Mar 6, 2011

Retail Juggernaut Buckland Pioneer Sees Region Pushing Sales Well Beyond Its $1 Billion A YearBy Dan UhlingerHartfordBusiness.com

Decades after his vision turned a tobacco field and other Buckland Hills land into Connecticut’s biggest retail engine with more than $1 billion in annual sales, developer John Finguerra says the area, especially nearby Evergreen Walk, is poised for even more growth in 2011 and beyond.

“I’m confident about where things are headed,” Finguerra said. “Retailing is stabilizing after a very difficult couple of years. I think retailers have weathered the storm and are beginning to bounce back nicely.”

Finguerra, who began work on developing the Buckland Hills area in Manchester and South Windsor in 1972, said there have been discussions with numerous retailers interested in the area. (He declined to name them.) There is also an opportunity, he says, for more restaurants, apartments, offices and hotels at Evergreen Walk in South Windsor.

“We have the land and the retailers identified, in addition to other commercial users, who want to locate here,” he said. “I’m optimistic about more growth.”

The development of the Buckland area has generated about $200 million in taxes over the past 20 years for Manchester and South Windsor. Some officials estimate that the area has produced about 4,000 full-time jobs.

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