Omni developer to take over Chapel Square Mall

By David Altschuler

As construction of the new Omni luxury hotel and conference center in downtown New Haven continues, Omni Hotels and Baltimore-based developer David Cordish are eying their next project--the eventual takeover of Chapel Square Mall.

City officials confirmed on Thurs., Feb. 20 that Omni and Cordish will have the right to acquire the mall and adjoining office tower when construction on the Omni is 50 percent complete. Cordish said he has worked out an agreement with city officials regarding the takeover of the mall from the Chamber of Commerce. Cordish added that his company and Omni intend to acquire the mall when construction on the hotel has met the city's requirements.

Cordish said the mall will undergo "tremendous upgrading." The developer added that he and Omni have already contacted new tenants to occupy what they hope will be an improved shopping center. For example, the new mall's storefronts might face the street, a change from Chapel Square's current setup.

The implications for the city's highly touted new mall at Long Wharf are not yet clear. The increased competition could present a challenge to Mayor John DeStefano Jr.'s hope that a mall on the waterfront will revive the city's economy.

For the moment, the mayor is cooperating with Cordish. This past week, Omni officials postponed the opening of the hotel to November or December due to ongoing renovations. The delay, which violates Cordish's development agreement with the city, does not worry city officials.

"[The city] is not intent on a tangle of litigation. We'll wait two months," Catherine Sullivan-DeCarlo, the mayor's press secretary, said. She emphasized that the city's main concern is that Omni produce the highest quality product for the downtown area.

In order to placate concerns from Yale and others that there would be insufficient meeting space in the new facility, Omni has increased the size of its conference center from 17,000 to 22,000 square feet.

University and Omni officials said that the change in plans is indicative of the amiable relations that the Omni has with Yale. In return, Yale has agreed to license its name to the new hotel, whose official name will now be the "Omni Hotel in New Haven at Yale."

"The process was simple. We had conversations with the powers at Yale, assured them about our four-star service, and they got comfortable," Keith Coe, Omni's senior vice-president for development, said.

Officials from all parties are confident that Yale's name will improve the hotel's marketability. "I think the hotel will be more of a destination hotel with Yale's name," Susan Godschall, assistant secretary to the University, said. Coe agreed that associating Omni with "a world class university" will be valuable.

The city and Cordish predict that the hotel will capitalize on traffic from surrounding businesses. "[New Haven's two] hospitals are fantastic producers of conferences," Cordish said. He said that the lack of a comparable center in southern Connecticut should be a boost to business.

Cordish said that in order to attract a first class hotel to the downtown area, the city needed to revitalize the surrounding area. For example, the city has a $3.3 million operating budget for streetscaping and other improvements to large stretches of downtown's streets.

Cordish said he would not settle for a hotel operator with no financial committment. "We wanted our partner to have a long term committment for the city and to the project. Omni will be there--they have no choice," Cordish said.

While much construction lies ahead, it is clear that Omni and Cordish have become major players in DeStefano's attempt to revitalize the downtown area. Back to News...