Home Care In Old Saybrook, CT

OLD SAYBROOK — While appointment-only, customer traffic was a steady stream and moved quickly through a short line at Fine Fettle Dispensary on a recent Thursday, its opening week.

The first cannabis retailer in town was open for business Jan. 19 at 233 Boston Post Road and is one of two cannabis facilities allowed in town by current zoning regulations. The other location is 5 Custom Drive, where a cannabis micro-cultivation facility may open, but no plans have come forward so far, according to town officials.

On opening weekend at Fine Fettle, some 600 customers were served with about 100-plus deliveries, according to store manager Raymond Grabowski.

Advertisement

Article continues below this ad

Business was so brisk that some 200 cars were turned away over that weekend, according to company officials, who noted that it is the only cannabis retail outlet between Branford and Old Saybrook.

More For You

Injured New Haven migrant worker disputes eviction with employer

Will horseshoe crabs be granted endangered species protections?

These are CT's top pizzerias, according to Yelp 'Elites'

Shoreline Conference Boys Basketball Tournament bracket, scoreboard

Opponents to Guilford methadone clinic to launch more petitions

Under town regulations, the Old Saybrook store is only allowed to operate on a presale, appointment-only basis with customers coming into the facility for pickup, limited to five appointments per 10-minute period.

Town officials are looking forward to the revenue Fine Fettle may generate in tax dollars. By state law, the retailer must tax 3 percent of all sales, which goes to the town, in addition to state sales tax.

Advertisement

Article continues below this ad

At this stage “it’s super hard to put a number on it, but I know that in Willimantic and Newington, they’re one of the largest taxpayers in the town,” First Selectman Carl Fortuna said, referring to two other Fine Fettle outlets in the state.

“I totally anticipate it will be six figures,” Fortuna said about the expected tax revenue. However, he was quick to say that its sales model is different from the other stores.

“It’s not a typical store because its appointment and delivery, so it’s a little different than some of their walk-ins,” he noted.

The funds generated from Fine Fettle, Fortuna said, could be used for infrastructure upgrades for Mariner's Way, where the store is located on Route 1 East.

“The area where Fine Fettle is — is an area of town where we’ve been trying to spark a little economic development, kind of redevelop it, spur some economic activity” especially where there are empty storefronts now, Fortuna said. The town has hired a consultant to look at improving the area, unrelated to the store, he added.

Advertisement

Article continues below this ad

Fortuna added, “Over the course of three or four years, if we wanted to do some significant infrastructure and we were able to save half a million in taxes ... that’s a big deal, nothing to sneeze at.”

“We’d love to help that entire Mariner’s Way be the first revitalized business to bring more economic growth into old Saybrook,” said Fine Fettle COO Ben Zachs. “I think that area of Route 1 can use it and we want to be the leaders that set up and prove that we’re a great, quiet neighbor.”

Fine Fettle’s Old Saybrook location is one of five stores owned by the Connecticut-based cannabis retailer, which has plans to ultimately operate between nine and 11 stores in the state, according to Zachs.

Fine Fettle owns three “hybrid” stores offering both medical and adult recreational cannabis in Newington, Stamford and Willimantic. Manchester was the company’s first adult-use and equity partner store.

Advertisement

Article continues below this ad

A sixth store in Norwalk is set to open some time this month, according to Zachs.

The Old Saybrook opening followed a legal battle that is still pending. One part of the legal action was denied when two neighboring property owners sought a restraining order to keep the retailer from opening.

But there is a pending suit with one neighbor appealing the town’s approval of the business nearly a year ago. No court decision has been made on the appeal of the Zoning Commission’s decision and town officials would not comment on the suit.

“I know there’s some businesses near it that are not thrilled with having a cannabis dispensary there. It was a zoning decision. It’s a retail shop that’s allowed to be there,” Fortuna said.

Advertisement

Article continues below this ad

But Zachs is optimistic the store’s opening will change minds of those who opposed the store.

“There was a loud minority who was not excited about having us,” Zachs said. He estimated that 20 to 25 percent of their customer base are Old Saybrook residents.

“We know that this is new and there’s a lot of history — there’s a lot of fear, there’s a lot of unknown,” Zachs added. “I think our first week of operations, I am sure quelled a lot of fears.”

