After years of successful small apartment projects, John entered the commercial property business by developing office buildings adjacent to the same neighborhoods where he had built his apartment projects. In a precursor to what would be the expansion of office buildings from downtown cores to suburban corridors, in the mid to late 1950’s John found a welcome market for companies looking to expand out of the downtown Hartford, but still being located within the City of Hartford. This led to the development of multiple office properties along Asylum Avenue in Hartford, a major arterial leading from downtown Hartford to the growing affluent western suburbs of Hartford and a corridor which previously had not been considered as a location for corporate offices. By the early 1960’s John had built buildings along Asylum Avenue for major companies including COLECO (Connecticut Leather Company), LIAMA (Life Insurance Agency Management Association), FIA (Factory Insurance Associates) and NCR (National Cash Register).

In 1961, with commercial successes under his belt, John began his largest development project to date, Brainard Industrial Park, by purchasing 196 acres of vacant land owned by the City of Hartford. Located with excellent access to rail service and the recently constructed I-91 as well as being adjacent to the City of Hartford owned Brainard Airport, over the remainder of the decade John would build out Brainard Industrial Park into the largest industrial park in central Connecticut, complete with restaurants, services and hotels.

By the mid to late 1960’s, the company expanded again to focus this time on the young shopping center industry. With the evolution of the modern shopping centers and the proliferation of grocery stores, department stores and pharmacies, John started developing retail properties throughout the Northeast. John became a preferred developer for WT Grant and A&P and with his likable personality and trustworthy reputation, John was able to build strong relationships with nearly every expanding retail anchor tenant at the time as these retailers looked to expand into this new type of real estate known as shopping centers.

During the next 15 years shopping center development became the company’s primary focus. Notable retail centers the company developed include Old Saybrook Shopping Center in Old Saybrook CT, Farmington Valley Mall (Simsbury Commons) in Simsbury CT, Norwichtown Mall (Norwich Town Center) in Norwich CT, Waterfall Shopping Center in Waterford, CT, Shaw’s Plaza in Waterville ME, and Bath Shopping Center in Bath, ME.

The legacy and business philosophy that John started upon his return from World War II building small apartment buildings continues today and into the future through his son Jed and grandson Jack. John’s high ethical standards, attention to construction detail and the value of relationships in everything he did are the culture that drives every decision that we make. It is our goal to have him be as proud of what and how we do things today as we are of the foundation he laid for us to follow.