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01/30/2018 04:00 PMThe Economic Development Commission (EDC) has begun exploring the idea of forming an economic development corporation to jumpstart the town’s development. EDC Chairman John Allen told the Board of Selectmen as it considers its 2018-’19 budget that the corporation would function “as a kind of booster club for the town to facilitate economic development.”
Allen said the EDC has been looking into the idea, reviewing what towns like Hamden and Norwich have achieved through development corporations.
Allen said that the corporation would be a separate, nonprofit entity from the town governed by a board of directors. Allen said the corporation would work closely with Town Hall and the Planning & Zoning Commission. As an example of how the corporation would work, Allen said that the corporation would acquire property, such as the Old Morgan School, and then look at the best way to develop the property.
“The corporation would only develop the kinds of things the town wants, and work with the town,” Allen said.
Allen said that way the town wouldn’t have to worry about a developer buying the property and building something the town wasn’t interested in.
Allen said that the EDC still had to do research into the pros and cons of forming the corporation. Allen said the EDC is seeking input from the Connecticut Economic Resource Center, which the EDC would use as a consultant for initiatives such as marketing the town to businesses and developers.
One aspect the center would be used to help with is investigating the formation of a development corporation.
“The corporation would have to be self-funding; it can’t be something the town has to pay for,” Allen said.
Allen said it could take up to three years to have the corporation in place, as there are several legal components to starting one, in addition to finding the people needed to run it.
“It’s a very smart way to get the town unstuck,” Allen said.