Date: Fri 25-Sep-1998

Publication: Bee

Author: STEVEB

Quick Words:

Office-space-needs

Full Text:

Decisions Looming In Office Space Dilemma

BY STEVE BIGHAM

Newtown's need for more municipal space hasn't gone away. The problems are

still there on an everyday basis. It remains, as one town official termed it,

"an emergency situation."

Later this fall, the town should have a list of realistic options -- solutions

to what has become a severe shortage of space. Kaestle Boos Architects of New

Britain announced this week that it is nearing the end of its summer-long

space needs study.

The "emergency situation" has been well documented in recent years. Newtown's

municipal facilities have been inadequate for several years. Some town

employees have been working at Canaan House at Fairfield Hills for nearly two

years, ever since they were forced out of the dilapidated Town Hall South,

which had become ravaged by flooding and general deterioration.

Edmond Town Hall remains cramped, and Hook & Ladder Volunteer Fire Company,

located right behind it, wants out of its building. The recent discovery of

the building's weakened floor has added to the urgency.

Then there is the school system which proposes to build a fifth- and

sixth-grade school within the next two to three years.

The architectural firm of Kaestle Boos was retained last spring to study the

problem and propose a menu of possible solutions.

Over the summer, architects Rusty Malek and Mark Weisman met with both town

and school departments, 21 in all, to ascertain what their current and future

space needs are. Kaestle Boos also looked at Edmond Town Hall, the Hook &

Ladder firehouse, Town Hall South and Watertown Hall to determine how each

building fits into the town's overall plan. Town officials have not ruled out

constructing a municipal government complex that would house all

administrative offices in one location.

"We're looking at every realistic combination of new construction, additions

and re-uses," Mr Weisman explained. "We're putting together options that are

cost effective, cause the least amount of disruption, and will ultimately

provide a 20-year solution."

Each option provided to the town will have a budget associated with it,

according to the architects.

Throughout the process, the architects have been meeting with town officials

to discuss the various options and the costs involved. The next meeting is

slated for October 6.

"The importance of this study is that it affects everyone in town," explained

Selectman Bill Brimmer, who heads the town's Municipal Space Needs Committee.

"There isn't a person in the population that will not be affected by this. The

town offices are hurting for space and the entire town is growing."

Kaestle Boos is expected to complete the study by November.

First Selectman Herb Rosenthal has not ruled out the possibility of moving

employees back into Town Hall South where a new rubber-membrane roof was

recently installed. The architects also looked at the Gordon Frasier building

at 173 South Main Street. There are other possibilities, too, including the

construction of an annex behind Edmond Town Hall, which would include the

renovation of the Hook & Ladder firehouse.

R. Scudder Smith, publisher of the The Newtown Bee , also has notified the

town that the property at the corner of Main (Route 25) and Sugar Streets

(Route 302) is still for sale.

Mr Brimmer said new construction at various sites is also under consideration.

Those include the two town-owned lots on Commerce Road and a strip of

residential properties on Queen Street, which the town recently offered to

purchase from the state. There is also the large garage on Trades Lane at

Fairfield Hills, which the state gave to the town along with Watertown Hall.

The study was supposed to start a year ago when the administration of former

First Selectman Bob Cascella hired Antinozzi Associates of Stratford. However,

several residents recalled that firm's alleged poor handling of a study it did

for the state as it tried to find a site for a new prison. Inaccuracies in the

report led to the Garner Correctional Facility being built in Newtown,

according to its critics. Consequently, Antinozzi was never hired for the

office space study.

In addition to Mr Brimmer, the space needs committee includes Carole Ross, Bob

Hall, Ron Bolmer, Peg Daley, Chuck Nanavaty and David Valerie.