a Connecticut notice for scoping.
The plan is for a 1.34-acre site, located along the Quinnipiac River, in New Haven, and calls for construction of 70 residential units, with 10% of them affordable at 50% or below area median income, retail spaces, and a 29,000 square foot green space and boardwalk “to improve pedestrian access,” records show.
The site has a history of “industrial use, including a coal yard, fuel tank farm, and metalworking shop,” as noted by the state Environmental Monitor, and remediation would pave the way for the construction of the residential units.
The plan is by River Front Development, LLC, according to the Environmental Monitor.
The Environmental Monitor shares information under the Connecticut Environmental Policy Act, for projects at a “scoping stage,” and Oyster Harbor Village has as addresses of possible locations: 185, 212, and 213 Front Street, New Haven, records show.
The Environmental Monitor also notes that the city of New Haven would be using a $947,500 remediation grant award for “the demolition and abatement of blighted buildings and excavation of petroleum-impacted soil at 185, 212, and 213 Front Street.”
Gov. Ned Lamont in June said he was releasing $18.8 million in state grants that would be used for the assessment and remediation of 227 acres of contaminated land across Connecticut, and the site located along the Quinnipiac River was one of them. Lamont also noted the need for demolition and abatement of blighted buildings and excavation of petroleum-impacted soil at the Front Street sites.
Overall, that funding is aimed to support 23 properties in 19 towns and cities, helping “cover the costs of cleaning up these parcels so they can be redeveloped and returned to productive use,” according to the state.
The grants are through the Connecticut Department of Economic and Community Development Brownfield Remediation and Development Program. This year’s round of funding is projected to attract $218 million in private investment and facilitate the creation of 450 housing units, according to the state. Approximately 52% of the total funding will be allocated to distressed municipalities.
“Old, polluted, blighted properties that have sat vacant for decades do nothing to stimulate our economy, grow jobs, and support housing growth,” Lamont has said. “With these grants, we are partnering with towns and developers to take unused, lifeless properties and bring them back from the dead, rejuvenating land that can be used for so much more and can bring value back to these neighborhoods.”
The New Haven Independent reported in July that the River Front Development, LLC plan included “18,000 square feet of related commercial facilities, including a restaurant, oyster bar, coffee and sandwich shop; a rooftop garden; and the central facilities,” as well as floating docks for public use.
The Independent also reported that construction of the project would be expected to take up to “three years, along with four or five months of clean-up of the contaminated area. It’s expected to cost roughly $34 million in total.”
River Front Development, LLC could not be reached for comment.
The New Haven Board of Alders agenda for August 4, 2025, also noted a request from the Executive Director of City Plan, submitting reports from the City Plan Commission meeting on July 22, 2025, seeking authorizing by the City of New Haven to apply for and accept a grant from the Connecticut Department of Economic and Community Development in the amount of $995,000 and “to partner with River Front Development LLC to support the remediation of the properties located at 185, 212 and 213 Front Street for development of a mixed-use project.”
Written comments from the public on the project are welcomed and will be accepted until the close of business on: December 19, 2025, according to the state. They go to, Gregory Ambros, Department of Economic and Community Development, 450 Columbus Boulevard, Hartford, 06103, or e-Mail: [email protected].