Town meeting vote on demolition funds

CORNWALL — A plan to demolish Rumsey Hall is moving forward, a little slower than anticipated, but with a possible Oct. 1 town meeting to approve funding.

Cornwall Building Official Paul Prindle has condemned the dilapidated building on Bolton Hill Road. Once a grand, pillared building constructed as a private school gymnasium, the landmark edifice has fallen victim to years of neglect and the ravages of the 1989 tornado.

Town officials and the town attorney reached an agreement with owner Andrew Hingson for the town to finance the work. Hingson told them he does not have the money to restore the building as he had planned. He is ultimately responsible for costs.

He bought the building from the town for $150,000 in the early 1990s.

What needs to happen now is a yet-to-be-determined appropriation by voters to pay for the demolition. The work is expected to be fairly simple. There are, basically,  no hazardous materials remaining in the structure. Since it is already crumbling, it should come down quickly. Foundation stones will be removed and the building’s footprint leveled off.

Prindle has prepared a draft Invitation To Bid, which was sent to the town attorney for review.

First Selectman Gordon Ridgway reported at a Sept. 7 board meeting that several local contractors have expressed an interest. They would have to be properly licensed and insured.

Resident Tom Levine wanted to know how the town would get its money back. Ridgway assured him the cost borne by the town would be recouped; the property is secured by a lien, with interest, on the property.

“We don’t view this as a long -term loan,� Ridgway said. “There is a relatively new state statute that allows us to recapture tax liens quickly.�

Jerry Blakey wanted to know what happens if voters reject the appropriation.

“The town meeting is basically a formality,� Ridgway said. “The buck stops with the town. If the building official says it needs to come down, we really have to do it.�

As far as getting rid of the debris, Ridgway said that might not be as big a job as imagined.

“Someone wants the foundation stones. The Rumsey Hall school in Washington wants the doorknobs to auction off at a fundraiser.�

Those, however, would be decisions for Hingson to make.

Latest News

State awards $2M to expand affordable housing in Sharon

State awards $2M to expand affordable housing in Sharon

Local officials join Richard Baumann, far left, president of the Sharon Housing Trust, as they break ground in October at 99 North Main St., the former community center that will be converted into four new affordable rental units.

Ruth Epstein

SHARON — The Sharon Housing Trust announced Dec. 4 that the Connecticut Department of Housing closed on a $2 million grant for the improvement and expansion of affordable rental housing in town.

About half of the funding will reimburse costs associated with renovating the Trust’s three properties at 91, 93 and 95 North Main St., which together contain six occupied affordable units, most of them two-bedroom apartments. Planned upgrades include new roofs, siding and windows, along with a series of interior and exterior refurbishments.

Keep ReadingShow less

Bumpy handoff in North Canaan after razor-thin election

Bumpy handoff in North Canaan after razor-thin election

Jesse Bunce, right, and outgoing First Selectman Brian Ohler, left, exchange a handshake following the Nov. 10 recount of the North Canaan first selectman race. Bunce won the election, defeating Ohler by two votes, beginning a transition marked by challenges.

Photo by Riley Klein

NORTH CANAAN — The transition from outgoing First Selectman Brian Ohler to newly elected First Selectman Jesse Bunce has been far from seamless, with a series of communication lapses, technology snags and operational delays emerging in the weeks after an unusually close election.

The Nov. 5 race for first selectman went to a recount, with Bunce winning 572 votes to Ohler’s 570. When the final results were announced, Ohler publicly wished his successor well.

Keep ReadingShow less

Norfolk breaks ground on new firehouse

Norfolk breaks ground on new firehouse

Officials, firefighters and community members break ground on the Norfolk Volunteer Fire Department’s new firehouse on Dec. 6.

By Jennifer Almquist

NORFOLK — Residents gathered under bright Saturday sunshine on Dec. 6 to celebrate a milestone more than a decade in the making: the groundbreaking for the Norfolk Volunteer Fire Department’s new firehouse.

U.S. Congresswoman Jahana Hayes (D-5) and State Rep. Maria Horn (D-64) joined NVFD leadership, town officials, members of the building committee and Norfolk Hub, and 46 volunteer firefighters for the groundbreaking ceremony.

Keep ReadingShow less

Kent moves closer to reopening Emery Park swimming pond

Kent moves closer to reopening Emery Park swimming pond

It may look dormant now, but the Emery Park pond is expected to return to life in 2026

By Alec Linden

KENT — Despite sub-zero wind chills, Kent’s Parks and Recreation Commission is focused on summer.

At its Tuesday, Dec. 2, meeting, the Commission voted in favor of a bid to rehabilitate Emery Park’s swimming pond, bringing the town one step closer to regaining its municipal swimming facility. The Commission reviewed two RFP bids for the reconstruction of the defunct swimming pond, a stream-fed, man-made basin that has been out of use for six years. The plans call to stabilize and level the concrete deck and re-line the interior of the pool alongside other structural upgrades, as well as add aesthetic touches such as boulders along the pond’s edge.

Keep ReadingShow less