Ignoring the Guidelines

To the Editor:

The state Department of Economic and Community Development (DECD) advises a town to make sure it can answer Yes to these questions before seeking economic development grants: Does the town have a reservoir of unemployed workers, appropriate housing for type of workers anticipated, existing highways to carry additional traffic, empty seats in classrooms, and adequately housed municipal services to accommodate more people? (CT State Statutes: Vol. 2 Sections 7 & 8)

If the answers are No, people moving into town to take some of the newly created jobs will cost the town more in services than the new businesses will pay in taxes. Newtown has two percent unemployment, limited affordable housing, overcrowded highways, portable classrooms, and leased municipal office space. Newtown must answer No to all five questions.

No matter! DECD looked the other way and awarded Newtown $690,000 to mothball buildings at FFH, hoping a developer will abate and renovate the buildings and construct hundreds of parking spaces.

Why do the buildings need so much money to be mothballed? The state began closing the FFH hospital about ten years ago. It simply locked the doors and walked away, making no effort to care for the buildings. Roofs leaked, gutters failed, downspouts clogged, and water penetrated the buildings. Reportedly, Plymouth Hall, the recreation building for the hospital patients, has been so neglected the gym is badly damaged, the bowling alley floor buckled, the snack bar a mess. The auditorium is questionable.

Plymouth Hall is the building that the Parks and Recreation Department wanted badly for a recreation center, and the cultural arts proponents lobbied hard to utilize the auditorium for cultural events. Both pleaded with the Master Plan Committee to preserve Plymouth Hall, but were ignored. The newest suggestion by the selectmen to accommodate the recreational, cultural, and senior center needs into a single building comes rather late. If Plymouth Hall had been maintained properly, the town would now be celebrating the opening of a grand, renovated Plymouth Hall.

State officials are now providing $690,000 to do what they should have done ten years ago. The governor also announced a $4.6 million economic development grant to Bridgeport for Steel Point. November elections, perhaps!

If the governor and our three state legislators really wanted to help Newtown, they would increase state aid to education. The state reimburses Newtown only $701 per child per year when the actual cost is about $9,300.

If the legislature would stop spending state revenue on favorite “pork” projects, our town and economy would be in much better shape. Fairfield Hills is a perfect example. We need FFH for a community center, recreation, senior center, cultural arts, and hiking. These facilities would attract desirable businesses to locate in Commerce Park. Destroying beautiful FFH with economic development is a crime against Mother Earth.

Ruby Johnson

16 Chestnut Hill Road, Sandy Hook              October 17, 2006