Preston's Acres

Keeping the Cove Clean

2006-08-18T10:13:00.000-04:00

Ledyard and Preston combine minds to protect Poquetanuck Cove from development, pollution

By Stephen Kurczy

Looming developments that would directly impact Poquetanuck Cove, like the construction of an additional two-lane bridge to span the Thames River, a four-lane bypass of Route 2A and Utopia Studios’ proposal to build a $1.6 billion entertainment complex on the grounds of the nearby Norwich State Hospital, have promted locals to protect the salt water estuary.

The Connecticut Department of Environmental Protection, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Agency and the Thames River Basin Partnership last month have teamed up with both Preston's and Ledyard's conservation commisions.

“I think it’s time this group reassesses the threats to this cove,” David Kozak, a senior coastal planner with the DEP, told the commissions.

A formal assessment can be paid for with grant money, Kozak said, and if a formal study is done, additional money is available to protect the cove from those threats.

“I’m a very staunch proponent of municipality involvement,” Donald Henne, of the U.S. Fish
& Wildlife Service, said. “That’s a lot of the horsepower that it’s going to take to get this thing going.”

Free money is available, they said; just ask for it.

Integral to protecting the cove is protecting the three streams that feed the cove – Halsey Brook, Joe Clark Brook, Poquetanuck Brook – and the biologists suggested that town planners create new zoning that would prevent developments with a negative environmental effect on these streams.

A program called Partners for Fish & Wildlife assists private landowners in restoring their land and ridding it of invasive species, like Phragmites.

“It would enhance the beauty of their property,” Sara Williams, a wildlife biologist at the Stewart B. McKinney National Wildlife Refuge, said. “Landowners could contribute to the wildlife that make the cove an important place biologically.”

The next step is to form a Poquetanuck Cove Committee to develop a plan of action and target grant money, according to Jean Pillo at The Thames River Basin Partnership, who organized last month’s walk around Poquetanuck Cove.

“Maybe we could extend the (492-acre) Rose Hill Wildlife Management Area to encompass these other places,” suggested Dave Bainbridge, chair of the Ledyard Conservation Commission.

Micky Weiss, a founding member of Project Oceanology and a former director, also attended the event, and pointed to the cove’s significance as a breeding ground for sea life such as the blue crab.

Weiss said he remembers when many marshes along Long Island Sound were littered and polluted. The tipping point came when a citizen effort came to clean it up, and big developers realized that by preserving open space they could gain public approval.

“A lot of it happened because of a group like this starting to meet,” Weiss said. “Things can change. You got to start small and have motivated people.”

Garbage Day

2006-08-18T10:07:00.000-04:00

Theme park analysts scrutinize Utopia Studios

By Stephen Kurczy

Garbage. Where does it go?

An average of 2.2 pounds of trash is generated by every visitor to Walt Disney World Orlando, according to Frank Stanek, a strategic planner with Walt Disney World before becoming president of Stanek Global Advisors.

“You need to ensure that you can adequately handle that and that the developer is able to support that,” he told the Norwich Hospital Advisory Committee last Wednesday, his voice coming through a speaker phone in the Town Hall.

The incinerator in Preston, which converts waste into energy, burns 500 million pounds of garbage per year, and Plant Manager Mark Davis said the plant already operates at maximum capacity.

“We wouldn’t want to burn more unless we were to add a third boiler,” he said.

Each boiler, where the waste is burned, is about 80 feet tall, 60 feet long and 15 feet wide.

Bob Ward, also calling in from Florida, added that Utopia’s projected attendance will multiply the town size by 12, and the town needs to start planning ahead for this impact.

The committee agreed, and in turn asked Stanek and Ward if they’d help the town prepare for Utopia Studios’ opening day. Ward worked with Universal Studios for 25 years and Stanek is the former president of international business development for Universal Studios.

“We’re looking for a quarterback,” First Selectman Robert Congdon said.

The two men agreed to play that role for the town.

Utopia has proposed an average of 60,000 visitors a day.

That’s 132,000 pounds of garbage, daily.

That’s more than 48 million pounds of garbage every year, generated just by visitors.

However, Stanek doubted if the project will meet proposed attendance, saying that no information backs up the projections.

But if projections are not met, then Utopia may not be able to provide the revenue promised to the town.

Regardless, Ward and Stanek said, Preston should meet with other towns to plan ahead for the impact, and also hire a full-time town manager to oversee the development of the town’s infrastructure, define the town’s key resources, and outline the requirements needed for the community to function effectively.

“You obviously will need a full-time person,” Stanek said. “I think the town has to commit to bringing someone on board.”

And to decide where all the garbage will go.

While each visitor to Walt Disney World Orlando generates 2.2 pounds of trash, the park itself spreads over 47 square miles. The town of Preston, however, is 33 square miles.

The town’s character is about to change, warned Ward and Stanek, two of the nation’s top entertainment industry consultants. And it would have changed with or without Utopia Studios.

“I think anything built on the property would have a significant impact,” Stanek said. “But if the proposal goes ahead, it would truly have an impact.”

Vote Not Devisive

2006-08-18T10:04:00.000-04:00

“I think you’re always going to have people that won’t change. But what is change? It’s inevitable.” - Susan Sampson

Both sides in Preston agree rift not likely as in incinerator proposal

By Stephen Kurczy

Late last Tuesday, sitting on the patio of Capt. Grant’s Inn on Route 2A, Susan Sampson took a deep breath. Her cigarette glowed.

“That’s who I’ve been looking for,” Joseph Gentile said, walking through the screen door, and then embracing Sampson. “We did it.”

Three hours after the announcement that voters, by 313 votes, had given town officials the go-ahead to allow Utopia Studios to develop 419 acres of the former Norwich State Hospital, after the cheers had died and the television crews were gone, Sampson’s heart finally stopped racing.

She had slept sporadically for the past week, and her children – Rachael and Jeremy – had complained she spent too much time away from home promoting Utopia. The political action committee that she co-chairs, Preston Residents for Utopia, had called more than 1,000 residents during the past week, urging them to vote yes.

“I’ll sleep good tonight,” Sampson said.

“Tomorrow,” Gentile said, “we’re going to wake up with a smile on our faces.”

Inside Capt. Grant’s, where Utopia Studios executives have been making their home for the past three years, innkeeper Carol Matsumoto was overseeing the last-minute dinner preparations for Gentile and his colleagues.

Over the past three years, Matsumoto has befriended Gentile, his wife Cathy, and their three children.

The referendum outcome, she said, is not surprising.

“The hard part to believe is that somebody like Joe would have so much tenacity to push forward with this,” she said.

Just then, Cathy Moriarty-Gentile, the sole shareholder of Utopia, walked up to Matsumoto and embraced her.

“My first supporter,” Cathy said.

Minutes later, holding her youngest daughter’s hand, Cathy was walking up the grand staircase to tuck her three children into bed.

Outside on the patio, Gentile asked Susan Sampson, a licensed Realtor, to help his family find a home in Preston.

Sampson agreed.

The Gentiles, currently living on Long Island, said they now plan to move to Preston.

The next morning, after a night’s sleep at Capt. Grant’s, Gentile drove past the former Norwich State Hospital and over to Parke’s Place, where he ate breakfast and spoke with a radio jockey stationed inside.

Gentile’s favorite dish is cheeseburgers and Cole slaw, according to the head cook, Parke Spicer, Jr.

“He says we should bottle the Cole slaw and sell it in the market,” Spicer said.

As far as Spicer sees it, with the town having approved Utopia’s proposal to build a $1.6 billion entertainment complex, Gentile will be ordering plenty more Cole slaw.

Spicer works at Parke’s Place with his three sisters, his mother, and his father, the former first selectman, whose photo hangs on the wall behind the cash register, surrounded by photos of his eight siblings.

“Things change, but we have to change with the change,” Spicer said last week, taking a break from preparing sandwiches. “We need to start trying to grow so we can survive.”

That’s one reason why Spicer voted yes on Utopia.

“How can you lose?” he said. “The property’s going to be cleaned up and not at our cost.”

That’s another reason why 1,330 Preston residents and landowners voted yes on the Utopia referendum, beating by a 6-5 ratio the number of no votes: 1,023.

Voter turnout was 68 percent, including 99 property owners and 67 absentee ballots.

“I’ve never seen this sort of turnout,” the first selectman said.

Parke Spicer’s sister, Beverly Coleman, also voted yes.

“I’m looking forward to my husband being able to work locally,” she said. “I am completely for it.”

Utopia estimated it will employ 4,700 construction workers.

Coleman also said she is in favor of something being done about the traffic, which vibrates the ground and causes the stone wall in front of her house in Poquetanuck Village to repeatedly crumble apart.

She said she hopes a Rt. 2A bypass will now be built.

Her mother, Donna Spicer, said she wanted Utopia approved.

