A round-up of openings, closings, and other news about West Hartford businesses. 

Business Buzz is sponsored by NBT Bank, and we are very thankful for their support! 

By Ronni Newton

It was definitely a tough return to Connecticut for me a week ago – coming back from a brief vacation in Florida late last Monday night (actually very early Tuesday morning) to temperatures that were a full 50 degrees colder, not including the wind chill! Now that it’s Daylight Saving Time, and we are supposed to have temperatures around 60 this week, I’m hoping we’re trending in the right direction.

I wasn’t back in time to attend the Mayor’s State of the Town Address (thank you to Manon Mirabelli for attending, taking photos, and writing the story!) but I jumped right back into work covering the Board of Education budget presentation on Tuesday night – and was very frustrated that for some reason Facebook flagged my article as spam (yes, some people found that amusing) and wouldn’t let me share it on the We-Ha.com page. The education budget is important – and because it’s a large share of the West Hartford’s general fund budget the interest should not just be on the part of those who have children in the public schools. Also important are the underlying budget drivers, so please – if you have not already done so – read this article about the West Hartford Public Schools proposed 2025-26 budget.

Last week I also attended one of the dress rehearsals for “Disaster!” – Conard’s spring musical. While I was not familiar with the show itself, I knew every single 1970s song and had seen all of the disaster movies to which the show plays homage. It’s such a fun and entertaining show, and the singing and acting is great, too. There’s one more weekend and I definitely recommend seeing it if you have a chance! Cllick here to read the article which includes lots of photos and other details, and the link to buy tickets.

On Thursday I attended the memorial service and celebration of life for Tracey Wilson, who passed away in late February. I’ve known both Tracey and her wife, Beth Bye, for at least 15 years through various connections (Tracey also taught both of my kids at Conard), but I learned so much more about her life and how she lived it – and really she was such a remarkable person. Both events were attended by hundreds of people from the community, everyone from the governor, lieutenant governor, and many other top state officials to former students. Tracey’s impact on the town will be permanently recognized as the future history center at the Noah Webster House & West Hartford Historical Society will be dedicated to her.

I featured The Camelot a few weeks ago in this column, but on Friday I had a chance to take a tour of the interior – which is the lead feature in today’s column. Thanks to Lewis Brown and Steve Caprio of Honeycomb Real Estate Partners and Gavin Soraghan of construction manager Innoconn for the hardhat tour! See the bullet point below for details regarding the project.

It was a fabulous basketball weekend all the way around – Duke men beat North Carolina Carolina (at Carolina), Duke women won three games to take the ACC women’s tournament title, the UConn men blew out Seton Hall in their last home game of the season, and the UConn women won both games for a spot in today’s Big East championship game. At halftime of the Duke vs. Carolina game on Saturday night we headed to the Iron Horse Sports Pub for a yummy dinner and beers with a view of the game, and while I was a bit concerned with upsetting the mojo by leaving the house, Duke pulled away a few minutes into the second half and it was a great ending to the regular season. Bring on the rest of the tournaments and March Madness!

Ahead this week: continuation of the public hearing and Town Council vote on the Vessel Technologies proposal and Town Manager Rick Ledwith’s presentation of the 2025-26 general fund budget.

And before I forget: Happy Birthday to my sister, Debbi Zimbler!

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If you have information to share about local businesses, please provide details in the comments or email Ronni Newton at [email protected].

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Here’s this week’s Buzz:

• I had a tour of The Camelot back in October when the renovation of the former West Hartford Inn portion was just getting underway and the new construction piece was just being framed, and I also featured some updates in this column several weeks ago, but on Friday had a chance for another tour of the interior as the project is nearing completion. Thanks to Lewis Brown and Steve Caprio of Honeycomb Real Estate Partners and Gavin Soraghan of construction manager Innoconn for the hardhat behind-the-scenes peek at the project, which should be complete in the next month or so, Brown said. While it’s going to be one development – the two sections connect on each floor – the renovation of the former hotel portion is farther along, with most of the appliances installed already and even the wide hallways painted. The ground floor of the new part of the building (which has risen above what most recently was Los Imperios) will house the common areas, and those are still being actively built out. Caprio said the community room will include two seating areas, a kitchenette, space for reading and gathering, and flex office space. The ground floor will also include a fitness center, space for mailboxes and package pickup. and a fitness center with cardio and weightlifting equipment, as well as space for fitness classes to be held. “The folks who live here don’t have to join a gym,” Caprio said.  The 44 units will be a mix of 24 one-bedroom (525 square feet) and 20 two-bedroom units (985 square feet), and the new construction portion is completely two-bedroom apartments while the renovated portion includes both size units. All units have plenty of natural light through large windows, and the same finishes and amenities, which include stainless steel appliances, granite countertops, gray subway tile backsplashes, and luxury vinyl flooring. There are two laundry rooms – one on every other floor of the four-story building – and two elevators. Tenants can enter directly through either of the garage levels, and there is a main entrance at ground level as well. All of the units are affordable housing for residents at various levels of income eligibility, ranging from those earning less than 30% of area median income (AMI) to 80% of AMI. Brown said they received 3,000 applications for the 13 units that are for those earning 30% AMI, and a third-party lottery was used to make the process equitable. All of the 30% AMI units utilize project-based vouchers through the West Hartford Housing Authority, he said. The units for those earning 50% AMI are also fully leased, but there are 80% AMI units available. “I encourage people to apply,” he said. Applicants must income qualify, Caprio said, and the qualifications based on household size (for example, $68,250 is the 80% AMI level for a single-person household) can be found on their website. Rents for the 80% AMI units start at $1,825 for a one-bedroom and $2,194 for a two-bedroom, and include all utilities, Brown said – with heating and cooling provided in each unit through individually-controlled mini-splits. Visit the website for more details. “We’re aiming for the end of April,” Soraghan said regarding the completion. “We anticipate people starting to move in in May,” Brown said.

