This is a printer-friendly version of an article from Zip06.com.
12/05/2018 11:00 PMClinton residents unanimously voted to approve the $2.2 million sale of the old Morgan School property to developer Greylock Property Group to build the mixed-use Indian River Landing project at exit 63. The vote, held at a town meeting on Dec. 5, was moved from the Town Hall Green Room to the auditorium to accommodate the larger than usual number of voters.
The Board of Selectmen (BOS) announced the Indian River Landing Project at a Nov. 7 board meeting. If the proposal is successful, the land will be turned into a mixed-use development consisting of retail, restaurants, a large-scale grocery or retail store, and townhomes. The project is estimated to take about five years to complete.
First Selectman Christine Goupil said she is “excited to get the project moving.”
The next steps, according to Goupil, are for the developer to go through the approval processes, which includes getting approvals from the state as well as the Planning & Zoning Commission.
Ken Navarro, a member of Greylock Property Group, told the Harbor News he was happy for the support and partnership Greylock Property Group has received from Goupil and the town.
Strong voter support wasn’t unexpected. At a public hearing on Nov. 28, speakers were largely in favor of the project. Navarro said at that meeting that the project would be “something Clinton can be proud of.”
According to the developer, Greylock will conduct its due diligence on the project, then begin the permitting process with the town and the state. Navarro said that due to the previous process that took place on the site, he is hopeful that the process can move efficiently. Once the approval processes are complete, demolition of the school will take place.
“There is a lot of work ahead of us,” Navarro said.
In February 2015, close to 400 people came to a town meeting to cast a vote on the sale of the property to Mill Pond, LLC, for $2.8 million. The town approved the sale by a vote of 247 to 163. Mill Pond, LLC, had also planned to turn the property into a mixed-use development.
The project was supposed to break ground in late 2016; instead developer Henry Resnikoff terminated the agreement with the town in August 2017 citing issues with financing and a permit application from the Connecticut Department of Energy & Environmental Protection.
During the vetting of proposals prior to the announcement of the sale to Greylock property group, Goupil said the board in particular sought developers who they felt had the financial backing to avoid the problems that were encountered by the Mill Pond development.