2017
Surprise, surprise – the proposed new Human Services Facility cannot be built for the $22.3 million price tag that this Town Council proclaimed in August of 2016 before tying the town’s citizens to this financial folly with a mendacious bond referendum.

What went wrong?
Three important Bloomfield public agencies – Senior Services, Leisure Services, and Social & Youth Services – along with Bloomfield Access Television (BATV) currently are located in the repurposed junior high school at 330 Park Avenue, the Alvin & Beatrice Wood Human Service Facility (“HSF”). In early 2016, a consultant, Centerbrook, was asked to evaluate inadequacies in the building and the cost of repair. Their conclusion: the building could not be repaired and instead should be replaced, with a cost of between $30 million and $35 million (the price variation largely depending on whether or not an indoor swimming pool was included).
 
If Bloomfield government accepted the conclusion that the building indeed was unsalvageable what should have happened next? A number of actions:

• A basic question needed to be answered: what are the long-term needs of the three groups – Senior Services, Leisure Services, Social & Youth Services – housed at the current Alvin & Beatrice Wood Human Services Facility? Is BATV even relevant in the age of YouTube? Specifically, what is the projected future utilization, format, and delivery mode for the services currently provided by these groups?
• Answering these basic questions raises numerous ancillary questions. For example what are the needs vs. wants of each service, should all the services remain in a single location or could/should they be separated, is the current site at 330 Park Ave. a good location for the services or would a new location – for example, a town center site where services could be provided centrally and possibly in synergy with other services/communities (e.g. Prosser Library, Town Hall) – be better for some or all of them?
• These questions are not new: the Council should refer to pages 99 and 101 of the 2012 Plan of Conservation & Development (POCD). The POCD, endorsed by the Council, asks some basic questions which no one to date has addressed, e.g.:
  • “Bloomfield should evaluate if the value and purpose of a senior center is defined by where the center is located (building site and location within the town) or whether it is defined by the types of programs and activities that are offered. After that evaluation is completed, improvements to senior programming [the facility] can be implemented, including a cost-benefit analysis of the various options.” [emphasis added] (pg. 101)
  • “Bloomfield relies on a mix of public and privately-owned facilities…for recreation. This is a cost-effective solution…Bloomfield should continue to utilize this approach, and monitor whether additional public facilities will be needed. [emphasis added] (pg. 99)

Centerbrook’s appraisal of the HSF building should have started the critical dialogue reflected in the point above, about how best to provide the services in tandem with other long-term objectives such as restoration of the town center, proximity of services, and transportation. Many citizens view Centerbrook’s study as an opportunity to potentially improve delivery of the programs currently co-joined at 330 Park Ave. by potentially separating and relocating them, concurrently strengthening connections to the town center and enhancing public use of school gymnasium facilities.
 
Unfortunately, this didn’t happen. Instead of determining whether or not a new building was even needed, Councilor Leon Rivers asked Centerbrook “what can you build for $20 million?” The $20 million figure roughly corresponded to Bloomfield’s perceived debt issuance capacity at that point ($30 million less roughly $10 million for renovation of the Public Works Facility). Centerbrook came back with a “stripped down” proposal to deliver a new building for $22.3 million. Absent public input, input from Town committees, and no Needs or Building Committee, the Democrats on the Town Council chose to ignore the public, who supported a well-researched and documented project to renovate the existing Prosser Library Building (with a legitimate cost estimate of roughly $20 million), and move forward with the $22.3 million new Human Services Facility building. Democratic Councilors assured the public that this was the cost and that they would vote to end the project if costs came in higher than this amount. Nevertheless, rather than doing any research, they wasted money on a bond referendum for the $22.3 million figure.
 
What has happened now and what do we know?
 
Bloomfield Citizens noted in August of 2016 that the town really had no idea of the final cost of the HSF building project as no building plan existed. Designing a building from an a la carte menu, as witnessed at Town Council meetings, pretty much guarantees failure. We now have the answer. Per Nancy Haynes, Bloomfield’s Risk Manager, “The news, unfortunately, is not good.  Based on the reconciled estimate, the total project budget is at $28.4 million, based on a construction cost of $24.8 million, which exceeds the $22.3 million bond authorization.” Unsurprisingly, Leon, the cost is exactly where it always was, around $30 million (without a swimming pool)!
 
