Members present: Chairperson Anthony, Vice Chairman Carino, Members DeMaio, Futtner, Kyc, and Lillis; Alternates Fields and Guay
Members absent: Members Morrison, Murray, Murtha, and Slicer; Alternates Sepura and VanderPutten
Town staff present: Economic Development Coordinator Denise Whitford
Mr. Fields sat for Mr. Slicer and Mr. Guay for Mr. Murray
CALL MEETING TO ORDER
Chairperson Anthony called the meeting to order at 7:32 p.m.
ROLL CALL
Completed.
PUBLIC PARTICIPATION
None.
APPROVAL OF MINUTES OF PREVIOUS MEETING
February 28, 2001 Regular Meeting
A motion to approve the minutes of the February 28, 2001 regular meeting was made by Mr. DeMaio, seconded by Ms. Futtner, and unanimously carried.
COMMUNICATION/REMARKS OF THE EDC CHAIRPERSON
Ms. Anthony explained that the Economic Development Coordinator was planning to attend tonight's meeting, and made a motion to go to Item 8 on the agenda while waiting for her arrival. A motion to go to Item 8 was made by Ms. Futtner, seconded by Mr. Lillis, and unanimously carried.
The members discussed the recently held joint Economic Development/Planning and Zoning Commission meeting, generally indicating that while the agenda had not been entirely what was expected, their impression of the meeting was a favorable one, with some progress made. Another joint EDC meeting has been scheduled for April 10, this time with the Inland Wetlands and Redevelopment Agencies. There will be no April 29 regular meeting of the EDC.
Mr. Carino commented that he had five pages of notes from the joint EDC/PZC meeting, yet a goal still had not been defined; it did not seem feasible to try to set standards without knowing what the goal is -- for instance, there was divergence about whether the development ratio should be 60/40, 80/20, or something else. He also suggested that the Planning and Zoning Commission tended to hide behind the rules by stating that they must "follow the rules," despite the fact that the PZC has the power to change the rules if necessary. Other problems Mr. Carino cited in trying to set standards were (1) what would be done with remaining residential land; (2) how the school department can project school enrollment figures when future land use is not yet known; and (3) how to deal with the fact that the town
plan of development changes all the time, often because developers are granted zone changes.
It was noted that PZC members had objected to certain parts of the plan brought in for Buckland Road development, especially its residential component, but later seemed more willing to consider it. Some PZC members also did not seem to understand the areas around Buckland Hills Mall, using terms such as "low income" housing, "budget" motels, etc.
Ms. Anthony said the EDC and PZC should meet again to continue the process, since the PZC did seem to be listening. She commented that she, personally, would like to see a library and cultural center in the Buckland area, possibly with a recreational component, and all town offices consolidated on a campus in the Town Hall area.
REMARKS BY ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT COORDINATOR
Economic Development Coordinator Denise Whitford distributed copies of color-coded maps, explaining what each of the four pages represented. Mr. Carino commented that the parcel at the northeast corner of Buckland Road and Deming Street was depicted as developed, which was not the case because the proposed Stop and Shop at that location had been denied. Ms. Whitford and others said the computer had apparently picked it up that way because of the church on the rear portion of the property, since the land remains a single lot at this time.
Ms. Whitford reported that she recently participated in an economic development gathering at the Farmington Marriott attended by over 200 developers, and plans to go to a May convention in Las Vegas and a high-tech/biotech convention in June. She will not be able to attend the next two meetings because of these commitments. Ms. Whitford also has been appointed to the Connecticut Economic Growth Council as a lending officer. During her interactions with various Hartford agencies, it has become clear that South Windsor is not competing in any way with Adriaen's Landing.
Ms. Whitford turned to projects in South Windsor:
· Kidco is now considering a parcel at Commerce Way and Sullivan Way
· A tax partnership proposal for Rex Lumber will hopefully be submitted in time for the next EDC meeting
· Wetlands work is ongoing for the I-291/Buckland Gateway area
· The town and the I-291 corridor landowners have met to look at
infrastructure improvement
· Between Rounds plans some property improvements later this year
· Wetlands work continues for the Buckland Road office buildings.
