Issue link: https://nebusinessmedia.uberflip.com/i/1115236
6 Hartford Business Journal • May 13, 2019 • www.HartfordBusiness.com The Difficult Conversations are the Most Important Presented by Successful family-owned and small businesses need to talk openly about the good, the bad, and the ugly. Join the experts for an open and honest dialogue about how to have these difficult conversations, solve problems and grow your business. s i m s b u r y b a n k . c o m June 11th at The Delamar Hotel in West Hartford. 4:00 PM Seating is limited, so register today! SimsburyBank.com/Difficult-Conversations SimsburyBank_QtrHoriz_HBJ_DiffConvo2019.indd 1 5/7/19 11:06 AM Ignite your employees' interest with a modern plan design. Learn more: Get "Does your re rement plan address these 6 essen al elements?" hhconsultants.com/ignite By Greg Bordonaro gbordonaro@hartfordbusiness.com A t a May 2 commercial real estate conference held at the Delamar Hotel in West Hartford, realty brokers and devel- opers lamented a number of Con- necticut policies and regulations they say hinder economic growth. One that aroused the most frus- tration was the so-called "Property Transfer Act," which was adopted in 1985 to encourage the cleanup of pol- luted properties. The law is pretty technical but it generally requires the disclosure of environmental conditions and, if not previously done, investigation and remediation of hazardous waste generated on certain properties before they can be sold. It particularly singles out real estate operated by dry cleaning, furni- ture stripping, or auto-repair businesses. However, realty brokers and others say the law is too broad and can ensnarl deals involving properties that pose lit- tle or no environmental risks, delaying transactions, hamstringing economic development — including the potential rebirth of derelict buildings — and making outside investors skittish about buying properties in Connecticut. The real estate community has long had a beef with the law, but is mak- ing a more concerted push this year to lobby for reforms, hoping to get support from the Lamont administra- tion, which has talked about creating a friendlier business environment. Department of Economic and Com- munity Development Commissioner David Lehman has already said he is examining whether middle ground can be found to improve "the speed at which properties change hands." A bill in the legislature that would tweak the Transfer Act has passed out of the Commerce Com- mittee, but advo- cates say they are pushing for much broader reforms. Two other bills in the legislature proposed to en- tirely repeal the Transfer Act, but they didn't gain traction. Connecticut is one of only two states that has a Transfer Act policy. Hazard Zone Commercial real estate community says 'Transfer Act' stifling economic development in CT Pamela K. Elkow, Partner, Carmody Torrance Sandak & Hennessey LLP Katie Dykes, Commissioner, Department of Energy and Environmental Protection PHOTO | CONTRIBUTED Commercial realty broker Mark Duclos (far left) spoke at a recent conference in West Hartford, urging audience members to support legislation that would ease restrictions under the state's Property Transfer Act.