Politics & Government

Subcommittee Seeks Further Guidance in Proposed Eno Farms Sale

Simsbury officials have until July 21 to respond to a proposed bid on the the town's affordable housing complex.

The Eno Farms Subcommittee will request further guidance from the office of the state Attorney General on key issues presented by a potential buyer of the Eno Farms affordable housing complex.

In leiu of the amended ground lease, which was rejected by voters in May, the town of Simsbury will need to negotiate terms for the purchase of the Eno Farms complex. The subcommittee, which includes Selectmen Lisa Heavner and Sean Askham and is charged with providing recommendations to the Board of Selectmen, met Monday night to review correspondence from an Avon company interested in purchasing the Eno Farms complex.

The correspondence, sent by Avon-based Equity Management Corporation president Jonathan Rutenberg's attorney, requested clarification on key points and included potential proposals for requirements to be included in the assignment of the lease.

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Simsbury Town Attorney Robert DeCrescenzo recently received guidance from Assistant Attorney General Gary Hawes about how the town should proceed without the amended ground lease.

Currently, 40 percent of the 50 housing units at Eno Farms are to be reserved for residents living at 60 percent of the area median income. The remaining units are reserved for low income residents who are living at 80 percent of the area median income. The low income threshold, as determined by the department of Housing and Urban Development, is currently set at $87,700 annually, DeCrescenzo said.

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"The sale of the apartment complex offers the opportunity to adjust these restrictions," Hawes said in a letter to DeCrescenzo. "Our understanding is that a continuation of the 40/60 set aside may be insufficient for debt service and capital improvements as they come due."

DeCrescenzo said Hawes recommended allowing all of the 50 units to be rented at 80 percent of the area media income, eliminating the requirement that the owner of the property reserve units for "very low" income residents as specified in the 1991 amendment of the Eno Farms ground lease.

Attornies representing Rutenberg have requested an opinion from the subcommittee on certain key points raised in previous meetings and presented initial suggestions for requirements to be included in an assignment of the lease on the complex.

Preliminarily, Rutenberg has suggested reserving 10 percent, or five of the housing units, for very low income residents and the remaining 90 percent of units for low income residents.

To ease the concern of current tenants about the strict annual income verification process, Rutenberg suggested using a three-year average income assessment to account for unexpected increases and decreases in income during residency.

"You may have a resident who may be over income in the present year but maybe he was unemployed for two years," DeCrescenzo said.

Rutenberg has also asked for clarification on ambiguities in the existing ground lease when it refers to the annual taxation of the property. Because the town owns the land and a buyer would own only the improvements, or buildings, Rutenberg wants the town to clarify whether his company will be taxed on both.

DeCrescenzo said the tax on the improvements is roughly $65,000 annually.

Residents in attendance at the subcommitte meeting maintained concerns over the income limits set for the complex and high rental rates for tenants.

"Using a $70,000 income as a model for the facility is not in keeping with the trust," Joan Coe said. "Many residents cannot afford to live in the complex with rents over $1,000 a month and pay for utilities."

Coe said the town is not in compliance with the 1882 Eno deed which requires the 140-acre parcel of land where the complex is located “be used for the occupation, maintenance, and support” of the town’s poor population.

Selectman Lisa Heavner said the town feels it is in line with the deed as long as some of the complex is used to serve low income residents. The interpretation of the Eno deed has been a core issue in determining how the land is to be used. The parcel is currently occupied by the Eno Farms complex, the Community Farm of Simsbury, and the town's transfer station.

"At $70,000 a year you don't need to be living there- there's no reason to be living there," Eno Farms resident Rogene Bogoslofski said. "It's for low income. We were lucky enough to get there five years ago when my husband got sick."

Bogoslofski said her husband has since passed away and she is currently living on disability insurance and is concerned about the the sale of the property and her future as a resident.

Heavner and Askham requested that attorney DeCrescenzo seek further guidance from the Attorney General's office before making recommendations to the Board of Selectmen.

DeCrescenzo said the town has until July 21 to respond to Rutenberg's bid to purchase the complex.


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