Finally, Ms. Whitford distributed copies of a tax partnership proposal (Attachment A) for Total Fitness Inc. and reviewed the conditions and figures, noting that partnerships are now computed on assessments rather than on tax figures. She said she had expected to receive a letter from Total Fitness, but so far it had not arrived. She was expecting the letter tomorrow. The members discussed whether or not they could act upon the partnership before seeing the applicant's letter of request. Ms. Whitford noted they might consider acting on it subject to receipt of the letter, modifying their motion in such a way as to ensure consistency between the formal request letter and the proposal (Attachment A) that she had just given them.
A motion to approve the tax partnership proposal for Total Fitness Inc., contingent upon the owner's formal request including the same figures and conditions as those presented in the partnership proposal (Attachment A), was made by Mr. Lillis. Ms. Futtner seconded.
In response to the Chairperson's call for discussion, Mr. Carino objected to setting a potential precedent by acting prior to receipt of the applicant's formal letter of request, and, further, to the applicant's requesting the partnership from the economic development coordinator rather than from the Economic Development Commission. The members sought to determine what would happen if they did not act on the proposal during the present meeting. Ms. Whitford said it would delay Town Council approval of the application by at least a month, since the proposal would first need to get on the Council's agenda, and then be scheduled for Council action at a later date. It was noted that the April 10 EDC meeting would be a special meeting, not a regular meeting, so no action would be taken at that meeting,
either. Both Ms. Whitford and Ms. Anthony said it was their understanding that the owner planned to proceed with construction whether or not he received a partnership. Noting that the EDC is supposed to act only upon written partnership requests, Ms. Anthony expressed some reservations over the owner’s not having been responsive to Ms. Whitford's earlier requests for a letter, which raised some doubt over whether his request letter would arrive the next day as promised.
A motion to amend Mr. Lillis's motion to require that the [Total Fitness] written request for a tax partnership be received by the Chairperson by Friday of this week was made by Ms. Anthony. Mr. Lillis seconded.
The members discussed the amendment. Mr. Carino again objected because of possibly setting a bad precedent. By way of explanation as to why approval was being sought before receipt of the applicant’s letter, Ms. Whitford said an outside source (not anyone in the town hall) had misled the applicant by saying a letter of request was not required. Ms. Anthony asked how long Ms. Whitford had been talking to the owner of Total Fitness; Ms. Whitford said since December.
There being no further discussion on the amendment motion, a vote was taken. The motion to amend the original motion to require that the [Total Fitness] written request for a tax partnership be received by Ms. Anthony by Friday of this week carried by a vote of 7-1, with all voting in favor except Mr. Carino, who voted against it.
A vote was then taken on Mr. Lillis's motion to approve the tax partnership proposal with the amendment. That motion also carried by a 7-1 vote, with all voting in favor except Mr. Carino, who voted against it.
Mr. Lillis left at 8:45 p.m.
The members concurred that Mr. Carino had made some good points about the proposal, and while most of the members voted Aye, they indicated that they had done so only because Ms. Whitford would be missing the next two meetings, potentially delaying the partnership approval for some time if they did not act tonight. They also indicated they would not do it again.
REPORT OF PLANNING AND ZONING COMMISSION LIAISON
Liaison Clifford Slicer was not present to report.
REPORT OF INLAND WETLANDS AGENCY/CONSERVATION COMMISSION LIAISON
Liaison Joseph DeMaio read excerpts from the IWA/CC minutes, including discussion of a request by an applicant to build a second house on his property for a parent; there was some question as to whether or not the proposed house was sited in wetlands areas. IWA/CC had also discussed an application by the Savings Bank of Rockville to build a 3-story structure at the corner of Clark Street and Ellington Road. Despite some members’ expression of concerns about aesthetics and the amount of disturbance, the plans were accepted.
REPORT OF WATER POLLUTION CONTROL AUTHORITY LIAISON
Liaison Joseph Carino reported that the WPCA had approved the sewer system for Total Fitness. He said there had not been any new discussion of the Clark Street Pumping Station with regard to easements, the evergreen walk, or upgrades, but noted that the Town has had to spend considerable money on breakdowns and worn-out equipment over the years. In response to a question about Carla's Pasta, Mr. Carino said the company was not being asked to share in plant improvements, but there would be a special assessment for any company who creates special handling problems for the Town. He will research what requirements had been specified.
OLD BUSINESS
None.
NEW BUSINESS
None.
GENERAL DISCUSSION
None.
ADJOURNMENT
A motion to adjourn was made at 9:15 by Ms. Futtner, seconded by Mr. DeMaio, and unanimously carried.
Respectfully submitted,
Rosalyn I. Toper
Recording Secretary
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