“I’m tired of hearing about it,” she said, chiming in from the kitchen. “This is like a mini polling station, and from what I’ve heard it’s going to pass.”

Utopia will change the landscape, Susan Sampson and Parke Spicer agreed, but Utopia is not creating a rift in the town.

Past projects have.

After the state pegged Preston as the host town of a regional incinerator, the town decided at referendum to oppose the project, though in the end this only hurt the town in terms of collateral services it could have potentially received if it had not fought the project.

To this day, mention the incinerator to residents and their eyes roll.

Some residents are still bitter about losing additional revenue and services, such as free dumping.

But most residents have said that Utopia is not dividing the town, and the first selectman has repeatedly urged the town to stick together and not become divided like it did over the incinerator.

“I think you’re always going to have people that won’t change,” Sampson said. “But what is change? It’s inevitable.”

Gail Rigney, though vocal in her opposition to Utopia’s proposal, said that she will not contest the referendum’s outcome.

“This has sucked too much out of the town for way too long,” she said. “I just hope we can move forward as a community, and that it’s not the beginning of a long, painful process.”

Earlier that day, from what Ned Remondi saw at the juncture of Routes 2 and 2A, where he held a large cardboard sign that boasted of both The Day’s and The Norwich Bulletin’s endorsement of a yes vote, he said he thought the project would be approved.

Most passing cars honked, and only one person gave him the finger.

Closer to the Town Hall, where four police officers patrolled the grounds, several bicycle-riding children were wearing signs that said “Vote Yes.”

At 8:10 p.m., a parade of union workers thronged in front of the Town Hall, crowding around a stereo about to announce the results.

“I’m afraid this could get ugly,” said Adam Bowles, a reporter with The Norwich Bulletin.

But there was only cheering as union workers and locals, wearing Preston Residents for Utopia sweatshirts, threw their arms into the air.

“The minority vote was a quiet minority,” the chair of the Advisory Committee, Mike Sinko, said in the Town Hall parking lot after most of the union groups had finished celebrating.

If the Advisory Committee’s 6-5 vote last April to send Utopia to referendum was reflected in the town’s 6-5 margin of approval to move forward with Utopia’s proposal, then the town will not divide like it did over the incinerator.

The committee, though split over sending Utopia to referendum, remains cohesive.

And residents, though split over Gentile moving to town, did not get ugly.

As Sinko drove down to Brookside Café to share a nightcap with other Advisory Committee members, the second wave of celebration was just underway at Capt. Grant’s Inn.

Is Utopia for Everyone?

2006-08-18T10:01:00.000-04:00

Region reacts with concern over $1.6 billion proposal

By Stephen Kurczy

July 4, 2009: The region has until then to prepare for Utopia Studios’ opening day.

The short list includes road repairs, road-widening, new housing, new parking, and boosting police and emergency services.

Surrounding towns, however, remain apprehensive about what Utopia will look like, what the regional impact will be, and if the taxable wealth will be spread to towns other than Preston.

“I’m saying that the casinos impacted Preston and they got money,” Montville Mayor Joseph Jaskiewicz said. “It’s obvious that Utopia is going to impact Montville, so I think we should be able to work something out monetary-wise.”

The four towns surrounding Preston need to meet and plan a regional approach to Utopia’s impact, Jaskiewicz said. He hopes a meeting will be held within the month.

“I want to sit down and work out what we can get.”

The first selectman of North Stonington, Nick Mullane, agreed that the regional impact needs to be considered.

Repeatedly, however, Preston’s first selectman, Robert Congdon, has pointed out that the region has done nothing to help the town secure a developer for the Norwich State Hospital, and Waterford has never shared revenue from Millstone Power Plant.

So why should Preston share Utopia revenues?

“Millstone was before my time,” Jaskiewicz said.

“This is no different from when Foxwoods came in or from when Mohegan Sun came in,” Mullane added. “It increases the concern about the Route 2 traffic and the general impact on the region. … I hope southeastern Connecticut will say we ought to develop some type of commuter parking lots and some type of commuter bus shuttle. I’d rather have one bus than an extra 30 cars.”

Mullane opposes a Route 2 bypass or a four-lane road through North Stonington, which would disrupt homes and the environment, and he said he is not jealous of Preston’s potential boon in Utopia.

“Bigger is not better,” Mullane said. “Tourism, which has a high amount of attendance, is the most expensive, and their infrastructure does not pay a high return.”

The negative impact from Utopia will spread throughout the region, and not only in obvious ways.

Utopia may hurt small mom-and-pop type businesses, Mullane said.

“There’s going to be a high demand for employees that will affect municipalities,” Mullane said.

“When you have a high demand for employment, the employee is the person being vied for by the employers. Local places have had to bump up their wages and the demand is more. That causes a problem with every employer.”

Mullane said the North Stonington Studios, LLC proposal to build movie studios near I-95 is not affected by Utopia’s proposal.

Town leaders remain apprehensive about what Utopia will look like, come July 4, 2009.

Mullane said Utopia has been consistently vague about the scope of its $1.6 billion entertainment complex, and the proposed attendance figures do not sound realistic.

“Getting a real good understanding of the project is yet to be determined,” Mullane said. “The information they’ve given is questionable. Now they’ve got to say here’s the detailed plan and here’s what it’s based on.”

Jaskiewicz doubted whether he’ll ever live to see Utopia completed.

“(Joseph Gentile) seems to be pretty adamant that it’ll be built,” Jaskiewicz said. “I’m just going to have to wait and see.”

Poll Predicts Referendum Will Approve Utopia

2006-08-18T09:52:00.000-04:00

Undecided voters could make difference

By Stephen Kurczy

A Times poll of 100 residents revealed significant support for Utopia Studios, setting the stage for an approval of the proposed $1.6 billion entertainment complex when it faces a town-wide referendum May 23.

The poll showed 47 percent of those polled voting in favor of the project. But 18 percent of those polled said they are unsure how they will vote.

“So the informational meetings will be very important,” said First Selectman Robert Congdon.

Those who oppose the project live, on average, a half-mile closer to the Norwich State Hospital, the poll revealed.

Of the 100 people polled last week between Monday and Wednesday – before the Hospital Advisory Committee voted 6-5 to send the development agreement on to the Board of Selectmen – 47 voters they will vote yes to Utopia at a referendum, while 35 said they will vote no, and 18 voters said they are still undecided.

The poll took a random sampling of about 3 percent of the town’s eligible voters.

The town appears less sure of the project than last March, when voters approved a negotiation agreement by a 6 to 1 margin.

A bit more than half of the town’s 3,434 registered voters voted in that referendum; 1,508 people said they wanted the negotiations with the Long-Island developer to continue, while 256 said they did not.

The margin of approval is far narrower now and a greater voter turnout for the upcoming referendum has the ability to shift the popular vote in either direction.

Though many residents may have already made up their minds on the project, those voters who are undecided could be the swing vote.

If the undecided voters are wooed by those who object to Utopia building on 419 acres of former Norwich State Hospital property, it would tally the majority vote needed to deny the project.

This would permanently end negotiations with the developer, whose bumpy road to trying to secure the rights to develop the property began in 2003.

It is that 18 percent of undecided voters that Utopia will be wooing during their two public forums, on Thursday, May 4, and Saturday, May 6.

The Hospital Advisory Committee will also be informing the town on how to vote during three information sessions leading up to the referendum: Tuesday, May 9; Saturday, May 13; and Thursday, May 18, the final informational meeting.

The referendum will take place Tuesday, May 23, from 6 a.m. to 8 p.m.

A significant finding from The Times’ poll is that the majority of residents seemed to have already made up their minds on the project. Many answered with a definitive yes or no, implying that their minds are dead-set no matter how many information meetings are held over the next month.

“Some people make up their minds early, either for or against,” Congdon said. “Our job as the Board of Selectmen is to make sure that for those who are uncertain that they have enough information.”

Many of the people polled offered unsolicited remarks.

One person said, “To me, they ruined the whole area when they brought the incinerator in and the casinos in. It’s all garbage now.”

Other comments included, “I’m always for progress,” “You’ve got to do something with the property,” and “We’ve already got the two casinos, what’s one more thing?”

Though many people hung up without completing the poll, only one person said he would not be voting. He did not say why.

Comments against the project included, “Even though I’m pro-union, I don’t think it’s the thing for the unions.”

One person pointed out that though Utopia Studios has proposed a theme park to rival Disney World and Universal Studios, the firm has no films to its credit.

“Every other theme park that has movie studios has a film library to build on,” he said.

Another woman said she’d only vote yes if Utopia Studios promised to build a monorail to Foxwoods Resort Casino.

“I’ve lived in town for over 70 years and I’ve seen a lot of changes, some for the better and some not,” said an older woman. “I like the country air, but I think I’ll probably vote yes.”

