Marcus Dairy, a Danbury-based milk distributor, has dramatically scaled back its plans for a site in Oxford.
In November 2009, the company had announced it would move its distribution center and corporate offices from Danbury to Hurley Road in Oxford.
But now, after a reorganization of the company, Marcus Dairy plans to only bring a vehicle repair facility to a 5,000 square-foot building on North Larkey Road.
The original plan would have employed 70 people. The revised plan for a vehicle repair facility involves only five jobs, according to the plans on file at the Planning and Zoning office.
“We’ve had a reorganization in terms of moving our offices,” said William Fitchett, general manager at Marcus. “With the operational changes we did, it changed the economics of the package, so we’re better off doing what we’re doing.”
The Danbury distribution center closed, and Marcus Daily shifted its distribution operations to centers New Britain and in Newburgh, N.Y.
The company is seeking a four-year lease.
“We would fix the vehicles we operate at our two locations,” said Fitchett.
The building has an office and three garage bays.
“Its a nice little flat, 5,000 square-foot … building,” said Anthony Russo, a partner in Larkey Land Investors, LLC, which wants to lease the metal building to Marcus.
He said he is excited about the project.
“I’ve known the Marcus family since I was 13, so doing this work with them is overwhelmingly beautiful for me,” said Russo, who used to work at the dairy as a driver, and then had a trucking company that worked for the dairy.
The Planning and Zoning public hearing on the special exception request is set for 7:35 p.m. on Thursday, May 5 at Town Hall.
Marcus Dairy’s interest in Oxford is welcome to the industrial zone, said Herman Schuler, the town’s economic development director.
“Oxford welcomes all good business,” Schuler said. “Certainly the reason they came to town with the maintenance operation is that they had such a positive experience with the town on the other piece of property.”
