East Lyme — Two 30-something builders who built a name for themselves in Mystic are expanding into Niantic and constructing a building with 10 condominiums atop four retailers — including Sift Bake Shop.

Eric Goodman, 36, and Kody Blake, 39, of K Blake and Company, recently began construction on the 185 Main St. site. The goal is to have Sift customers enjoying their coffee and croissants with a view of the bay by July 1.

Goodman, the developer, described Sift's newly signed lease as a symbol of prestige for the project itself and for Main Street.

He pointed out that signs for the popular bakery, currently boasting locations in Mystic and Watch Hill, are now going to say Niantic as well.

"You're in good company," he said.

Sift owner Adam Young in a phone interview said he's trusted his growing list of projects to K Blake and Company since the duo expanded his Mystic site almost three years ago. Young's bakery became a tourist destination since he won Food Network's "Best Baker in America" title in 2018.

Young also owns a chocolate and confections shop in The Standard, the 3 Water St. building Goodman and Blake built next to Sift last year, as well as a doughnut shop on West Main Street in Mystic.

Young described the Sift demographic as heavy on East Lyme residents. But he said it's not always easy for them to navigate Mystic's densely populated streets in the summer.

"To be able to have an outlet for them with ample parking, great infrastructure, great resources, conveniently located, it just sounded like a home run to me," he said.

Young cited the construction company's attention to detail, quality craftsmanship and unique vision as the reasons behind the continued collaboration.

Blake, the builder, said Young's Sift expansion in Mystic was the project that propelled K Blake and Company from residential work into commercial construction.

"He took a shot at us," Blake said of the baker they now consider a friend. "He didn't have to. He had three other large, reputable companies that bid on his buildouts. We were unknown. We were doing small construction flip houses and he took a shot at us. For me, I'll never forget that."

The Niantic site, at the former home of Norton's Auto & Marine Service, is where Tim Norton repaired boats while looking out over the water for almost half a century before his death in 2017. Goodman said Norton's son-in-law was the one who reached out to him to ask about reviving a project first floated almost 10 years ago.

The site plan for the three-story, 32,928-square-foot building with 10 condominiums, four retail spaces and 43 parking spots was renewed by the Zoning Commission in October after it was originally pitched by Norton back in 2013. The commission approved the plan unanimously both times.

They're calling it The Norton.

Goodman purchased the property through a limited liability company for $850,000 in January, according to records from the town assessor and Secretary of the State's office.

Goodman said the condominiums will range from $425,000 to $995,000, with the more expensive offerings sitting three stories up with 2,000 square feet of space and a water view. He said the units range from one bedroom units to "two and a den."

A three-bedroom, two-bathroom penthouse end unit was listed Thursday by Switz Real Estate Associates for $1.2 million.

The developer said he is in the process of finalizing a lease with Anna Lathrop of Gourmet Galley Catering, who currently operates a flagship store with fresh and frozen packaged meals in North Stonington. The third tenant to sign will be an undisclosed fish market, according to Goodman.

Goodman emphasized quality products installed by local contractors as hallmarks of the company. In a previous article in The Day about The Standard, he talked about materials like cedar clapboards, ipe hardwood decking, copper gutters, hand-bent copper flashing and premium wood, and double-hung windows.

"We could've made easily a million dollars, if not more, on The Standard project had we not done what we did," Goodman said of the focus on high-end materials.

The company has said it cost about $9 million to build The Standard, where they now occupy their own space as property managers. The condos started at $495,000, and the penthouse was $1.5 million.

The architectural details for The Norton are different from the ones originally submitted by its namesake almost a decade ago, according to Goodman.

"Ity' very classic New England, cornerpost, mansard roofs — that look of that building in Mystic," he said. "So we redesigned it and took a lot of inspiration from different New England buildings."

He cited touches like clapboard siding, crown molding and New England-style window sills as some of the features.

Goodman acknowledged complaints on social media that the building looks too boxy and nondescript based on renderings available in the real estate listing.

He said the company's options were limited by zoning regulations that don't allow for a fourth floor on buildings in that area. A cost benefit analysis revealed three floors wouldn't provide the income to justify touches that would have made the building look more traditional, according to the developer.

"Those elements you want to put there require you to have more square footage to be able to afford them," he said. "Because it's still a business in the end."

The company, which Blake said is renovating the Pizzetta restaurant in Mystic and just broke ground on a project for Densmore Oil on Stonington Road, is exploring future mixed use projects from Pawcatuck to Old Saybrook.

Goodman said there aren't a lot of options currently on the market in the target shoreline area but cited some interesting properties elsewhere in Niantic, Old Lyme and Old Saybrook.

Unique considerations in each town lend themselves to different types of development, according to the developer. In a place like historic Old Lyme, that means smaller pod-type projects with two or three buildings in the 10,000-square-foot range might work better than one large building.

On Niantic's Main Street, Goodman and Blake see The Norton as a way to help unify the two sides of a strip bisected by Pennsylvania Avenue. Currently, the most concentrated retail options greet those who turn right, while views of the bay stay with those who turn left.

"What we're hoping this does is tie this downtown together," Goodman said.

e.regan@theday.com