Opponents Want to Perfrom Bypass Surgery

2006-08-18T09:49:00.000-04:00

But with Utopia and two casinos, appealing Route 2 changes futile, others say

By Elizabeth Yerkes
and Stephen Kurczy

With great support from residents, North Stonington selectmen will appeal the State Traffic Commission’s decision to approve the Route 2 expansion and cloverleaf in front of Foxwoods Resort Casino.

But local legislators and the traffic commission say it’s too late for second thoughts.

Construction has already begun. On March 21 the commission approved the plan.

“I was not surprised,” said Rep. Tom Reynolds, D-Ledyard. “Do I think it will come to fruition as proposed? Yes. Has the casino fulfilled all the requirements to receive a certificate from the traffic commission? No.”

North Stonington First Selectman Nick Mullane said the town, a third party in the project, is now researching statutes and regulations to prepare for filing the appeal.

“We don’t believe the STC took all elements into consideration in its technical decision, including those of third parties,” Mullane said. “There’s no doubt that the cloverleaf changes the road configuration to alter North Stonington’s normal access.”

The bypass was first proposed in April 2003.

In February, Ledyard’s Inland Wetlands and Watercourses Commission approved the project.

Last month, North Stonington’s Wetland Commission also approved the project. Neither commission could consider the merits of the overall project, but ruled only that the bypass would not encroach on wetlands.

“The opportunity for public input is now over and the remaining requirements before a certificate is delivered now lie solely on the part of the tribe and the traffic engineers,” Reynolds said.

Public comment from North Stonington has been overwhelmingly negative. Town-wide votes in 1996 and 2005 overwhelmingly opposed the Route 2 widening.

“The town doesn’t seem to have a voice as to what will happen,” resident Lydia Morrison said.

“I feel that the town as a whole has made its wishes known and perhaps nobody’s listening.”

“We support the selectmen in saying ‘no’ to this,” added Madeleine Jeffrey, president of the North Stonington Land Alliance and a member of an ad hoc group opposed to Route 2 road expansion.

“As residents,” Jeffrey said, “we need to investigate our next legal steps while being mindful of the politics of all of it.”

The bypass will begin in North Stonington just east of the casino, at the intersection of Wintechog Hill Road and Milltown Road, a roundabout of seven homes looping off Route 2.

Last summer the Loson family moved to Milltown Road.

“I used to live in this town and I wanted to move back,” Valarie Loson said, adding with a sound of regret, “We probably should have taken a few more rides up here.”

Living close to Foxwoods has its drawbacks, including the bumper-to-bumper traffic during rush hour, she said, but one of the incentives is the view of Lantern Hill.

That may change, once the bypass is built.

“If I’m going to look out at a highway then I’m going to move,” she said.

The Mashantucket Pequot tribe has already posted an initial bond of $7.5 million with the Department of Transportation. It must file the $43.5 million remainder of the bond before the bypass opens.

The $51 million bypass will be elevated 25 feet high and stretch 1.8 miles from Wintechog Hill Road to Preston Plains Middle School.

“Our purview is safety,” Jim Jurczyk, a traffic engineer with the State Traffic Commission, said, “and the proposed plan meets state safety requirements.”

Robin Cabelus, the commission’s executive director, said work already has started on the bypass.

Speeding is a concern for many.

“I think enhancements are appropriate,” Reynolds said. “But I think some local leaders make persuasive arguments that this could lead to excessive speeds.”

Reynolds said he will push for an increase in police surveillance, but he is unsure whom he will ask to pay for it.

Preston had no say in the bypass.

“People get down there and it’s like the Indy 500,” Preston resident Jerry Grabarek said. His dairy farm is several miles north, where another bypass connecting Route 12 and Route 2 has been proposed.

Grabarek said his soil is on par with the richest in New England. The milk from his 120 cows is repeatedly recognized as some of the best in the Northeast, he said.

But with the construction of the Route 2 bypass, Grabarek said, the DOT may be more likely to take his property through eminent domain and build a Route 2A bypass.

“The DOT likes to play connect-the-dots,” Grabarek said.

If so, it would create a highway connecting Mohegan Sun and Foxwoods.

“The problem is that the DOT’s and tribe’s goals align with each other,” Rep. Diana Urban, R-North Stonington, said. “With private money, such as the tribe’s, the state DOT doesn’t go through the same process of approval because NEPA (the National Environmental Policy Act) doesn’t apply.”

NEPA would require, among other elements, public and town comment to be included in the lead agency’s consideration.

“The other real problem I have with this is I don’t believe there’s enough oversight of the role of private money in the process,” Urban said.

Though the Mashantucket Pequot tribe is funding the construction and all additional expenses, the state will have ownership.

Before the STC allows the bypass to open, the Mashantuckets must deed four parcels along Route 2 to the state. This will ensure that the tribe does not own land that connects both sides of Route 2.

The Bureau of Indian Affairs adopted new rules last year that many fear would allow tribes to annex land contiguous to their reservations. As of now, Foxwoods is prohibited from expanding north of Route 2 – around Lake of Isles – because it is separated by Route 2.

“I want to make sure the existing Route 2 and the proposed bypass forever remain state property so that the other side of Route 2 is not considered contiguous,” Reynolds said. “I’ll be watching that issue.”

If the tribe uses the bypass to annex land across Route 2, towns would lose the authority to oversee development and also lose any property tax revenue currently generated.

“Nationally, people are beginning to recognize that these exclusive casinos are not the best thing for their states,” said Mac Turner, a former North Stonington selectman. “It’s time Connecticut did the study that looks at the impact of gaming on the state.”

Turner said that opposing the road changes is futile. The real problem is that Foxwoods is even there.

“It’s not just Route 2,” Turner said. “It’s the casino, stupid.”

Hotel Utopia: April 2006

2006-08-17T23:55:00.000-04:00

Road concerns remain concerns, many appear confused by traffic study

By Stephen Kurczy

When Hospital Advisory Committee member Jerry Grabarek compared Utopia’s $1.6 billion proposal to the song “Hotel California,” he drew chuckles from nearly everyone, including the engineering firm hired to assess the project’s feasibility.

“So you’re telling me that at five o’clock Utopia’s going to be like the Hotel California where you can check in but never check out?” Grabarek said, barely finishing the sentence before he burst out laughing.

Two dozen officials sat around a large square of tables as Earth Tech presented the second part of their traffic study inside the gymnasium of Veteran’s Memorial School. As is custom for Joseph Gentile, chief financial officer of Utopia Studios, Ltd., he traced the perimeter shaking hands with each Hospital Advisory Committee member, attorney, representative from the Regional Council of Governments and Earth Tech engineer before the meeting began.

The purpose of the 2 ½ -hour meeting was for Earth Tech to project attendance and resulting traffic from Utopia Studios’ theme park resort, though committee members appeared dissatisfied with the information.

Attendance broke down to 74,000 patrons 207 days a year and 40,575 patrons 154 days a year. This is problematic during rush hour.

The two-lane Mohegan-Pequot Bridge will not be able to handle this influx at 5 p.m. on weekdays, Earth Tech said, because it already operates at near-capacity. As a result, patrons to Utopia Studios’ theme park resort would be barred from leaving the facility at this time.

“The point is that you can check out but you can’t leave,” Grabarek chuckled.

“There are worse case scenarios,” Gentile said.

Upward of 150 people sat watching; members of the Labor Union stood in the back looking stoic with their arms crossed.

To make traffic worse, Earth Tech said that four times a year – on the theme park’s peak attendance days – there would probably be 100,000 patrons.

Advisory committee members pointed out that traffic is already bad on holidays and without substantial road renovations the result would be gridlock.

“We all know that on Columbus Day and Memorial Day, traffic is bumper-to-bumper between casinos,” said Kent Borner, Hospital Advisory Committee member.

Earth Tech said Utopia Studios has promised to bus in 35 percent of the patrons.

“The key is to minimize any impact to the local roads,” Gentile said.

Even yet, 75,000 patrons would be coming by car on those four peak days.

“We don’t see it as an insurmountable management situation,” said James Ford, an Earth Tech engineer who led the presentation. “If I didn’t think it could happen, I’d say it wouldn’t.”

“We’re in the happy business,” Gentile added. “People come here, they want to be happy.”

What was supposed to be an informational meeting appeared increasingly confusing for the committee members.

Trying to understand how Earth Tech broke down the attendance projections, Borner, a resident of 21 years, said, “I still don’t get it. I guess I’m stupid.”

Earth Tech based much of their traffic study on attendance figures provided by Utopia Studios, and on a traffic study completed by Arpen Group last June.

“What research did you do?” asked First Selectman Robert Congdon.

“What was the basis of your projections?” asked Joseph Biber, committee co-chairman.

“We did not verify that,” Ford repeatedly responded.