“People don’t get embarrassed walking into the liquor store, people don’t get embarrassed walking into the pharmacy,” Zachs said. “So much of what we do is a change in stigmatization around everything with people coming in.”

Advertisement

Article continues below this ad

Zachs said the opening went smoothly and he is proud of the renovation of the property. “It’s beautiful. The building we went into was really old and not in very great shape and we’ve completely revitalized the building,” he said.

About customer traffic so far, Zachs said, “It’s clear that the demand is there. And it’s clear that operationally we’ve been able to handle the traffic really, really well.” One way to manage traffic, he added, was “to really push for a lot of delivery.” Fine Fettle has partnered with Green Coach, which has a “social equity delivery license.”

“We just really want to make it that there is access to legal tested cannabis,” Zachs said.

Zachs said they are serving many customers who want to use cannabis for its reported health benefits.

Advertisement

Article continues below this ad

“The data from around the country shows that about 90 percent of cannabis users — even recreational purchasers, customers — are using it for some health and wellness benefit. It’s not just the medical patient.”

Fine Fettle is attracting many newcomers, as well, Zachs noted.

Zachs added, “So whether you’re 21 or 91 …whatever gender, whatever history of use, we get everything in between. It’s socioeconomically diverse, it’s age diverse, it’s racially diverse.

“The biggest thing we’ve seen is cannabis is universal. I honestly think we’re breaking down a lot of stereotypes around it,” Zachs said.

Advertisement

Article continues below this ad

Feb 2, 2024

OLD SAYBROOK – It’s been nearly a decade since Old Saybrook dubbed Route 1 East, “Mariner’s Way,” as part of a push to attract development, but little has changed on the stretch of road connecting Interstate 95 to the town’s Main Street business district.

But First Selectman Carl Fortuna said a lot has changed in the last few years, providing the town with new opportunities to attract developers to the section of Boston Post Road characterized by mismatched businesses and blighted properties.

“Pre-pandemic, we had a bit of a sluggish housing market,” Fortuna said. “It wasn’t the case four years ago, and it wasn’t the case nine years ago, but it is the case now that there’s more of a desire to live on the shoreline and work on the shoreline. So there just may be a better opportunity now than has existed, not only in the last nine years, but maybe 20 years.”

The town is putting aside $89,910 to develop a new strategic plan for Mariner’s Way, selecting a bid from economic development consultants Camoin Associates to refresh the vision for the area that the town can pitch to interested developers.

“We shouldn’t just sit and wait,” Fortuna said. “If investing $80,000 gives us a return in tax dollars over three to five years, we have to try. It’s an underutilized area of town that I think the townspeople would like to look better, and maybe have some attractions that will give them a reason to go there.”

A vision for “Mariner’s Way”

In 2014, the town adopted a plan to revitalize the stretch of Route 1 between Saybrook Junction and Ferry Point, calling the collection of businesses and former industrial sites “Mariner’s Way.” Consulting group CivicMoxie out of Massachusetts was brought in to come up with a vision to put underutilized properties back into use – particularly a 17.84-acre section near the I-95 off ramp that was home to Custom Marine until 2000.

But Selectman Matt Pugliese, who previously served as chair of the town Economic Development Commission, said the 2014 plan focused on marine industrial uses because that’s historically what’s been in the area.

That plan called for a new Marine Recreation Business zone, which would incorporate the existing businesses oriented towards recreation on the Connecticut River, while allowing larger developments like hotels, college or university buildings, large-scale retail or a sports complex.

Pugliese said a historic use isn’t necessarily the best use, and the area seems to be ripe for housing development. The west end of Mariner’s Way is a stone’s throw away from the train station at Saybrook Junction, and both said there could be opportunity for housing there – especially with the state government’s focus on transit-oriented development.

Both also said the area could be a fit for light industrial uses, potentially for subcontractors of Electric Boat in Groton. There’s a need to house Electric Boat workers as well, Fortuna said, in addition to the already increased demand for housing in Old Saybrook.

Old Saybrook Economic Development Coordinator Jennifer Donahue said the new study would have a market analysis and economic opportunity study to look at how much housing is needed and what kinds of development is realistic.

