APRIL 20, 2006

ATTENDANCE: Douglas Sutton, Chair; William Krummel; Nicholas Kydes; Fred Bondi (8:30).

STAFF: Alan Lo, Building and Facilities Manager

OTHERS: Mary R. Windt, Executive Director, Under One Roof, Inc.; Peter Nolin, Corporation Counsel.

PUBLIC HEARING (at 7:30 p.m.)
On the disposition of a small triangular parcel of City surplus property (approximately 2,500 sq. ft.) located at the end of Oakwood Avenue between Route 7 Right-of-Way and property identified as Block 38A, Lot 24.

Mr. Sutton opened the Public Hearing at 7:41 p.m.

Neither the applicant nor any member of the public was in attendance.

Adjourn Public Hearing

Mr. Sutton declared the Public Hearing closed at 7:42 p.m.

I. ROLL CALL

Mr. Sutton called the roll. There was no quorum in attendance.

II. MINUTES OF PREVIOUS MEETING(S)

February 16, 2006

There were no additional changes to the minutes of February 16, 2006.

March 16, 2006

There were no changes to the minutes of March 16, 2006.

As there was no quorum the minutes of February 16, 2006 and March 16, 2006 were tabled until the next Committee meeting.

Mr. Lo requested that the Committee take the next item out of agenda order.

IV. NEW BUSINESS

B. The Marvin

1. Review request from Under One Roof, Inc. and State Department of Education for the City to act as the fiduciary for School Readiness grant and refer the following to the Common Council:

“a. Authorize the Mayor, Richard A. Moccia, to execute any and all documents necessary for the application, acceptance and implementation of the Minor Capital Improvement and Wiring for Technology grant with the State Department of Education – School Readiness program, as the fiduciary for Under One Roof, Inc.’s Marvin Children’s Center. The grant amount is
$72,134.00.

b. Authorize the Mayor, Richard A. Moccia, to execute any and all documents with Under One Roof, Inc. for the City to act as the fiduciary for the Minor Capital Improvement and Wiring for Technology grant with the State Department of Education – School Readiness program for the Marvin Children’s Center. The grant amount is $72,134.00.”

Ms. Mary R. Windt, Executive Director of Under One Roof, Inc. gave a brief description of the program for the Committee. She explained the process by which she had applied for the grant and how the funds would be used.

Mr. Krummel said he thought it was a good idea. He admitted he hadn’t heard about the program before, and asked Ms. Windt several questions about how long The Children’s Center has been in existence, and also about The Marvin senior residence. He asked Ms. Windt to outline some of the intergenerational programs that they run, which she did.

Mr. Krummel asked what does fiduciary responsibility mean. Mr. Lo explained. Mr. Krummel asked if a legal discussion with Corporation Counsel was necessary. Mr. Peter Nolin explained what the City’s fiduciary responsibility would be in regards to this particular grant. A short discussion followed.

Mr. Krummel said he would like to see the Council’s resolution worded to put limits in as to the City’s fiduciary responsibility and exposure. Mr. Sutton asked if the amount of the grant doesn’t do that. Mr. Krummel felt the fiduciary responsibility needs to be more clearly defined. He suggested adding the sentence “The grant funds would be used in strict accordance with all use requirements and applicable limits and restrictions identified within said document.” Mr. Kydes suggested a motion to accept the action as is. He was reminded there was no quorum so no vote could be taken. Mr. Sutton stated he would use his authority as Chairman to move the item forward.

The Committee continued with the regular meeting agenda.

III. OLD BUSINESS

A. Review proposal to acquire City property on Oakwood Avenue and:

1. Approve to enter negotiation directly with adjutant property owner;
2. Review and recommend approval of the proposed offer from Silvermine Development, LLC for the purchase of City property located at the end of Oakwood Avenue;
3. Refer recommendation to Planning Commission in accordance with CT General Statutes Section 8-24 Review; and
4. Refer the recommendation to the Common Council for final action.

Mr. Lo brought the Committee up to date on the background of this proposal. Mr. Krummel said the proposal had originally been proposed about a year ago, and the developer felt that with the addition of the City property to his own, he could add more units to his proposed construction. Mr. Lo, on behalf of the Committee, requested that the Developer to designate three units for affordable housing. The developer rejected the proposal and offered to purchase the property at market value. The Committee decided two months ago to consider the Developer’s proposal and requested staff to establish a reasonable value for the parcel. Mr. Lo researched the assessment records and the Committee supported a market value of approximately $15 per sq ft. The Committee agreed to a $14 per sq. ft. purchase price and the developer would pay for the survey of the property.

Mr. Krummel asked how many units was the developer able to provide without the parcel being added. Mr. Lo said they didn’t discuss it because the developer wasn’t offering that to the City, although the City had asked for it. He said he thought the number was ten units, and maybe one or two more if this property was added, but the developer wouldn’t know for sure until he come up with a new design applies for permits. Mr. Lo said they tried to get something more from him but haven’t been able to.