Earth Tech said that a more detailed traffic study would be done if the town approves Utopia Studios’ proposal.

“Just be patient with concerns to the questions of feasibility,” said Christopher Thompson, an attorney with Utopia. “You will have the answers very soon.”

Two of the microphones had malfunctioned earlier in the evening, sounding something like machine guns firing, and as the night ended they again began to act up, now screeching like dueling light sabers.

At an icy close to the meeting, Congdon asked Utopia to provide within two days the final schedules and paperwork that town attorneys have been waiting 60 days to receive. Nine months earlier, negotiations ended with the Long-Island based firm because they did not provide requested information.

Negotiations End: February 2006

2006-08-17T23:49:00.000-04:00

Long nights for public and union members are coming to a close

By Stephen Kurczy

Union workers and townspeople waited in the tiled hallway, blocking the doors to the town clerk’s office on the right and the first selectman’s office on the left, lining on down to the conference room where 11 empty chairs awaited the members of the Norwich Hospital Advisory Committee inside the Town Hall.

While others were home watching “The Apprentice” or “24,” they chatted nervously about taxes and the job market.

As 7 p.m. approached, the buzz grew, and the hallway took on the form of a funnel through which all the key players paraded: First Selectman Robert Congdon and the other committee members, followed by Joseph Gentile, chief financial officer of Utopia Studios, Ltd., and Christopher Thompson, Utopia executive.

They’d all been meeting across the parking lot at the library for the past two hours. A cardboard pizza box was carried into the conference room and placed on the table.

Within seconds the committee entered into executive session.

Some people decided to kill time at Preston Pizza or the nearby Dunkin’ Donuts, while others chatted in the Town Hall’s hallway and basement for two hours.

Ed Reilly waited in the Town Hall foyer. As the business manager for Local Union No. 15, he is responsible for finding jobs for his union members. For three and a half years he said he has been thinking all day every day about Utopia Studios’ proposed $1.6 billion entertainment complex.

Union laborers have been showing up in masses to meetings ever since Utopia announced the development would produce 22,000 union jobs.

Union jobs assure laborers a pension plan, Reilly said, while only 10 percent of non-union jobs offer it.

Even after completion Utopia has promised to solely employ union workers.

There are currently three union-run hotels in the state: the Hilton Hotel and Goodwin Hotel in Hartford, and the Omni New Haven Hotel. Hilton is the largest with 400 rooms and 150 workers.

Utopia has proposed 4,200 hotel rooms.

On average, union workers are paid twice that of non-union workers, according to Hotel Employees and Restaurant Employees International Union.

“That’s why I’m a union-fanatic,” Reilly said. “Who in their right mind wouldn’t want this to happen?”

Reilly said there are 6,000 laborers in southeastern Connecticut out of work, an increase of 4,000 in two years. To find jobs Reilly is sending laborers as far away as Las Vegas, Nev.

“I can remember being out of work and it’s lousy,” Reilly said. “These guys are dying for jobs. That’s why we will never give up and never go away.”

Preston resident Joe Alfieri has been jobless since Christmas Eve. The 30-year member of Laborers 547 said the longest he’s gone jobless is nine months.

“It’s difficult,” Alfieri said, “but it’s the nature of the business.”

Last Monday was the last day on a job for Sam Barile, who is now waiting for his next assignment. In the meantime he said he’ll cut fire wood and get his doctor’s appointments out of the way.

“It would give an opportunity where you could probably get back on your feet,” Barile said of Utopia, “instead of eating hot dogs and beans every week.”

…

Two hours later the pizza box sat askew and slightly open. As the public re-entered the conference room it grew stuffy with body heat.

Gentile circled the table and shook hands with each committee member before taking a seat beneath a clock on the wall: 9:30. He chatted with Susan Sampson, the wife of a union member, while waiting a decision.

Reilly and others crowded in, exceeding the room’s 10-person maximum occupancy by more than 25. People grew solemn, crossing their legs, biting their fingernails, and staring blankly at the orange carpeting.

It took about 60 seconds for the chairman of the Hospital Advisory Committee, Mike Sinko, to say that negotiations were concluded and they awaited Utopia’s traffic study report on April 5.

During the 210-minute meeting the public was privy to about five. The room emptied quietly, and Gentile again circled the room, shaking the hand of each committee member.

Hospital Advisory Committee Needs More Time: January 2006

2006-08-17T23:46:00.000-04:00

Today, the Norwich Hospital Advisory Committee is meeting with the town’s lawyers to review revisions to the Property Disposition and Development Agreement between the town and Utopia Studios, Ltd.

When Attorney General Richard Blumenthal signed the $1 purchase and sale agreement between the state and town on Jan. 5, it began a 45-day countdown until the Advisory Committee’s decision on the development agreement with Utopia Studios.

Over 30 days, the committee negotiated about 35 hours face to face with Utopia Studios officials, the first selectman said, but this was not enough time to settle the Property Disposition and Development Agreement. Time ran up on Feb. 18.

The Hospital Advisory Committee voted to extend negotiations for another 30 days, to March 20, on Utopia’s proposal to build a $1.6 billion entertainment complex on the Norwich State Hospital property.

If the committee can reach an agreement with Utopia it will be up to the Board of Selectmen to approve the development agreement or reject it altogether.

“We hope to have that done during this 30-day period,” First Selectman Robert Congdon said.
On March 7, the committee will meet with Utopia Studios officials at the law offices of Shipman & Goodwin in Hartford to review the agreement.

If approved, the prospect of 20,000 union jobs, a performing arts school, five theme parks, and an undisclosed number of movie studios will face a town referendum. A referendum will only happen once the town is fully informed, the first selectman said.

If Utopia Studios does not come to Preston, the town still has a three-year window to find a developer. If one is not approved within three years, the purchase and sale agreement is void and the state retains ownership of the property.

January 2006: Residents Voice Concern

2006-08-16T16:32:00.000-04:00

“Will Utopia answer the questions to your satisfaction?” asked resident Keleigh Baretincic.

First Selectman Robert Congdon answered, “That’s a question for Utopia.”

The dialogue comes from last week’s Hospital Advisory Committee meeting, when residents overcrowded the Town Hall meeting room, pressing the committee for 45 minutes with specific answers to the negotiation process going on between Utopia and the town.

When state Attorney General Richard Blumenthal signed the purchase and sale agreement on Jan. 5, it began a 75-day countdown to the decision over whether or not Utopia Studios, Ltd. will build a $1.6 billion entertainment complex on the Norwich State Hospital property. The decision will be reached in less time if the Board of Selectmen approves a development agreement in less than 30 days or rejects the agreement altogether, but by March 21 at the very latest, a proposal nearly three years in the making will finally come to a head.

Even if Utopia Studios does not come to Preston, the town still has a three-year window to find a developer and purchase the property for $1. If one is not approved within three years, the purchase and sale agreement is void and the state retains ownership of the property.

“Are we on schedule?” asked Roger Wells, referring to providing Utopia Studios a development agreement.

“We don’t have a choice,” said committee Chair Mike Sinko.

“What happens if it’s not done?” Wells asked.

“It will be done,” Sinko said.

Wells persisted, “I can hold you to that?” “Absolutely,” said Congdon.

Leslie Kornosewicz added, “We honor our time frames.”

January 2006: The Sale

2006-08-16T16:30:00.000-04:00

Money a Key Concern in Hospital’s Sale

By Stephen Kurczy

The sale is justified by the state’s monetary losses, a repeating argument for the transfer of more than 400 acres of the former Norwich Hospital from state to town for $1.

“Security, insurance, maintenance, water, wastewater, electricity, PILOT payments, and administrative expenses exceed millions of dollars per year,” said Rep. Tom Reynolds, D-Ledyard, before the Finance, Revenue and Bonding Committee on Dec. 27 approved the transfer.

“In the last decade Connecticut taxpayers have paid tens of millions of dollars on maintenance of vacant property and failed marketing.”

And the sale maintains good public policy.

“When the state has property it no longer has use for… statute 3-14B says the state has to offer it to other state agencies,” said Robert Congdon, Preston’s first selectman. “Whatever is not needed by other state agencies the state must offer it to the local municipality.”

After the state hospital closed in 1993, the Department of Environmental Protection secured 300 acres for open space, and the Department of Transportation also took land for the future Route 2A bypass.

“From my perspective it’s good public policy,” Congdon said. “This was state land that the state no longer had any use for.”

But this argument is not compelling to all.

Rep. Demetrios S. Giannaros, D-Farmington, is a member of the Finance, Revenue and Bonding Committee, and the Government Administration and Elections Committee. Both committees must approve the transfer, and though the former approved it 34-0, Giannaros questioned if the transfer is equitable for the state.

“The reservations that I had were primarily with the estimates done with this real estate appraisal,” Giannaros said. “His first estimate didn’t jive.”

