Developers Ignore Town Bid For

Fairfield Hills Development Proposals

By Steve Bigham

Two months ago, First Selectman Herb Rosenthal seemed confident he would receive plenty of replies as more than 200 invitations were sent out to developers to join Newtown’s Fairfield Hills party. But a trip to the mailbox Monday (the due date for RSVPs) turned up empty. No one was interested, not even New Canaan developer Bruce Becker, who at one time was waging an intense campaign to develop Fairfield Hills in partnership with the town.

The invitations, in this case, were requests for proposals (RFP), which were sent out to prospective development firms. Town officials had hoped these firms might express interest in redeveloping the 185-acre former state mental health hospital. In the end, not one was interested in taking on the massive redevelopment project.

The reasons for the developers’ snub of the town are not clear. Was it the unknown extent of environmental contamination after 70 years of use as a state mental institution? Was it the vigorous and unresolved debate about the future of Fairfield Hills that is continuing in Newtown? Was it, perhaps, the slowing economy?

“I think it was a lot of things,” Mr Rosenthal said, shaking his head, Monday night.

All along, the first selectman has said he wanted to use the RFP process to find out if there was a market for the reuse of Fairfield Hills as envisioned by the residents of Newtown. This week, he got his answer.

There was one Hamden firm unfamiliar to local officials that did request a 30-day extension Monday. Its president, Creighton English, met with town officials April 10 after only recently having learned of the bid process. On Monday, Mr Rosenthal indicated he would probably not grant the 30-day extension.

Mr Rosenthal left Tuesday morning for San Antonio for a conference/vacation. He did issue a written statement prior to leaving, however.

“While I am disappointed that there were no formal responses to the town’s Request for Proposals for redevelopment of Fairfield Hills, I believe the town should continue to pursue the purchase of Fairfield Hills from the state as long as an agreement beneficial to the town can be achieved. I am optimistic that we are close to that objective,” he said.

Mr Rosenthal could only speculate as to why no one submitted proposals.

“The reasons could be many, including uncertainty in the economy with many companies retrenching rather than expanding. Also, the experience of the state process where three developers expended considerable time, effort and money only to have the process suspended. The fact that the town does not own the property and may decide not to buy it could have made them cautious about coming forward now. Some developers and commercial realtors expressed concern to me about not wanting to get embroiled in a ‘power struggle’ over control after reading some newspaper articles over the past few months. Finally, there was concern over the possible public reaction to some of the comments about potential environmental disasters raised by some letter writers,” Mr Rosenthal said.

Despite a lack of progress on Fairfield Hills negotiations/planning, town officials appear determined to put its proposed purchase up for a vote at a June town meeting, along with the proposed 5/6 school. This week, the Board of Selectmen met with Legislative Council Chairman Pierre Rochman to discuss how best to present the two projects at one time (see related story).

In his written statement, the first selectman did reaffirm his support for Fairfield Hills and pointed out the many benefits that will come from town ownership, such as municipal office space, recreational facilities, open space, and some economic development.

A total of eight firms did pick up the RFP form from the first selectman’s office earlier this year and still others may have downloaded it from the town’s Web site. However, in recent days a disappointing response seemed inevitable to town officials,  particularly since no one called with any questions about the RFP.

Two months ago, the town sent out letters to more than 200 firms that may have been interested in developing the Fairfield Hills campus. The RFP outlined the town’s plans, needs, and preferred uses of the site. The town is expected to purchase Fairfield Hills from the state sometime this year. The state has offered to sell the property to Newtown “as is” for $5.5 million. No final deal has been struck, though an agreement is expected soon.

Last month, Mr Rosenthal led a tour of the 185-acre campus and only a handful of interested firms showed up. Two years ago, before the town expressed interest in buying the campus, the state held a similar tour and 80 companies took part.

For more than two years, Becker and Becker Associates of New Canaan conducted a vigorous campaign in Newtown, hoping to forge a partnership with the community at Fairfield Hills. But this week it has become apparent that such interest has since waned.

President Bruce Becker had proposed a joint venture wherein the town and his firm would take part in a joint closing with the state. It was to be a simultaneous purchase so that both parties were to be assured of what happens to the site. At the closing, Mr Becker said the campus would be conveyed to Becker and Becker, which would in turn convey 130 acres and some buildings to the town.

Last week, however, Mr Becker seemed less interested and the fact that he did not submit a proposal suggests a total lack of interest in working with the town on the development at Fairfield Hills at this point.

Last week, Legislative Council Chairman Pierre Rochman predicted that no proposals would be submitted. He suggested that that may not be such a bad thing.

“I would like to see the town come up with its own plan and bid it out over time on a project-by-project basis,” he said.