The Special Town Council Meeting was called to order by Chair Cynthia L. Gibbons @ 7 P.M. Members present: Patricia Geary, Cynthia Gibbons, Theresa Graveline 7:02 P.M., Thomas Hallaway, Domenic Jannetty, Douglas Merriman, Edward Miller & Dominick Mirabelle @ 8:16 P.M.. Absent Robert Doyon.
Also present Mayor Chatfield and Attorney John Yarbrough, Town Attorney.
Mayor Chatfield gave a history of 49 Talmadge Hill Road property, thankful that Mr. John M. Forger, Jr. thought of the town in his will. Presently town is providing oil and electricity to the property which is 2.3 acres (150W X 600+/- deep. Town of Prospect ran request for proposals in the Waterbury Republican-American as suggested by the Attorney General. Received letter of interest from Kelly Cronin, Executive Director of Waterbury Youth Service System, Inc. Proposal has since been withdrawn, therefore there are no active proposals at this time. Mayor Chatfield would like to see property back on the tax records, property is a liability for the town. Property is in need of maintenance and not adjacent to any other town property. State of Conn. is also named in the will therefore could come in and do anything and is exempt from Planning & Zoning approval. Mayor Chatfield referred to the will which states "Town of Prospect may designate any Prospect charity to manage said bequest…so long as it is operated for charitable or educational purposes" (see Schedule "A" Last Will and Testament of John M. Forger, Jr. attached).
Attorney Yarbrough has been in touch with the Office of the Attorney General to see what state might have in mind for the property. Issue of Prospect charity as written in will discussed. A significant amount of money would be needed to renovate & bring the property up to code. Next step should be deciding whether the town is interested and also getting in touch with attorney Generals Office. Town of Prospect needs to decide what could be done with the property, otherwise it goes to the state. Useful to find out what state would want to do with the property if they are interested at all. Suggested that the council determine any other uses for the property and reviewed charitable and educational purposes. Cost is also an issue if used for public use.
T. Graveline questioned use of land if house taken down, need to speak to attorney general.
Also necessary to go to probate to interpret the will if it is decided to demolish. E. Miller questioned if grants could be applied for - Mayor Chatfield indicated that town could apply depending on what property would be used for.
PUBLIC COMMENT:
Lisa White, 45 Talmadge Hill Road, concerned about repercussions if state were involved. Prefer that the Town of Prospect decide what is done with the property. Referred to the will "Audubon or Garden Club" may be a loophole. Wonders if economically feasible to keep, would like to see everything researched.
Bill Eaton, 51 Talmadge Hill Road suggested contacting Audubon Society. Mayor Chatfield pointed out the need to meet the criteria of the will.
Kara Casimiro, 53 Talmadge Hill Road, suggested that the town may want to look into renovating the house, get an estimate on renovation and also questioned time frame. Mayor Chatfield pointed out the need to determine what the use would be even if house were renovated. Ms. Casimiro also suggested contacting the Audubon society to open a chapter in town.
Dawn Krisavage, 11 Stonefield Dr. questioned request for proposals which was published and the deadline that was indicated in the legal notice - Town could ask for proposals again.
Attorney Yarbrough reiterated that the Town needs to decide, then state has next option, if the state doesn't want the property then it goes to Mr. Forger's estate. Important to find out what the states response will be.
4 Talmadge Hill Rd. resident agrees with other residents who spoke. Doesn't want to see a rehab center in the neighborhood. Suggested an educational center and having students from a technical school renovate.
Attorney Yarbrough recommended authorizing him to get in touch with Assistant Attorney General, also see if state would agree with demolition of the house. Meantime council may want to consider use for the property considering comments from the public tonight. Will not as clear as it could be, needs to be interpreted. Attorney Yarbrough will report back to council when he gets a response from the state.
Motion made by P. Geary, 2nd by D. Merriman to authorize Attorney Yarbrough to contact/ communicate with the attorney general's office to explore what the state would do with the property and if demolition would be possible. In the meantime Council members need to consider uses. D. Merriman suggested getting an estimate from a local contractor for remodeling. P. Geary pointed out the important issue would be the well and the septic. C. Gibbons cost to demolish should be looked into. E. Miller questioned time line - depends on what attorney generals office has to say and other suggestions for an alternative use are. Atty. Yarbrough expects it to take about 1-2 months before receiving a response from the state. C. Gibbons suggested that the Land Use Subcommittee get involved. Motion Unanimous
Mayor Chatfield suggested a brief recess.
D. Merriman and P. Geary invited the public back to future Council meetings, council members would welcome any input on town issues.
CORRESPONDENCE: 4-19-2001 Letter from Kelly Cronin, Executive Director of Waterbury Youth Service system Inc. withdrawing proposal; flyer neighbors in the Talmadge Hill Road area received. Motion made by D. Merriman, 2nd by T. Graveline to place correspondence on file. Motion Unanimous
EXECUTIVE SESSION 8:08 P.M.
Motion made by P. Geary, 2nd by T. Graveline to go into executive session with Economic Development Commission, Attorney Yarbrough and Mayor Chatfield to discuss real estate appraisals, engineering, feasibility estimates and evaluations relative to acquisition of property for Commerce Park. Motion Unanimous
D. Mirabelle arrived at 8:16 P.M.
Motion made by T. Graveline, 2nd by D. Mirabelle to come out of Executive Session at 9:05 P.M. Motion Unanimous. No motions were made during executive session.
Motion made by T. Graveline, 2nd by E. Miller to authorize Attorney Yarbrough to draft a letter to RMK Associates outlining intent, interest and timeline on behalf of the Town Council. Motion Unanimous
Attorney Yarbrough will forward the draft to Mayor Chatfield who will distribute to Council members and Economic Development Commission so that it can be studied before the May 7th meeting.
Motion made by T. Graveline, 2nd by P. Geary to adjourn at 9:10 P.M. Motion Unanimous