• The build-out is complete and Fine Fettle should be ready to open what will be West Hartford’s third (and final, based on the existing ordinance) cannabis retailer at 1232 Farmington Avenue in Sunset Triangle later this month. Fine Fettle CEO Ben Zachs, who grew up in West Hartford, said the opening is pending the approval of some final paperwork at the state level. Further details to come!

• Central Eye Care is now open and welcoming patients of all ages to their office at 28 North Main Street. The provider, Dr. Jennifer Raska is a board certified optometrist with more than a decade of experience caring for patients in West Hartford, CT. She is a mom and neighbor who is passionate about providing care to patients from babyhood and beyond. As a clinical instructor at her alma mater, The New England College of Optometry, she has unique experience in complex contact lens fittings and is dually certified in myopia management. “Central Eye Care values convenient scheduling, inclusive insurance coverage and approachable optical collections. Located in the center of town, with the convenience of free patient parking. Evening and Saturday appointments available. Your vision matters. Come see the difference!” Raska said. For more information, visit the website CentralEyecare2020.com or follow on social media @central_eye_care.

• As pretty much everyone must know by now, Park Lane Pizza (337 Park Road), which was featured in this column last week, reopened last Tuesday after more than a year of being closed due to a repair/renovation project that started with storm damage in January 2024. I finally had a chance to stop by and see it back in operation on Sunday afternoon (although I didn’t have a chance at that time to sample any pizza), but did want to report that it looks great inside, and Bobby Vavaroutsos, who is one of the owners, is just thrilled with the return of customers. “We’ve been swamped. It’s been great,” he said. Here are a few photos of pizza (complete with tiny corners), and the interior and exterior. They do plan to fully replace the sign at some point, but in the meantime it has been repaired!

• I checked out the progress of the building in Prospect Plaza that will soon be home to Chipotle (with a Chipot-lane), Jersey Mike’s Subs, and Teriyaki Madness, and it looks to be getting very close to completion. Signs are up for two of the three businesses, and there was a flurry of activity taking place on Friday afternoon. Chipotle has applied for a Special Use Permit to h ave a 42-seat patio outdoors – and it appears the furniture is already in place.

• I’ve seen some questions being posted on social media about the reasons for the signs indicating that all of the street trees along LaSalle Road are going to be cut down. That’s because they are being replaced as part of the Town Center Infrastructure Master Plan, and construction of the first phase (on LaSalle Road) will begin later this month. New trees will be planted – and there will be several different varieties, all native species, and more trees than are currently along the streetscape. Details about the planned work can be found here.

• While going to take photos of the street trees, I saw that in the past few weeks additional signage (new awnings) has been added and more progress has been made on the build-out of The Friendly Toast at 36 LaSalle Road. Everything I have heard about this business thus far has been so positive and cheerful, and I am really looking forward to the opening. The spokesperson told me a few weeks ago that it would be late spring, but maybe it will be sooner! Check out the adorable door handle photo below!

• “The Great Gatsby” by F. Scott Fitzgerald turns 100 on April 10, and Rob Kyff, a longtime teacher at Kingswood Oxford School in West Hartford, has just published a new book on the classic novel to coincide with its centennial. Kyff’s book, titled “Gatsby’s Secrets” and published by Silver Pepper Press, explores the hidden motifs, moments and metaphors that shape the novel’s meaning. It describes how Fitzgerald weaves thematic elements as disparate as water, vision, ghosts, numbers and stars into the fabric of the novel and how secondary characters, such as Jordan Baker, Myrtle Wilson, and Blocks Biloxi, contribute essential perspectives and comic relief. It also examines the literary techniques Fitzgerald used to craft the novel’s exquisite, rhapsodic passages that have been called “touchstones of American prose.” Kyff will deliver a talk on “The Great Gatsby” at the main branch of the West Hartford Library at 6:30 p.m., Tuesday, April 8.

• There’s been some question about whether or not the Forever 21 store at Westfarms is closing amid the reported closing of stores in Manchester, Milford, and Waterford, which according to The Connecticut Scoop are currently conducting “Store Closing” sales. Westfarms has referred all inquiries to Forever 21 management and I reached out last week to get an update but did not receive any response. The store appears open, and while there was an inventory blowout sale sign in the window one day last week, it’s not there anymore. I asked an employee what was happening, but she also deferred all questions to the corporate office.

• It looks like there is some action at 74 Park Road in the former Essential Health space. There are plans – not yet fully approved – filed with the town for Ceara Market, a convenience store and market, to open in that space. More details to come!

• ICYMI, a “Women’s Small Business Breakfast and Panel Discussion” will be held Wednesday morning at Town Hall. There is no charge to attend. Complete details, including registration information, can be found here.
• West Hartford Mayor Shari Cantor gave her annual State of the Town Address on Monday. Click here for the complete story.

Remember, if you have any business news to share, add it in the comments section below or email Ronni Newton at [email protected].

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