Date: Fri 17-May-1996

By ANDY GOROSKO

Published: Aug 11, 1999 12:00 am

Publication: Bee

Author: ANDYG

Quick Words:

Fairfield-Hills-oversight

Full Text:

with cut: Fairfield Hills Oversight Panel Starts Its Work

B Y A NDREW G OROSKO

The Fairfield Hills Implementation Oversight Committee (FHIOC), a state ad hoc

panel created to monitor future land uses at the Fairfield Hills grounds,

conducted its first meeting May 10 at the state Office on Policy and

Management (OPM) in Hartford.

Members elected Richard Nuclo as committee chairman. Mr Nuclo is in charge of

physical planning and assets managements for OPM. He served as the state's

liaison to the Fairfield Hills Task Force, another ad hoc panel that reviewed

potential uses for Fairfield Hills in 1993 and 1994.

Task force members decided to form the FHIOC to ensure that the task force's

recommendations for the 650-acre parcel are kept in mind as the state puts the

parcel to new uses in the future. First Selectman Robert Cascella serves on

the oversight panel.

Fairfield Hills closed as a state psychiatric hospital last December. The

hospital was built more than 50 years ago for an anticipated population of

3,500 psychiatric patients. The estimated value of the land and buildings

there is more than $100 million.

The state Department of Mental Health (DMH) no longer has a major presence at

Fairfield Hills, but has a district office located on the grounds.

The state Department of Public Works (DPW) is seeking to enter in a management

contract, starting July 1, for the private management of the Fairfield Hills

property, Mrs Wasserman said.

The state Department of Transportation (DOT) had considered building a

regional highway maintenance garage at Fairfield Hills, but has now dropped

plans to do so, according to the state representative.

More than 200 acres at the sprawling campus have been designated for the state

Department of Agriculture (DOA) for land conservation, Mrs Wasserman said.

The town's use of several athletic fields at Fairfield Hills will continue,

she noted.

"The 650-acre property, once an operating farm, provides an idyllic setting in

an area now adjacent to a major interstate highway. Much of the undeveloped

land must be protected because of the recharge area for the (Pootatuck)

aquifer beneath, and any development of the remaining acreage must be

undertaken with great care. Because of its beauty, size and location, the

demand for the undeveloped land is greater than the protection of the aquifer

will allow," the task force wrote in its report on recommended uses for the

property.

Mrs Wasserman said she hopes the state increases the amount of land it plans

to give the town for industrial development on the Fairfield Hills property

near Commerce Road. The state has committed itself to donating somewhat more

than 20 acres to the town. The planned land grant stems from a legal agreement

between the town and the state which settled a lawsuit the town filed over the

state's plans to build the high-security Garner Correctional Institution on

Nunnawauk Road. Mrs Wasserman said she hopes the state can be persuaded to

grant the town 40 to 50 acres of land.

"It's beginning to come together. It's not going to happen overnight. People

shouldn't expect that," she said of the state's planning for future uses of

the property.

Mrs Wasserman said the governor's office is expected to start promoting the

Fairfield Hills property as a site for private enterprise.

Tunxis Management Company, a New Britain firm which is in the business of

managing properties, has been operating the Fairfield Hills grounds for the

state in recent weeks.

Among the recommendations made by the task force in its report:

Open space land at Fairfield Hills should be preserved.

Several campus buildings should be reused for general administrative office

space.

Businesses should be brought into existing buildings on the campus, and land

on the campus should be given to the town for future economic development.

There should be a regional educational presence on the campus.

Affordable housing and expanded housing for the elderly should be provided on

the campus, beginning with the development of a reuse plans for existing

buildings.

The open space areas of the campus should be separated from developed areas by

buffer zones.

One of the initial reasons the task force was formed was to prevent the state

Department of Correction (DOC) from building another prison at Fairfield

Hills. The DMH transferred approximately 120 acres of what had been Fairfield

Hills property to the DOC for the construction of Garner. Also, the DOC

formerly operated Western Substance Abuse Treatment Unit, a minimum-security

prison in Fairfield House on the Fairfield Hills campus.

The Fairfield Hills oversight panel plans to meet on a monthly basis in the

near future to address various issues.

The DOT has scheduled a public informational meeting on its planned

construction of a bypass road on the Fairfield Hills grounds for Wednesday,

May 22, at 7:30 pm at Newtown High School auditorium.

