Downtown Stamford

Downtown Stamford Historic District
Location Atlantic, Main, Bank, and Bedford Sts. (original); Roughly, Bedford St. between Broad and Forest Sts. (increase); Stamford, Connecticut
Coordinates 41°3′8″N 73°32′25″W / 41.05222°N 73.54028°W / 41.05222; -73.54028Coordinates: 41°3′8″N 73°32′25″W / 41.05222°N 73.54028°W / 41.05222; -73.54028
Area 17.2 acres (7.0 ha)
3.7 acres (1.5 ha) (1984 increase)
5 acres (2.0 ha) (2003 increase)
Architect Multiple
Architectural style Late 19th and 20th Century Revivals, Late Victorian, Commercial Vernacular (original); Commercial vernacular (increase); Late 19th And 20th Century Revivals, Modern Movement (increase II)
NRHP Reference # 83003502 (original)
85000311 (increase 1)
02001744[1] (increase 2)
Significant dates
Added to NRHP October 6, 1983
Boundary increases February 21, 1985
January 31, 2003

Downtown Stamford is the central business district of the city of Stamford, Connecticut, United States. Also known as "Stamford Downtown." It is an economically thriving area of the city, with major retail establishments, a shopping mall, a university campus, the headquarters of major corporations and fortune 500 companies, as well as other retail businesses, hotels, restaurants, offices, entertainment venues, and high-rise apartment buildings. In recent years, more housing has been constructed in the neighborhood and more is planned.

View of buildings Downtown with train station in foreground

With transportation widely seen as one of the biggest challenges facing the Economy of Stamford, Downtown has become an important transportation hub, as well as a business hub for lower Fairfield County. For example, it is an area within walking distance of the Metro-North train station, which is one of the busiest on the New Haven Railroad Line.

The Downtown area has been the heart of Stamford, Connecticut since colonial times. Much of the history of Stamford took place there. Most of the southern and central portions of Downtown have been designated as historic districts, listed as the Downtown Stamford Historic District on the National Register of Historic Places.

In recent years, new development has consumed much of the Downtown area, with the additions of new high-rise buildings and office towers such as the new 34-story Trump Parc Stamford, parks such as the new Mill River Park development project, and housing such as the new 17-story Highgrove Condominium Residences. Other development projects include new student housing at the UCONN Stamford branch, residential housing, and the massive planned Ritz-Carlton Stamford development, which will include two 39-story hotel/condominium towers. The project is currently on hold due to the economic downturn in 2008. The city also plans to make improvements to the Atlantic Street underpass beneath the New Haven Line railroad tracks just east of the Stamford Transportation Center in order to alleviate a traffic bottleneck.[2] The improvements are also meant to allow quicker evacuation of areas of the South End if disaster strikes. The project received a $245,000 earmark in the federal budget passed in December 2007.[2]

Location

Atlantic Street, looking north

In relation to other neighborhoods in Stamford, the Downtown is east of the West Side (separated by the Mill River), north of the South End (separated by Interstate 95 and the Metro-North Railroad tracks) and Shippan (also separated by the highway and railroad), west of the East Side and Glenbrook, and south of Newfield, Belltown, High Ridge and Turn of River. Bull's Head, the mostly commercial area at the intersection of High Ridge Road and Long Ridge Road, is immediately north of the Downtown.

Historic district

The Downtown Stamford Historic District is a historic district that was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1983. The originally listed area included 56 buildings along Atlantic, Main, Bank, and Bedford Streets, and examples of Late 19th and 20th Century Revivals, Late Victorian, and Commercial Vernacular architecture.[1][1] Its boundaries were increased in 1985 to include an area bounded by Atlantic, Main, Bank, Bedford, Summer between Broad and Main Sts. and Summer Pl. The 1985 boundary increase captured the only surviving area in downtown of lower-rent commercial structures such as warehouses, laundries, and stables.[3] Its boundaries were further increased in 2002 to include an area including Late 19th And 20th Century Revivals and Modern Movement architecture, roughly, Bedford Street between Broad and Forest Streets.[1] The 2002 increase added the 1939-built Avon Theatre and other buildings, adding Late Gothic Revival and Art Deco architectural styles not included in the first and second areas.[4] The current boundaries of the historic district now encompass most of the southern half of Downtown. The historic district designated in 1983 included the largest remaining area of pre-1930s commercial and institutional buildings in downtown Stamford.[5] The 1985 boundary increase captured the only surviving area in downtown of lower-rent commercial structures such as warehouses, laundries, and stables.[3] The 2002 increase added the 1939-built Avon Theatre and other buildings, adding Late Gothic Revival and Art Deco architectural styles not included in the first and second areas.[4]

Distinctive architecture

One Landmark Square, the second tallest building in the city, at 21 stories, the tallest being the new Trump Parc, at 34-stories high.

High rises

Recently, Downtown Stamford has experienced a boom in high-rise building construction.

Victor Bisharat's buildings

Many of the most distinctive buildings in Downtown Stamford were designed by the late Victor Bisharat, a Jordanian who received his education at the American University in Beirut, Lebanon and at the University of California at Berkeley. His Stamford buildings were designed for F.D. Rich Co.[9] (For information on Bisharat's buildings on High Ridge Road, see Arts and culture in Stamford, Connecticut.)

