Photo courtesy of the town of West Hartford

A proposed 131-unit multifamily development next to West Hartford’s CTfastrak bus rapid transit station is among the recipients of the latest round of state brownfields cleanup grants.

The project, reportedly proposed by local developer Sami Abunasra, was included in a list of grant awards released last night by Gov. Ned Lamont’s office. The West Hartford project will get $953,646 of the $17.9 million distributed yesterday in order to remove unspecified contamination from the former Puritan Furniture store at 1061 New Britain Ave. The store closed last year after decades in business.

The CTfastrak line has helped spur numerous multifamily developments at its stations between downtown Hartford and its terminus in downtown New Britain.

The 40 grants are part of the state Department of Economic and Community Development’s Brownfield Remediation Program. They are expected to leverage $427 million in private funding and will help in the investigation and clean-up of approximately 78 acres of land.

“Cleaning up blighted properties that have been vacant for decades and putting them into productive use will ultimately generate back many more times the amount of these grants through private investments,” Lamont said in a statement. “If we remediate these properties now, we can turn an eyesore into an asset, revitalize neighborhoods, and transform otherwise unusable property into new space for businesses and residents.”

Other grants announced Thursday include:

• Berlin: $193,600 for the demolition of the vacant Knights of Columbus building located at 143 Percival Ave. The Berlin Housing Authority will construct 50 affordable senior housing units on the 4.2-acre site.
• Bridgeport: $990,000 for the remediation and redevelopment at the former UI power plant site at 137 East Main St. in the city’s Steelepointe Harbor development. A multifamily, mixed-use development consisting of approximately 421 units and approximately 10,000 square feet of commercial, retail, office and restaurant space will be constructed on the 6.5-acre site.
• Haddam: $1.8 million to abate and remediate two former D&H Scoville Hoe Co. Mill buildings. The buildings will be adaptively reused as shops, galleries, offices, and/or a full services restaurant to support the revitalization of Haddam’s village center.
• Hebron: $650,490 to remediate a 1.2-acre vacant and contaminated site at 501 Church St. that housed a former gas station and auto repair facility and abuts the Connecticut Air Line Trail. A 2,000 to 2,500 square feet, 2-story barn with a bike shop, a small coffee or sandwich bar, and a covered picnic gazebo area will be constructed.
• Meriden: $1.8 million to clean-up and remediate two properties located at 289 and 290 Pratt St., totaling 14.3 acres. A new 92-unit residential complex will be constructed at 289 Pratt St. with expanded parking for adjacent businesses at 290 Pratt St.
• Montville: $999,000 for environmental remediation activities at the former Uncasville Manufacturing Co. located at 42 Pink Row. This will allow for the adaptive reuse of the existing historic building and 10.6 acre-property into 72 housing units.
• New Britain: $1.35 million for environmental clean-up, abatement, and partial demolition of the former manufacturing and industrial property at 27 Columbus Blvd. and 43 High Street, popularly known as the Polar Building. A mixed-income residential development with 62 rental units will be constructed on the 1.5-acre site.
• New Haven: $2 million to the Science Park Development Corporation to abate and demolish the former Winchester Repeating Arms Company buildings located at 275 Winchester Avenue. This will allow for the construction of residential, office, laboratory space and/or retail buildings, and public open space on the 3.11-acre site.
• New London: $1.2 million to assess and remediate multiple properties (24 parcels) located on Walbach Street and Goshen Street, a portion of which was occupied by the former Naval Undersea Warfare Center. The city is planning to construct a community recreation center adjacent to historic Fort Trumbull State Park on the 7.19-acre site.
• Stamford: $950,000 to abate and preserve the existing buildings and remediate soil and groundwater at 650 Atlantic St. The 2.5-acre site will be used for a mixed-use, transit-oriented development.
• Thompson: $2 million for the abatement of the existing buildings and remediation of soil and groundwater at the former River Mill site. A mixed-use, residential redevelopment will be constructed on the 24.79-acre site.
• Torrington: $2 million for the abatement and partial demolition of structures at the Torrington Business Park (Standard Plant Site) located at 70 North St., the former home of the Torrington/Excelsior Needle Co.
• Torrington: $1 million for environmental cleanup of the property located at 245 East Elm St. to enable Vinny’s Restaurant to expand onto the first floor with a banquet facility in the remaining space.