Record-Journal
10-03-2007, 01:16 AM
WALLINGFORD -- Obscured from view by quaint downtown buildings, the dusty Wooding-Caplan property has evaded the town’s development efforts for the past 15 years.
Whoever is elected mayor this November will have to grapple with the 3.4-acre parcel that has languished under town ownership since 1992.
Among the three candidates — incumbent Republican William W. Dickinson Jr., unaffiliated challenger Lucille Trzcinski and Democratic challenger James Vumbaco — none is calling for private development.
All three want the town to determine whether the property can be used for the expansion of the Police Department headquarters. Dickinson has already produced a request for proposals to develop a feasibility study on expanding the police station onto the parcel.
Only Vumbaco has a solid plan for the property if a police facility cannot be constructed there.
“As far as I’m concerned, I think the property should be turned into a park,” he said. “That’s my sole and only premise for that area.”
If a police facility must be constructed on the property, he said, the town could still possibly build a park on what’s left of the land.
Trzcinski and Dickinson, in contrast, are cautious about positing any plan for the area in the event that a police station is not built there. Dickinson cited tumultuous public opinion as his reason for withholding a development plan.
“This property has had such a history of lack of consensus that I think you take one step at a time,” Dickinson said.
“Look at police purposes. Take the next step.”
Dickinson has indicated some basic goals, however. Any decision on Wooding-Caplan will require the demolition of the town-owned 390 Center St. building, he said.
The town should also try to build parking spaces on the property, he said, even if a police station is built on the site.
“I think, at the very least, additional public parking would be advisable for the downtown,” Dickinson said. “There are significant numbers of cars that use that site now.”
If a police facility is constructed on the site, he said, he wants the architects to preserve as much of the land as possible for other municipal functions, such as public parking.
Trzcinski said she will be cautious about espousing views on Wooding-Caplan until the Police Department’s needs are clear.
“Until I know what is going to happen with the Police Department, I’m not going to do anything or think of anything,” she said.
In the meantime, she said, the town should clean up the site. Trzcinski said the townspeople can reach a consensus on the project if all of the relevant information is publicized.
“A town or any organization builds consensus by being informed,” she said.
Officials began looking at the Wooding-Caplan area for a possible police station after police Chief Douglas Dortenzio wrote in April that the existing station would be functional for only another five to eight years.
Both Trzcinski and Vumbaco criticized Dickinson for not notifying the council about police station needs years ago, when the council was still considering private development options for the site.
“He should have disclosed that there was a potential need for a new police station and the town should have looked at that,” Trzcinski said.
Vumbaco said the mayor’s silence on the need for a new police facility “ultimately tainted the process.”
Dickinson responded, stating that officials two or three years ago had a different goal for the Wooding-Caplan property than they do today. At that time, he said, officials wanted to use the site to improve the downt
own.
Now, following the referendum last year that overturned a council-approved development plan, councilors and members of the public want a municipal use for the property, he said.
In that context, he said, the town must decide on the “highest and best use” of the property, which may be a police station.
But even after the referendum, Dickinson did not publicly disclose the future needs of the police department.
The chief spoke about the limitations of the police station after the Town Council invited him to speak at a meeting.
Even though the police station is approaching obsolescence, Dickinson said the town must be careful about embarking on a new construction project.
He said the town is still at work on the library and vocational agriculture projects and will not see a reduction in debt until 2011.
All three candidates have significant ties to the history of Wooding-Caplan. Vumbaco was the chairman of the Town Council in 2005 when it voted to craft a request for proposals for the property. That request generated a number of private development plans.
Trzcinski was on the ad hoc Wooding-Caplan Study Committee, which reviewed various development proposals for the property in 2006. The committee reviewed all the development plans that were submitted.
And it was Dickinson who requested the actual purchase of the property. The town closed on the parcel in 1992 for $1.5 million. It was indicated at the time that the land was purchased for police parking and storage.
Last year, plans for the Wooding-Caplan property became so controversial that the issue dominated nearly all political discussion. The question now is whether Wooding-Caplan still remains an important campaign issue.
On April 11, 2006, the Town Council voted to sell the property to a local developer for $409,000. Residents who did not like the developer’s plan complained that the council did not listen to concerns expressed by residents. Activists in town later forced a referendum to overturn the decision.
The referendum, held in August last year, was the first in town history that had enough participants to take effect. Voters repealed the council decision 6,659-413.
Trzcinski’s campaign largely grew out of the grassroots organizing against the Wooding-Caplan plan. A number of her supporters, for instance, became involved in politics around the controversy.
But Trzcinski is quick to state that Wooding-Caplan is not the central issue of her campaign; it simply reveals larger governmental problems.
Vumbaco has emphasized the successful referendum as an indication of change in voter sentiment.
The controversy has created dissatisfaction with the existing town government that can help push Vumbaco to victory over a long-term incumbent, the Vumbaco campaign argues.
