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Office Move To Cost $70,000

B Y S TEVE B IGHAM

First Selectman Bob Cascella has a sign on his desk that reads, "No

Surprises," a request to all visitors that they not bring him any unexpected

or shocking news.

Wednesday night, however, some members of the Legislative Council felt Mr

Cascella had surprised them when he asked for their approval to spend $69,500

for a temporary move of Town Hall South employees to Canaan House on the

Fairfield Hills Hospital campus.

The total lease agreement between the town and Tunxis Management Group of New

Britain includes $41,000 in build-out costs, an $18,000 five-month lease and

$10,000 for moving. These figures were released to council members for the

first time Wednesday night.

The Legislative Council is scheduled to vote on the issue at a special meeting

Monday night, and while the proposal is likely to be approved by both the

council and the Board of Selectman, some council members appeared unhappy with

the way Mr Cascella dropped the expenditure into their laps.

Jack Rosenthal questioned why the first selectman agreed to have renovation

work to Canaan House begin two weeks ago without prior approval from the

Legislative Council.

"Suppose we turn you down," Mr Rosenthal asked.

Mr Cascella said the state Department of Public Works (DPW), in good faith,

agreed to get started on the renovation work before any contract agreements.

In other words, he said, the town owes nothing to the state until it signs the

lease contract. Mr Rosenthal said the town would morally be responsible to pay

the money back.

"They reached out a hand to help us," said Mr Cascella. "We often criticize

the state for not reaching out to the towns. Now they are."

Melissa Pilchard said she was shocked at the $69,500 cost to relocate,

admitting she had expected the price to be in the $20,000 range.

"I disagree with the fact that this was brought to us with no prior knowledge

or warning," she said.

Mrs Pilchard reminded the first selectman that there are some Town Hall South

employees who do not even want to make the move. Conditions have improved at

the Main Street building as temporary measures have been taken to control the

leaking, but Mr Cascella has already assured Occupational Safety and Health

Administration (OSHA) he would provide a better working environment for the 20

employees who work there.

"We've gotten a good deal from the state," Mr Cascella responded; "$70,000 is

a lot of money, but we have a commitment to the staff regardless of whether

one or two staff members don't want to go."

As Selectman Jim Mooney pointed out, the town is paying just $5 per square

foot (inclusive of all utilities), far better than the going rate, which is

about $12 to $18 per square foot.

Mr Cascella said the move to Fairfield Hills is not a frivolous expense,

explaining it gives "us the opportunity to take a deep breath and decide where

we want to go with our town facilities."

The Legislative Council must also determine where the money to pay the lease

will come from. Town Attorney Dave Grogins has suggested the town either move

the entire $69,000 out of its contingency fund or classify $41,500 of the

total price as capital non-recurring expenditures, with the remaining $28,000

("soft costs") to come from contingency.

"This requires only a majority vote of the Legislative Council and does not

require a town meeting," Mr Grogins ruled.

Moving the $69,000 out of contingency would leave just $98,000 remaining, but

barring a major snow storm, Mr Cascella said he has no need for the funds at

the present time.

According to Mrs Pilchard, the Legislative Council has never bypassed a town

meeting for the spending of this kind of money.

Joe Borst made a motion the council approve the special appropriation with the

method of payment be determined by Financial Director Benjamin Spragg.

However, at the urging of Mrs Pilchard, the motion was withdrawn and a Monday

vote was slated.

"You do this tonight and you are in legal violation. This appropriation has

never been posted. The dollar amount was not put on the agenda," she said.

Nevertheless, as council chairman Joe Mahoney stated, the council, at some

point, must "stand up and be counted and bite the bullet. We've got to do

something. This is an emergency situation."

Move Due Next Month

Town Hall South employees are expected to move to a building on the campus of

Fairfield Hills Hospital in early February at a cost of some $3,600 per month

or $43,200 per year.

The move is contingent upon approval of the selectmen and council.

The 8,600 square foot section of Canaan House will house the town's land use

offices, parks & recreation and health, which are all currently located in the

lower level of Town Hall South. The police department will remain in the upper

part of Town Hall South and is expected to expand their offices downstairs

once permanent repairs are done on the structure. However, as First Selectman

Bob Cascella said Wednesday, the roof of the police department has also begun

to leak.

At Canaan House, construction workers have completed most of the renovation

work, including sheet rocking, electrical wiring and carpeting.

Public Works Director Fred Hurley has hired C & D Moving of Brookfield to move

the government a mile or more down the road. The office transfer is expected

to be done on Saturday, February 1.

Legislative Council member Bill Brimmer suggested as a cost-saving measure,

the move be done by members from the highway department. First Selectman Bob

Cascella said he had considered that but decided to hire professional movers.

Jim Crouch has arranged for the relocation of the Town Hall South telephone

system.

If approved, the town will agree to a two-year lease with Tunxis Management of

New Britain, which oversees Fairfield Hills operations for the state.

Legislative Council member Karen Blawie Wednesday asked Mr Cascella where he

expects the offices to be in 24 months.

"We need to plan for that now because we have to come up with the money at

some point," she said.

Mr Cascella said the Municipal Space Needs Advisory Committee is scheduled to

hand over its final report Monday night. From there, he said, the selectmen

will determine if it will hire a consultant to conduct an in-depth space needs

study.

Office Move