A Response to Tuesday, November 11th article titled “Town Creates Venuti Planning Committee”
This subcommittee and its charge sound awfully familiar to the one the Open Space Committee was created for and worked diligently on the Venuti property acquisition for 18 months. I can probably save the town a lot of time and effort and address this committee’s task.
1. Feasible configurations for uses of the land:
- 30 acre lake
- Town Beach
- Natural Park with miles of hiking trails
- Ball fields
- Town Campus
- Transfer Station
- Possible town sponsored affordable housing or 55 and Over housing on a portion of the property (see Housing Partnership)
2. Economic impacts on the town of alternative scenarios:
- Largest private landowner with exceptional class A soils suitable for all kinds of development.
- Long term residential development would put economic strain on town in terms of mill rate increase due to educational expenses and town resources.
3. Ways to mitigate the cost the cost to the town of acquiring the property:
- Possible partnership with South Central Regional Water Authority. The company may have vested interest in water and protecting the water shed. Any easement would restrict town uses forever!!!
4. Long term interest to town regard to the property:
- Recently the town’s new plan of conservation and development stated that 80% of all respondents to their survey indicated they would support a large open space acquisition and specifically rated the following the three most important.
- A natural park like setting.
- Hiking and walking trails.
- Bicycle trails and cross-country skiing.
- The plan also mandates that it’s in the town’s best interest, short and long term to preserve large undeveloped tracts of land into open space.
- The plan states that Killingworth will struggle to develop a tax base because of its unique location and large areas of water shed with relations to our two reservoirs. The logistics make it near impossible to create a tax base. Purchasing property versus residential development is far less taxing to our community.
Finally and this is important, the Open Space Committee, on behalf of the town approached me. They said “get an appraisal” and I complied. They said they had the charge to negotiate and if I were reasonable this would go to referendum. I was. I spent a great deal of money on an appraisal. The town got their own appraisal. Based on roughly 60 plus years of experience on evaluating large parcels of land, the two firms came up with 9.1 million and 8.2 million. A simple negotiation was then completed and agreed upon at 8.5 million. No discussion, but an agreement. All that was needed was for the Selectmen and Board of Finance to approve and send it to the people to vote yes or no. This I was told by Rich Cabral a dozen times, “three selectmen and six B.O.F. members will not decide this issue – the people will decide”.
Because of these recent negotiations, the Venuti family will not help, nor hinder, nor wait for this newest committee. I certainly will not spend any more money on appraisals, maps etc… Everyone is concerned about the economy, but if the Selectmen’s plan is to delay any action until a full economic recovery, wouldn’t it be reasonable to assume land values will increase. Property like this shouldn’t be tabled based on today’s emotion. Open Space is forever!
The Housing Partnership had great new ideas to help our young and elderly alike find affordable housing in Killingworth, but had no real impact on imposing any new regulations. The P.A.Y.T. Committee worked super hard to save all of us money and their findings went somewhat ignored. The Open Space Committee was given a charge, worked unselfishly and with great determination for a better Killingworth. But, ultimately received a “ pat on the back” by the Selectmen. Will this new committee have better results? Will the Selectmen and B.O.F. ever let YOU DECIDE? Recent history would suggest NO!!!
Sincerely,
Michael Venuti