A 1996 appraisal said $13 million, whereas a 2004 appraisal by Robert Silverstein of New London (443-8405) valued it at $12.7 million. With land value increasing annually, it did not make sense to Giannaros that this land should decrease in worth.

But Congdon said the 1996 appraisal refers to a parcel of less acreage. A study by Fuss and O’Neil estimates environmental remediation at a minimum $25 million.

“The state offering it to us for a dollar is more than fair compensation,” Congdon said.
Restrictions by the legislature and the governor’s office prevent the land from becoming a casino, airport, waste site, or any other development devaluing the surrounding towns and businesses.

“We certainly don’t want to develop another casino there. If that was the plan I would have been fighting like crazy,” Giannaros said.

Richard Blumenthal, voted into the attorney general’s office in 1990, is the last stop for the purchase and sale agreement.

He found a legal flaw with the agreement in early December, an issue that had to be addressed by the state Commission on Human Rights and Opportunities. But of Blumenthal’s five issues with the agreement, none were actually problematic.

In letters to co-chairs of the Finance, Revenue and Bonding Committee, and to co-chairs of the Government Administration and Elections Committee, Blumenthal urged the approval of the sale, and appears poised to offer his signature.

December 2005: Committee Hears Plans From Another Developer

2006-08-16T16:23:00.000-04:00

Proposal for equestrian center at property

By Stephen Kurczy

No matter how enticing a proposal may look, the Hospital Advisory Committee can do no more than hear out a developer and thank him for coming while “good faith” negotiations with Utopia Studios last.

Mark Field’s equestrian-centered proposal to host rodeos, horse shows, and hippo therapy on the former Norwich Hospital property, along with creating a 500-boat marina, timeshares, elderly housing, restaurants, retail, research facilities, and a television production center, which was presented last Wednesday at Preston Plains School to the Hospital Advisory Committee and over 100 onlookers, is a case in point.

Susan Doyle-Sovak, mother of two autistic children, explained that hippo therapy is therapeutic horse riding for developmentally-challenged children.

The area “really lends itself for someone to be on a horse’s back,” said Sue McCally, who described the proposed equestrian center.

“What better use for the land to keep it natural than to have horses on it,” McCally said.
Ken Simon, an Emmy-award winning television programmer, fronted the television studio aspect of Field’s proposal.

“Connecticut is becoming a lot friendlier to filmmakers and film studios,” Simon said. “We want to build the most competitive production studio in the state.”

For the half-billion dollar project, two-thirds, or 32, of the buildings would be restored, maintaining 90 percent of the existing open space. The development proposal, titled Thames River Landing, estimates a three- to five-year timeline.

An existing 600-seat theater would be restored and made available for musical ensembles and film-viewing, and a 150,000-sq.-ft. convention center would be built out of an existing courtyard.

“As a community, there really is nothing better than having a full-fledged theater,” Simon said. “A theater cannot only be used for television events, film events, but even for an ongoing film series.”

Gary Sharpe, vice president of an engineering company, said the proposal meets standards of the Department of Environmental Protection.

“It is not a run-of-the-mill project,” Sharp said. “What intrigues me about this project is its diversity that many different aspects will tie in together.”

Boat ownership and use are up 20 percent from 20 years ago, Sharp said, explaining the need for a marina.

The project also called for restoring the dilapidated chapel to its original use, creating a public beach on the pond east of Route 12, 1200 new permanent jobs are estimated to be created and Fields said that he is a union-friendly developer.

The Long-Island based firm Utopia Studios Ltd. has proposed a $1.6 billion movie studio and entertainment complex.

“In case something goes wrong,” Fields said, “I don’t live on an island, I live six miles away.”

November 2005: Conflicting Signs

2006-01-03T16:39:00.000-05:00

Pro-Utopia, Pro-Choice Signs Cause Conflict

By Stephen Kurczy

A spirited public put heat on Jerry Grabarek, a selectman and member of the Norwich Hospital Advisory Committee, for posting an allegedly biased sign in front of his business.

“I expect it to be missing soon,” Grabarek said of his sign, titled “Preston Residents for Preston.”

Two political action committees, Preston Residents for Utopia and Preston Residents for Responsible Development, are littering the town with blue and red signs. While one sign is blatantly pro-Utopia, the other group’s sign, titled “Preston Residents for Preston,” appears to be a mere jab at the confrontational firm dividing this town.

Utopia Studios Ltd, headed by Joseph Gentile, proposed a $1.6 billion movie studios and entertainment complex on 419 acres of the former Norwich Hospital.

“I’ve lived in the town my whole life,” Grabarek said. “I’ve got an interest in what happens to the town.”

Paul Sampson, a member of Preston Residents for Utopia, said that because the group that issued Grabarek’s sign originally called themselves Preston Residents Against Utopia, a person who posts the sign espouses that same attitude.

“You know as well as I do what that group was (first) calling itself,” Sampson said.
Margaret Gibson clarified Sampson’s claim.

“We said Preston Residents for Preston because they were not pro a certain thing. They are for our town,” Gibson said. “We’ve got to adopt a more open-mindedness.”

Also during the public comment period, a resident contrasted Utopia’s projected cost and visitation compared with Disney World and Universal Studios Florida, saying that Utopia’s master plan estimated more annual attendants than both parks combined.

“I think that the projections of Utopia do seem pretty robust in respect to the most successful parks in the world,” said committee chairman Joseph Biber.

“We’ve looked at these two parks in comparison and 50 theme parks in comparison,” said First Selectman and committee member Robert Congdon, assuring that the information was not new to the committee. “In all ways we’ve looked at the information.”

Utopia Studios’ touted 22,000 union labor jobs are also unsubstantiated, Biber said.
“This Utopia plan could be beneficial in the end if they just gave us more facts,” said Grabarek, chairman of the commission. “That’s what the sign says, ‘how do we make the right decision when we don’t have enough information?’”

Joseph Gentile, Utopia’s chief financial officer, was present at the three-hour Hospital Advisory Committee meeting last Wednesday to hear Lebanon developer Mark Field’s proposal for the site and to rebut public comments.

“Your concerns are our concerns,” said Gentile. “Most of what’s being talked about is information that has already been provided.”

“I’m a very accessible person,” Gentile said. “I look forward to being as accessible to everyone in the public that I can.”

November 30, 2005: Horses And More

2006-01-03T16:38:00.000-05:00

Committee hears proposal for equestrian center

By Stephen Kurczy

No matter how enticing a proposal may look, the Hospital Advisory Committee can do no more than hear out a developer and thank him for coming while “good faith negotiations” with Utopia Studios last.

Mark Field’s equestrian-centered proposal to host rodeos, horse shows, and hippo therapy on the former Norwich Hospital property, along with creating a 500-boat marina, timeshares, elderly housing, restaurants, retail, research facilities, and a television production center, which was presented last Wednesday at Preston Plains School to the Hospital Advisory Committee and over 100 onlookers, is a case in point.

Susan Doyle-Sovak, mother of two autistic children, explained that hippo therapy is therapeutic horse riding for developmentally-challenged children.

The area “really lends itself for someone to be on a horse’s back,” said Sue McCally, who described the proposed equestrian center.

“What better use for the land to keep it natural than to have horses on it,” McCally said.
Ken Simon, an Emmy-award winning television programmer, fronted the television studio aspect of Field’s proposal.

“Connecticut is becoming a lot friendlier to filmmakers and film studios,” Simon said. “We want to build the most competitive production studio in the state.”

For the half-billion dollar project, two-thirds, or 32, of the buildings would be restored, maintaining 90 percent of the existing open space. The development proposal, titled Thames River Landing, estimates a three- to five-year timeline.

An existing 600-seat theater would be restored and made available for musical ensembles and film-viewing, and a 150,000-sq.-ft. convention center would be built out of an existing courtyard.

“As a community, there really is nothing better than having a full-fledged theater,” Simon said. “A theater cannot only be used for television events, film events, but even for an ongoing film series.”

Gary Sharpe, vice president of an engineering company, said the proposal meets standards of the Department of Environmental Protection.

“It is not a run-of-the-mill project,” Sharp said. “What intrigues me about this project is its diversity that many different aspects will tie in together.”

Boat ownership and use are up 20 percent from 20 years ago, Sharp said, explaining the need for a marina.

The project also called for restoring the dilapidated chapel to its original use, creating a public beach on the pond east of Route 12, 1200 new permanent jobs are estimated to be created and Fields said that he is a union-friendly developer.

The Long-Island based firm Utopia Studios Ltd. has proposed a $1.6 billion movie studio and entertainment complex.

“In case something goes wrong,” Fields said, “I don’t live on an island, I live six miles away.”