Pugliese said the town needs that data to know what the market will support, and know what developers to talk to.

“It doesn’t make sense for us as a town to go out and spend our time trying to talk to somebody and build housing if we don’t have any information from our side to show why housing makes sense,” he said.

Challenges and opportunities

The former Custom Marine industrial property is contaminated with petroleum, hydrocarbons and other pollutants, which environmental consultants Tighe and Bond estimated in 2017 would cost about $1.72 million to remediate. Other former industrial properties in the area would also need cleanup before development.

Fortuna said he doesn’t believe the need for environmental cleanup is scaring away developers. The main problem before, according to Fortuna, was a lack of sewers and a sluggish housing market. There are still no sewers, but there’s more opportunity for housing, he said.

If there is a developer interested in a contaminated site, the town can help them connect to grants for cleanup, he said. But the developer has to come first.

“We’re not here to just assist the property owner to drive up the price of the property. That may scare off developers,” Fortuna said. “The idea would be to partner and say, ‘Look, you guys come to your price, then we will work with the developer in getting remediation.’”

Donahue said getting all sides to buy into a vision is key. The land is all privately owned, so the owner and a new developer have to come to an agreement independent of what the town wants. But it also means getting boards and commissions to agree on any changes, like zoning regulations that may need to be revised to allow a development.

“In past efforts, a lot of work was done by a lot of different people, but everybody wasn’t always in alignment with each other,” Donahue said.

Fortuna said they know some of the property owners are willing to sell, and some are actively looking for a buyer. But the town’s role isn’t to force anyone to do anything, Fortuna said. Pugliese said the town’s role is to let the owners know what might be possible so they can talk to the right developers.

“If there’s an opportunity, I think the residents of this town would like us to investigate that and see if we can make something happen,” Fortuna said.

Pugliese said Mariner’s Way is one of the largest pieces of town available for development. Cleaning up brownfields for development is better than clearing green space for it, he said. It’s also a central thoroughfare for the town, and connects to I-95, Route 9 and the Amtrak station, he said.

“Heading south, you get off I-95 and you’re right into Mariner’s Way,” Pugliese said. “So there’s a lot of value in making sure it greets and welcomes residents and visitors to the community.”

Brendan Crowley covers energy and the environment for CT Examiner. T: 860 598-0050

[email protected]

OLD SAYBROOK — It depends on who you ask whether the recent zone change for a waterfront parcel in the marine industrial district to make way for five homes is a good thing.

The zone change that would allow a developer to build five houses at 91 Sheffield St. would be a big improvement to the “abandoned” lot in the marine industrial zone on North Cove, according to one town official.

The Zoning Commission approved the zone change that was part of a negotiated legal settlement with Sheffield LLC, owned by Branford developer Mike Picard, at its Nov. 6 meeting.

Advertisement

Article continues below this ad

The agreement between the parties still needs court approval. Picard will have to submit plans again and get approvals.

Picard was not immediately available for comment.

The town had rejected the developer’s earlier plan to build four homes, and the developer had appealed; the court had instructed Sheffield to come to a settlement with the zoning board.

More For You

Injured New Haven migrant worker disputes eviction with employer

Will horseshoe crabs be granted endangered species protections?

These are CT's top pizzerias, according to Yelp 'Elites'

Shoreline Conference Boys Basketball Tournament bracket, scoreboard

Opponents to Guilford methadone clinic to launch more petitions

This new plan includes one “affordable” home with designated income levels according to state law.

Advertisement

Article continues below this ad

Paul Connolly, secretary of the Harbor Management Commission, speaking as a resident, called it a “missed opportunity” for the town.

While First Selectman Carl Fortuna said he could see the arguments on both sides, he sees the development as a plus for the town and said the residential use will be more “in harmony” with the waterfront homes on nearby Saltus Drive.

“This is a property that has been basically abandoned,” Fortuna said. “There’s broken glass, broken down windows, broken down buildings. I don’t know if there’s environmental issues.”

Fortuna noted that the last business had moved out over 15 years ago and the land has been vacant since. The property was once the home of an Old Saybrook-based oceanographic research firm.

