Velezis said the building’s landlord asked him to vacate the premises earlier this spring. “They just sent a letter,” he said.
He plans to close the restaurant Nov. 6, he said.
Seven Villages is a traditional diner, serving fried eggs, omelets, home fries, ham, pancakes and breakfast plates, according to its menu. It drew lunch-hour diners for its sandwiches, burgers, Buffalo chicken salad, Salisbury steak with onions and soups, according to its menu.
The property at 30 Bank St., which is part of Exchange Courtyard, is owned by the M4 Investment Group, the family of Kirk Mariolis, who owns many downtown former office buildings, according to the Hartford Business Journal.
Mariolis didn’t immediately respond to a phone message and text message seeking comment.
Waterbury Economic Development Director Joe McGrath said the Mariolis family plans to convert the top floors — all vacant offices — to 24 apartments. He said the ground floor would be developed into nine retail locations. He added that Waterbury has other restaurant locations available to rent.
Waterbury’s Board of Aldermen approved the sale of Exchange Courtyard to the M4 Investment Group for $585,000 in January 2025, according to CT Insider.
CT Insider has reported that Waterbury is aiming to transform its downtown into a transit-oriented hub by converting empty office buildings to apartments and upgrading its mass transit facilities. The centerpiece of the infrastructure push is the $35.2 million redevelopment of the Waterbury Train Station at Union Station on Meadow Street, according to the Department of Transporation. The DOT said that project will include a new 350-foot Americans with Disabilities Act-compliant high-level boarding platform to accommodate four-car trains, real-time arrival displays, and a 1,600-square-foot indoor passenger waiting area complete with restrooms and seating.
McGrath said, despite the dearth of restaurants in the downtown area, “right now there are no vacancies downtown. They’re all filled.” He said “the goal is to bring in more restaurants, more delis.” McGrath said he expects the city to meet its goal of having 1,000 apartments downtown within the next year-and-a-half to two years.