November 2, 2005: One Step Closer

2006-01-03T16:36:00.000-05:00

State commissioner agrees to $1 price tag

By Stephen Kurczy

“I talked with Governor (Jodi) Rell about this event before coming down here and she is happy,” said Commissioner James Fleming last Wednesday night at Preston Plains Middle School. “We’ve both grown plenty of gray hairs.”

They might be growing more.

The purchase and sale agreement approved by the Norwich Hospital Advisory Board in a 9-1 vote, and signed by First Selectman Robert Congdon, opens a three-year window for the town to acquire the former Norwich Hospital property for $1 and sell it.

“It’s been a long, hard road,” said Congdon, who has been involved in the negotiations since 1996, “but I think we have a bright future in front of us.”

But first, the agreement must by signed by the State Properties Review Board, the Office of Policy and Management, two committees of the state legislature and state Attorney General Richard Blumenthal.

Then the town has 15 days to provide a development plan to Utopia Studios Ltd., who has proposed a $1.6 billion entertainment complex, and 30 days to negotiate an agreement with Utopia Studios Ltd. before putting the decision to referendum.

Commissioner Fleming and other state officials warned that the property will be under close scrutiny.

Joseph Gentile, CEO of Utopia Studios, was present at last week’s meeting, offering the same warning.

“We are anxious to move forward,” Gentile said.

Negotiations between Utopia and the Hospital Advisory Committee broke down in July, and since then Utopia officials have held several press conferences in support of Utopia’s plans and made numerous appearances at local meetings.

“I don’t think there was ever a rough relationship,” Gentile said. “Very reasonable people can disagree. Look around -- not one married person doesn’t disagree.”

While the land-transfer agreement does not specify whom the town will choose as a developer, Gentile counts the event to Utopia’s advantage.

“This shows that our relationship is strong,” Gentile said.

John Hollis, who represents Connecticut Teamsters, thought the event favored union workers, many of whom showed support at the meeting.

“It’s a wonderful culmination of a lot of effort on everybody’s part,” Hollis said. “We’re confident that we will be the developer that puts the shovel in the ground.”

But one onlooker, Dr. David Bingham, said he did not think the purchase and sale agreement was a fair one.

Bingham points out that the “Ash Landfill,” located in the southeastern portion of the state hospital property, is not included in the sale, which means that the state will get no compensation for the rest of the land, but still be expected to clean up the most contaminated area. The clean-up costs will then come out of taxpayers’ wallets, instead of the developers.

Also, Bingham is worried that if all 419 acres of state-owned land are developed, then the natural inhabitants of Poquetanuck Cove and the forest -- threshers, woodpeckers, fishers -- will be displaced.

“If you change the hydrology by changing the forest, the sponge of the land disappears,” Bingham said.

Right now, Bingham said that the town receives $600,000 annually for payment in lieu of taxes (PILOT funds), which will be forfeited once the town sells the land.

“I’m just warning that you have this huge risk of losing money and replacing it with something uncertain. (Utopia Studios) has built malls all over Long Island and on out to Chicago,” Bingham said. “What they do on that hilltop is going to define Preston for all generations.”

October 2005: Racing With Utopia's Fate

2006-01-03T16:34:00.000-05:00

Candidates call development priority, As Utopia garners support elsewhere

By Stephen Kurczy

The future of the former Norwich Hospital site remains the major issue in this year’s first selectman’s race, with incumbent Republican Robert Congdon saying the town needs him to see the matter to its conclusion, and Democratic challenger Walter Kornosewicz saying it’s time for unbiased leadership to promote development of the 470-acre property.

Congdon, who at one time argued strenuously for plans by Utopia Studios Ltd. to build a $1.5 billion movie-themed entertainment/education complex, now is saying only that he is committed to finding the best developer.

Kornosewicz criticized Congdon’s role in the town’s on-again, off-again relationship with Utopia.

“To be honest with you, when the MOU (Memorandum of Understanding) ended, it ended quit badly,” said Kornosewicz, a correctional maintenance officer for Connecticut’s Department of Correction. “There was a warning from the first selectman that it could get nasty. Fortunately things didn’t. Maybe a fresh outlook, considering how the memorandum ended, might not be a bad idea.”

Both candidates say the matter is in the hands of the Hospital Advisory Committee, which Congdon is a member of.

On Sept. 20, Utopia officials signed a letter to provide additional information to the Hospital Advisory Committee. If the purchase-and-sale of the Norwich Hospital between the state and town is soon signed, then by late October the committee and Utopia officials will be again negotiating the terms of a development agreement.

Since exclusive negotiations ended the night of July 22, Utopia’s leaders have held numerous press conferences and public meetings in an effort to solicit public and political support, as evident in the role James Amann, D-Milford, speaker of the State House of Representatives, has played in reviving negotiations.

As first selectman, Congdon has been Preston’s representative in talks with Utopia Studios. Over the past two and a half years his relationship with CFO Joseph Gentile appeared cordial, even buddy-buddy, as the two visited with each other’s families and shared meals together. The night negotiations ended the two appeared bitter strangers.

If Congdon were defeated by Kornosewicz, the Board of Selectmen would decide whether or not Congdon remains on the Hospital Advisory Committee.

“I hope (Utopia’s fate) is not a political decision,” Congdon said. “It has the potential to be influenced by politics, but I firmly believe that we have a subcommittee of 11 people that have been working on trying to find a suitable developer for this site and doing it on an objective, analytical basis, not on the basis of politics.”

While Kornosewicz has cited other town issues, such as the outdated Lincoln Park housing, both candidates said that the redevelopment of the Norwich State Hospital is a top priority for the next two years.

Preston resident Susan Sampson, co-chair of Preston Residents For Utopia, a recently formed political action committee, said her vote goes to the candidate who supports Utopia Studios.

Congdon “has to prove that he is serious about wanting this project to move forward,” Sampson said. “If things are moving along then he could gain the benefits, but if his advisory committee is slowing things down then maybe I’d look at a new candidate.”

Three weeks remain for Sampson to see progress.

Congdon is unconcerned with what he would do if he loses the election.

“I’m committed to the job I’m in,” Congdon said.

Congdon has been first selectman for 10 years, and Republican Park Spicer was first selectman for the 10 years before Congdon. Two Democratic first selectmen served a total of 57 years from 1928 to 1985.

Congdon said that party lines matter little in rural towns and that, as with the development of the Norwich State Hospital, decisions should not be made on a political basis.

“In a small town, politics doesn’t matter. You’re not affecting how medicine is distributed; you’re not affecting national defense issues. It is the day-to-day issues of a small town. The Democrat-Republican issue is much more significant as you get up to the state level,” Congdon said.

And that is exactly where Utopia Studios has gone.

October 2005: A Line In The Sand

2006-01-03T16:28:00.000-05:00

Residents debate at Anti-Utopia PAC forum

By Stephen Kurczy

“It’s my town,” decried an embittered Theodore Schulz at a forum last Tuesday in the public library. “I love this town. And I want the best for it.”

The room erupted in applause from both sides of the debate over the redevelopment of the former Norwich Hospital, from those impassioned about the merits of Utopia Studios to those convinced the town can do better than the proposal for a $1.3 billion entertainment complex.

Over 30 locals, mostly Preston residents, met for two hours under the title of “Preston Residents Against Utopia,” though members of the recently-formed committee Preston Residents For Utopia were present, as well as those without partiality.

Margaret Gibson, on behalf of the Preston Preservation Committee, said she is concerned about preserving Preston’s quality of life.

“What happens to Preston is not just a matter of whether we go up or down on Utopia,” Gibson said. “The project is enormously important, and rather than working against each other I don’t see why we can’t work together.”

At one point, organizer Keleigh Baretinic said, “Let’s quit throwing stones and have a discussion,” when voices began escalating over rural preservation.

First Selectman Robert Congdon spoke up.

“Casino development will affect (the rural character) regardless of what the town decides,” Congdon said. “It’s not just union versus non-union. I think we make a big mistake if we drive a wedge through our community in regards to this issue.”

Baretinic said she organized the forum because she “had concerns about the Utopia development and what was involved with it. I wanted to get together informally and talk about it,” she said.

The meeting opened with Congdon, who was invited to attend and said he is not a member of the group, offering a history of the Norwich Hospital property and the town’s involvement in redeveloping the site, now abandoned for 10 years.

Congdon said the town was faced with the Catch-22 of seeing 470 acres of unused and dilapidated property go undeveloped, or taking on the responsibility of tackling the unknown environmental cleanup involved.

“So we set out to try and find developers to partner with us,” Congdon said.

At which point Schulz spoke up and said, “It seems we’re habitually always waiting.”

”I agree with you,” Congdon said.

State stipulations for how the property can be developed, Congdon said, have lent to this waiting process.

But Congdon said that attorneys from both the town and Utopia Studios recently met and a 30-day window has been opened between the two parties.

