Date: Fri 26-Dec-1997

Publication: Bee

Author: STEVEB

Quick Words:

state-Watertown-Hall-Rosenthal

Full Text:

Watertown Hall Begins To Look Like An Unwanted Gift

BY STEVE BIGHAM

To some town officials, Watertown Hall is like that Christmas gift you wished

you had never received.

The State of Connecticut handed over the former Fairfield Hills Hospital

building, along with 22.6 acres and a garage, to the town last spring as part

of a 1991 agreement that settled a lawsuit the town brought against the state

over the construction of the Garner Correctional Facility.

Now, the town has to figure out what to do with the building. At one point,

Watertown Hall was looked at as a possible answer to the town's municipal

space needs woes. However, further inspection revealed that the old staff

dormitory is made up of nothing more than 150 or so little cubicles, not

practical for Newtown's needs.

"I don't see Watertown Hall being a site for town offices. It's not suitable,"

First Selectman Herb Rosenthal said Monday.

Mr Rosenthal has been outspoken in his reluctance to show gratitude for the

state's "gift." Watertown Hall contains asbestos and many believe the soil

around the nearby garage (formerly a firehouse) could be contaminated.

The state offered the town the two buildings and surrounding land last spring

and the Legislative Council immediately accepted the offer, fearing the state

might change its mind. Council members, however, were inclined to hold off on

a decision until the town had a better understanding of what it was

inheriting. Newtown still does not officially own the land, but the deed is

expected to arrive soon.

Last spring, then-first selectman candidate Chris Spiro wondered what

ramifications the town will face by hastily accepting Watertown Hall.

"History will show if we have another Ruwett-Sibley here," he said, referring

to the tractor dealership converted into much-maligned Town Hall South in the

1970s.

Space Needs Persist

As for addressing the town's need for office space, the Board of Selectmen

must still decide on who will conduct a study to find out what exactly it is

that the town needs. Some town employees have been housed at Canaan House at

Fairfield Hills for the past year after being forced out of a flooded Town

Hall South last winter. One year remains on the town's lease with the state.

Time is running out.

"I'm definitely concerned about it," said Mr Rosenthal. "We don't have a lot

of time."

Two months ago, the now-departed Cascella administration voted to hire the

Antinozzi Associates architectural firm of Stratford to conduct the study.

However, that decision was quickly overruled by the Legislative Council. As it

turned out, Antinozzi had done a similar study for the state ten years

earlier. At that time, Hartford was looking for a suitable site for a new

prison. Antinozzi's report, which the state later admitted was flawed, found

Newtown to be the top candidate and Hartford moved ahead with construction.

Now, the Board of Selectmen must hire another firm to conduct the space needs

study, but it won't be any time soon. Mr Rosenthal plans to create a committee

to review the work already done by former Selectman Jim Mooney's Municipal

Space Needs Committee. The first selectman believes the board's work may have

been incomplete. Some department heads complained they were never consulted as

to their own need for office space.