Ground floor retail and 299 market-rate rental units are under construction at Adam America's new project in New Haven's Wooster Square. Image courtesy of Niles Bolton Assoc.

New Haven Mayor Toni Harp joined the developer of a large new rental complex near the city’s downtown to break ground on the project Thursday.

The 44 Olive St. project from Omri Sachs’ Adam America will have 299 market-rate rental units and dedicated covered parking. The ground floor will front Olive Street and add over 6,000 square feet of retail space to the neighborhood. The project is being billed as a major piece of efforts to revitalize the Wooster Square neighborhood immediately to the east of downtown New Haven.

The development will create a retail destination at the intersection of Olive and Wooster Streets and revitalize the existing public corridors along Union and Fair Streets.

Demand has been growing for multi-family rentals in the neighborhood near Yale University, Yale New Haven Hospital, biotech companies and associated venture capital firms. The complex is set to include a mix of studio, one, two and three-bedroom apartments, in addition to townhouses that reflect the city’s architectural heritage.

Adam America is the latest developer to tackle the troubled project, having bought it last year for $10 million, the New Haven Independent reports.