Economic Development Commission

Chairperson Councilman Vincent Loffredo Economic Members Councilwoman Jeanette Blackwell Councilman Anthony Gennaro Development Councilman Steven Kovach Councilwoman Linda Salafia Committee Staff Christine Marques, Director of ECD Brian Gartner, ECD Staff DRAFT SPECIAL MEETING Minutes DATE: Tuesday January 23rd 2024 TIME: 7:00 p.m. Meeting was held online via WebEx and in person, Room 208, Municipal Building. In attendance: Chairman Vincent Loffredo, Councilman Steven Kovach, Councilwoman Linda Salafia, Councilwoman Jeanette Blackwell, Councilman Anthony Gennaro Staff in Attendance: Christine Marques, Director of ECD Brig Smith, General Counsel Brian Gartner, ECD Staff Public In attendance: Diana Martinez, Richard Jukonski 1. Call to Order: Chairman Vincent Loffredo called the special meeting to order @ 7:12 p.m. 2. Approval of Minutes 1. Vote to approve minutes of the December 12th, 2023 regular meeting– motioned by Councilwoman Blackwell, seconded by Councilwoman Salafia. 2. Councilman Steven Kovach identified item 4.1 vote to approval of meeting calendar not declared in minutes, requests inclusion of council’s remarks on agenda items Portland Street Property. Chairman Loffredo requests amendment to meeting minutes to include vote on item 4.1. 3. Chairman Loffredo requests amendment to revise spelling error for public in attendance to Chris Cambareri. 4. Chairman Loffredo comments on Economic Development Fund Balance “no acknowledged delinquencies” despite no full report on agenda item. Chairman identifies there are delinquencies but no discussion ensued. Requests amendment to meeting minutes to reflect correction. 5. Motion to approve meeting minutes, subject to corrections and additions discussed, by Chairman Loffredo, seconded by Councilwoman Blackwell, unanimously approved. 3. Public Session: 1. Chairman Loffredo opens floor to public comments to address items on EDC agenda. Chairman recognized Diana Martinez, 134 Prospect Street, Middletown, Connecticut, speaking on agenda items #8 Miller Street and #9 Portland Street. Martinez recommends identifying agenda item numbers with straight addresses, referencing 80 Harbor Drive, 297 Butternut, and 66 Thomas, compared to Miller Street Property and Portland Street Property. He spoke on behalf of community member Robert Penard, who owns 22 Portland Street and has a vested interest in 18 and 22 Portland. Robert Penard and Diana Martinez oppose out-of-city developers obtaining 20 Portland Street for future residential construction, instead advocating that the land be used as a public green space. Martinez and Penard would like to see the vacant space used as a public park, a community garden, and a shared space for community members. Martinez explains that a FOIA request was issued on Miller and Bridge Street properties sent through the city attorney. The FOIA is requested to be considered during discussions on Miller and Bridge Street properties and to request public access to environmental testing reports If you require special accommodations for any meeting, please call the ADA Coordinator at (860) 638-4540, (voice) or (860) 638-4812 (TDD/TTY), or the Town Clerk’s Office at (860) 638-4910 at least ten (10) days prior to the scheduled meeting. Page 1 of 5  on property sites. Diana Martinez would like to receive more information from city staff and EDC General, initiating the lease process for the property, which is currently holding a license as an LLC. Chairman Loffredo closed public comment session. 4. New Business A. Brian Gartner informed committee that the agenda items fall under preexisting items, there are no new business items. 5. Old Business 12. Proposed Leases for 297 Butternut Street & 66 Thomas Street i. Chairman Loffredo identifies action item 12 and invites Richard Jukonski in attendance to address the action item. Richard Jukonski requested members review the additional five-plus five-year lease for properties located at 297 Butternut Street and 66 Thomas Street. Chairman Loffredo reflects that the city owns properties and currently utilizes sites as parking and service garages, respectively. Richard Jukonski explains his positive affirmation that the council will review this action item. Point of order by Brian Gartner that a public comment session has yet to be initiated and identifies that there are members of the public in attendance. Chairman Loffredo clarifies that the committee will continue the action item discussion and return to the public comment session once action item 12 is concluded. ii. General Counsel Brig Smith updates EDC on the 297 Butternut properties used as parking, where Richard Jukonski stages vehicles for mechanical services and other amenities. Richard opened a parking lot and provided additional parking for Butternut Hollow Park during the summer. 66 Thomas Street is an in-use service garage. Both properties were owned by Richard and sold to the city for leaseback. There are different terms and timelines, and the General Counsel wants to line up both contracts and give five-year terms with a five-year renewal option. iii. Chairman Loffredo requests financial information regarding revenues and expenditures of lease agreements. General Counsel Brig explains that the 66 Thomas Street garage will be the PILOT, the 297 Butternut property is the payment in lieu of taxes as a non-taxable property. iv. Councilwoman Salafia inquires about the redlined dates from the original contract and the revised contracts. v. Chairman requests clarification on thirty day “for cause” provision in parking lot lease but not a thirty- day no cause. General Counsel explains for cause standard would be not paying, remaining in default, and city provides a 30-day notice, where applicant has thirty days with a ten-day notice to cure default. vi. Chairman calls for a vote on resolution that address both properties, motioned by Councilwoman Blackwell seconded by Councilman Salafia, and approved unanimously for February council agenda. vii. Point of order made by Brian Gartner clarifying the motion made by Blackwell and seconded by Salafia. 