New Haven Halts Unpermitted Demolition at Fair Haven Riverfront

New Haven Halts Unpermitted Demolition at Fair Haven Riverfront Warehouse

New Haven City Building Official Bob Dillon issued a stop-work order and posted a "DANGER" notice at 185 Front St. on March 26, 2026, after discovering that a contractor had brought an excavator to the property and begun demolishing the partially collapsed riverfront warehouse — without a permit.

Contractor Russell Capozziello of Connecticut Demolition had started work the previous Wednesday, March 25, telling city officials he believed demolition could proceed under emergency authority following the collapse of the building's back wall into the Quinnipiac River earlier in the month. Dillon's office had still not received a demolition permit application from Capozziello as of the afternoon of March 26 when the order was issued.

Capozziello said his crew was working "bay by bay" to remove a section approximately 16 feet wide by 75 feet long, aiming to "just make the building safe." He later acknowledged he was preparing a permit application.

Property owner Fereshteh Bekhrad, who manages the site through River Front Development LLC, said she believed the work could proceed and committed to halting all activity until proper permits were secured.

Wall Collapsed Into Quinnipiac River in Early March

The crisis began on March 6, 2026, when the east-facing back wall of the warehouse — which sits directly on the river seawall — collapsed. Bekhrad attributed the failure to winter storms and river water washing beneath the building's foundation. The collapse sent furniture, cinderblocks, and construction materials into the Quinnipiac River, prompting immediate alarm from neighbors who reported seeing debris actively sliding into the water.

Dillon conducted an on-site inspection the following day, March 7, and found the "east side exterior wall that sits on the river sea wall has collapsed" and that the load-bearing wall needed to be "stabilized or torn down." The city issued an "unsafe structure" notice on March 9, ordering Bekhrad to obtain required permits within 30 days to remedy violations.

The collapse also displaced Bret Seriani, an antique dealer who had rented the back half of the warehouse from Bekhrad for storage for 50 years. His inventory — antique chairs, tables, glassware, and paintings attributed to old masters — sustained damage when the wall gave way. Seriani was moving remaining belongings to a storage facility he owns in North Haven at the time of the unpermitted demolition.

Part of a $34 Million Riverfront Development

The warehouse is part of a larger proposed redevelopment known as Oyster Harbor Village, spanning four adjacent properties along Front Street — 185, 201, 212, and 213 Front St. — in Fair Haven. Developer Bekhrad's plans call for 70 senior housing units across three four-story buildings, approximately 18,000 square feet of commercial space including a restaurant and oyster bar, and roughly 600 feet of public pedestrian promenade along the shoreline with floating public docks.

The total project cost is approximately $34 million and is projected to generate more than $800,000 per year in tax revenue for the city.

The project has received state funding support: the Department of Economic and Community Development awarded a $947,500 grant for environmental testing and remediation, contingent on a 10-year non-sale restriction and a 30-year mixed-income housing commitment. The city also received a separate $995,000 state Municipal Brownfields Remediation Grant to address pre-existing petroleum contamination across three of the four properties.

Bekhrad described the riverfront collapse as a setback in what she called phases three and four of a larger development effort; phases one and two on Quinnipiac Avenue were already completed.

Environmental and Permitting Questions Remain

Neighborhood residents at a prior community meeting raised concerns about the development's building height, parking supply, architectural compatibility with the historic Fair Haven streetscape, and flood risk given the site's proximity to the river.

The debris from the March wall collapse — including construction materials that fell directly into the Quinnipiac River — raised environmental questions about the site. Bekhrad told officials one purpose of the demolition was to remove collapsed wall materials from the water. She was already in contact with the Connecticut Department of Energy and Environmental Protection and holds a 2022 Certificate of Permission for repair work at the site.

As of the stop-work order, no fines or enforcement penalties had been publicly reported by either the city or state regulators. The site remains under the stop-work order pending permit approval.

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