The master plan for Hartford's Bushnell South neighborhood imagines up to 1,200 new housing units built next to Bushnell Park and several state government buildings. Image courtesy of Goody Clancy

Downtown Hartford’s Bushnell South project just passed a major hurdle as Norwalk-based Spinnaker Real Estate Partners completed site assembly for the redevelopment.

Citing a top regional economic development official, the Hartford Courant reports an affiliate of Spinnaker bought the final parking lot needed for its redevelopment plans from an affiliate of The Simon Konover Co. for $3 million.

A deed regarding the parcel near the corner of Capitol Avenue and Hudson Street has not yet been posted online by the Hartford Town Clerk’s office, but the Courant quoted Capital Region Development Authority head Michael Freimuth as saying the deal went through Thursday. The CRDA helped finance the deal.

Spinnaker had previously purchased much of the land for the Bushnell South development in 2020, public land records show.

In addition, the paper reports, the Bushnell South neighborhood is no longer being considered as the location of a new federal courthouse, project many in the city opposed saying it would harm efforts to build a vibrant mixed-use neighborhood their.

Spinnaker is leading the redevelopment of the neighborhood just south of Hartford’s Bushnell Park and next to the State Capitol Building and the Bushnell Performing Arts Center into over 1,000 new homes and thousands of square feet of retail space. Developers The Michaels Organization, Penrose and The Cloud Co. are also developing projects in the neighborhood, all with financial assistance from the CRDA. Construction is already underway for the first phase of Spinnaker’s project.