Advertisement

Article continues below this ad

“It’s in a mostly residential area, and the fact that its residential with a school and a graveyard,” Fortuna said.

“It’s a beautiful spot,” he added. It’s a marine industrial zone in what amounts to a residential area. In terms of it becoming residential, it’s probably more in harmony with the neighborhood.”

But Fortuna said that protecting marine land is important to the town.

“However, we certainly want to promote our marine industries, and the Harbor Management Commission did not support losing this property from marine industrial to residential, and I respect that opinion very much,” he said.

Advertisement

Article continues below this ad

“They did what they could,” he said about the Harbor Management Commission. However, he added, “At the end of the day, Zoning felt, this is unlikely to become marine industrial again.”

The proposed settlement will go before a judge, he said. Then, once the town approves the text amendment for a Planned Development District, “from what I’ve seen of the plans, you’re going to get very nice — five beautiful homes.”

“I’ve actually been on the property — forget it, it’s an absolute travesty the condition it is right now,” Fortuna said.

“I’m not saying that’s the reason to change the text, but clearly there were no other takers for the land other than this one developer,” he said.

Advertisement

Article continues below this ad

The developer bought the 9.9 acre site at 91 Sheffield St. for $1 million on Sept. 29, according to town records.

Connolly noted there is very little waterfront land that is designated as marine industrial.

“Less than 1 percent of the town is zoned marine. We have the largest shoreline of any town in Connecticut. This piece was 18 percent of the remaining land zoned marine,” Connolly said.

He said the Harbor Management Commission felt the zone change was “inconsistent” with the town’s Harbor Management Plan, “which is to have recreational use and water dependent uses and facilities that support the quality of life here.”

Advertisement

Article continues below this ad

“Our view is this person — whoever the developer is — purchased the land at a discount because it’s marine, then came in with a plan to say they were now burdened, having a hardship because they couldn’t build houses on it,” Connolly said.

“And the town fell for it, frankly,” he said. “And the land is gone forever. Very, very shortsighted of the town in my opinion.”

“You don’t know what businesses are going to be in the future,” Connolly said. “Just because someone hasn’t yet looked at that reserved piece of property for the time when a business can access it and purchase it at an affordable price — we just ditched it.”

“How are more houses — five houses — going to improve the quality of life in Old Saybrook?" Connolly said. "We just ditched potential that we could have had something that would, in fact, increase the quality of life here."

Advertisement

Article continues below this ad

Correction: The story has been updated to reflect that a business had moved out at 91 Sheffield St. some years ago and the site has been vacant since. The property was once the home of an Old Saybrook-based oceanographic research firm.

Nov 9, 2023|Updated Nov 15, 2023 12:06 p.m.

OLD SAYBROOK — Interested parties got to inspect Lynde Point Lighthouse last month, but it may be several months more before it is announced which entity will be awarded the iconic structure.

But whichever group wins the Inner Light, there will be much work to be done to make it safe, according to one applicant.

The federal government is giving away the lighthouse for free to a qualifying municipality or nonprofit group that can maintain it; 60 entities formally expressed interest in it, according to the General Services Administration.

Advertisement

Article continues below this ad

Interested parties have inspected the lighthouse and the clock started Sept. 1. The deadline to submit a formal application with the National Park Service to acquire the lighthouse is 90 days.

At that point, the Park Service will make a recommendation, which need the approval of the Department of the Interior, according to Paul Hughes of the GSA. The decision cannot be appealed, he said.

More For You

Injured New Haven migrant worker disputes eviction with employer

Will horseshoe crabs be granted endangered species protections?

These are CT's top pizzerias, according to Yelp 'Elites'

Shoreline Conference Boys Basketball Tournament bracket, scoreboard

Opponents to Guilford methadone clinic to launch more petitions

Four local groups were among the applicants that submitted a “letter of interest” in the lighthouse, which is listed on the National Register of Historic Places: the town of Old Saybrook; Old Saybrook Historic Society; the Borough of Fenwick, where the lighthouse is located; and the Connecticut River Gateway Commission.

Advertisement

Article continues below this ad

GSA officials said it was not their policy to disclose any of the interested parties.

