Coffee Shop Eyed For Historic Home In Hamden Development Project

HAMDEN, CT — A developer is proposing to convert a historic Hamden home into a coffee shop as part of a housing development on Whitney Avenue, according to the New Haven Register.

The Register reports the James Cooper house at 2052 Whitney Ave., which reportedly could have been built as early as 1780, would be preserved and repurposed as part of the plan to build 60 apartments on the Hamden-North Haven line.

According to the project overview filed with the town, the proposed Cooper House Square is a planned mixed-use community to be developed on an approximate 4.6-acre parcel of land located on the west side of Whitney Avenue just north of Skiff Street.

“There are three existing buildings along the site's frontage that are planned to be retained and renovated to support the mixed-use development approach and retain the site's character,” the project overview reads.

The largest building is an approximately 3,600-square-foot, two-story older home that has been converted to an office building. The current occupant is Call Before You Dig (CBYD). There are two additional older homes that are also located along the Whitney Avenue frontage, according to the project overview.

“One is a mid-century colonial-style structure that had previously been converted to an office use, and the second is an older Cape-Cod-style home that dates back to the 1700s,” the document reads. “This older home is in poor condition but was originally a homestead on the site occupied by the Cooper family, hence the name of the project. It is the intent of this proposal to retain these existing structures, renovate them as necessary, and add small, architecturally appropriate additions to improve their functionality and enhance the ‘build out’ along the Whitney Avenue frontage. The existing CBYD office building will remain as an office use, ideally retaining the current tenant. It is anticipated that the mid-century colonial-style structure will serve as a rental office and amenity for the mixed-use development as well as a location for recreational uses such as exercise, yoga classes, art classes, etc., and the Cooper House is intended to be renovated to be a commercial structure ideally housing a full-day coffee shop, which will support not only the new community but the neighborhood at large.”

The proposal calls for three new residential structures, each being two to three stories in height and housing 20 units per building, for a total of 60 units, “20 percent of which will be affordable per the town's criteria.”

“These new residential structures will have traditional architecture that will complement both the existing structures on the site and the residential structures in the neighborhood and create a village atmosphere,” according to the overview.

Each building will be comprised of six one-bedroom and 14 two-bedroom units.

“Once developed, the property will provide for a harmonious design of stable character, consistent with the character of the town and the long-range improvements in the neighborhood,” the project overview states.

The project has been unanimously approved by the Hamden Inland Wetlands and Watercourses Commission.

The Hamden Planning and Zoning Commission held a public hearing on the proposal at its Feb. 11 meeting. The hearing was continued to the commission’s meeting on Feb. 25, according to meeting minutes.

Read the full story at the New Haven Register here.