Next HRRA Household Hazardous Waste Drop-Off Event Scheduled In Newtown

Genealogy Club's Next Program To Dig Into 'Dissecting A Civil War Pension Record'

Choral Society Planning ‘Voices Of America’ Performance

Newtown Earth Day Festival Was A Success

Local Fourth Grader To Host ‘Gaming For Change’ On May 16

The editorial took no position on the budget going up or down so you're reading things into the editorial that simply aren't there. The turnout is tied to the lack of passage, in that people who came out to vote last time did not this time, indicating a lack of support on their part. Perhaps it wasn't spelled out clearly enough, but that's what the editorial was driving at, people showing lack of support by not casting a vote. The editorial did address likely concerns among voters that may have led to lack of support and lack of turnout. This lower turnout also follows increasing turnout over the past four referendums in three years (meaning it is an aberration from that), and increased turnout is something that I do push for regularly in editorials. Any disappointment you might be seeing is at the break in that trend, not at whether the budget passed or not. I'd rather see more people come out and vote "no" then not vote at all.

Lower Turnout Results In Two Budget Defeats

Clearly, property owners no longer want to bear the burden of expenses while the state does not meet it’s responsibilities. Rising costs must be addressed by actions that do not include yearly increases of property owners’ taxes. The state of CT must meet its share of the educational costs, and other costs.

Town And School Budgets Fail At Referendum

This feels like an oddly misleading headline and narrative, particularly coming from the Editorial Board. The headline "Lower Turnout Results in Two Budget Defeats" pushes a misleading narrative regarding voter turnout, and then seeks to tie the outcome of the referendum to that misleading narrative. Sure, voter turn out for this year's referendum, 18%, was lower than last year's. However, last year's turnout, 25.4%, represented the highest turnout in the most recent 10 budget referendums. If you take the time to examine turnout percentages between 2017 and 2026 (2017: 19.9, 2018: 15.7, 2019: 17, 2020: 0, 2021: 8.98, 2022: 7.7, 2023: 8.8, 2024: 15.1/17.49, 2025: 25.4, 2026: 18), this year's turnout was actually the third highest in the past 10 cycles. Perhaps the headline of this article should say "Lower Voter Turnout Than Last Year", which is more accurate, rather than creating an impression that this year's turnout is some type of aberration - a narrative that the turnout numbers, in all their binary glory, simply do not support. Further, the headline of this article appears to tie the "lower turnout" to the defeated budgets. Sure, that could be true. But, perhaps, its more likely that Newtown residents are feeling the squeeze of multiple economic influences. In Newtown, we've experienced property revaluations and increased municipal spending. Eversource continues to raise rates. The state legislature gives PURA the authority to impose Public Benefit charges that benefit a tiny percentage of the public (and subsequently burdening the rest of us). At the national level, inflation has run rampant for years and many of those costs remain high to this day. In short, the data tells a far less dramatic—and far more honest—story than the headline suggests. This wasn’t an electorate vanishing in apathy; it was a fairly typical turnout delivering an verdict that, perhaps, some at the Editorial Board didn't like. At some point, it’s worth considering that residents aren’t confused, disengaged, or misled by turnout; they’re simply doing math at their kitchen tables and concluding that “no” is the only responsible answer left.

Enjoyed the forum which only confirmed my support for Brandon Moore as the Democratic candidate to run for the state representative position. Brandon Moore did not waiver about his duty to all the people, if elected, when an issue presents itself that requires that he voice a difference of opinion for the wellbeing of Newtown residents. If Michelle Ku’s 16 years have led to her loyalty being to other elected officials, as she implied, then Newtown is going to continue to witness actions that do not protect its residents. She could not unseat republican, Mitch Bolinsky, during a Blue Wave, and once again, will not do it now. Winning that seat is critical for all. That explains why her previous campaign committee now campaigns for Brandon Moore. It explains all the endorsements he has received from local elected democratic officials. It’s why we need Brandon Moore to be the democratic candidate to run for state representative.

Second Newtown DTC, League Of Women Voters Candidates Event Planned

Appreciated the opportunity to hear from both candidates as we were present for the College Dems forum but only heard from Brandon Moore. It was an opportunity to see who can unseat the Republican incumbent and there is no doubt that Brandon Moore should be the Democratic candidate. One concerned parent posed a question about discrimination unaddressed by the school district and interestingly enough, Michelle Ku, who proudly speaks of her Board membership years, said little, while Brandon Moore passionately addressed the issue along with his experience as an Apache Helicopter Commander. This family is supporting Brandon Moore. We need change and someone who is not afraid to disagree, especially about the rising costs of living in Newtown.

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Date: Fri 17-May-1996

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