Meanwhile, the “Save Lynde Point Lighthouse as a Park” group on Facebook expressed concern that whatever group gets it may limit public access.

“Our goal is to see that the lighthouse goes to someone who will not just preserve it, but make it available to the public," said Bart Gullong, founding member of Save Lynde Point Lighthouse.

This group did not submit a letter of interest, Gullong said, adding, “We’re an advocacy group, we’re not an actual applicant for the lighthouse. We don’t have the organization or the administration to do that.”

Advertisement

Article continues below this ad

Gullong said he was worried that if Fenwick were the winning applicant, public access would be curtailed as it is a municipality within Old Saybrook with many private roads and no parking.

“The organization that controls it might open it one day of the year, or one day every six months,” Gullong said.

Gullong talked about what he would like to see happen with the lighthouse.

“I would like to see a nonprofit organization take over that had the infrastructure to apply for and receive federal grants to do improvements to make it a facility that could be made available for the public to use as a museum and as a location to visit and go to the beach,” he said. “There’s a great little beach there.”

Advertisement

Article continues below this ad

Town officials have maintained that strong currents near the lighthouse would prohibit swimming there.

Gullong disagreed. “The Coast Guard beach in Block Lsland is exactly the same — very fast current, very, very fast, quick drop off. But it’s used daily, and it’s one of the preferred beaches,” he said.

Newton Brainard, warden of Fenwick, said it was too early to talk about how the borough might open it to the public.

“We have 90 days to formulate and submit our application,” he said. “I don’t have a formulated plan today of what our intent is for public access.”

Advertisement

Article continues below this ad

Brainard noted that the lighthouse will need much work.

“It’s a beautiful property that is in need of a tremendous amount of physical improvements just to get it safe for anyone to spend time out there,” he said.

“The fence is falling down. ... The seawall is falling over. ... There’s all sorts of problems,” he said, stressing he was not blaming anyone for neglect, as it had been automated for years. “The windows in the lighthouse structure are either missing or boarded up,” he added.

The GSA is expected to provide the applicants with more detailed information on the lighthouse’s condition, Brainard said. “They are supposedly going to provide us with all the information they have over the years on structure and environmental and anything else that they have,” he said.

Advertisement

Article continues below this ad

About the 60 interested parties, Brainard observed, “I think even to put in a letter of interest you needed to be a municipality or nonprofit,” otherwise, “they would just throw it away.”

“A private individual or private group is not at the moment, not in the position to qualify for putting an application in,” Brainard said.

Gargano Pasta & Italian Market in Old Saybrook, a market and cafe with freshly made pastas, baked goods and specialty Italian products, has closed after just over one year in business.

Owners Joel and Lani Gargano announced the closing on the business's Facebook page Tuesday.

"Being a part of the Old Saybrook community this past year has brought us immense joy," they wrote. "We appreciate the patronage from near and far. This Sunday 8/6 was our last service at Gargano Pasta, we know it was sudden but it was an important decision to make."

The Garganos, who also own and operate Grano Arso in Chester, encouraged guests to visit them at the restaurant.

"But it is not totally farewell," they wrote. "We look forward in seeing everyone at our sister restaurant Grano Arso opened Tuesday to Saturday for dinner service. Please look out for Gargano Pasta’s future projects and pasta distribution."

The couple did not elaborate on the reason for closing, and they were not immediately available for comment Wednesday.

Gargano Pasta & Italian Market opened in July 2022 on Old Saybrook's Main Street, a project that was the works for about three years, Lani Gargano said at the time. She described the new business as a "chef-driven" extension of their celebrated Chester restaurant, known for its creative housemade pastas and traditional Italian cooking (and named Restaurant of the Year by the Connecticut Restaurant Association in 2019.)

"It's an evolution of Grano Arso, I believe...it's a different concept, but you can see the connection between [the two businesses]," she said.

The market and cafe offered housemade pastas and sauces for dine-in and takeout, prepared pasta dishes, salads and sandwiches, along with coffee, breads and pastries. Gargano Pasta also carried specialty foods like cheese, charcuterie and imported Italian products.

The Garganos noted that they would provide a grace period to use Gargano Pasta gift cards at Grano Arso.