Out Of Time: Ridgefield Holds Off On November Public Safety Referendum, Seeks More Work On $55M Plan

"There's no vote tonight," Marconi said. "We move forward to the concept plan."

Marconi said officials appeared to agree that the project needed more time before going to voters.

"From what I'm hearing, the answer to that question is we need more time and we may be better looking at a standalone referendum," he said.

The Public Safety Facilities Committee had recommended, in a 6-1 vote Aug. 27, what it called Option D: a roughly 48,000-square-foot combined police and fire facility estimated at $55 million. The plan would place both departments on adjoining properties on Danbury Road near the Recreation Center.

Related: Ridgefield Public Safety Facilities Committee Backs $55 Million Police-Fire Plan In 6-1 Vote

Monday's meeting also brought the first public disclosure of the privately owned parcel involved in the proposal.

Marconi said the town already owns 217 Danbury Road and is proposing to acquire the neighboring property at 221 Danbury Road. He said the owner had agreed not to sell the property to someone else while discussions with the town continue. The location had previously been withheld publicly to avoid affecting negotiations.

Marconi later said no purchase price has been established.

"We have a willing seller," he said, "but still there are things to work through. We have no number at this point."

Committee Presents $55 Million Plan

Acting Public Safety Facilities Committee Chair Adam Safir told the boards that the group had held 24 public meetings over roughly eight months, reviewed about 28 town-owned parcels and examined combinations involving public and privately owned sites.

Safir said the committee's report contains one preferred recommendation along with five other developed alternatives and another framework for future consideration.

The recommended configuration combines police and fire operations while sharing certain spaces, including reception, meeting areas and other common functions.

Committee member Steve Scalzo said the combined building would total about 48,000 square feet, with slightly more than 23,000 square feet for fire operations and about 25,000 square feet for police. The committee's pricing model put the project at approximately $55 million.

Committee member David Brickley said the estimate was developed using costs from Nasco, the estimator used for the previous referendum proposals, adjusted for the smaller building and different site.

Brickley said the committee's proposed fire station was expanded to seven apparatus bays before its final recommendation. He said shared spaces allowed the combined facility to reduce overall square footage.

The proposed site was also a significant factor in the lower price, Brickley said. He contrasted its relatively flat terrain with the extensive rock and excavation associated with Quarry Ridge, the site involved in the previous referendum.

Brickley cautioned, however, that the current estimate has less design detail behind it than the estimate used for the prior referendum. He said the $55 million figure includes roughly a 15 percent contingency, but said he might have included an additional 2-5 percent if developing the estimate from scratch because of remaining site uncertainties.

Architecture consultancy Kaestle Boos Associates would also prefer additional contingency, he said.

The largest uncertainty is site work, Brickley said. More detailed grading plans and subsurface testing would provide greater confidence in the estimate.

He said a grading plan could potentially be developed in about three weeks, while full borings could take as long as eight weeks. Extensive test pits could provide some information sooner.

Waiting also carries a cost, Brickley said. Using an annual construction escalation assumption of about 5 percent, he estimated delaying a $55 million project adds approximately $225,000 to $250,000 per month.

Officials Raise Concerns About Unknowns

Police Commission Chair Sharon Wicks Dornfeld said she was not yet comfortable moving the proposal to a November referendum.

Among her concerns were the unresolved purchase of 221 Danbury Road, wetlands and zoning approvals, the site's tight fit, future expansion and the amount of time available to explain the new proposal to voters.

"We're looking at several months at the very best just with the legal aspects of this before we know for sure that this is a viable location for this project," Dornfeld said.

She also questioned whether the proposed facility was planning far enough into the future, noting that Ridgefield has spent decades trying to replace its aging police and fire facilities.

Dornfeld said the town should balance keeping costs down against creating another space problem years from now.

Her final concern was public communication.

"We won't have time to educate the public about this," Dornfeld said of the November timetable, adding that inadequate communication had been cited after previous referendums. "Doing it right may be more important than doing it fast."

Selectperson Barbara Manners raised similar concerns about the amount of usable property available for the combined facility and whether the fire department would have enough room for future needs.

Manners said she considered the Danbury Road location a strong site for the Fire Department but was less comfortable placing both departments there. She suggested that locating the Police Department at the Schlumberger property could merit further consideration.

Selectperson Sean Connelly also said he was uncomfortable advancing the proposal immediately.

"I just feel like it's very tough to come with a lot of these unknowns ... and say, 'yes, we feel good about this. You should go and vote for this'," Connelly said.

Connelly said he supports the idea of combining police and fire operations but believes officials need more certainty about whether the Danbury Road property can accommodate the proposed facility and its future needs.

Selectperson Maureen Kozlark questioned whether adding another 5 percent contingency could push the project from $55 million to roughly $57 million and asked what additional work could be completed if the November deadline were removed.

Brickley said the next step would be moving from the current "test fit" toward a more developed conceptual design, with room layouts, an accurate grading plan and better subsurface information.

Chiefs Want More Detailed Plans

Police Chief Jeff Kreitz said he liked the concept but wanted to see more detailed architectural plans before fully committing to it.

"I think it will work," Kreitz said. "The only thing that I would love to see is the conceptual drawings, the schematic drawings."

He said he wanted to see what would actually be built on the site, including floor plans, so police and fire officials could determine whether operational and future needs were adequately addressed.

Fire officials similarly said they wanted additional detail before giving full support, according to the discussion.

Committee member Pamela Dunaway, who cast the lone vote against Option D at the committee's Aug. 27 meeting, reiterated that concern Monday.

Dunaway said her primary reason for voting no was that the chiefs had not sufficiently reviewed the latest version before the committee's final vote. She also said questions remained about the Police Department's outbuilding, future expansion and whether the constrained site would work operationally over the long term.

She said other alternatives included putting the Fire Department on Danbury Road and the Police Department on a flatter portion of the Schlumberger property.

"If all the experts checked all those boxes and said it works, I'm pro that, whatever that is," Dunaway said.

Safir defended the committee's recommendation, saying the other alternatives are detailed in its report but Option D emerged as the preferred choice because the majority considered it the most effective, fiscally responsible and potentially community-supported option.

November Deadline Dropped

The compressed timetable arose because a referendum placed on the Nov. 3 general election ballot required action by the Board of Selectpersons by Sept. 4, Marconi said.

Rather than meet that deadline, town officials will continue studying the Danbury Road proposal.

Marconi said the next phase could include additional test pits or borings, conceptual drawings, review by the police and fire chiefs, and preliminary discussions with the Inland Wetlands Board and Planning and Zoning Commission. The town will also continue negotiations for 221 Danbury Road.

Once more information is available, Marconi said another public meeting similar to Monday's will be held.

"We're not going to force it," Marconi said.

The eventual referendum date remains undetermined. Marconi noted that Thanksgiving and the December holiday season could complicate the schedule.

Officials also discussed whether members of the Public Safety Facilities Committee should continue working during the next phase. Marconi said the committee technically dissolves after submitting its final report, but members could be reappointed to assist with the additional work.