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07/30/2019 03:30 PMThe Pierson Study for Future Use Committee has begun to outline the next steps in the process of figuring out what to do with the old-school building. Part of that process will be clearing a legal path to redevelopment.
At a July 25 meeting, the committee discussed the process that it will follow in the coming months. The steps devised by the committee include compiling a current building assessment, an environmental site assessment, possible reviews of the zoning regulations, placing a request for proposal for ideas for the location, and last, holding a charette (public meeting with stakeholders) to gauge the publics ideas for what a future use for the building could be.
First Selectmen Christine Goupil, who is also the chair of the committee, said that many of the steps can happen concurrently. Goupil estimated that the entire process would take no longer than 18 months in total.
“You don’t want to get into a situation like the old Morgan” School, Goupil said.
The former Morgan School on Route 80 has been empty since its closure in the summer of 2016, with redevelopment delayed by the failure of the first developer’s plan; the current Indian River Landing redevelopment project is now underway. During the interim, however, the town had unintended costs associated with maintenance and safety concerns.
“We don’t want to go through the experience of sitting on an old building,” Goupil said.
While many people around town no doubt have their own ideas for what should happen with Pierson, there are some complicating factors.
During investigations into the school and a review of the history of the building, the town discovered that the deed for the sale of the building from the Trustees of the Morgan Fund to the Town of Clinton in 1953 states that the premises must always be used for the education interests of the residents.
Goupil said that the town been in contact with the office of the state’s attorney general about possibly changing that provision, and was advised the office supports of the town’s position. However, Goupil advised the committee that that process that could take up to six months in total.
Some committee members said the town should look into the possibility of keeping the building open for events during the year. The idea of opening the gyms during the winter so that the Parks & Recreation Department can use them for basketball games was discussed. Goupil suggested that having people in the schools would help deter break-ins. Control of the school is expected to be turned over to the town sometime in November.
In November 2018, after being presented the results of a facility needs study, the Board of Education voted to close the Pierson school that serves grades 4 and 5. The committee cited rising costs and declining enrollment as reasons to close the school. As a result of the move, grade 4 will go to the Lewin Joel School (which currently serves pre-K to grade 3 students) and grade 5 will go to the Jared Eliot Middle School (now serving grades 6 to 8). The changes will go into effect during the 2019-’20 school year.
Informal discussion about what to do with the property have included commercial uses, housing, or converting the building into a senior center. Goupil said that there has been some commercial interest already in the property, though that interest had to be kept confidential. However, Goupil said that she felt it was smart to do some public outreach and gauge what the community wants, to which the committee agreed.
A possible date for the charette has not yet been set, though it is likely to occur sometime in the fall. The next step for the committee is to come up with a tentative budget for the process.