Self storage opens in weeks at 136-year-old National Needle Building, once tagged for demolition
SPRINGFIELD — With a snazzy new paint job and rows of brand new storage lockers inside, Devon Self Storage is about three weeks away from a soft opening at the rehabbed National Needle Building.
“We felt that the market was underserved,” said Greg Mackay, chief operating officer for Devon.
He said all 575 storage units — of varying sizes and price points — probably won’t be open at the same time. But enough will be ready soon to start offering them to customers.
“The real transformation of the property came in the interior,” he said. “Our end users will be delighted in what they see here.”
One thing that made the location attractive is not just proximity to the highways but also the familiarity and visibility. Devon also has a drive-thru system at the site that allows renters to load and unload property under cover.
Devon Self Storage soon will reopen the former Kittredge Building, also known as the National Needle Building, at 55 Emery St. in Springfield. (Bridget Ann Peery / The Republican)The Republican
The National Needle Co. built the existing building — light-filled but hampered by noise from Interstate 91 — at 55 Emery St. in 1883.
Founded in 1873, by 1879 the company produced 6 million needles a year, both for machine and hand sewing.
Later, the building was part of a complex that was home to restaurant supply house Kittredge Equipment, before the company — now Singer Kittredge — moved to Agawam in 2008. An ambulance company used it for storage subsequently.
A decade ago, Penn National Gaming’s plan to build a casino in the city would have resulted in its demolition.
Another previous owner, Hansraj Gada of Agawam, announced plans in 2019 to level the whole block, nearly costing the city the last remnants of what had been a dense industrial neighborhood before highway construction and urban renewal programs of the 1960s leveled the homes there.
Gada relented and cooperated when the city created an on-building historic district that covered much of the property.
Inland Real Estate Group of Oak Brook, Illinois, bought the the property — 1.2 acres near I-91 between East Columbus Avenue and Boylston Street — for $2.15 million in June 2022. The building is listed in records under other addresses as well: 6 Liberty St. and 2155 East Columbus Ave.
Inland bought the property in a deal with Devon — a national company — and immediately went to the city with redevelopment plans.
Devon Self Storage cleared out the interior of the former Kittredge Building, also known as the National Needle Building, in recent renovation. (Photo Provided)The Republican
Vincent Walsh, chairman of the city’s Historical Commission, said there has been some-back-and-forth between the city and Devon over color choices, and other protected outside features. But he’s very pleased with the work.
Springfield Preservation Trust removed earlier this year the National Needle Building from its list of endangered buildings. It’s a move that typically only follows demolition.
Mackay said Devon’s research shows an unmet need in Greater Springfield, essentially too little rentable space for the population.
He said rental rates vary according to size and location in the building, like proximity to stairs or an elevator. Space at Devon’s Lowell site runs for $82 a month to $455 a month.
In Springfield, the smallest space is 25 square feet, at 5 feet by 5 feet. The largest is 300 square feet, or 10 feet by 30 feet.
Customers include small businesses, such as distributors, many of them working from home, who need a warehouse.
But 70% of customers are typically individuals.
“We have a sentimental attraction to our possessions,” Mackay said. “Kids move back in, and you need space. Parents pass, and the family needs a place to store their possessions. Marriage, divorce, birth, death, graduation.”
There were about 50 employees for the renovation. But just two people are needed to run the automated self storage center.