“On the advice of our attorneys and based on promises from Utopia … our attorneys have guided us to provide a window for a development agreement.”

If the Hospital Advisory Committee and Utopia Studios reach a development agreement, Congdon said, a town-wide vote will be held to decide the fate of Utopia, or any other developer with whom the Hospital Advisory Committee reaches a development agreement.

“The nice thing about our town is that the legislative body is a town meeting,” Congdon said. “The voters have the ultimate decision about what we do and when we do it.”

Several residents voiced discontent that Utopia Studios officials sought support from union leaders and state officials instead of seeking support from Preston after the initial Memorandum of Understanding ended June 28.

“I was as concerned as other people when other voices started coming in,” said

Congdon, adding that although Speaker of the House of Representatives James Amann has familiarized himself with the project, Amann assured that he would not circumvent the Hospital Advisory Committee.

“For us to say we are in the driver’s seat is to be very naive,” Congdon warned. “Our task in front of us is to be as informed as we can be.”

A Way Out: September 2005

2006-01-03T16:25:00.000-05:00

Stamford developer offers alternate to Utopia

By Stephen Kurczy

On September 21, 2005, JHM Financial Group described itself as everything Utopia Studios Ltd. is not.

“We will provide empirical evidence that this is viable.”

“We are well known.”

“Everything we do will be transparent.”

“We have no intention of using that site as a guinea pig for something that hasn’t been heard of.”

John McClutchy, principal of several companies in the JHM group, is defining what a good developer would do, which is everything Utopia Studios Ltd. has not done, and what JHM will do if their proposal is accepted.

And they might not provide union jobs, of which Utopia Studios has promised 22,000.

When the Advisory Committee hosted a meeting with JHM, Utopia backers and union supporters gathered and even hissed as John McClutchy answered questions from the committee.

“It’s too easy to be cynical,” said Paul Sampson of Preston, after the meeting.

“They’ve played into what (the Advisory Committee) was asking for. A lot of positive has since happened with Utopia.”

JHM is no Utopia, and their idea of age-restricted housing, recreation, and retail for the 470-acres of the former Norwich State Hospital is mundane compared to the $1.5 billion entertainment complex that both Wall Street and Hollywood have “vetted and approved,” according to recently reinstated CFO of Utopia Studios Joseph Gentile.

“Shows you how quick that stuff can flip-flop,” Advisory Committee member Mike Sinko said.
McClutchy told the committee that he would be in charge of JHM’s development from day one to completion.

Attorney Thomas Ritter, former Connecticut House speaker, said 30 years experience has proved McClutchy trustworthy and dependable.

“I would not be here if I did not personally back the integrity of this man,” Ritter said.

“Every time he has represented something to a community he’s kept his word and brought acclaim from people there.”

JHM, which includes Greenwich-based Starwood Capital and Starwood Hotels, one of the largest hotel owners in the world, has been interested in the site for seven years, McClutchy said, but was lost in the shuffle as the state sought developers. McClutchy approached First Selectman Bob Congdon last October, though by then negotiations were well on with Utopia.

JHM has $2 billion in the bank. Another $2 billion could be easily acquired for such a development, McClutchy said.

Starwood is experienced in environmental remediation in everything from old hospitals to mill buildings. In Chelmsford, Mass., Starwood converted an 1880s building into mixed-development housing.

“There are alternatives (to Utopia) and there are interested developers,” McClutchy said.

No "Holly" In Preston's Woods

2006-01-03T16:13:00.000-05:00

Filmmakers doubt Utopia could survive in area

By Stephen Kurczy

“I deal with Hollywood people every day and I know how they talk and how they B.S.,” said filmmaker Andrew Gernhard, of the grandiose promises made by Utopia Studios Ltd.

“If they were serious, they would let you know everything,” Gernhard said of Utopia’s failure to comply with the memorandum of understanding set out by the town of Preston and Utopia Studios. “It’s typical Hollywood.”

“If you told me Sony, or Warner Bros. or Universal than I would say ‘yeah,’ because they have an established core. Unless Utopia is thinking about building and then letting themselves be bought out.”

Gernhard’s suspicion was expressed two months ago by First Selectman Robert Congdon, soon after the Hospital Advisory Committee ended exclusive negotiations with the town.

As the manager of Tripeg Studios in Hamden, which has been used by Court TV and the National Geographic Channel since opening in October 2005, and the producer of the first movie ever made exclusively in Connecticut, “Predator Island,” Gernhard knows filmmaking. He also knows that nobody wants to do it in Connecticut.

“To put it into perspective, maybe one or two major movies shoot one scene in Connecticut once a year,” Gernhard said. “If this is such a hot commodity, why hasn’t “somebody else already done it?”

Tripeg has three studios, which are occupied two weeks out of every month.

“That’s good for around here,” Gernhard said.

Sonalysts Studios in Waterford has three film studios. Toronto, which Gernhard describes as a movie-Mecca, has three studios in the entire city. Screen Gems in North Carolina, the largest production studio east of Hollywood, has nine.

“That’s a lot of studios,” said Richard Lucas, professor emeritus of communication at Southern Connecticut State University (SCSU) and the executive producer for Gernhard’s most recent film. “I’m not exactly sure that the area can satisfy that sort of business demand.”

Harsh winters and the mere fact that Hollywood already exists are reason enough to keep most film production in California.

Gernhard has gone out of business twice. If Utopia Studios wins the bid for the former Norwich State Hospital property, it would bring more films and filmmaking to Connecticut, which would translate for more business for Tripeg.

“We would love to see it,” Lucas said. “All the better for Tripeg studios.”

Gernhard said he’d be the first person to apply for a job at Utopia.

“I’m just afraid this is just a pipe dream,” Gernhard said.

August 2005: Residents to Host Utopia

2005-12-21T17:00:00.000-05:00

By Stephen Kurczy

While the Preston Board of Education prevents Utopia Studios Ltd. officials from meeting in the gymnasium of Veterans’ Memorial School, the non-profit political action committee Preston Residents For Utopia hopes to host its own meeting with Utopia officials as guests.

The group aims to host a “meet and greet” time at the school between themselves, Preston residents and Utopia officials, who had initially requested use of the gymnasium in a letter faxed to First Selectmen Robert Congdon on Aug. 30.

Preston Residents For Utopia formed in March, and its 11 members have been meeting weekly since the beginning of August. A public access television show is hosting spokesman Roger Wells on Tuesday, Sept. 27.

“We have the responsibility to watch out for the development,” co-chair Susan Sampson said. “We want to ensure that it’s developed in a prosperous way.”

The committee’s goal is to keep Utopia Studios in sight and mind by posting signs, distributing flyers and hosting the meetings. They are raising money through donations and an ongoing raffle, whose prizes include a $500 certificate to the Norwich Inn and Spa, a $350 theme basket, and a $100 certificate to The Home Depot. The prizes were not donated.

Sampson said Joseph Gentile, CEO of Utopia Studios Development Corp., has voiced support for their group.

“The (Utopia Studios) developers are more accessible than the (hospital advisory) committee is,” said Terry Ward, a member of Preston Residents For Utopia. “They give us the truth, not a run-around and no excuses.”

“I’m a very cynical person by nature, and I was convinced,” said Sampson, who heard the Hospital Advisory Committee toting Utopia’s merits before negotiations went sour. “Just because (the Hospital Advisory Committee) flipped doesn’t mean Preston residents feel differently.”

The committee wants Utopia Studios primarily because of union jobs and tax benefits; whereas another recently formed organization, the Thames Region Action Committee, is critical of Utopia for the same reasons – the jobs are service related and the tax benefits only go to Preston.

Preston Residents For Utopia, however, is against the entire region becoming involved in the decision-making process. And while Utopia Studios would provide service jobs, they are union run and would provide health care, pension and retirement benefits.

“We feel you can have a stronger and more beneficial amount of control on a town level,” said Sampson, reasoning why the development need only be a town decision.

August 2005: Union Members Turn Up The Heat

2005-12-20T15:40:00.000-05:00

Activists still rally for Utopia project

By Stephen Kurczy

At each Hospital Advisory Committee meeting, as many as 100 union members – plumbers, carpenters, electricians – have been rallying outside the Town Hall in support of Utopia Studios development. Many come straight from work, and might stay until 11 p.m. before driving home.

Marc Bourgeois of Bristol came straight ot Preston when he got out of his Hartford-job at 4:30 p.m.

“This is a very important project for our state,” Bourgeois said. “I’m here to support it … I can always get a couple hours of sleep and get back to work.”

Bourgeois commuted from Bristol to help construct the Mohegan Sun casino, but said that he is considering moving to Norwich for the potential 10-year construction of Utopia Studios. Bourgeois said he will keep coming to Hospital Advisory meetings to show support.

“I’m sure it’s going to be 10 to 20 more meetings like this,” he said.

