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09/19/2017 12:00 AMThough a developer recently pulled out of a deal to convert the old Morgan School site to a mixed-use development, the Planning & Zoning Commission (PZC) has granted the town a special one-year extension to start the redevelopment project, allowing the town extra time to find someone to complete the project.
Zoning Enforcement Officer Eric Knapp said the town, as owner of the property, requested the extension, which will run from April 2018 to April 2019. Past that date, the existing permits for the project expire.
“The town needs to re-market the property,” Knapp said, noting the extension provides for an “extra year to get started” on the project.
First Selectman Bruce Farmer did not return calls for comment on the story, but he did briefly address the extension at the Board of Selectmen meeting on Sept. 13.
“We need to get this moving,” Farmer said.
Plans for the old Morgan School site were terminated last month after the developer for the project, Mill Pond Clinton, LLC, couldn’t secure financing. There were also environmental permits the state needed completed by Mill Pond principal Henry Resnikoff. On June 12, the Department of Energy & Environmental Protection sent Resnikoff a letter outlining the issues in the application that needed to be fixed and resubmitted within a 45-day window. Resnikoff failed to respond to that letter, but then requested a 30-day extension before ultimately dropping its agreement with the town.
Resnikoff did not respond to messages asking for comment on this story.
In February 2015, voters approved a plan for the old school property that contained plans to turn the 38-acre property into a mix of retail and residential use. In addition to the stores and residential use, the redevelopment also planned a hotel and restaurants.