Dickinson has stated that the fate of the Wooding-Caplan property is a relatively minor issue that does not affect the day-to-day lives of residents. But he said he does want to determine the “highest and best” municipal use for the property.
Whoever is elected mayor this November will have to grapple with the 3.4-acre parcel that has languished under town ownership since 1992.
Among the three candidates — incumbent Republican William W. Dickinson Jr., unaffiliated challenger Lucille Trzcinski and Democratic challenger James Vumbaco — none is calling for private development.
All three want the town to determine whether the property can be used for the expansion of the Police Department headquarters. Dickinson has already produced a request for proposals to develop a feasibility study on expanding the police station onto the parcel.
Only Vumbaco has a solid plan for the property if a police facility cannot be constructed there.
“As far as I’m concerned, I think the property should be turned into a park,” he said. “That’s my sole and only premise for that area.”
If a police facility must be constructed on the property, he said, the town could still possibly build a park on what’s left of the land.
Trzcinski and Dickinson, in contrast, are cautious about positing any plan for the area in the event that a police station is not built there. Dickinson cited tumultuous public opinion as his reason for withholding a development plan.
“This property has had such a history of lack of consensus that I think you take one step at a time,” Dickinson said.
“Look at police purposes. Take the next step.”
Dickinson has indicated some basic goals, however. Any decision on Wooding-Caplan will require the demolition of the town-owned 390 Center St. building, he said.
The town should also try to build parking spaces on the property, he said, even if a police station is built on the site.
“I think, at the very least, additional public parking would be advisable for the downtown,” Dickinson said. “There are significant numbers of cars that use that site now.”
If a police facility is constructed on the site, he said, he wants the architects to preserve as much of the land as possible for other municipal functions, such as public parking.
Trzcinski said she will be cautious about espousing views on Wooding-Caplan until the Police Department’s needs are clear.
“Until I know what is going to happen with the Police Department, I’m not going to do anything or think of anything,” she said.
In the meantime, she said, the town should clean up the site. Trzcinski said the townspeople can reach a consensus on the project if all of the relevant information is publicized.
“A town or any organization builds consensus by being informed,” she said.
Officials began looking at the Wooding-Caplan area for a possible police station after police Chief Douglas Dortenzio wrote in April that the existing station would be functional for only another five to eight years.
Both Trzcinski and Vumbaco criticized Dickinson for not notifying the council about police station needs years ago, when the council was still considering private development options for the site.
“He should have disclosed that there was a potential need for a new police station and the town should have looked at that,” Trzcinski said.
Vumbaco said the mayor’s silence on the need for a new police facility “ultimately tainted the process.”
Dickinson responded, stating that officials two or three years ago had a different goal for the Wooding-Caplan property than they do today. At that time, he said, officials wanted to use the site to improve the downt
own.
Now, following the referendum last year that overturned a council-approved development plan, councilors and members of the public want a municipal use for the property, he said.
In that context, he said, the town must decide on the “highest and best use” of the property, which may be a police station.
But even after the referendum, Dickinson did not publicly disclose the future needs of the police department.
The chief spoke about the limitations of the police station after the Town Council invited him to speak at a meeting.
Even though the police station is approaching obsolescence, Dickinson said the town must be careful about embarking on a new construction project.
He said the town is still at work on the library and vocational agriculture projects and will not see a reduction in debt until 2011.
All three candidates have significant ties to the history of Wooding-Caplan. Vumbaco was the chairman of the Town Council in 2005 when it voted to craft a request for proposals for the property. That request generated a number of private development plans.
Trzcinski was on the ad hoc Wooding-Caplan Study Committee, which reviewed various development proposals for the property in 2006. The committee reviewed all the development plans that were submitted.
And it was Dickinson who requested the actual purchase of the property. The town closed on the parcel in 1992 for $1.5 million. It was indicated at the time that the land was purchased for police parking and storage.
Last year, plans for the Wooding-Caplan property became so controversial that the issue dominated nearly all political discussion. The question now is whether Wooding-Caplan still remains an important campaign issue.
On April 11, 2006, the Town Council voted to sell the property to a local developer for $409,000. Residents who did not like the developer’s plan complained that the council did not listen to concerns expressed by residents. Activists in town later forced a referendum to overturn the decision.
The referendum, held in August last year, was the first in town history that had enough participants to take effect. Voters repealed the council decision 6,659-413.
Trzcinski’s campaign largely grew out of the grassroots organizing against the Wooding-Caplan plan. A number of her supporters, for instance, became involved in politics around the controversy.
But Trzcinski is quick to state that Wooding-Caplan is not the central issue of her campaign; it simply reveals larger governmental problems.
Vumbaco has emphasized the successful referendum as an indication of change in voter sentiment.
The controversy has created dissatisfaction with the existing town government that can help push Vumbaco to victory over a long-term incumbent, the Vumbaco campaign argues.
Dickinson has stated that the fate of the Wooding-Caplan property is a relatively minor issue that does not affect the day-to-day lives of residents. But he said he does want to determine the “highest and best” municipal use for the property.