Where the Unquowa Road Shops Landed After Downtown Fairfield's Teardown

The Unquowa Road block in downtown Fairfield is coming down one building at a time. The businesses inside it left months ago, and none of them closed for good. They moved a few blocks away. Four already have new doors on Post Road, Sherman Street and Reef Road. The fifth, Las Vetas Lounge, has signed for a new address and has not yet reopened there.

The building going up in their place, Center Commons, is planned with two ground-floor retail spaces. Westfair Communications lists the earlier lineup as Las Vetas, Fairfield Barber Shop, Catch a Healthy Habit, Tenth of June and Nancy Galasso Interiors. So the block will reopen with fewer storefronts than it lost. The small, everyday business it used to hold is now spread across a wider part of downtown, and it is likely to stay that way for years.

How a Block Became a Building Site

The project behind all of this is older than this year's moving trucks. According to Westfair, the Town Plan and Zoning Commission turned down the original application in 2022. A judge ruled for the developer in 2024. On July 1, 2025, the commission voted 5 to 1 to accept a stipulated-judgment proposal for the site, which the commission's minutes identify as 15 Unquowa Road. The plans there are titled "Center Commons."

The settled plan is a five-story, 50-unit apartment building. It includes eight affordable units and two commercial spaces at street level. Early in 2026 the tenants were given until mid-April to move or close. News 12 Connecticut described the start of the year as uncertain for that stretch of Unquowa Road.

The timeline, in order:

1. 2022: The Town Plan and Zoning Commission denies the application.
2. 2024: A court rules in the developer's favor.
3. July 1, 2025: The commission accepts the stipulated judgment, 5 to 1.
4. Mid-April 2026: Tenants' deadline to vacate. Catch a Healthy Habit got more time through the courts, and its last day was May 19.
5. Mid to late September 2026: Crews take down 39 Unquowa Road, the former Catch a Healthy Habit building.

Who Went Where

Every business on the block found a spot within reach of downtown, and several picked up something the old block lacked.

The smoothie café came back under a new name. Lisa Storch and Glen Colello reopened Catch a Healthy Habit as Clean Slate at 116 Sherman St. near the end of July, CT Post reported. "We were on Unquowa Road for 17 years," Storch told News 12. "This is a new start, a new beginning." Before it opened, Storch told News 12 that the menu would stay organic and mostly plant-based. It would also add some non-vegan options and a full coffee bar. A GoFundMe campaign helped cover the cost of starting over, and Colello said "the response was overwhelming." One early report printed the address as 16 Sherman St. The later coverage from CT Insider and Westfair both give 116.

Two shops now share a door on Reef Road. Wendy Mount of Wendy Loves This and Amanda Desmond of Tenth of June combined their storefronts at 40 Reef Road under the name Wendy & June. They opened on June 10, which suits a store called Tenth of June. The owners told News 12 that "we're still two separate businesses."

The barber moved in with a former colleague. Marco DiVincenzo, owner of Fairfield Barber Shop, was one of the first to find a new space. He joined Fairfield Hair House at 1040 Post Road, next to Hansen's Flower Shop. Owner June Chen used to work with DiVincenzo at his old shop. She told News 12 that the parking lot has been a big improvement over the old space.

Nancy Galasso Interiors is now at 51 Sherman St. West.

The One Still Dark

Las Vetas Lounge has been part of downtown for more than 20 years. Owner Andrew Servetas told Westfair that 1640 Post Road will be its third home, and all three have been in or around downtown on Post Road. The new space is down the street from the old one at 27 Unquowa Road. Its regulars know it for coffee, smoothies and sandwiches, and CT Post noted it is a hangout for local college students.

In April, Servetas expected to reopen around July 1. In late August, CT Insider reported that an Instagram post said a grand-reopening date would be announced soon. In mid-October, its listing at 1640 Post Road shows the café as temporarily closed with no hours. The café's own website still shows the Unquowa Road address and the old hours, so those hours are out of date. The new address will be the one to watch for an opening announcement.

The old Las Vetas building is also still standing. Westfair reported that as of Sept. 28, the buildings that held Las Vetas, Fairfield Barber Shop, Tenth of June and Nancy Galasso Interiors were marked for demolition but had not been torn down.

New Arrivals Fill In the Gaps

Two new food businesses opened on Post Road this year, and they fit into the gaps the move-out left behind.

Kneads opened its Fairfield bakery and café on Oct. 10 at 1916 Post Road. The original Kneads opened in Westport in September 2020. Owners Daniel and Brittany Moreno plan a Greenwich location next year. What sets the Fairfield shop apart is that customers can watch flour being milled on site. Organic whole grains from regional producers are stone-milled there, and the flour is sold in the shop. The café also serves coffee, breakfast and lunch. Brittany Moreno told CT Insider the Fairfield bakery had been "six years in the making."

Farther along the same road, Via Posa opened on Aug. 3 at 2126 Post Road. It is an Italian café from the team behind Posa Ristorante in Ridgefield, according to CT Insider.

Put the addresses together and a morning coffee, a haircut and a gift errand that once fit inside one block on Unquowa Road now take you along Post Road from 1040 to 2126, with stops on Sherman Street and Reef Road.

How Long the Gap on Unquowa Road Lasts

The Unquowa Road site is still early in its timeline. Westfair reports the developer's schedule as construction starting in late 2026 or early 2027. The developer's own estimate is 12 to 18 months of vertical construction and interior build-out after the foundation is poured. Most of the old buildings are still standing and the foundation has not been poured, so that 12-to-18-month clock has not started. The two new retail spaces will open well after the businesses that left have settled into their new addresses.

The same Westfair report covers a second teardown on the east side of town. The former Rio Bravo Tacos & Tequila at 770 Commerce Drive has been demolished, along with a WWII-era industrial building at 750 Commerce Drive. The site, 0.1 miles from the Fairfield Metro station, is planned for a 90-unit building by Skala Partners with 4,313 square feet of ground-floor retail. Construction is scheduled to start in late 2026, with completion planned for 2027.

If downtown's changes have you thinking about what they mean for a home you own nearby, Andrew Whiteley & Wendy Ryan can talk it through with you in confidence. Request a Confidential Home Valuation, and we will give you a measured read on how Fairfield's center is changing around your street.