Board of Selectmen Meeting December 17, 2018

Board of Selectmen Meeting December 17, 2018

I would like to thank the Scullys, owners of the Ensign House for being so gracious to me to give me a tour of the house.

The Scullys are the most passionate people in their task of renovating the Ensign House.

However, the inside of the building has been gutted by the past owners, Webster Bank leaving very few relics from the past.

The building will require significant capital to renovate with many challenges on the way to a successful conclusion.

The task that the Scullys have undertaken in my opinion is a “Field of Dreams,” where viability is elusive.

The Board of Selectmen should not be swayed by the passion of the owners but take the responsible task to evaluate their fiduciary responsibilities to the taxpayers.

It appears that the Board of Selectmen, in giving the abatement has not thoroughly studied the impact for an unknown financial impact on the owners, unknown business plan and financial impact on the taxpayers if the project cannot be completed is pure folly.

The Real Estate Company that sold the property to the Scullys defined The Mansion at Chestnut Hill with a history of the Ensign House and the opportunity for redevelopment.

It stated the house is listed on Historic Registry and has approval for mixed-use development of the existing building and surplus land.

The uses include multifamily and hotel, as well as specialty uses such as bed and breakfast and health spa/wellness.

The property is in the Center Zone encouraging flexibility of use.

The Ensign House has 18, 000 sq. ft, of space to renovate with many restrictions and costly environmental issues.

The waiver of fees from the Water Pollution Authority was denied as they maintained their independence.

This project is presently is in its infancy with only one tenant that appears to have their restaurant on the first floor of the house, increasing their seating and providing a banquet facility as an adjunct to their restaurant. There are many unknowns with the expansion of the restaurant.

The Board of Selectmen has taken the decisions from other sources with different responsibilities and authority that are not responsible for the fiscal impact on the taxpayers to make their decision.

There appears to be a lack of financial information from the owners and the cost benefit analysis that would impact the taxpayers.

I would urge the Board of Selectmen to rethink their analysis for an abatement which appears to be using taxpayer revenues to become partners with a passionate owner that could use an injection of capital into an extremely expensive project.

I would suggest that the Board of Selectmen table the abatement until there is more financial information forthcoming.

There should not be a rush to judgment.

Time allows the Board of Selectmen to review the entire project from all aspects of the development and come to a conclusion that does or does not benefit the applicant and the taxpayers.

It appears the financial risk is not only with the Scullys but also with the taxpayers who are also looking for lower taxes and a lower mill rate that are determined by the revenues and expenditures in the Town’s budget.

In my opinion the Board of Selectmen should not approve the abatement that has many unknowns on long-term viability. The risk should be with the developer, not the taxpayers.

Over the years there has been discussion on the Simsbury Golf Course losing money year after.

According to the Finance Director the Simsbury Farms Special Revenue Fund ended FY2017/18 with a net decrease to fund balance of $229,037. It goes on to say, further discussion will be had during the budgeting process to identify the cause of the recurring losses and potential resolution(s).

Now is the time to discuss a resolution for the management of the Simsbury Farms Golf Course.

In keeping with the concept of going forward with potential resolutions, I had a discussion with Bloomfield Town Manager Phil Schenk, since Bloomfield Golf

( Wintonbury Hills Golf Course) has been managed by Billy Casper Golf Management (BCG) since July 1, 2003 with good results.

I spoke with Phil Schenk about the challenges that lie ahead with a decrease in play and decrease in revenues over the years.

I asked if I could have a copy of his contractual agreement with the BCG which he has forwarded to me, with a copy to Town Manager Maria Capriola.

The BCG manages and maintains all activity on the Golf Course. The procurement of materials and equipment are purchased with value of scale of their resources.

There are monthly meetings with Town volunteers and Town staff.

All files generated under the management of BCG are transparent and open to the public.

I would suggest that anyone interested obtain a copy of the 36 page contract.