Politics & Government

Herbst Asks for Malloy Intervention on Magnet School

The state has since responded that Bridgeport is having trouble relocating Parks and Recreation equipment that it's storing on the parcel that Trumbull wants to lease.

First Selectman Tim Herbst has released a letter he wrote to Gov. Dannel P. Malloy asking for assistance in reaching a lease with the state for land off Quarry Road used by Bridgeport.

"We promptly complied with everything that was asked of our respective departments.... We have worked in an expeditious manner to provide the state with all that has been asked," Herbst wrote. "It has been eight months since my office met with representatives of your office and CT DEEP  to work out the particulars of this lease agreement."

"In essence, the construction of the entire magnet school will be completed before we are able to carry out the administrative task of transferring a leasehold interest from the City of Bridgeport to the town of Trumbull," Herbst wrote.

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The goal is a lease by Jan. 1, 2013. 

The state Legislature and Malloy approved a boundary shift in April 2011, putting Fairchild Memorial Park, off Quarry Road, in Bridgeport. Bridgeport Zoning officials quickly approved a science magnet high school for the land, scheduled to open in 2014.

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In return, Trumbull was granted the right to bargain for a lease of Bridgeport-controlled land on the other side of Quarry Road. "This was the last parcel needed to complete Trumbull's Rails-to-Trails program to its southern boundary with the city of Bridgeport," Herbst said.

Malloy's General Counsel, Andrew McDonald, has said he is planning a meeting with DEEP officials in an attempt to finalize what is a "complicated" real estate transaction.

"What I am told by the Bridgeport folks is there is no adequate alternative facility for the city for the relocation of the vehicles and the equipment," McDonald said. "The state remains committed to finding a way to lease that property to the town of Trumbull, and the city will ultimately have to relocate that facility and it needs to make those arrangements in the short term, not the long term."

The school's construction will cost $126 million, paid for by the state. 


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