1. 21st Century Bond 1. Brian Gartner informs the committee that there are no new updates at this time. Chairman Loffredo opens floor to questions regarding action item. Councilwoman Blackwell is recognized, and requests an itemized breakdown of spending disbursements from Director Erlacher, as the bond is designed to fund specific projects. Chairman Loffredo calls to attention the meeting minutes from December 12th, citing statistical figures under item 1 old business, item 2.4 arcade development. 2. The Village at Riverside (Arcade Redevelopment Project) Chairman Loffredo calls on General Counsel Brig Smith. Brig Smith reflects there are no substantive updates regarding project schedule. a. Draft Land Disposition Agreement remains a draft, previously provided to the committee. b. Draft Private-Public Partnership Agreement remains a draft, previously provided to the committee. c. Resolution Authorizing PPP and LDA Agreements remain a draft. Page 2 of 5  d. Boring Test previously provided to the committee, representatives from VHB and Geotech are not present at themeeting to present a detailed analysis. Chairman Loffredo questions about the water table. Director Christine Marques comments that the boring test includes water table, and will provide findings for record. e. Draft Parking Study i. Director Marques affirms that the parking study has been revised, and the appendices now include updated-parking maps. ii. Councilwoman Blackwell comments on the timeframes they analyze parking rates, and clarifying various nuances identified in the report. iii. Councilman Kovach inquires about the analysis techniques and data compilation, requesting clarification of monitoring standards. iv. Councilwoman Salafia asks for more clarification on Attention to Detail (ATD) site, and consensus on what the cities goal is. General Counsel Smith explains that the intention is to continue to negotiate and if the need arises to implement eminent domain as a secondary strategy. City would seek a council resolution approving eminent domain if need arises. Councilwoman Salafia requests General Counsel Smith to provide a memo explaining the process of eminent domain. Subsequently General Consul Smith provided a brief overview of the eminent domain process, and the trajectory of the approach from the city standpoint. v. Chairman Loffredo closes agenda item. 3. Riverfront Master Plan i. No substantive update. 4. 80 Harbor Drive i. Director Marques states there are no ongoing flooding issues for the building and that progress continues to be made. Director Marques explains the anticipated project deadline whereby the restaurant owners will move into the building on March 1, 2024. In the next five weeks, the goal is to have the restaurant owner transition into the building to begin furnishing and training staff. Councilwoman Blackwell acknowledges that the Lamonicas ii. The committee discussed ongoing patio and steel issues: staff are waiting for a structural engineer to resolve the problem. The helical piles were not placed linearly on the column line, so the grade beam is not dead center on the lines. Councilman Kovach asked whether this was a pre-existing issue, and Director Marques clarified that this was under the purview of the current subcontracted service. Currently, the project is waiting for the structural engineer to proceed. Staff will continually monitor this area of concern to ensure procedures are completed accurately. ECD staff currently has no cost estimate for this delay. iii. Councilman Kovach inquires about any flooding damage. Director Marques responds that there was no permanent, noticeable water damage caused by recent weather conditions. iv. Chairman closes item agenda. 5. R.M. Keating i. Director Marques informs the committee that a sprinkler pipe broke on the second floor, and the issue is currently under control and being monitored by building superintendent. There was water damage to businesses, caused by the pressurized sprinkler system, and discusses the age of the infrastructure services. Chairman Loffredo asks for more information regarding the state of the water services throughout the building, calling attention that this issue will need further examination to prevent further incidents Page 3 of 5  ii. Chairman recognizes Councilman Kovach, requests an excel spreadsheet, and inquires about an outstanding balance of $115,000. Recommends a discount or reduced pay option for auto- payments for tenants, and seeks a discussion for options and strategies to provide incentives to pay on time. Actions need to be taken to reduce delinquencies. Councilwoman Blackwell recognized that EDC over the past four years has not been forceful in evicting tenants, but acknowledges that stricter oversight and regulation on tenants is necessary. Councilman Kovach and Chairman Loffredo recommend that the EDC committee have more continuous updates on tenants, revenues, and proper lease agreement practices. iii. Director Marques provides an update on two new tenants, Barbell Cartel, 3,000 square feet previously occupied by Rita Miller, for