Town Manager Schenck tried to cover the Town and the Council. In an e-mail dated July 14, he proposes that the Council establish a Building Committee to “remove the current criticism that people, including boards and commissions have, that they have not been involved and have not had the opportunity to participate in the process to the degree that they may have wished…to date the process has essentially been staff driven…” The Building Committee was created retroactively and is window dressing in a dishonest process. As Bloomfield Citizens noted last year this was an amazing action; it was both premature – as citizens have no idea what kind of structures are needed or what their configurations should be – and too late, as such a committee needs to substantially complete its work before any suggestion of bonding funds for the project.
 
Someone knew that the $22.3 million was not enough: Rep. David Baram – and by implication, the Council Democrats. Evidently Rep. Baram made a request to the Bond Commission in Nov. 2016 for $10 million to supplement local funding. Hmmm, funny he (and others?) knew that the $22.3 million wasn’t going to be enough. Amazingly given the state’s budgetary situation, Rep. Baram, Town Staff, and members of the Building Committee have met with the Office of Policy & Management to discuss this request. Not only should the citizens of Bloomfield not have to pay for this madness, neither should citizens of the state.

Finally, given the economic uncertainty faced by all towns in the state, issuing a bond to pay for building a potentially “white elephant” facility at a potentially inappropriate location is fiscally irresponsible. The Council should kill this project and earnestly begin the input and review process needed to arrive at a good solution for the services currently housed at The Alvin & Beatrice Wood Human Services Facility.

Finally, given the economic uncertainty faced by all towns in the state, issuing a bond to pay for building a potentially “white elephant” facility at a potentially inappropriate location is fiscally irresponsible. The Council should kill this project and earnestly begin the input and review process needed to arrive at a good solution for the services currently housed at The Alvin & Beatrice Wood Human Services Facility.

2016
On August 8, 2016 the Bloomfield Town Council approved holding a $22.3 million bond referendum vote this fall (November 8, 2016) to fund replacement of the Alvin & Beatrice Wood Human Service Facility located at 330 Park Avenue.  After the vote, a Building Committee was selected by the Mayor to determine what this building would look like . Usually this is a procedure that is done prior to referendum so as to be more accurate in what costs and needs will be. 

History

Three important Bloomfield agencies – Senior Services, Leisure Services, and Social & Youth Services – along with Bloomfield Access Television (BATV) are currently located in the existing building, a re-purposed school, at 330 Park Avenue. Centerbrook Architects was hired to evaluate building inadequacies and estimate the cost of repair. Their conclusion: the building could not be repaired and should be replaced, at a cost of between $30 million and $35 million (the higher price included an indoor swimming pool).
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If the Town Council accepted this conclusion and the estimated cost to rebuild exceeded the Town’s remaining $20 million debt capacity, what should have happened next?   One answer is to halt the process, not move it forward without a real plan with a real budget. Another is to undertake a critical evaluation of demographics to determine the current and future need for these services, while  looking at the latest innovations and contemporary methods of delivering services to these user groups.  This would also include a community dialogue about how best to meet those needs in tandem with other long-term objectives, such as revitalization of the town center, proximity of services,  transportation needs and the like; these issues were covered in the 2012 Plan of Conservation & Development (POCD) endorsed by the Council but have been ignored.

Unfortunately, none of this happened.  The Town Council looked solely at what funds were available.  With $11.6 million already earmarked for improvements to the Public Works facility, only $20 million was available before reaching our agreed upon debt limit. So the Council asked Centerbrook “what can you build for $20 million?” Centerbrook came back with a “stripped down industrial chic" concept for a new building without a pool for $22.3 million (still in excess of the bonding limit before any design work began). Absent any input from town agencies, the public, or a building committee, the Town Council chose to ignore the public concerns voiced at several Council meetings and moved forward with this option for referendum. Sadly, the lack of analysis and concern for costs is eerily similar to the Hartford government’s ramming through the troubled Yard Goats Stadium proposal.  As a Bloomfield resident, you will be asked to vote in November on whether or not to fund this undefined project. No one can predict the final cost of this project.

What can we do?

BloomfieldCitizens.org certainly agrees that the Senior Services, Leisure Services, and Social & Youth Services provide essential services to our community. However, issuing a bond is no blank check to explore options that should have already been studied and  well defined.  This is not fiscally responsible.  From what we have learned, the town will not be able to build a facility we can be proud of for the amount of money ($22.3 million) approved in the referendum.  Most likely our taxes will increase with this bonding.
We urge residents to consider their vote carefully.