Is a New Stew Leonard’s Popping Up in Connecticut?

Since 1996, Stew Leonards has owned a huge chunk of land in the town of Orange. Does that mean a new Stew Leonards superstore is coming to Connecticut?

According to an article in the New Haven Register, the answer is a resounding "NO." Let's venture back to 1996 from an article in the New York Times when Stew Leonards originally purchased the 41 acres of land in Orange with the main objective of building a brand-spankin' new Stew Leonard's store. For the next 14 years, the Leonards ran into one roadblock after another with the town of Orange including issues with wetlands, variances, traffic concerns, and Stew's reputation for attracting large crowds of shoppers.

In August of 2010, Stew Leonard Jr. and his family gave up their dream of a new Stews in Orange. The New Haven Register recently reported that the Stew Leonard property was being developed into a 40,000-square-foot service/ distribution center which is not quite as exciting as talking cows and tons of free samples throughout a Stew Leonard's megastore experience. Stew's is a slice of Americana and capitalism at its finest. Doesn't the town of Orange know that at Stews, the customer is always right?!