a monthly rent of $850. Councilwoman Blackwell questions about lease dates of the tenant agreement, and the payments Councilman Kovach questions about the timeframe for when work will be completed. Director Marques responds no timeframes have been established, currently the process is in the early planning stage, and the main objective is figuring out the prices. iv. Chairman Loffredo questions about how long the city and EDC has recognized there is a water problem, of flooding. Director Marques reflects that the water problem has been known since Rita Miller tenant moved in approximately one year ago. v. Councilman Steven Kovach inquires about what is the internal process for verifying whether a tenant can pay a bill, is there a vetting process to check tenants credit scores, or bank accounts? He recommends more due diligence on selecting appropriate tenant candidates. Director Marques responded that there are no formal procedures for checking or verifying their prior financial status. There are contact information requirements, business plans for explaining the use of the space, and the application forms have been updated. Councilwoman Salafia expressed that some tenants have no prior financial backgrounds, R.M. Keating serves as an incubator space for start up’s and she voiced her concerns for potentially denying tenants who have no history. vi. Councilwoman questioned about whether R.M. Keating is in the sanitation district vii. Motioned to approve Barbell Cartel resolution by Councilman Kovach, seconded by Councilwoman Blackwell. Vote called to order by Chairman, approved unanimously. viii. Motion to approve Riverbend LLC resolution by Councilman Kovach, seconded by Councilwoman Blackwell. Vote called to order by Chairman, approved unanimously. ix. Chairman closed agenda item. 6. Grant Earmarks i. Brian Gartner explains that there is no new substantive update; Economic Development Department continues to work with state and federal officials. ii. Director Marques informs committee that the city is performing title searches, due diligence documents required by state regulation. iii. Chairman Loffredo closed agenda item. 7. 210 Dripps Road i. There is no legal tenant, there is currently an occupant, and there are no formal arrangements with those inhabiting the building. ii. There was no motion to vote on Dripps Road at this time. iii. The committee discussed that the original letter of intent for Dripps Road property was reversed, and as such did not categorize it as surplus city property. Page 4 of 5  iv. Motioned debated to approach city departments on city property, Chairman called a vote of those in favor of using the process for Dripps road. 3-2 in favor, Councilman Gennaro and Councilwoman Salafia voted in opposition. 8. Miller Street Property i. Brian Gartner explains the city code of ordinances regarding surplus property and the requirements needed before property can be adverted for sale. Currently waiting on title search cards to be finalized and proceed. Originally foreclosed due to tax reasons. ii. Councilman Kovach reaffirms Diana Martinez request to list addresses. iii. Chairman Loffredo inquires about the FOIA request on Miller Street property. Chairman questions about environmental testing, structural conditions, and site assessments when purchasing a property, recommends checking with legal if these is needed or is covered by an “as is” sale listing. The city is the owner of the property, under proper insurance by the city but the attorney is holding the property for the city. iv. Councilman Kovach asks for provision containing the dollar amounts of the back taxes on 17 Miller Street property. v. Diana Martinez inquired about the internal processes applied to Dripps Road property and if they followed the same procedure as Miller Street, and the committee did not vote to move forward with approving Dripps Road as city surplus property. vi. Councilwoman Blackwell states there needs to be fairness regarding all foreclosure property, and evictions of city surplus property. She advocates that there needs to be centralized, formal procedure that is universally applied to all foreclosed properties. vii. Chairman Loffredo states that the city cannot sell foreclosed, surplus property unless it follows the proper ordinances. Chairman acknowledged that a formal request was received from Diana Martinez, and the committee collectively agreed to start the process on Miller Street beginning with an internal procedure. Councilman Gennaro questons about the reversal of the letter of intent, 9. Portland Street Property i. Motioned made to table agenda item until next regularly scheduled meeting by Councilman Kovach. ii. Brian Gartner provided a brief update regarding 20 Portland Street, the city owns the deed to the property, structure was demolished in 2011, and there were documented demolition and site assessment. Interested parties of 18 Portland Street, and 22 Portland Street for 20 Portland Street. Follow up on potential buyer is needed at this time; there is no objection from the Economic Development Department at this time. iii. Chairman Loffredo questions whether parking department was contacted regarding 20 Portland Street, and Director Marques responded she will sign the documents iv. Motion to start the ordinance process on 20 Portland Street made by Councilman Kovach, seconded by Councilwoman Blackwell, with four yes votes and Councilwoman Salafia abstaining. 6. Adjournment: Moved by Councilman Steven Kovach, seconded by Councilwoman Blackwell. Chairman Loffredo closed the EDC meeting at 9:35 p.m. Page 5 of 5