Vessel Technologies announced Tuesday, April 29 that the company has withdrawn plans for rezoning and creation of a Special Development District at 29 Highland Street in West Hartford.

By Ronni Newton

Several hours prior to what would have been the fourth installment of a public hearing on Vessel Technologies’ plans to rezone and create a Special Development District in order to build 108 units of multifamily housing at 29 Highland Street, the company announced that it has withdrawn its application for the project.

“Vessel Technologies has withdrawn its application for a zone change and designation of a special development district for 29 Highland Street. Because the application has been withdrawn, no public comment will be received on the application at the public hearing scheduled for this evening,” the town said in an announcement Tuesday afternoon.

Town Manager Rick Ledwith issued the following statement regarding the withdrawal: “We appreciate Vessel’s responsiveness and their willingness to work in partnership with our Town staff. Vessel graciously offered to withdraw its application without prejudice, and we agreed to work in collaboration with Vessel in advancing our shared commitment to affordable housing.”

Town staff, including the fire and building departments, had been working to understand some of the unique characteristics of Vessel Technologies’ construction methods and materials they use to create their buildings. Vessel, based in New York, is known for constructing their properties quickly and with minimal disruption, in six to eight months. The units are modular and prefabricated of materials – including the materials used for the walls and doors of the units – that Vessel states are non-combustible, then assembled onsite, with metal staircases, hallways, and common areas that are partially open to the air and exposed to the elements. Green technology is also a focus, including the use of solar power.

Town staff, however, had continued to express concern about the ability of Vessel to meet Connecticut’s fire safety and fire prevention codes due to the modular and prefabricated construction process that may limit design modifications, although Vessel Executive Vice President Josh Levy told We-Ha.com last week that they were “100% committed to making any changes to comply with Connecticut code.”

The State Fire Marshal and State Building Official have had also gotten involved in reviewing some of the code-related concerns, and on April 14 provided some guidelines related to some of the issues raised by West Hartford to building officials and fire marshals in West Hartford as well as other towns where Vessel was pursuing or had projects under development or completed – including Avon, Cheshire, Milford, New London, and Rocky Hill.

Vessel first officially began discussing development of a project in West Hartford last summer, and had an initial study session with the Design Review Advisory Committee (DRAC) in August 2024, presenting a variety of concept plans for one or two buildings with anywhere from 112 to 140 units.

At its Dec. 10, 2025, meeting, the Town Council received the Vessel application, submitted under Connecticut General Statutes Section 8-30g, which requires that 30% of the units must be affordable – and at least 15% of those must be affordable for those with an income of 60% or less than the area median income (AMI). The Council originally set the public hearing date as Jan. 28 but later moved it to Feb. 25, and as with all Special Development District applications, also referred it to the Town Plan and Zoning Commission (TPZ) and DRAC.

Nearly four hours of testimony was heard at that initial public hearing on Feb. 25, which included a presentation by Vessel as well as robust public comment by more a dozen members of the community. Many of the concerns raised related to traffic and the adequacy of parking.

The hearing was continued until  March 11 “for the limited purpose of presenting an updated plan set to reflect reconfiguration of several units” – which included a reduction in the proposed number of units to 108 – after which the Council had intended to vote on the project. The earlier plans had been for 112 units but a request by the Council was made to add another affordable two-bedroom unit which required some reconfiguration of the plans that the Council said needed to be reviewed before the vote to rezone and establish a Special Development District.

At the March 11 hearing, the Council again moved to continue the discussion, this time to March 20 because “this project presents a unique construction approach, something the Council has not seen before,” Mayor Shari Cantor stated on March 11.

On March 20, the decision was made to again continue the hearing, it was to allow sufficient time to address fire safety and other safety-related concerns that town staff and Town Council members had related to the unique approach Vessel takes in  .

The hearing had remained fully open, and additional public testimony had been permitted in-person and via email. To date, there were 28 emails submitted as part of public testimony – both for and against the project. Some of the individuals who have submitted comments in writing have also spoken at the hearings.

Because the application has been withdrawn without prejudice, it can be resubmitted at another time. Vessel has not yet indicated what its future plans may be, and has not yet responded to a request for comment regarding withdrawal of the application.

The purchase and sale agreement for the 29 Highland Street property, formerly Hughes Health & Rehabilitation, was contingent on approval of the rezoning.

Hughes Health & Rehabilitation operated a nursing home at 29 Highland Street for more than 50 years, but filed an application to close the facility in March 2023, citing “declining census as well as staffing needs and excessive cost increases.” The request to close was granted by the state’s Department of Social Services in May 2023, and the nursing home residents were relocated and the property has been vacant since mid-2023.

Former Hughes Health and Rehabilitation at 29 Highland Street. Photo credit: Ronni Newton

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