The long effort to redevelop the Marcel Breuer's brutalist Pirelli Tire Building, formerly the Armstrong Rubber Company, in New Haven, may finally be seeing a light at the end of tunnel. After receiving approval from the City Plan Commission for a hotel conversion, local developer 360 State Building, led by Bruce Becker, has purchased the site for $1.2 million. 

"The Pirelli Building is one of the most architecturally significant mid-century modern buildings in the United States and has the potential to be preserved and transformed into a net-zero energy boutique hotel and conference center,” Becker said in a message to the New Haven Independent on Monday.

This is good news for the site, which has sat vacant for over a decade. In 2003, a part of the pedestal section of the building was demolished by IKEA as part of a "compromise" plan that Docomomo US opposed. The proposal that was approved by the City Plan Commission does not call for any changes to be made to the building’s exterior.

The building is listed in the Connecticut Register of Historic Places. While this does not necessarily afford "protection" to the building, it does make it eligible to receive historic tax credits if the developer chooses to take that route. 

As always Docomomo US will continue to monitor and bring you updates as the situation progresses.

"360 State Builder Buys IKEA Hotel Site," New Haven Independent, January 2, 2020.