"Can you give me a timeline for the purchase of the property," Bauer asked, referring to land the city had optioned and purchased from landowner Ted Bysiewicz in a corporate/industrial park off Middle Street.Bysiewicz had been indemnified against loss on the property when the city asked him not to sell the land to the Army for the then-proposed Army Reserve Training Center. The city agreed to an option to buy the land from Bysiewicz who argued that if he said "no" to the Army that he would lose a sure and immediate buyer for the unsure prospect of developing the land.
Apparently the city exercised the option to buy three acres, at $143,000 per acre. The land is adjacent to Yellow Freight on Middle Street, and the Westfield Fire Department is requesting a piece of the land to build a fire department substation on 3/4 acres. The Fire Department would pay the city $60,000 for the land.
Representatives of the Westfield Fire Department said that the station is essential to safeguard businesses and homes which lie West of I-91, and for which truck access is only available along Country Club Road and through Cromwell.
"When did we purchase it?" Bauer asked. "Who decided which lot."
"It was the parcel we optioned after the Council approved it," EDC member and Common Councilman Gerry Daley answered.
"But when did we decide which lot to option?" Bauer persisted. "I know the lots all were valued at different prices. Did the seller decide which lot to sell us? Did he sell us the most expensive lot? There must have been discussions that didn't happen in public. And if we're able to sell it, it's potentially the best investment for the public."Town planner Bill Warner said that the decision was made in a meeting with the Planning Department, the Mayor and Bysiewicz. Warner also said that "two or three" parties are interested in purchasing the remainder of the lot for development.
Bauer remained mystified as to how a decision could be made without Common Council approval.
OtherEDC members, including Daley, Joe Bibisi and Vinnie Loffredo assured Bauer that the purchase was essential to guarantee the safety of residents in the part of town described by the fire officials.
"It's a matter of public safety," Bibisi said.
Fire officials said there were no immediate plans to build the substation and that construction was at least five to ten years off.
Until that time, emergency fire needs will have to be provided as they currently are.
Raised Parking Fees Sent to Council for Approval
The EDC agreed with Parking Director Tom Hartley to increase street parking to $1 an hour, and to set off-street lot prices at 75 cents an hour so that parking in the lot would be less expensive, and would provide an incentive for long-term parkers to use the lot.
The EDC, in a time crunch because the room they were using was about to be occupied by another committee, agreed to table discussion of permit or vanity parking, which has been proposed to be raised from $65 a month to $150 a month. They also postponed discussion of the location for the new parking garage which is now proposed for the Melili lot.
Jonah Center director John Hall, who was at the meeting to request additional grant funding from the city, asked that if the garage is built on the Mellilli site that it does not prevent future access to the river.
11 comments:
" Westfield Fire department officials said Middle Street can only be accessed from Cromwell and Country Club Road"
Honestly? What happened to Smith Street? Did we lose it? I find it funny that since Mr. Bysewicz is on the Westfield Fire Commission that they go thru the City and try and steal the property. 3/4 of an acre for 60 thousand dollars? It is worth 143 thousand an acre then why sell it to them at that kind of loss. Seems to me they want the taxpayers of the City to subsidize their ridiculous plan. Do they have that many calls in that area to warrant building another firehouse? Honestly it seems like a ruse from the Westfield District. If the City wide taxpayers have bought it, then it should be left as open space as it was originally intended.
Since they have opened the door saying its a public safety issue, then should they not build it now? This one smells to high heaven and I'm glad Mr. Bauer raised the question. I find it funny how Mr. Loffredo all of a sudden wants to worry about public safety after voting down the Police Chief. I suggest someone ask them to prove the need for the firehouse by providing data which shows the response times and need for the facility. If they have done their homework it should be easy. It seems to me they want to build their empire a bit bigger, at the cost to all taxpayers. Wake up City fathers, just say no. Keep the land intact so that ALL taxpayers benefit.
Must be a real emergency to get fire coverage there if the station won't be built for five to ten years.
Bauer is right to raise questions - they are all valid and should have been answered completely and should not be dismissed based on a perceived overall goal.
Why was this not an issue when Aetna was still there with thousands of employees? I don't think Aetna had there own fire truck did they? So now there are fewer people in that area and we are being told this is essential for public safety. I don't get it. What is up City Hall.
This is a very murky transaction from inception to conclusion. It creates the impression that there is an unsavory truth which has been effectively covered up under the guise of Public Safety. Although the Mayor , the Planner and a private Developer may have acted in the best interest of the citizens, it would have been preferable to have included the public in both the initial decision to enter into an agreement with the Developer and in the recent decision to enter into an agreement with the Westfield Fire Department.
You can always rely on Councilman Dave Bauer to ask the "right" questions (hard ones or easy ones). He is the friend of Middletown's taxpayers.
$429 Grand for three acres, I gotta find some stuff to sell to these guys.
This property has an interesting history. I was on the Board of Ed when the first high school building committee was advising us on where to build the school. Some of you will remember that Mr. Joe Serra was chair of the committee at that time, and that this committee was later dissolved. As I recall -- and I hope to be corrected if I'm wrong -- Mr. Serra was a proponent of using the Bysewicz property for the high school. I don't remember if it was 1999 or 2000.
I think I recall Councilman Daley saying something about how he supports a fair and open process...when it's convenient?
And ya, we gotta vote the good ol' boys out this election. All of them. Especially the ones who have been sitting in the same seats moving our chess pieces for too long.
Mr. Serra, the Mayor, the Planner and Mr. Bysiewicz got together without Atty. Wilson? This may be the dawn of a New Age in Middletown!
Quite a slope on that new parking lot. Going to be a lot of lawsuits come winter.
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