Historical Uses



43 Elm Street (covered in separate report)



1951: AD Perkins Rubber Stamp Company



41 Elm Street



1951: Lundblad Jeweler’s



1995: Purchased by Lester Licht



1996: Licht Lester Chiropractic



2002: Purchased by 39 Elm Street Inc



2003: Fashion Nail and Spa



39 Elm Street



1951: Anderson’s Opticians



1981: Copy Graphics



1987: Purchased by Donald Lundblad



1987: Le Gourmet Extraordinaire



1996: Purchased by Lester Licht



1997: Dos Tacos



2000 (?): The Nile Restaurant



2002: Purchased by 39 Elm Street Inc



2003: Fresh Taco



Responding to a booming post-World War II economy, the block of Elm Street between Orange and State Street became increasingly commercial in the 1950s. The block, once a “fashionable residential neighborhood” in the 1800s according to the Preservation Trust, started to accumulate more commercial activity. Seeing the potential for development, Loeb & Sons spent $26,000 in 1951 to build a three-storefront commercial building made of cinder blocks and plaster walls and covering 39, 41, and 43 Elm Street. The new building filled in the historical gap between the Imperial Granum building (47 Elm Street) and the James Cook house (35 Elm Street), having laid empty except for a small one-story brick addition to the Imperial Granum building constructed in 1901. The new storefronts sold quickly to three family businesses, highlighting the need for commercial space in downtown New Haven in the 1950s: AD Perkins Rubber Stamps Company (the Schroff family), Lundblad Jeweler’s (Donald and Louise Lundblad) and Anderson’s Opticians (Rudolph and Alice Anderson). Typical of the 1950s, the original storefronts used neon signs to attract foot traffic. As the only original tenant remaining, AD Perkins has preserved its original façade, complete with a hanging neon sign visible perpendicular to the sidewalk. A 1951 permit filed by Rudolph Anderson describes a “metal box neonized projecting sign” that cost $50, indicating that the optician had used a similar sign to attract customers.



As the original tenants aged and passed away, their long-standing businesses were replaced. After 30 years in business, Anderson’s Opticians was replaced by Copy Graphic for 6 years before the space was renovated for food handling. A mother-and-daughter bakery, Le Gourmet Extraordinaire opened in 1987 by Anita and Patricia Francis. The pair offered baked goods and lunch for take-out, as well as catering. 10 years later, a small taco joint called Dos Tacos opened at 39 Elm Street, also offering very little eat-in space. Around the same time, in 1995, Lundblad Jeweler’s closed its doors after over 44 years in business, clearing the way for a chiropractor who gained much of his business from nearby personal injury law offices. Dos Tacos lasted less than 5 years before being replaced by the Nile restaurant, a Mediterranean restaurant run by an Egyptian man who had previously worked as a manager in a well-known New Haven restaurant. After only a year or so in business, however, the Nile restaurant closed, having garnered little business, marking it as the shortest lasting tenant in the building’s history.



In 2003 a Korean family from Queens purchased both 39 and 41 Elm Street. The family opened Fashion Nail and Spa at 41 Elm Street, while renting 39 Elm Street to a Chinese family who opened Fresh Taco. The 2003 purchase is part of a larger trend in recent New Haven history of increasing Korean store ownership in the city. Both stores demonstrate how Asian American communities use metropolitan hubs (in this case Queens) as launching pads for opening businesses in nearby smaller cities and towns. For instance, the renovation of the two stores was outsourced to New York City. Fresh Taco brought in a contractor from Chinatown in Manhattan to do alterations after purchasing the building. They also had their sign built and installed by a company in Flushing, Queens, an area known for its large Asian population. The awning at Fashion Nail and Spa also came from a company based in Queens.



Both Fresh Taco and Fashion Nail and Spa have been in business for over 10 years, longer than any other former tenants besides the original owners of the building. Fashion Nail and Spa is always busy with clients, ranging from Yale students to New Haven residents, even Yale College Dean Mary Miller. Fresh Taco has also maintained a respectable business, gaining much of its business from local residents. After a high turnover rate in the 1990s and early 2000s, 39 and 41 Elm Street have now stabilized, marking a new era for the building. Following general economic trends, the building began as three retail locations in the 1950s, gradually switching to service-oriented businesses following the rise of the strip mall. While much has changed in the buildings history, one fact remains: just as in 1951, all three tenants are family businesses.

