Norwich, Connecticut was founded over 350 years ago when Chief Uncas of the Mohegan tribe sold an area "nine mile square" to a group of 69 families headed by John Mason. Located at the junction of three rivers, Norwich was an ideal site for early manufacturing due to quality hydro power and a safe harbor for shipping.
During the industrial revolution, the community rose to magnificent heights of wealth, creativity and culture. One the earliest industrial buildings in New England stands on the very cliff overlooking Yantic Falls where, Chief Uncas led a band of marauding Narragansett Indians from Rhode Island to the edge; many Narragansett's leapt, or were forced over the edge, to their deaths.
It is reported that Norwich had more millionaires per capita in the mid 19th century than any city in the world. Even today it is easy to see evidence of such industrial strength and wealth in places such as the magnificent and elaborate Ponemah Mill, an 1865 cotton textile factory. At nearly ¾ million s/f located on the Shetucket River, the complex is being repositioned as a $48 million residential complex.
Progressive Community
It is no accident that the City of Norwich is frequently viewed as an easy place to site and permit projects. Not because of shortcuts but because of coordinated teamwork and planning across the city agencies and with Norwich Public Utilities, a municipally-owned utility. Real Estate projects can expect a set of hands to guide them through the permitting processes and coordinate their needs across all utilities: electric, natural gas, water and sewer and even access to lease space on the city's 132 strand, single mode fiber system.
Modern companies thrive in Norwich. Data centers in the Norwich Business Park such as Computer Sciences and Backus Hospital's Business Center are leaders in supporting distributed data management for business and health care organizations across the region and around the world. They are able to competitively position their business, in part because of the municipally-owned utilities and the phenomenal reliability experienced system wide in Norwich.
With redundant feeders and impeccable power quality in the Business Park outages are extremely rare occurrences. Couple that with multiple fiber providers and a complete array of available, competitively priced utilities, the Business Park is a great location for technology based operations.
Action Oriented Community
Since 2000, Norwich has experienced a 12% increase in population, making the city the second fastest growing community in Connecticut. Norwich is also a coastal community that has urban, suburban and rural development patterns. It is the largest urban center in eastern Connecticut.
City leadership is involved in multiple long-range planning efforts and these efforts will solidify how investors, businesses, residents and industry can fit into the community and prosper. There are two efforts underway that will unlock the value in the Historic Chelsea Harbor (our Downtown) and return it to a vibrant place to do business. These efforts will enhance the experience of living, working and playing in Chelsea by expanding the network of trails, both land and water, and creating places for young entrepreneurs to flex their creative energies to grow their businesses while enjoying an urban-style living experience, but at a greater value than other places.
Ready to do Business
When you think of action you're speaking of our City Leadership. When a business or developer is contemplating Norwich as their home, they can expect a coordinated response to all inquiries. They should expect to be greeted by the mayor, city manager, planning and building department, public utilities, public works, police and fire departments, tax assessor, public health district as well as the leadership of Norwich Community Development Corporation. At the table will be all the resources required for seamless entry into the community. Included will be a discussion about the incentives that can be used to offset capital requirements as well as easing the demand on operational expenses. We promise the experience will be productive and useful.
Give Norwich a Look
Next time you or a client are looking at locations for office, retail, technology or mixed-use developments in a beautiful and creative community, give Norwich, Connecticut a look. You will be pleased with and surprised at the quality of the experience. We guarantee it!
Bob Mills is executive director of Norwich Community Development Corporation, Norwich, Conn.