Town Council Considers Plans for Future Developments
- Peter Prohaska
- 3 minutes ago
- 3 min read
Back in April, the Southington High School Winter Guard took home a gold medal at the Winter Guard International Sport of the Arts World Championship. Their program, called “Paris ‘24,” beat out 19 others for the top prize in the Scholastic A group. The team traveled to the event in Dayton, Ohio by car and managed to outclass its competition despite the 14-hour drive. The Southington Town Council kicked off its May 26 meeting with an official proclamation saluting the group’s outstanding achievement.
Following that ceremony, the Council proceeded to an agenda lighter than recent ones associated with the budget, but which still had plenty of important news to digest, especially as it pertains to coming developments in town.
Apple Harvest Festival
Planning for the Apple Harvest Festival this autumn is “in great shape,” according to a report from Councillor Chris Palmieri, who chairs that committee. 29 of 32 vendors are returning, and there is interest in the remaining spots as well. The theme for the festival will be decided by the public, and more information on how to vote can be found here.
Former Councillor Victoria Triano was named Grand Marshall for the Festival. Triano was in attendance to accept the honor, and also to deliver a report from the America 250 Committee she chairs. She highlighted several events coming up to celebrate the semiquincentennial. On June 4, district schools will have lesson plans dedicated to the American Revolution. On June 20, in cooperation with SoCCA, the town green will be the site of musical performances, a reading of the Declaration of Independence and other events, as well as SoCCA’s annual pottery sale.
Development at 682 Curtiss Street
A report from Councillor Mike DelSanto’s Economic Strike Committee touched on the question of how much the town can contribute to a private development. Local businessman Kurt Holyst had approached the group earlier in May about a potential development of 60 acres of land that he owns, currently zoned for industrial. Holyst said that the land on 682 Curtiss Street would be more attractive to developers with the addition of an access road; he is asking for Southington to assist with covering that expense, which would likely be more than $1 million. The town would stand to reap the rewards for its investment in terms of higher property taxes once the parcel is subdivided and sold. A development at 1601 West Street was cited for comparison: it went from being taxed at roughly $3,000 per year to $280,000 over the past three years after improvements were made.
The requested assistance would be of two sorts. First, the town would apply for a STEAP (Small Town Economic Assistance Program) grant from the state, which could cover 80% of the road construction costs, with the town responsible for the remainder. During discussion, Town Manager Alex Ricciardone raised a concern that the grant might not cover the full 80%.
Holyst’s second request was for the town to cover the initial costs of creating an engineering plan. This support would effectively be a loan, to be repaid to the town upon the sale of the first property.
Ricciardone, with the blessing of the Council, said that he would ask Town engineers to begin preliminary planning for the road project so that it could be “shovel-ready” should grant monies become available. The Council tabled the matter for later discussion after requesting more specifics on possible costs.
Plan of Conservation and Development
Every ten years, Connecticut communities must adopt a new Plan of Conservation and Development (POCD). A draft of Southington’s latest plan received Council approval at the meeting after Todd Chaplinsky, Chair of the POCD committee, presented an overview of the document. The POCD sets forth goals and visions for the Town in areas such as housing, open space preservation, recreation and infrastructure. Chaplinsky highlighted the public input of some 674 survey respondents, the work of the committee, and the contributions of SLR Consulting, the engineering firm which guided the process.
The draft document, said to be 94% complete, is available for review on the Town website. There will be a public hearing on July 21, prior to official adoption of the POCD.
PCB Remediation at Sewer Plant
Ricciardone also reported on the matter of PCB remediation at the Sewer Plant. Consulting engineers Tighe and Bond came up with a plan to store the materials securely on site rather than trucking them away, something Ricciardone said would save the town “millions.” The Council voted to approve up to $375,000 for the project, some of which will be ultimately reimbursed by the companies responsible for the pollution.