Anderson's Opticians; Copy Graphics; Le Gourmet Extraordinaire; Dos Tacos; The Nile Restaurant; Fresh Taco

The building covers 39, 41, and 43 Elm Street.

Seeing the potential for development, Loeb & Sons spent $26,000 in 1951 to build a three-storefront commercial building covering 39, 41, and 43 Elm Street. The new building filled in the historical gap between the Imperial Granum building (47 Elm Street) and the James Cook house (35 Elm Street), having laid empty except for a small one-story brick addition to the Imperial Granum building constructed in 1901. The new storefronts sold quickly to three family businesses, highlighting the need for commercial space in downtown New Haven in the 1950s: AD Perkins Rubber Stamps Company (the Schroff family), Lundblad Jeweler’s (Donald and Louise Lundblad) and Anderson’s Opticians (Rudolph and Alice Anderson). Typical of the 1950s, the original storefronts used neon signs to attract foot traffic. As the only original tenant remaining, AD Perkins has preserved its original façade, complete with a hanging neon sign visible perpendicular to the sidewalk. A 1951 permit filed by Rudolph Anderson describes a “metal box neonized projecting sign” that cost $50, indicating that the optician had used a similar sign to attract customers.



As the original tenants aged and passed away, their long-standing businesses were replaced. After 30 years in business, Anderson’s Opticians was replaced by Copy Graphic for 6 years before the space was renovated for food handling. A mother-and-daughter bakery, Le Gourmet Extraordinaire opened in 1987 by Anita and Patricia Francis. The pair offered baked goods and lunch for take-out, as well as catering. 10 years later, a small taco joint called Dos Tacos opened at 39 Elm Street, also offering very little eat-in space. Around the same time, in 1995, Lundblad Jeweler’s closed its doors after over 44 years in business, clearing the way for a chiropractor who gained much of his business from nearby personal injury law offices. Dos Tacos lasted less than 5 years before being replaced by the Nile restaurant, a Mediterranean restaurant run by an Egyptian man who had previously worked as a manager in a well-known New Haven restaurant. After only a year or so in business, however, the Nile restaurant closed, having garnered little business, marking it as the shortest lasting tenant in the building’s history.



In 2003 a Korean family from Queens purchased both 39 and 41 Elm Street. The family opened Fashion Nail and Spa at 41 Elm Street, while renting 39 Elm Street to a Chinese family who opened Fresh Taco. The 2003 purchase is part of a larger trend in recent New Haven history of increasing Korean store ownership in the city. Both stores demonstrate how Asian American communities use metropolitan hubs (in this case Queens) as launching pads for opening businesses in nearby smaller cities and towns. For instance, the renovation of the two stores was outsourced to New York City. Fresh Taco brought in a contractor from Chinatown in Manhattan to do alterations after purchasing the building. They also had their sign built and installed by a company in Flushing, Queens, an area known for its large Asian population. The awning at Fashion Nail and Spa also came from a company based in Queens.



Both Fresh Taco and Fashion Nail and Spa have been in business for over 10 years, longer than any other former tenants besides the original owners of the building. Fashion Nail and Spa is always busy with clients, ranging from Yale students to New Haven residents, even Yale College Dean Mary Miller. Fresh Taco has also maintained a respectable business, gaining much of its business from local residents. After a high turnover rate in the 1990s and early 2000s, 39 and 41 Elm Street have now stabilized, marking a new era for the building. Following general economic trends, the building began as three retail locations in the 1950s, gradually switching to service-oriented businesses following the rise of the strip mall. While much has changed in the buildings history, one fact remains: just as in 1951, all three tenants are family businesses.

Responding to a booming post-World War II economy, the block of Elm Street between Orange and State Street became increasingly commercial in the 1950s. The block, once a “fashionable residential neighborhood” in the 1800s according to the Preservation Trust, started to accumulate more commercial activity.