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CEO Proposes Psychiatric Hospital For Fairfield Hills

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A new proposal for reuse that echoes Fairfield Hills’s origins has come before the authority overseeing that property.

On Monday, September 22, Fairfield Hills Authority members and several town officials heard from HealthVest facility CEO Richard Kresch, MD, who discussed plans for a psychiatric hospital. He told authority members that his company acquires distressed facilities or develops new ones.

He described 70,000 square foot facility that would host 100 to 125 beds. The company seeks a single story facility on four to five acres in the area of the single family house and Norwalk Hall on the Fairfield Hills campus.

A letter provided to Fairfield Hills Authority this week and addressed to “Newtown’s Land Use Agency” dated in August, noted an interest for a behavioral health hospital in Newtown, and proposed one of two scenarios: buying or leasing space at Fairfield Hills.

Authority member Ross Carley confirmed on September 25 that the campus land is not for sale, and per the master plan for the land’s reuse, the authority and town welcome lease agreements. The authority by its next meeting hopes to have more details about the HealthVest proposal, he said. FHA’s next regular meeting is scheduled for October 27.

Referring to HealthVest as a reputable company, Mr Carley hopes their planning could consider taking down Norwalk Hall, he said. He noted that after only an introductory meeting on Monday, questions remain, such as whether the HealthVest proposal fits with the master plan.

The proposal is a “legitimate possibility,” said Land Use Director George Benson. “We have to negotiate a lot of things, a lot of issues,” following Dr Kresch’s introductory meeting with the authority, he said. Regarding the project’s potential, Mr Benson said, “In general it sounds like a good idea, but again, it’s our property so we have to do due diligence.”

The HealthVest company is “solvent” and “it’s a matter of if we can come to an agreement,” the Land Use director said, adding he hopes “to clarify where we all stand,” by the next Fairfield Hills Authority meeting.

According to meeting minutes, the next step would be for HealthVest representatives to meet with Land Use Agency Director George Benson and town Planning Department member Christal Preszler to further discuss the proposal.

Its website describes HealthVest as “an innovative behavioral healthcare firm that has redefined the psychiatric hospital space.”

The Fairfield Hills Authority heard this week from the CEO of HealthVest, a behavioral healthcare firm that would like to bring a psychiatric hospital to Fairfield Hills.
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