Two Long-Awaited Windsor Locks Projects Reach Major Milestones

WINDSOR LOCKS, CT — Windsor Locks will mark two major downtown milestones Tuesday, celebrating the opening of its new train station and breaking ground on a $49 million housing development next door.

The events bring together two projects carrying a combined price tag of about $114 million. Town and state officials have spent years pursuing the train station, housing and commercial development as part of a larger effort to bring people and businesses back to Main Street.

The first ceremony begins at 9:30 a.m. Oct. 13 with a ribbon cutting at the historic Windsor Locks train station. A press conference and photo opportunity at the new station will follow at 10 a.m., with a meet-and-greet inside the historic station at 10:30 a.m.

A speaking program for the housing project begins at 11 a.m., followed by a ceremonial groundbreaking at noon. The events will be held around the new station at 225 Main St. and the development site at 255 Main St.

The ribbon cutting comes several days before trains begin using the new platform. Amtrak says passenger service will move to the new station Oct. 18.

The $65 million station returns rail service to the town’s downtown area, about a mile north of the existing platform. It includes a high-level platform that allows passengers to board without using stairs, along with connections to CTrail’s Hartford Line, Amtrak service and a bus route to Bradley International Airport.

When construction began in 2022, Gov. Ned Lamont called the station “a real driver of economic activity in Windsor Locks.” The broader project also included track, signal and roadway work along Main Street.

READ MORE:

• What’s Coming To Windsor Locks’ Free Fall Festival
• Street To Close For Weekend In Windsor Locks
• Windsor Locks Added To Federal Conservation Funding Area

Next door, Boston-based Trinity Financial is preparing to build the first phase of a two-building development on the former Windsor Locks Commons property.

The $49 million first phase will include 70 one-, two- and three-bedroom apartments and about 2,000 square feet of ground-floor commercial space. The apartments will include affordable, supportive and market-rate units, including 11 set aside through the federal Section 811 program for people with disabilities.

A second phase calls for another 50 apartments and 2,000 square feet of commercial space, bringing the full development to 120 homes and about 4,000 square feet of storefront space.

The housing will serve several income levels. Trinity says the development will include apartments for households earning 30%, 50%, 60% and 80% of the area median income, along with market-rate units.

The project replaces a former 37,000-square-foot shopping center on a 3.2-acre property. State environmental records identified contamination tied to the property’s history, including a former gasoline station, coal storage, railroad use and a pond that was filled decades ago.

State and local money helped clear the way for the redevelopment. Patch reported in March that the first phase received $12.1 million from the state Department of Housing. Windsor Locks previously received $4.8 million to help acquire the property and restore the historic station, along with another $4 million for demolition and environmental cleanup.

The Planning and Zoning Commission approved the project 5-0 in October 2024. Meeting minutes show no residents spoke in opposition when the commission called three times for opposing comments.

One commissioner raised concerns about plans to provide one parking space for each apartment. Trinity Vice President Dan Drazen said the ratio was workable because the development would sit directly next to public transportation.

A resident who spoke during the hearing asked about the mix of apartments. Plans presented that night called for 50 one-bedroom, 62 two-bedroom and eight three-bedroom units across both phases.

Lt. Gov. Susan Bysiewicz voiced support for the project during a 2025 funding announcement. She told Connecticut Public that it “checked all the boxes” by combining affordable housing, transit-oriented development and a project intended to benefit the wider region.

Trinity lists completion of the first housing phase for 2027.

For more Northern Connecticut news, follow Patch editor Jay Kenney.