Torrington City Council Approves
Beecher House Society Lease
On Monday, February 2, 2004 the Torrington City Council unanimously approved a lease arrangement between the Beecher House Society Inc. and the City of Torrington for a 90.75-acre property located at 852 University Drive for the purpose of constructing the Beecher Center. The Center will include the reconstruction of the Wadsworth-Beecher House, originally built in 1774. The land will be leased to the Society for $1/ year for 99 years.
The mission of the Beecher House Society is to support the reconstruction and restoration of the Wadsworth-Beecher House as a national historic site; and to preserve and carry on the work of the entire Beecher family with the Beecher House Center for the History of Equal Rights, a national education center focusing on human rights, equal rights, women’s issues, and the legacy of the Beecher family and its enduring values and principles.
The City has worked diligently with the Beecher House Society to ensure the lease agreement is fair to the Society while protecting the best interests of the taxpayers of Torrington. Several benchmarks have been built into the lease to ensure that the project is completed within a reasonable timeframe. For example, the Society must complete a Master Plan for building the Beecher Center within two years, and begin construction of the Center within one year of final approvals from the City’s Planning & Zoning Commission. Finally, the Wadsworth-Beecher House portion of the Beecher Center must be open to the general public within ten years. If the Society fails to raise sufficient funds and misses any of these benchmarks, the lease agreement will be
terminated.
The construction of the Wadsworth-Beecher House is an exciting opportunity for Torrington; the City will be a major tourist destination with the birthplace and childhood home of Harriet Beecher Stowe. The Beecher Center, in cooperation with both UConn and Yale University, will develop programs that will attract students and visitors from around the country. As a result, Torrington will be home to a nationally known conference and educational center that will transform the University of Connecticut at Torrington into a center for American Studies. With both the Beecher Center and the proposed improvements to the John Brown Birthplace, Torrington will have a lasting legacy as an important part of American history.
In addition to the historic impacts of the project, the Beecher Center will bring economic benefits to the City of Torrington. The Litchfield Hills generates approximately $334 million in annual travel and tourism revenues; this project will help ensure that Torrington see a larger portion of these tourism dollars. The Beecher House Society estimates 15,000 – 25,000 people visiting the site on an annual basis. This estimate is based on comparable historic homes in Connecticut (Stowe House in Hartford averages 20,000/year, Noah Webster House 15,000/year and the Mark Twain House over 50,000/year.) According to UConn’s Center for Economic Analysis, attendance of 18,000 people annually would generate total spending of $2.7 million on lodging, dining and shopping.
As required by State Statues, the project has already received a favorable recommendation from the Torrington Planning & Zoning Commission. Following the vote by the City Council to enter a lease agreement, the Society will commence the Master Planning process. A full review, site plan and special exception permit to allow an educational use on the property will also be required by the Planning & Zoning Commission in the future.
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