Mr. Kydes said that this has been discussed numerous times in numerous meetings and that the Committee has taken the best approach and gotten the best amount of money for the size of the parcel. He recommended they put it through and take the $14 per sq. ft. they had decided on in a previous meeting and bring some money back into the tax base. Mr. Kydes recommended moving this item back to the full Council. Mr. Sutton agreed.

The item was referred to the Council.

IV. NEW BUSINESS

A. NFCC Items

1. Review bids for Fixtures, Furnishings and Equipment (FF&E) for Kendall School Improvement Project and refer the following recommendation to the Council:

a. Authorize the Purchasing Agent to issue purchase order(s) to Equipment Environments, Inc. for the purchase of Furniture, Fixtures and Equipment (FF&E) for the Kendall Elementary School Extension and Alterations Project for a total not to exceed $6,072.80 (includes a contingency in the amount of $500.00) Acct. #0904-5101-5777-B0313.

b. Authorize the Purchasing Agent to issue purchase order(s) to Hertz Furniture Systems for the purchase of Furniture, Fixtures and Equipment (FF&E) for the Kendall Elementary School Extension and Alterations Project for a total not to exceed $30,371.356 (includes a contingency in the amount of $2,760.00) Acct. #0904-5010-5777-B0313.

c. Authorize the Purchasing Agent to issue purchase order(s) to Hertz Furniture Systems for the purchase of Furniture, Fixtures and Equipment (FF&E) for the Kendall Elementary School Extension and Alterations Project for a total not to exceed $27,599.32 (includes a contingency in the amount of $2,500.00) Acct. #0904-5010-5777-B0313.

Mr. Lo explained the background of the item. He said this was for furniture for the new classrooms and some for the administrative offices. There were several questions from the Committee members about how the lowest bid determinations were arrived at, and Mr. Krummel and Mr. Kydes found the accompanying spreadsheet confusing. After some discussion it was decided to move the discussion of these items to a Special Meeting of the Committee in May.

Mr. Bondi arrived at the meeting at 8:30 p.m.

** MR. KRUMMEL MOTIONED TO MOVE DISCUSSION AND APPROVAL OF ITEMS 4A, 1a, 1b, 1c TO THE SPECIAL MEETING TO BE HELD ON MAY 4, 2006 AT 7:00 P.M.
** MOTION PASSED UNANIMOUSLY.

No action was taken on this item.

C. Carver Center

1. Review proposal to enter into a new land lease agreement with Carver Center for the existing playground and refer the following to the Council:

“Authorize the Mayor, Richard A. Moccia, to execute a Lease Agreement with Carver Foundation, Inc. for the use of their property for public playground with Carver Center providing day-to-day maintenance and the City providing major repair and improvements. Lease period shall be 25 years and annual lease payment will be $1.”

** MR. KYDES MOTIONED TO APPROVE THE ITEM.
** MOTION PASSED UNANIMOUSLY.

V. MISCELLANEOUS/DISCUSSION ITEMS

A. Discussion on the possible sale of City property located at the corner of Scribner Avenue and West Cedar Street.

Mr. Lo explained the background on the possible sale. Mr. Bondi said that the adjacent owner has been parking his truck on City property. Mr. Lo said the owner removed the trucks in late October of 2005. Mr. Bondi said the owner wants to build condos on the property, and there is some question with regard to increased traffic and the further development of housing in Colonial Village. Mr. Lo said the owner mentioned he wanted to build rental units on the property. Mr. Krummel said that with the neighborhood’s concern about the lack of open space, this area is grass with two trees, and is a sort of a park area. Mr. Kydes said the piece is City-owned at the moment, and suggested it stay that way. Mr. Bondi said he was not in favor of selling it. Mr. Krummel said he would like to see the adjacent owner clean up his own property, which is an eyesore at the moment. Mr. Bondi concurred, saying as a landowner, the owner disregards everything and parks his trailer truck on City property. It was the consensus of the Committee not to sell the property.

B. Special Meeting of Land Use and Building Management Committee for May 4, 2006 at 7:00 pm in Room 231 prior to Planning Committee meeting.

This item was discussed earlier in the meeting.

** MR. BONDI MOTIONED FOR THE COMMITTEE TO GO INTO EXECUTIVE SESSION.
** MOTION PASSED UNANIMOUSLY.

The Committee went into Executive Session at 8:45 p.m.

VI. EXECUTIVE SESSION

A. Brien McMahon High School Project – Discussion on potential claims.

ADJOURNMENT

The meeting was adjourned at 9:15 p.m.

Respectfully submitted,

Linda J. Hayes
Telesco Secretarial Services