Council To Seek Expert Advice On Fairfield Hills’ Environmental Status

By Steve Bigham

The Legislative Council next month will meet with the town’s environmental professionals to discuss the extent of the contamination at Fairfield Hills. Members say they want to have all the facts before they proceed.

Earlier this month, two Newtown residents contended that the environmental problems at Fairfield Hills might run deeper than some reports have indicated. As Barry Piesner and Erwin Potter point out, the state’s Phase II environmental study of Fairfield Hills was incomplete. They questioned the validity of the testing and wondered how much contamination is still unknown.

“The Phase II study is like life and death to this town. If we don’t know the full extent of the contamination we’re playing Russian Roulette with the town’s finances,” Mr Piesner said.

First Selectman Herb Rosenthal this week attempted to quell any fears that these new allegations may have brought about. He assured the council Wednesday night that his team of lawyers and environmental professionals are hard at work making sure Newtown does not get stuck with an environmental disaster there.

“I think we have a very strong position on the environmental issues at Fairfield Hills,” Mr Rosenthal said. “We have a lot of arrows in our quiver to protect us on all issues.”

Mr Rosenthal acknowledged the Phase II study was not completely thorough. However, according to Mr Rosenthal, Russell Bartley, the town’s environmental consultant, “felt the testing was sufficient and that a full-blown $200,000 Phase II study was not going to get us that much more information.”

The scope of the Phase II study was decided a year ago, back when the town was less interested in buying Fairfield Hills. As Mr Piesner alleges, the town and state may have figured private developers could foot the bill for any environmental testing they wished to do.

“I’m concerned that everything is based on the partial Phase II study,” said Council Chairman Pierre Rochman, pointing out that Mr Bartley declined to make any solid recommendations because the study was incomplete.

“It should be noted that the current information is still limited and the cost of remediation for any particular area of concern could vary greatly,” Mr Bartley told the town after estimating that the total cost would be in the $12 million range.

That was of particular concern to member Ruby Johnson, who formally moved to have the town pay for a total Phase II study before issuing any requests for proposals (RFP). “For us to go on without all the information puts us in a dangerous situation.”

Her motion did not receive a second.

Council member Will Rodgers said the council needs to trust Mr Rosenthal and his team as they negotiate with state officials.

“We have paid professionals saying it’s okay,” he said.

Peggy Baiad agreed and urged her fellow council members to have faith in the negotiations. “No one is saying we’re going to take the property ‘as is.’”

The state had originally requested that negotiations over the sale of Fairfield Hills be completed by December 31. However, both the town and state agree that date will not be met.

At 9:30 pm Wednesday, the council entered into executive session, where Mr Rosenthal provided members with the strategy he is using to better the town’s buying position in light of these environmental concerns.

 David Elescu of Sanford Road also voiced concern over what he called “the slap-dash quality of the Phase II report on such a critical issue.”

Bob Elias of Pebble Road agreed. “Why should the State of Connecticut walk away from all the environmental problems which they created? We need to know what the absolute problems are.”

Richard Sturdevant of Westwood Terrace also voiced concern about the unknowns at Fairfield Hills.

In 1999, EnviroMed Services of New Haven estimated that the total cost to clean up Fairfield Hills would be between $16 million and $26 million. The environmental firm did the work for the development firm of Becker and Becker, which has shown a persistent interest in re-developing the former state mental health hospital.