Fort Trumbull Project Wins Tax Abatement

A by a Westport construction company has been accepted by the City Council.

As part of the items accepted by roll call vote at Monday’s meeting, the council approved a resolution creating a schedule of property tax exemption for a residential project proposed by River Bank Construction for four lots on the Fort Trumbull peninsula.

A memo by city economic development coordinator Ned Hammond said the resolution prepared by the company had been amended by at the August 8 meeting of the Economic Development Committee to clarify the details of the exemption schedule. The amendments state that the benefit schedules begin at the “termination of the construction phase and stated election of the rental or sale schedule” while the schedule for sale benefits “shall be assumable by unit purchasers for the remaining period of the schedule.”

Hammond says in the memo that the company will be liable for a fixed tax payment per unit once it begins the construction phase of the project and will transition to a tax exemption schedule for rental or sale of a unit once it is completed. The unit would be locked into a particular schedule and would not be eligible for exemptions if it changed. If a rental unit sells, it will be eligible for 100 percent of taxes due.

River Bank is proposing to put in between 80 and 104 townhouses at the site to create a “Village on the Thames” neighborhood. In its request to the City Council, the company argued that exemptions are needed to help with sales in the depressed real estate market. The company expects that while some units may be sold at the outset, the development will be primarily rental units that will transition to owner-occupied housing over time.

Under the rental schedule, 95 percent of the property tax on rental units would be exempted for the first year, with the deferral going to River Bank. This would be in place through the fifth year, then decline to 50 percent in the sixth year and 25 percent in the seventh year as part of the plan to phase out rental units. In the sale schedule, the city would exempt 70 percent of the assessed value of a unit for the first year, with a decline of 10 percent each year thereafter through the fifth year.

The proposal saw both support and criticism during the public comment portion of the meeting. Resident Dennis Downing said he felt it was unfair to other property owners renting units in the city and could lead to numerous other abatement requests. Ronna Stuller criticized the initial rental plan, saying it was contradictory with the long-term city goal of owner-occupied housing.

“It saddens me a bit that we’re not only accepting rentals but rewarding them,” she said.

Kathleen Mitchell asked the entire council to recuse itself on the vote due to an earlier decision where it accepted a $5,000 contribution from River Bank. She said it represented a possible conflict of interest and favored an independent commission analyzing the request.

Michael Joplin, president of the , said the donation was for events on Parade Plaza and represented a gift to the city rather than the City Council. He said the River Bank development plan specifically called for residential housing to allow for either rental or owner-occupied property.

Frank McLaughlin, saying he was appearing on behalf of Chamber of Commerce of Eastern Connecticut president Tony Sheridan, said the organization supports the abatements. Resident Linda Mariani also said she was in favor of the request.

“I think this is going to be a splendid project,” she said. “In this economic climate, though, we need a jump start.”