AvalonBay gets court order forcing Stratford development
A Connecticut appeals court ruled that the town of Stratford must approve AvalonBay Communities Inc.”™s plans for a housing complex just off the Merritt Parkway, agreeing with a trial judge”™s ruling that a zoning commission improperly blocked the development from proceeding a decade ago.
The town plans an appeal to the Connecticut Supreme Court.
AvalonBay had sought to build some 145 units in six buildings on Cutspring Road in Stratford, with a quarter of the units to be priced as affordable housing for 30 years. The town”™s zoning commission denied the application citing a low overpass nearby that could pose a problem for emergency vehicles, and other factors it said outweighed the need for the additional affordable housing the project offered. A trial judge subsequently ordered the commission to specify what changes AvalonBay should make to win approval for its application and the commission subsequently filed an appeal.
Stamford chamber recruits former Greenwich chief
The Stamford Chamber of Commerce hired Mary Ann Morrison, who led the Greenwich Chamber of Commerce for more than a decade, as vice president of membership.
Morrison left the Greenwich chamber this past spring. She previously led operations for the Stamford chamber and is the former executive director of the Darien Chamber of Commerce as well.
“Mary Ann plans to initiate new programs that will revitalize the membership base and offer more benefits,” said Jack Condlin, CEO of the Stamford chamber, in a prepared statement. “She is energized with new ideas that will enhance the value of the Stamford chamber”™s benefits.”
GigMasters expands in SoNo
GigMasters.com relocated from Redding to 33 S. Main St. in South Norwalk, drawn by a need for more space for its 20 employees and the presence of new media companies in the SoNo district.
Since its launch in 1997, GigMasters.com today maintains a website with more than 9,000 performers and vendors that has furnished some 130,000 events with entertainment. The company recently created a version of the website optimized for mobile devices.
Hospital CFO sentenced for embezzlement
A judge sentenced the former CFO of Danbury Hospital to nearly three years in prison, after he pleaded guilty to embezzling funds.
William Roe, 55, admitted to two schemes to take $140,000 from Danbury Hospital, one involving approving checks for a sham company and the other by inflating the value of a home to receive a larger relocation payment.
AG queries Groupon
Attorney General George Jepsen is asking Groupon Inc. for more information about its business practices, expressing concern the expiration dates imposed on some discount offers may violate state law pertaining to gift certificates.
Groupon operates by sending emails offering members a daily deal at a business in their area, if sufficient numbers of members sign up to take the offer. Jepsen wants to know how much revenue Groupon sales have generated in Connecticut and how frequently expiration dates are imposed on the sale of goods or services at a discount.
A number of private civil suits have been filed nationally challenging those expiration dates.
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Townsquare Media seizes deal
Radio station operator Townsquare Media quietly acquired Seize The Deal Inc., a Dallas company founded in 2009 that offers online daily coupons for at least half off various vendors in specific cities.
Greenwich-based Townsquare Media issued $7 million in its own securities to acquire Seize The Deal.
Lovesac plops down at Danbury Fair
LoveSac Alternative Furniture Store Co. leased space at Danbury Fair Mall, with the Stamford-based company joining two other retailers new to the mall.
Brooks Brothers is also opening at the mall, its fifth location in Fairfield County. The apparel and accessories company Fossil is also taking space at Danbury Fair, only its second in Connecticut along with a store at the Clinton Crossing Premium Outlets.
Two restaurants recently committed to opening at Danbury Fair Mall: The Cheesecake Factory and Brio Tuscan Grill. Danbury Fair Mall”™s renovations to accommodate Brio Tuscan Grill will cost $2.7 million according to a June filing with city officials.
New CEO for Foundation Source
Fairfield-based Foundation Source named as CEO King McGlaughon, who previously was chief philanthropic officer in North Carolina for Wells Fargo”™s philanthropic services. Before that, McGlaughon held similar roles with Wachovia and Merrill Lynch. He is also former provost of The American College in Bryn Mawr, Pa., which readies students for careers in the financial and insurance industries.
The Foundation Source claims title as the nation”™s largest provider of support services for foundations, offering back-office and advisory services for some 1,000 clients.
Green grants for The WorkPlace
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency awarded Bridgeport-based WorkPlace Inc. a $300,000 grant to train workers for brownfield remediation and solid-waste management, including demolition work at residential and commercial buildings.
The WorkPlace was one of just over 20 organizations nationally to receive the funds, which will be awarded over two years, and said the training regiment will adhere to feedback it has received from employer surveys.
Program participants will be recruited primarily from Bridgeport neighborhoods with significant rates of poverty.
Danbury DMV scrapped
Connecticut is closing Danbury”™s Department of Motor Vehicles office, leaving Fairfield County with just two other branches in Bridgeport and Norwalk.
The Danbury DMV office is on Lee Mac Avenue. The next closest office is in Waterbury.
AWD disposition complete
Winters Brothers Waste Systems completed its acquisition of Automated Waste Disposal and other garbage businesses formerly operated by James Galante, who was jailed in 2009 for racketeering.
New York-based Winters Brothers plans to issue new bins to affected customers that will improve its ability to handle recyclables.
Massage Envy takes Blockbuster space
A Massage Envy is opening at the former site of Blockbuster Video at 1014 High Ridge Road in Stamford.
The Scottsville, Ariz.-based company has three other Fairfield County franchise sites in Westport, Fairfield and Brookfield. Stamford-based RHYS Commercial has represented Massage Envy in multiple Fairfield County lease transactions.