Union members are notified of the Hospital Advisory meetings, and know that by showing their support in numbers, they will get media coverage supporting Utopia.

“Our guys are well informed,” said Ed Reilly, president of Eastern Connecticut Building Trades Council. “As trade unionists we believe in activism. … As long as this trade goes on we’ll be involved.”

At last week’s meeting, Joseph Gentile was present to chat with the union members, including Ed Reilly, while the Hospital Advisory Committee met in executive session.

“From day one (Gentile) wanted to do the right thing and make sure organized labor would be involved,” Reilly said. “Joe comes from a union family himself.”

“We’re not going away,” said Chuck Appleby, political director of the Eastern Connecticut Building and Construction Trades Council. “We’re going to turn up the heat.”

Preston residents Susan and Paul Sampson have both been attending the meetings in support of Utopia ever since the committee convinced them that Utopia Studios should be the developer.

“The committee did an excellent presentation,” said Paul Sampson, who wrote a letter to the editor of the Norwich Bulletin expressing the same. “That’s why I was shocked when they rejected it because I thought they were convinced that this was the best possibility.”

“They were faced with obstructions and they ended up becoming an obstruction,” he added.

The night that the committee ended exclusive negotiations with Joseph Gentile, “they were out there banging on the car door telling him to hurry up. Why would you do that unless you hate him -- and what would make you hate him? If something happened along the way then that should be explained,” he said.

The Hospital Advisory Committee has said that Utopia developers missed a series of deadlines and repeatedly failed to provide requested details. Nevertheless, Sampson still want Utopia to be the preferred developer.

“It would improve the quality of our lives,” said Susan Sampson. “Right now we’re just a thru-way for people to get from one casino to the next.”

“Fifteen years ago I would not have wanted (Utopia) to happen,” she said. “But things have changed. The casinos moved in.”

July 2005: Is Utopia Lost?

2005-12-20T14:45:00.000-05:00

Preston Reacts With Surprise, Gentile Remains Optimistic

When Utopia failed to supply details to the feasibility of a proposed $1.5 billion entertainment complex on the former Norwich Hospital property, Preston officials voted to end exclusive negotiations with the Long-Island firm on July 28.

Last week, members of the Preston community offered a one-word reaction to the hospital advisory committee's decision to pull out of the Utopia deal.

"Appropriate. Because I trust (Bob Congdon's) judgment. But I'm disappointed, because it would be wonderful if the project could go through. I'm not disappointed in (Congdon's) actions, I'm disappointed in the circumstances that caused his action."
- David Cattanach, interim superintendent

"Surprised. I thought these things were going somewhere (and that) Bob Congdon had everything under control. I thought it'd be good not only for the town of Preston but for the whole area."
- George Magowan, Preston resident.

"The same. I was surprised. I have every confidence in Bob Congdon. If anyone can get this thing back on track, Bob Congdon can do it. They oughta do something with the land, for crying-out-loud."
- Pauline Magowan, Congdon's former Sunday School teacher

"Disappointed. I was hoping for a job. I've got a family -- I thought it'd be good for them to have some type of entertainment besides Mystic."
- Sam August, at Preston Library with his daughter Michaela.

"Really disappointed. I would like to see something built that would help the economic situation. I see all these struggling businesses É and with the (possible) sub base closing it would have been good to bring in jobs."
- Laurie McElwee, Foxwoods Casino employee.

"I thought it was a joke. I wanted Utopia to come in. My son, he's in Dime Star Media, would've had a job over there. Peoples' kids would've come back (for jobs); they would have had an opportunity here."
- Eve Diamantakos, co-owner of Golden Pizza Restaurant

"I'll give you three words: not totally unexpected. I have faith that they made the right decision because I'm not privy to all the information they are. I'm sure that based on the information that they have that they made the right decision."
- Keith Robbins, first selectman of Bozrah, where Utopia Studios Development Corp. has also shown interest.

"Optimistic, because the people clearly want this project. This has obviously been recognized as good by the people of the town of Preston and throughout the region as indicated by the enormous and overwhelming support of families and citizens who have supported the proposed development. Wall Street has vetted and embraced our proposal, Hollywood has vetted and embraced our proposal and we're here to bring the people what they have told us -- and continue to tell us -- they want. They want Utopia."

- Joseph Gentile, in blue, CEO of Utopia Development Corporation

July 2005: Local May File Suit Over State Land

2005-12-20T14:38:00.000-05:00

Environmental Activist Fights for Hospital Land

By Stephen Kurczy

When Sierra Club board member and Salem resident David Bingham led a group hike through wooded acres of the former Norwich Hospital last February, he was looking for evidence of the environment’s health and worth. Though the state has told Bingham he will have to pay for a second hike, in his opinion he has already found evidence that the environment is healthy and worth protecting.

Now Bingham is considering filing a court case over the use of the former state hospital land in Preston if he does not agree with the declaratory ruling on the interpretation of the Connecticut environmental protection act by Public Works Commissioner James T. Fleming.

Bingham wants to know what is going to be done if Utopia Studios Ltd. buys it.

“They need to tell us exactly what they want to do everywhere on the property, on all 470 acres, not just 70 acres. They need to tell us what will be done to the pristine forest,” Bingham said.

The pristine forest to which Bingham refers will be dissected if the proposed Route 12 bypass is constructed. Bingham is also concerned that natural springs providing fresh water to Poquetanuck Cove, an intertidal marsh, could be disturbed.

“I’m not by nature a suspicious person, only when developers won’t tell you what they want to do with the land,” Bingham said.

Ten years ago, when Three Rivers Community College considered purchasing the state land, there would have been public hearings on environmental awareness and protection.

“If that decision had been made by the state, under the environmental protection act, the state would have needed to do a review of all the effects the construction would have,” Bingham said.

Bingham wants that standard upheld. Because the land is being transferred first from the state to the town, and then from the town to Utopia Studios, Bingham said he thinks that the state is copping out of environmental cleanup.

“Joseph Gentile won’t care about what is there,” Bingham said, referring to the chief financial officer of Utopia. “And a town like Preston who needs the money will just say, ‘okay.’”

For now, Bingham is waiting for Fleming to finish a report on the wetlands. If Bingham doesn’t agree with the results, he plans to present a case to the state court.

“This is drastically going to change the face of southeastern Connecticut. Five thousand dollars to $10,000 to go to court is a small investment to ensure that the state does the right thing with the land,” Bingham said.

7.08.05 Be Wary of Utopia Effects

2005-12-20T14:22:00.000-05:00

Residents speak their mind

By Stephen Kurczy

Recently, Preston selectmen reviewed the estimated effects of Utopia Studios’ $1.6 billion development proposal for the former Norwich State Hospital.

“We need to indicate what impact Utopia Studios would have - positive and negative - and assess from there,” said First Selectman Robert Congdon.

Because Utopia Studios Ltd. has asked that the discussion remain confidential, the Noriwch Hospital Advisory Committe entered executive session. Crime and traffic studies are unavailable to the public.

Congdon maintains that cooperation with Utopia Studios is a worthwhile venture for the town.

“It would add about $1 billion to our grand list,” Congdon said, “which would produce six times our usual revenue. It would have a huge impact on property taxes and in all likelihood the mill rate would be reduced. After adding up the additional police, fire apparatus, etc., the preliminary indications are that it’s a huge net positive.”

But what the proposed complex will do to the quality of life is still in question, Congdon said.

"People are mostly concerned about the traffic; we have enough with the casinos,” said a Preston resident, who lives down the street from the Brookside Cafe in Poquonock but said she'd move if Utopia Studios comes.

“Why should I stay there and put up with that traffic?” she said. “When I bought the home it was on a quiet country road where I used to play ball with my kids. Not anymore. I had to move my mailbox to my side of the road so a car wouldn’t hit me."

“Traffic is a danger and a nuisance,” she said. “All you hear is the hiss of busses going to the casinos.”

But for another resident, Manuel Cardoza Jr., who lives within a half-mile of the property, life is a package deal with traffic included.

“Traffic doesn’t bother me,” Cardoza said. “I think it’s a part of life.

“I think it’s about time somebody did something with the property,” Cardoza said. “They’ve been talking about it for 10 years.”

But building on the Norwich Hospital grounds is a larger task than mere land development. Though Cardoza assisted with asbestos removal in 1989, he said the area is still contaminated.

“The buildings are all connected with tunnels and I know we removed the asbestos from them,” Cardoza said. "The tunnels are spooky. At that time, there were about 40 cats living down there.”

The abandoned state hospital begs for a new owner and while all Preston residents want something done, the town has mixed feelings about the effect Utopia Studios would have.

“It’ll promote jobs,” said one resident. “It’s just the traffic and crime rate that I worry about.”

“It’ll promote a tremendous amount of money for the town,” said another.