Date: Fri 20-Aug-1999

Publication: Bee

Author: STEVEB

Quick Words:

Fairfield-Hills

Full Text:

Is The Town Up To Managing Fairfield Hills? Some Say No

BY STEVE BIGHAM

Fear of their taxes going through the roof is not the number one concern for

those who oppose the idea of a town purchase of Fairfield Hills. For them, the

concerns have more to do with the challenge facing a small town trying to

manage a massive piece of land and its buildings.

The town has enough trouble trying to remove snow from the roads, said one

resident. Buying the land would be the biggest mistake this town ever made,

others say.

"That's just not something that towns do," noted Newtown resident Tom Belli,

owner of the Mary Hawley Inn and Reader's Digest executive. "It's a great pipe

dream for those who don't know about the business world, but it's just not a

realistic plan."

To take on such a large project, the town of Newtown would need to create an

entirely separate bureaucracy -- one that it is simply not prepared to contend

with, he said. Also, renovating an existing building is much more difficult

that starting from scratch, he said.

Legislative Council chairman Pierre Rochman believes there are legitimate

concerns with town ownership of the 186-acre campus, although he is leaning

toward buying the property.

"The town does not have the political infrastructure to manage this. I think

if we were to by it outright, I think I would like to see a decision on how we

are going to manage it before hand. We may want to get a developer on board

before we sign on the dotted line."

Mr Rochman believes the town may have to take part in a bit of risk-taking,

especially since a decision may be required before the town is ready.

"Emotionally, I'd like to buy it, but as member of the finance board, I have

to temper my emotions with sound fiscal thinking," he said.

The best route, many believe, would be to choose the very best of the three

private developers. They have the resources in place to make something

positive happen.

But there does not seem to be an easy solution.

First Selectman Herb Rosenthal said he has talked to people who say their

feelings on Fairfield Hills continue to vacillate. He too has gone back and

forth in his thinking.

"At this point in time, I don't have a right answer. My views have changed,"

he said. "Maybe there is some middle ground that we can find."

Mr Rosenthal said all three developers have indicated an interest in doing

partial development if the town did purchase the property.

However, if the town does allow a private developer to go ahead with its

plans, town officials want a mechanism in place to ensure the company's master

plan becomes a reality.

"We don't want to end up in court having to defend our land-use regulations,"

Mr Rochman said.

Some have suggested that Newtown purchase the property, then lease it to a

developer for one dollar a year. Once the land is developed, the town could

turn around and sell it to the developer with deed restrictions.

Of course, many hope that one of the three developers will offer the town

something so appealing that it will be more than happy to let it go. In that

case, everyone wins.