Date: Fri 13-Nov-1998

Publication: Bee

Author: STEVEB

Quick Words:

office-space-needs-Brimmer

Full Text:

Municipal Center Concept Gaining Currency

BY STEVE BIGHAM

Town officials appear to be giving serious consideration to the construction

of a new municipal building in their efforts to relieve the town's municipal

office space problems.

"A lot of people do feel a municipal building would be the best way to go,"

said Municipal Space Needs Committee chairman Bill Brimmer. "We need to remain

cautious on this though. We have not studied it enough yet."

The building could be as big as 32,000-square-feet and would house almost all

of the town's offices, including those of the first selectman, town clerk and

Board of Education. An early site preference for the building would be along

the lower portion of Queen Street near the intersection with Mile Hill Road.

The town is expected to purchase that property from the state by the end of

the year.

The area has public water and is close enough to the municipal sewer system to

have a line extended, according to First Selectman Herb Rosenthal.

"It would be nice to have all town offices in one building," Mr Rosenthal

said. "Edmond Town Hall would be more of a community center. Over time, we'd

bring it up to code. Fix the mechanical problems, restore the Alexandria Room,

the movie theater and the gym. The only offices there would be for the

borough, board of managers, probate judge, parks and recreation, and senior

services."

Members of the Municipal Space Needs Committee said they are still getting

over the shock of the estimated cost of such a project. The price on a

32,000-square-foot municipal building is about $6 million, but an overall

revamping of the town's municipal space could cost closer to $20 million.

"It was much higher than I had expected," Mr Brimmer said.

A renovation to Edmond Town Hall, even if all offices are moved out, would

cost $6 million. The renovation of the police department would be $4 million,

and a new Hook & Ladder firehouse would be $3.3 million, according to cost

estimates.

Not all these projects need to be done at the same time, town officials say.

The town could build a new municipal building, then do the other renovation

work at a later date. This avoids a big expense to the taxpayers all at once.

Other Options

The above scenario is not the only one the committee is considering. Kaestle

Boos Architects presented the space needs committee with 13 different options.

Some of those also call for the construction of a new municipal building,

while others suggest the town purchase the former Gordon Fraser building

and/or use Watertown Hall at Fairfield Hills. The use of those two buildings,

the most expensive scenarios, are expected to be removed from the list by the

committee this winter.

"We still need to meet a few more times to refine the list," Mr Rosenthal

said. "We'll need to do more brainstorming and strategic planning."

Once the committee has narrowed the number of preferred scenarios down to 1 or

2, the issue will be passed on to the Board of Selectmen for further debate.

From there, the discussion moves to the Legislative Council for financing

consideration.

The Hawley Trust

A municipal building would certainly help solve the town's space problems, but

can it be done given the terms of the trust for Edmond Town Hall left by Mary

Hawley?

Miss Hawley, who paid for the construction of Edmond Town Hall, specified that

"provisions be made in said building for suitable offices and vaults for town

clerk and Judge of Probate."

However, the will, which governs the use of the building, does not suggest

that the offices must remain in Edmond Town Hall.

The will also stated that if the building is not maintained properly, it and

its $50,000 trust fund can be taken over by Yale University, Miss Hawley's

chief benefactor.

However, town officials say Miss Hawley's wishes were to preserve the building

as a municipal center, which it will remain even if most of the offices are

moved out. They note, however, that some offices could be kept at Edmond Town

Hall to provide a government presence, if necessary.

Town officials say the Hawley will has no bearing on this issue since the

building was given to the town before Miss Hawley's death.

"The trust fund could be governed by her will, though," Mr Rosenthal said.

Committee member and local attorney, Bob Hall, has studied Miss Hawley's will

extensively. He was out of town this week. However, two years ago he said the

will had nothing to do with the town's ability to move out of the building.

Mr Hall has urged the town to keep the seat of government on Main Street in

the past. He said while the will is not binding, the town should honor Miss

Hawley's beneficence.

Former first selectman Bob Cascella didn't seem to think there was anything to

stop the town from moving out of Edmond Town hall.

"That will has been broken so many times that you can't imagine," he said in

1996. "What was legal in 1929, may not be now."

Should the town opt to avoid problems with the trust fund, there are scenarios

which call for the expansion of Edmond Town Hall to accommodate some or all

town offices.

One option adds 15,000 square feet to Edmond Town Hall at a cost of almost $10

million. That addition would allow for more offices, such as building,

land-use and the borough offices, in addition to first selectman and town

clerk. The additional usage will require the construction of a parking garage

behind the building at a cost of $900,000, according to Rusty Malek of Kaestle

Boos.

Another scenario calls for the construction of a smaller municipal building

(12,000 square feet) at a cost of $2.5 million. This would house building,

land-use and health, while the first selectman and town clerks would remain in

Edmond Town Hall, which would be expanded by 6,000-square feet.

A renovation of Town Hall South to allow for the offices it once held to

return could cost as much as $3 million, even more if the police department is

renovated upstairs. Town Hall South is a problem according to Mr Malek,

because it has limited parking.

Those offices formerly at Town Hall South were moved to Canaan House at

Fairfield Hills two years ago due to the building's severe deterioration.

The demolition of Town Hall South, a popular idea with many residents, would

cost an estimated $400,000.

The cost to renovate the structurally weakened Hook & Ladder building would

cost nearly $3 million, while demolition of the building would set the town

back more than $300,000. Most recommendations are calling for its demolition.

The construction of a new police facility was estimated to cost about $5

million. The construction of a new public safety building, which would include

fire, police and dispatch center, could cost more than $7 million.