The Derby Municipal Parking Garage at 2 Thompson Place.
DERBY – Elected officials on the Derby Board of Aldermen & Alderwomen voted April 10 to issue a request for proposals regarding the city’s parking garage at 2 Thompson Place.
Officials said the garage, with crumbling concrete and exposed rebar in places, is structurally sound but needs repairs.
Linda Fusco, Mayor Joseph DiMartino’s chief of staff, said the city is 0 – 4 with grant applications from two administrations trying to fund the repairs, so getting input from the private sector is a logical next step.
The last failed grant was for $900,000, she said.
“We feel like there’s no other way to go,” Fusco told the Alders.
According to a draft copy of the written request for proposals, the city “is soliciting proposals for the development of the garage.”
“This solicitation is the first step in a process to select a preferred developer to undertake a mixed-use project on site,” according to the document. Mixed-use, in zoning lingo, usually refers to a mix of commercial and residential. In this case, it could be parking with a combination of retail or residential.
The city is considering selling the facility outright, or leasing the facility to a private group.
The parking garage is in the city’s “central design development district.” The request for proposals advises developers to research what’s allowed in that zoning classification.
A review of the city’s zoning code shows that the central design development allows many different types of uses including retail businesses, residential units, financial services, professional office space (but not fast food joints), hotels, motels, conference centers, and clubs.
Engineers in contact with Derby said the parking garage could support two floors of apartments, Roger Salway, Derby’s economic development director, said at a meeting last month.
The parking garage has about 275 parking spaces, according to the RFP. The city’s website puts the number at around 300.
Fusco said 211 spaces are already called for in the form of contracts with the city. A number of entities pay Derby to park in the garage, including a nearby apartment house, the post office, the court house, and social service agencies on Elizabeth Street.
Those spaces and agreements must be honored, according to the RFP. The document notes how important public parking is to downtown Derby, too.
During the April 10 Derby Board of Aldermen and Alderwomen meeting, Alderman David Chevarella raised concerns about issuing the request for proposals.
He asked whether the city could lose out on future revenue by unloading the parking garage now if downtown Derby enters a resurgence. The long-planned widening of Main Street is underway, a 90-unit apartment complex on Caroline Street opened in 2024, and a 105-unit apartment building is being built on Main Street.
However, Richard Buturla, the city’s corporation counsel, said the request for proposals is just that – a request. By issuing the request, Derby is not then obligated to sell or lease the parking garage.
“You’re testing the market for that challenged asset,” Buturla said.
City officials have been concerned over the condition of the parking garage for at least 15 years.
The city had been talking about asking voters for money to make repairs back in 2010. However, other matters, such as $30 million in upgrades and repairs to the sewer system, took priority over the garage.
In 2010, then-Mayor Anthony Staffieri said there were no state or federal grants available to fix the garage.
“The state and federal governments are not giving grants right now. It’s a tough time, and we have to wait it out,” Staffieri said at the time.“When the time comes, we’re hoping to get a grant or maybe even go to referendum someday. As it is, it is okay to keep plugging along until the time comes.”
In 2014 the parking garage was temporarily closed after officials deemed it a danger to the public. Crumbling concrete was the culprit. Temporary repairs were made to shield vehicles and the public. At the time, officials said the garage needed $7 million in repairs.
In 2022, members of the Derby Senior Center, while lobbying the Alders to merge with the Ansonia Senior Center, complained about the condition of the garage, saying they don’t feel safe in it.
