Price of Nye Road land reduced, but GOP says not by enough

Alex Wood, Journal Inquirer, Manchester, Conn.
·3 min read

Jan. 27—GLASTONBURY — The Nye Road property that Town Council Democrats hope will become the site of an affordable housing complex will cost the town $250,000 less than was expected when the council initially approved the purchase in December.

AT A GLANCE

NEW DEAL: Town of Glastonbury will buy 10.86 acres at the end of Nye Road for $3.15 million, down from the $3.4 million originally agreed on.

OBJECTIONS: Minority Republicans on the council say the price reduction isn't enough to cover $750,000 in work needed on office buildings already on the site — and that the town shouldn't close the deal until all three current tenants agree not to extend their leases.

But Republican council members say the reduction isn't enough to cover needed repairs of the office buildings already on the site. They also wonder whether the housing construction might be delayed if a current tenant exercises a lease-renewal option.

The council Tuesday confirmed its approval of the purchase of the 10.86-acre property on the cul-de-sac at the end of Nye Road by a 6-3 party-line vote identical to the vote that first approved the deal on Dec. 8.

The council's majority Democrats supported going ahead with the purchase for $3.15 million, down $250,000 from the initially approved price of $3.4 million.

But Kurt P. Cavanaugh, the council's Republican minority leader, estimated that the cost of a new roof and rooftop mechanical units for the office buildings will come to $750,000. He said the cost of that work, beyond the $250,000 the town will recover through the price reduction, will come from the town's capital improvement budget and could otherwise be used for other purposes.

"I just see this as a runaway train project once again," Cavanaugh said.

The tenants occupying the two office buildings on the site have the option to extend their leases, and town administrators have been negotiating with them in an effort to get them to move elsewhere in town.

Town Manager Richard J. Johnson said two of the tenants expect to stay through 2024. But he said they may relocate a little earlier and the town would consider giving them the right to do that. Johnson said the town needs to continue its discussions with the third tenant.

Republican Councilman Whit Osgood said the town shouldn't close on the purchase until the third tenant agrees not to exercise the lease-extension option.

There has been talk of relocating the local school system's central office to 50 Nye Road, the larger of the two buildings on the site. If that happens, Johnson said, the building will need renovations to meet the school system's needs.

Town Council Chairman Thomas P. Gullotta, a Democrat, called the Republican objections to the land purchase "excuses."

Town officials have been interviewing private developers with the objective of forming a partnership to build the affordable housing complex, which would occupy part of the Nye Road site and extend onto neighboring town-owned land that lacks road access.

Gullotta said at least two of the developers have expressed interest in building on the site. If a private developer did that on its own, under a state law that encourages affordable housing, the complex might contain as many as 240 apartments, Gullotta said.

He said council members want an "attractive, low-density, 80-unit project," in which all the apartments would be affordable "in perpetuity." The state law that encourages private developers to build affordable housing requires only that 30% of the units in a complex be affordable for 40 years.

Osgood replied that the council hasn't decided on the characteristics Gullotta cited.

For updates on Glastonbury, and recent crime and courts coverage in North-Central Connecticut, follow Alex Wood on Twitter: @AlexWoodJI1, Facebook: Alex Wood, and Instagram: @AlexWoodJI.