New Farmington Town Hall Gets Final Land-Use OK

FARMINGTON, CT — Less than a year after voters said yes to transforming an old portion of Farmington High School into a new Farmington Town Hall, the town's top land-use board has also said "yes" to the project.

The Farmington Planning and Zoning Commission earlier this month unanimously approved a special permit application by the town to renovate the "1928 Building" — located at 10 Monteith Drive — into a new town hall.

The "1928 Building" is so-named because of the year it was built and it is the only portion of the existing Farmington High School that will not be demolished when the new school opens.

Currently, the town is building a new $145 million Farmington High School facilitynear the old school, with the state-of-the-art facility expected to open for the 2024-25 school year in August.

Meanwhile, voters in May 2023 said "yes" to a $16 million project to take the old "1928" section of the existing FHS and renovate it into a brand new Farmington Town Hall.

The PZC's March 11 approval of the new town hall project came after no one spoke for or against the site plan application at a public hearing that was closed that night.

Farmington Town Engineer/Director of Public Works Russ Arnold did give a presentation on the site plans for the "1929 Building" before the PZC.

He said the town building committee for the project has been particularly busy since voters approved the new town hall project a year ago.

"Since then, the building committee has been working diligently to come up with a set of plans," Arnold said.

He was joined by Chris Nardi, a consulting engineer with Silver Petrucelli & Associates out of Hamden, which designed the new town hall layout inside the 1928 Building.

Nardi's testimony was mostly technical and he said all current operations at the existing Farmington Town Hall will be moved to the new town hall in the old building.

According to Arnold, the hope is for the town hall switch to happen by September 2025.

For the minutes of the March 12 Farmington Planning and Zoning Commission meeting, click on this link.

From May 2, 2023: 'Farmington Says 'Yes,' OKs Budget/Town Hall Project'