Other buildings

Ferguson Library

spandrels with triglyph fluting".[4] (see photo 8).

Buildings under construction, proposed, or approved

Stamford Panorama

Shopping

By city ordinance, all large stores in Stamford must be located within the Downtown Special Services District, unless special waivers are given. The area includes the Stamford Town Center, an indoor shopping mall in the heart of the Downtown.

The Stamford Town Center

Entertainment

Most of Stamford's larger entertainment venues are located in the Downtown. These include the Palace Theatre, Rich Forum, as well as various movie other theaters. The area around Columbus Park and Bedford Street has become a center for bars, clubs, and restaurants, although all three can be found elsewhere Downtown and around the city.

Mill River Park

Mill River Park, which separates Downtown from the West Side, is to be expanded in an $8.5 million project, including $4 million in federal funding earmarked in 2007, with the city government financing the rest of the cost. The federal funding is to pay for removing the Mill River dam and dredging. That part of the project is the first step in the long-planned renovation of the park.[2]

The project plans call for narrowing the width of the river to less than half of its current expanse, which would expand the park's area and provide space for more amenities. The master plan provides for a carousel, fountain, ice rink and network of trails connecting a greenway with the Kosciuszko, Southfield and Scalzi parks. Removing the dam will also allow fish to swim up from Long Island Sound. As of 2007, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers had spent $800,000 on preliminary studies, planning and design.[2]

The cherry trees in Mill River Park were presented to the city on April 27, 1957 by Junzo Nojima, a native of Japan who had settled in the city in 1926 and in 1932 became the first Japanese man to own a restaurant in the state (K&J Three Decker Restaurant on Atlantic Street). Nojima gave the city 120 trees, and for three years he watered each one until they took root. He gave the city instructions on how to care for them, but when they were overlooked, he began tending the trees himself. On Arbor Day, April 27, 2007, the city celebrated the 50th anniversary of the gift with a ceremony at the park.[13]

Events

Broad and Bedford Streets in Downtown Stamford.

The Downtown Special Services District, known as Stamford Downtown, is booming with exciting events from June through December. Whether it’s a tour of a world class sculpture exhibit, "Alive@Five" and "Jazz up July" outdoor concerts in Columbus Park, Arts & Crafts on Bedford Street or a giant helium balloon parade that marches through Downtown, Stamford Downtown is the place to find it all. These events bring thousands of people into the Downtown.

Police and fire services

The main police station is located in the heart of Downtown, at 805 Bedford Street. A substation is located on Atlantic Street.

The Stamford Fire Rescue Department's Fire Station's # 1 and 5 serve the neighborhood. Fire Headquarters, or Fire Station # 1 is located on Main Street, in the heart of Downtown, while Fire Station # 5 is located on Washington Boulevard, in the Woodside neighborhood, just north of Downtown.

Filming locations

Pictures

See also

Notes

  1. 1 2 3 4 National Park Service (2009-03-13). "National Register Information System". National Register of Historic Places. National Park Service.
  2. 1 2 3 4 Porstner, Donna, "Stamford to get $7M from feds", The Advocate of Stamford, Connecticut, December 20, 2007, Stamford edition, page 1
  3. 1 2 Nils Kerschus and John Herzan (December 1983). "National Register of Historic Places Inventory-Nomination: Downtown Stamford Historic District (Boundary Increase)" (PDF). National Park Service. and Accompanying six photos, from 1984
  4. 1 2 3 4 Ellen Meager and Nils Kerschus (July 1, 2002). "National Register of Historic Places Inventory-Nomination: Downtown Stamford Historic District (Boundary Increase)" (PDF). National Park Service. and Accompanying 29 photos, from 2002 (see photo captions and maps page 21-23 of text document)
  5. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 Nils Kerschus and John Herzan (January 1983). "National Register of Historic Places Inventory-Nomination: Downtown Stamford Historic District" (PDF). National Park Service. and Accompanying 21 photos, from 1982 and 1983
  6. "Current Developments". Stamford Downtown.
  7. Charles, Eleanor, "In the Region/Connecticut: A Landmark Becomes Less of a Fortress," May 1, 2005, The New York Times Real Estate section, accessed August 9, 2005
  8. 1 2 3 Dunlap, David W., "Stamford Reinvents Its Downtown Once Again" New York Times, January 5, 1997
  9. Emporis web site, accessed July 5, 2006
  10. Dalena, Doug, "100 years ago, Old town hall had something new to offer", article in The Advocate of Stamford, page 1, Stamford and Norwalk editions
  11. "America's Coolest Churches," Life magazine, April 14, 2005, accessed July 5, 2006.
  12. Walsh, Erin, "From the Archives: The Week of March 9" weekly column in The Advocate of Stamford, March 10, 2008, p A5
  13. Deka, Christina, special correspondent, "On Arbor Day, city will honor deep roots: Event will mark 50 years of Mill River cherry trees", news article in The Advocate (Stamford) of Stamford, Connecticut, page A11
  14. 1 2 Russell, Don, "'Roles' in movies are nothing new for city: Kazan used Stamford in the '40s", editorial page column in The Advocate, Stamford edition, page A10, April 25, 2007
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