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08/28/2019 12:00 AMAt an Aug. 26 public hearing of the Planning & Zoning Commission (PZC), attendees were able to glean more information about a potential future use of the Unilever property. A special continuation of the meeting has been scheduled for Monday, Sept 9 at 6 p.m. in Town Hall. A vote to approve or deny the application may be held that same night.
The New Information
The public hearing was held to hear testimony over a proposed zoning exception to allow for commercial indoor recreation use on the main level factory floor of the building located at 1 John Street. At the meeting, Michael Massimino, the owner of the property, told the PZC that at this time there is a tenant ready to use some of the space for indoor turf for indoor soccer and lacrosse. Massimino told the Harbor News/Zip06.com that the tenant would like to get to work in early October to utilize the fall season.
“A tenant came and said ‘I’ll sign a lease, but I need to be in for the fall,’” Massimino said.
Massimino said that there have been other conversations where potential tenants expressed interest in uses such as batting cages and golf simulations
“We’re committed and we’re excited,” Massimino said.
While the developers may be excited, there is still a potential hurdle that will need to be cleared.
The Next Meeting
A required report from the Connecticut River Area Health District (CRAHD) has not yet been delivered to the commission. Due to those circumstances, the PZC decided to schedule a continuation of the public hearing at a special meeting on Sept. 9. At that time the public would be able to weigh in any new information that is contained only in the CRAHD report.
The PZC was especially interested in what the CRAHD report had to say about the sanitary system on the property. Massimino said that with town assistance, the developer had done “substantial testing” on the property regarding the soils and wastewater disposal systems.
Immediately following the public hearing is the regularly scheduled monthly PZC meeting, during which point the PZC can vote on whether or not to approve the zoning exception, assuming that the public hearing is closed during the special meeting.
The PZC made an unusual move to pass a motion to specifically continue the public hearing only in respect to the CRAHD report. The motion was passed by a vote of five (Chris Aniskovich, Gary Bousquet, Michael Rossi, Aman Singh, and Drew Richards) in favor to three opposed (Alan Kravitz, Martin Jaffe, and Michael Hughes). The PZC members opposed to the motion expressed reservations about limiting the allowable testimony to only the CRAHD report.
The Public Input
The public hearing drew speakers who held opinions on all side of the issue. John Allen, the chairman of the Economic Development Commission (EDC), read a letter from the EDC endorsing the proposal.
“For over 100 years, Unilever was at the bustling center of the town, a major player in our history and pillar of the economy. Since it was closed seven years ago, this once thriving location has sat idle; a subject of many rumors and a few missteps. Finally, it can once again be an anchor in the downtown we deserve,” Allen said.
John Garcia spoke in favor of the project as a parent with kids who are interested in sports, particularly soccer. Garcia pointed out that due to Clinton’s central location on the shoreline and the lack of similar facilities in the area the town could be in position to draw visitors from all over.
“We have what I like to call potential and lots of it here,” Garcia said.
In opposition, Bruce Farmer said that while he is not opposed to sports complexes, he felt there was more potential prosperity to be made in other uses, particularly such as using the space as a business incubator or housing location for several smaller businesses.
Several members of the public questioned the PZC and the applicants about the possibility of an indoor shooting gallery being allowed on the premises. Several PZC members expressed uncertainty if that was an allowable use.
According to the town’s zoning regulations, if the special exception is granted, it could allow for activities such as “indoor pools, indoor ice rinks, indoor sports fields, indoor running/jogging tracks, indoor gymnasiums, indoor archery ranges, [and] indoor shooting ranges.”
However, Massimino explicitly and repeatedly stated that the developers have no intention of leasing a tenant that would put a shooting gallery in, nor had they ever thought about it.
“Our intention right now is solely conventional sports,” said Massimino.
Since the sale was announced in late July, the sale of the Unilever property has been a hot topic of discussion and speculation in Clinton. Seven different parcels that encompass several acres were sold to the developers. Consultant Planner John Guszkowski had told the Harbor News/Zip06.com earlier in the year that the developers could ask for a special exception that would allow them for a brewery and restaurant, however no such application has been filed at time.
Massimino didn’t divulge much information at the public hearing in regards to plans for the rest of the property, but he did vow he would become a familiar face at PZC meetings.
“I’m sure we’ll be in front of this board many times over the next 24 to 36 months,” Massimino said.
The Unilever plant had more than 100 years of history in town, but in July 2011, Unilever announced that the company’s Clinton plant would close by the end of 2012. Since then, there have been multiple efforts to bring an indoor recreational complex to the building that until now had not materialized.