Plans are underway for the development of Wesleyan’s 160-acre Long Lane property, which the University purchased a year ago from the state for $16 million.
The construction of a retirement/life-long learning community on the western side of the site is under discussion, and a variety of concrete projects are underway or will occur as soon as this spring, according to Wesleyan administrators. These projects include a system of nature trails, a new turf field for lacrosse and field hockey, and the consolidation of Wesleyan physical plant operations at Long Lane.
Construction of a cross-country course around the property has already been completed, and the southwestern portion of the land was sold to AME Zion Church in exchange for its Cross Street property. In addition, the University Press office has relocated to Long Lane, and some equipment for Physical Plant is being stored in a garage there.
Last spring, a student-run organic farm was granted an acre of land “for the time being,” according to Marcia Bromberg, University Vice President for Finance and Administration. She added, however, that there were no immediate plans for the site.
“It is likely that ‘for the time being’ will be a very long time,” Bromberg said.
Meanwhile, environmental remediation crews continue to work on the former home of the Connecticut Juvenile Training School (CJTS), a facility for adolescent offenders on the eastern side of the property. Almost all of the approximately 20 buildings on the site will be demolished due to significant asbestos and lead deposits in the soil, according to Bromberg.
Also known as the Long Lane School, CJTS was relocated in 2002 to a new facility adjacent to Connecticut Valley Hospital. The move was highly controversial, since many residents did not want to live near CJTS. The decision divided the Middletown Common Council in half, which came down to a tie-breaking vote from Mayor Domenique Thornton.
The issue also strained University-Middletown relations, particularly after the Board of Education considered using the property for the construction of a new high school. President Doug Bennet had reservations about a new high school on the Long Lane site.
A different site was chosen, and Wesleyan University received control of the land on Jan. 1, 2004. The Campus Renewal Fund, rather than student fees, is currently paying off the $16 million loan the University took out in 2000 when they initially purchased the property, according to Bromberg.
She added that plans for the site have not changed drastically since the University did a long-term assessment in 2002. The long-term plan called for the creation of playing fields alongside the addition to the Freeman Athletic Center and the development of a retirement community to the north. It also suggested that a total of 64 acres be held as open space, including 51 acres that cannot be developed on because they comprise wetlands or slope too steeply.
The retirement community proposal is still in the early planning process, according to Bromberg. She said the project would be in line with Wesleyan’s mission to promote life-long learning and has support from the city of Middletown.
“We’ve introduced the concept to the city and they like it,” Bromberg said.
In order to proceed with the construction of a retirement community, the University would have to petition to change its zoning, according to Bill Warner, Director of Planning for the City of Middletown.
Warner said that he thought the project would fit well with Wesleyan’s place in the community but said the city would probably prefer the retirement community to be a private organization. Wesleyan would receive tax exemptions due to its tax status as an educational institution, so the retirement community would be more economically beneficial for Middletown were it to be private, according to Warner.
Either way, the project is still in the conceptual stages, according to Bromberg. Currently, the University is testing the demand and economic viability for such a project by meeting with community groups.
More concrete, however, are plans to consolidate all Physical Plant operations at Long Lane, according to Joyce Topshe, Assistant Vice President for Facilities.
“We’re fragmented,” she said. “We’re in multiple locations.”
There are currently five Physical Plant administrative buildings spread across campus. Long Lane will provide an ideal location for Physical Plant, according to Topshe. In particular, the department hopes to move into the Katy School, which is the only historic building that has not been recommended for demolition.
Besides making the department more efficient, Topshe said the move will allow Wesleyan to possibly sell or renovate Physical Plant’s various offices throughout the campus, particularly houses near the Main Street area. Already, community members have approached Topshe about purchasing certain locations, even though the buildings have not been put on the market.
There are several plans for using the other Physical Plant buildings on campus, Topshe said. For their 255 Pine St. offices, ideas include the relocation of the transportation and auxiliary services to a more central hub on Pine Street and/or an additional laundry facility there as well. Physical Plant may also return its ResLife office to student use; the two departments met last Friday to discuss the issue.
Topshe hopes to get the relocation process started as early as this spring, provided the proposal she presented to the Space Committee last week gets passed and moves to the Facilities Working Group.
Other projects in the Long Lane area include a lighted turf field for lacrosse and field hockey that would be adjacent to the softball field and additional nature trails to the eastern portion of Long Lane, once clean-up is completed.
Bromberg said a community forum would probably be held next year to discuss plans for the Long Lane property as a whole.
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