Economic development of Milford, Connecticut
Encyclopedia
Economic development in Milford, Connecticut
, has increased the size of the city and added both opportunities and some congestion, which has created controversy.
was routed through town and the Milford section was completed by 1960.
"The biggest change to Milford was I-95 with seven exits and entrances," Robert B. Gregory, Milford's community development director, said in a July 2006 article in The Hartford Courant.
In the 1960s and '70s, Milford developed further with the construction of the Westfield Connecticut Post Mall
, one of the state's largest shopping malls, and the extensive commercial development of the town's stretch of the Boston Post Road
.
The city also became host to several headquarters of multinational corporations during the same period. Milford is home to the operational headquarters of the Subway fast-food corporation. The town also hosted the U.S. headquarters of the BIC Corporation, which has in recent years moved most of its operation outside of the city. In December 2005, the Mountain Development Corporation bought many of BIC's former manufacturing facilities, and is in the process of finding tenants.
Home Improvement Warehouse store that replaced the space once occupied by World Jai-Alai.
.
Downtown Milford is undergoing a rapid revitalization, with development centered primarily on Daniel Street. New venues such as Café Atlantique, the Daniel Street Club, SBC Restaurant, Stonebridge Restaurant, Cabo, Bistro Basque and a number of smaller businesses account for downtown Milford's new-found popularity in the area.
Milford, Connecticut
Milford is a coastal city in southwestern New Haven County, Connecticut, United States, located between Bridgeport and New Haven. The population was 52,759 at the 2010 census...
, has increased the size of the city and added both opportunities and some congestion, which has created controversy.
In the late Twenteith century
In the post-World War II period, Milford -- like many other New England towns -- underwent significant suburbanization. Interstate 95Interstate 95 in Connecticut
Interstate 95, the main north–south Interstate Highway on the East Coast of the United States, runs in a general east–west compass direction for 111.57 miles in Connecticut from the Rhode Island state line to the New York State line. I-95 Southbound from East Lyme to the New York State...
was routed through town and the Milford section was completed by 1960.
"The biggest change to Milford was I-95 with seven exits and entrances," Robert B. Gregory, Milford's community development director, said in a July 2006 article in The Hartford Courant.
In the 1960s and '70s, Milford developed further with the construction of the Westfield Connecticut Post Mall
Westfield Connecticut Post
Westfield Connecticut Post, originally the Connecticut Post Shopping Center and later the Connecticut Post Mall, is a three-story shopping mall, located on the Boston Post Road in Milford, Connecticut. It is currently the largest mall in the state of Connecticut and is owned and operated by The...
, one of the state's largest shopping malls, and the extensive commercial development of the town's stretch of the Boston Post Road
Boston Post Road
The Boston Post Road was a system of mail-delivery routes between New York City and Boston, Massachusetts that evolved into the first major highways in the United States.The three major alignments were the Lower Post Road The Boston Post Road was a system of mail-delivery routes between New York...
.
The city also became host to several headquarters of multinational corporations during the same period. Milford is home to the operational headquarters of the Subway fast-food corporation. The town also hosted the U.S. headquarters of the BIC Corporation, which has in recent years moved most of its operation outside of the city. In December 2005, the Mountain Development Corporation bought many of BIC's former manufacturing facilities, and is in the process of finding tenants.
Twenty-first century
In the summer of 2005, after seven years of controversy, including protests, nature preserve studies and court battles, the city government started relocating 174 families from the Ryder Mobile Home Park to make way for the Milford Crossing plaza. Meanwhile, the Connecticut Post Mall expanded, with current projects in Milford including the previously mentioned plaza, a hotel, a new high-end shopping plaza on the old Huffman Koos grounds, and a Lowe'sLowe's
Lowe's Companies, Inc. is a U.S.-based chain of retail home improvement and appliance stores. Founded in 1946 in North Wilkesboro, North Carolina, the chain now serves more than 14 million customers a week in its 1,710 stores in the United States and 20 in Canada. Expansion into Canada began in...
Home Improvement Warehouse store that replaced the space once occupied by World Jai-Alai.
Economic development today
In the present day, Milford faces the typical modern issue of deciding how much land to develop and how much to keep natural, especially in light of the city's location at the mouth of the Housatonic RiverHousatonic River
The Housatonic River is a river, approximately long, in western Massachusetts and western Connecticut in the United States. It flows south to southeast, and drains about of southwestern New England into Long Island Sound...
.
Downtown Milford is undergoing a rapid revitalization, with development centered primarily on Daniel Street. New venues such as Café Atlantique, the Daniel Street Club, SBC Restaurant, Stonebridge Restaurant, Cabo, Bistro Basque and a number of smaller businesses account for downtown Milford's new-found popularity in the area.