To Fairfield Hills –

Officials Contemplate Moving

Town Offices From Main Street

By Steve Bigham

Is Fairfield Hills eventually going to become the new home to Newtown’s municipal offices? A lot of people think it will.

The Fairfield Hills advisory committee has recommended that the town use Stamford Hall on the former state mental health hospital for municipal office space. The building – located on Washington Square – has 58,000 square feet of space – more than enough to satisfy the town’s longstanding office space woes.

Currently, town offices are scattered. Some are located at the aging Edmond Town Hall, where a lack of space has been a problem. Others are already at Fairfield Hills in the massive Canaan House building. They moved to the campus more than three years ago after their former home – Town Hall South – became uninhabitable. Flooding and general deterioration of the troubled Main Street building damaged maps and lowered employee morale.

Last spring, Selectman Bill Brimmer’s Municipal Space Needs Committee recommended that the town build a 23,000-square-foot addition to the rear of Edmond Town hall. The larger building would house all town offices, as well as a suite for the Board of Education.

However, since then, the town has concluded that it would be in its best interest to purchase Fairfield Hills, thus creating the opportunity to move all town offices there, including the offices of the first selectmen, finance, probate court, and town clerk. This plan, according to the report, eliminates the need for the $11.2 million addition at Edmond Town Hall. The building still needs about $4 million in deferred maintenance, according to the space needs panel.

A year ago, the fate of Fairfield Hills remained uncertain and town officials knew that any further discussion on the proposed expansion of Edmond Town Hall would need to be put on hold… until now.

First Selectman Herb Rosenthal said this week that he would favor a decision to move all town offices to Stamford Hall, although the issue, including more realistic cost figures, needs to be further examined.

“My initial impression is it would be cheaper to do Stamford Hall,” he said. “It wouldn’t be my intention to have the first selectman’s office remain here at Edmond Town Hall.”

For Mr Rosenthal, it is an all or nothing thing. “All town offices are connected in one way or another. You can’t separate them. It’s inconvenient for the public and it works out better from a management standpoint.”

Edmond Town Hall has been in use since 1930 and was a gift to Newtown from the town’s benefactress, Mary Hawley. The terms of the gift stipulated, however, that certain offices, including the selectman’s office and the judge of probate, always remain in the building. The first selectman noted, however, that the penalty for violating these terms is losing the interest on Hawley trust funds for the building, which amount to about $50,000 annually. Mr Rosenthal said that the loss of those funds should not be a determining factor in deciding whether or not all town offices should move from Main Street.

Mr Brimmer, a member of the Board of Selectmen, said the town needs to take a wait and see attitude regarding municipal space. All the facts are not in yet on which project would be most cost-effective.

“I want to be sure about the numbers. They look very low,” Mr Brimmer said of the Stamford Hall plan.

The cost to implement this plan is estimated at $3.8 million, much of that for renovation and improvement of the building.

Legislative Council member Melissa Pilchard finds it ironic that the Municipal Space Needs Committee was never asked to consider Fairfield Hills in its plans. That was because the original Fairfield Hills advisory committee recommended against purchase of the campus.

“They were never asked to consider it. By the time it was asked, it was much too late,” said Mrs Pilchard, who believes the architect firm of Kaestle Boos pushed hard for the town hall addition – even drawing up preliminary site plans.

Still unresolved is what the town would do with the “entry plaza” at Fairfield Hills. This area – considered the showpiece of the campus – includes Newtown and Woodbury halls, as well as a green. The advisory committee has suggested that area be used for shops, offices and restaurants to support the increased use of the campus.

“I definitely feel that the town offices should be consolidated at Fairfield Hills. I like the two entrance buildings. I think those are ideal. I’m not saying that Stamford is not a possibility, but those buildings in the front should be used for town purposes – even if just for a meeting place,” Mrs Pilchard said. “Therefore, I do not like the idea of a collection of some shops. That does not appeal to me.”

Town Clerk Cindy Simon said she prefers to see offices remain on Main Street, but would be open to any plan that consolidates town offices.

“I feel it’s a priority that all town offices be in the same location. Obviously, my first choice would have us stay where we are. But if that’s impossible – if it means moving to Fairfield Hills – to have us all together, then that’s what we’ll have to do. My first choice is to stay on Main Street, though,” she said.

Also up for discussion is the 9,048 square foot Stratford Hall at the corner of Cochran Lane and Washington Square. Some have suggested this former hospital library be turned into a restaurant while others – half-joking – have suggested it be used for the Legislative Council chambers. The inside of the building looks like a train station with its high ceiling and spacious room.

Stamford Hall once served as a dormitory for staff members.

The advisory committee will present its recommendations for Fairfield Hills to the selectmen and council next Wednesday at 7:30 pm in the Newtown High School cafeteria.