Gourmet coffee machines head to Stratford - The Connecticut Post Online
Daly Stephen J. Winters John Hourihan James H. Daly Ken Dixon John Hourihan James H. Smith Peter Urban Stephen J. Gourmet coffee machines head to Stratford RICHARD WEIZEL Article Last Up d: 04 28 2008 10:37:44 PM EDT STRATFORD & 8212; For decades, a nearly century-old, quaint brick building on Soundview Avenue was the home of a local favorite: French Baking.
Generations of Stratford residents drove by the bakery in the early morning just to smell the gourmet breads, rolls and pies made there & 8212; and many still miss the bakery's tasty delights since it closed about a year ago. But a different kind of international aroma will soon emanate from the building: gourmet coffees and espresso brewed in $15,000 espresso coffee machines. While the beverages will not be for sale at the site, hundreds of the machines will be stored there and sold to distributors around the world.
In addition, the distributors who sell the coffee makers will gather there every month to learn how to use the high-end machines and their changing technology, which are sold to gourmet restaurants, cafes and hotels in more than 80 countries.
The company, LaSpaziale-USA, part of an international company based in Italy, will be moving and expanding its American operations to the former French Baking building.
That became official last week when the town's Zoning Commission voted unanimously to approve the company's special-exception application to relocate its Seattle warehouse to the Stratford site. Gourmet espresso and cappuccino are no longer just Italian drinks; they are global beverages, and the home company in Italy that makes the machines has decided to expand in the United States," said Assaad Advertisement Benabid, president of the company's American operations. We are excited to be staying in Fairfield County and love Stratford," Benabid said.
We wanted a quaint, historic-looking building on the outside, but on the inside we intend to create a state-of-the-art, modern facility." Benabid said the company intends to invest about $1 million to buy and renovate the building, then move its operations there by the end of summer or early fall. We view this as bringing tradition and modern technology together," Benabid said. We do a lot of training because we are constantly updating the technology with new methods to produce our products."
Zoning officials said the business is rare venture but one they believe will fit in Stratford. It's definitely a unique company, but makes a lot of sense on a piece of property that had been vacant for so long and will be made viable for the tax rolls," said Zoning Commission Chairman Chris Silhavey. I miss the French bakery as much as anyone, but this is a perfect business to replace it.
Even though the outside has fallen into disrepair, it's a nice old brick building that will be preserved for a thriving and growing company." Planning and Zoning Administrator Gary Lorentson said while the building is in a residential zone, the previous business use can be grandfathered as long as the new business maintains the same or more restricted nature as the old use.
I guess we'll just have to get used to the smell of gourmet coffee instead of fresh bread and rolls," Silhavey quipped.
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