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4 Hartford Business Journal • July 27, 2020 • www.HartfordBusiness.com SUBSCRIPTIONS Annual subscriptions are $84.95. To subscribe, visit HartfordBusiness.com, email hartfordbusiness@cambeywest.com, or call (845) 267-3008. ADVERTISING For advertising information, please call (860) 236-9998.Please address all correspondence to: Hartford Business Journal, 15 Lewis Street, Suite 200, Hart ford CT 06103. STAY CONNECTED For breaking and daily Greater Hartford business news go to: www.HartfordBusiness.com HBJ on Twitter: @HartfordBiz HBJ on Facebook: www.facebook.com/HartfordBiz HBJ on Linkedln: www.linkedin.com/company/the-Hartford-Business-Journal Daily e-newsletters: HBJ Today, CT Morning Blend: www.hartfordbusiness.com/enewsletters Tel: (860) 236-9998 Fax (860) 570-2493 Copyright 2020. All rights reserved. Postmaster: Please send address changes to: Hartford Business Journal P.O. 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Peter Stanton | CEO, pstanton@nebusinessmedia.com Tom Curtin | President, ext. 124, tcurtin@hartfordbusiness.com Mary Rogers | COO/CFO, mrogers@nebusinessmedia.com EDITORIAL Greg Bordonaro | Editor, ext. 139, gbordonaro@hartfordbusiness.com Matt Pilon | News Editor, ext. 143, mpilon@hartfordbusiness.com Beats: Health Care, Energy, Startups & Entrepreneurs, Banking & Finance, Government, Bioscience Joe Cooper | Web Editor, ext. 127, jcooper@hartfordbusiness.com Beats: Real Estate, Economic Development, Construction Sean Teehan | Staff Writer, ext. 145, steehan@hartfordbusiness.com Beats: Manufacturing, Technology, Higher Education, Transportation, Nonprofits Tim Doyle | Lead Researcher Heide Martin | Research Assistant Steve Laschever | Photographer BUSINESS Tom Curtin | Publisher, ext. 124, tcurtin@hartfordbusiness.com Donna Collins | Associate Publisher, ext. 121, dcollins@HartfordBusiness.com Lauren Stroud | Project & Office Manager, ext. 137, lstroud@HartfordBusiness.com Christina Zuraw | Events Coordinator, ext. 134, czuraw@hartfordbusiness.com David Hartley | Sr. Accounts Manager, ext. 130, dhartley@HartfordBusiness.com Daniel Schilke | Senior Accounts Manager, ext. 135, dschilke@HartfordBusiness.com Sue Lavin | Accounts Manager, ext. 128, slavin@HartfordBusiness.com Valerie Clark | Director of Audience Development, ext. 332 Jill Coran | Human Resources Manager PRODUCTION Christopher Wallace | Art Director, ext. 147, cwallace@HartfordBusiness.com Its New Haven office has helped protect 93 Connecticut properties spread across 7,600 acres with a fair market value of $150 million, accord- ing Walker Holmes, the nonprofit's state director. "Our goal is to catalyze communities to be healthier and more connected," Holmes said. "We work with communities to protect the places that matter most." TPL has already been involved in two previ- ous Simsbury projects, including protecting 427 acres of forest, fields and wetlands known as the Ethel Walker Woods, located near the private Ethel Walker School on Bushy Hill Road. The Meadowood land sits between the Mas- sacoe State Forest and 4,400-acre McLean Game Refuge. The goal is to connect all three sites to create an expansive network of new trails, Lawler said. About 117 acres would be preserved as working farmland that could be leased to local farms, she added. The biggest challenge to moving the deal for- ward is obtaining financing for the $6-million purchase. The Trust is pursuing several capital sources in addition to the town funding, includ- ing a state open space grant as well as grants from the Connecticut Department of Agricul- ture and state historic preservation office. Wellman, the first selectman, said he hopes the project gets all necessary local approvals in the coming months so the proposed town funding can be voted on in a referendum this November. "At the end of the day our residents are going to have the final say," Wellman said, noting that the COVID-19 pandemic has put pressure on his and all other Connecticut municipalities' budgets, which could impact voters' appetites in supporting the open space purchase. TPL has signed a purchase contract with Grif- fin Industrial that expires next February. If the deal isn't finalized by then, the deadline could be extended another six months, Lawler said. "We have a really good track record of completing our projects, but it doesn't come without its challenges," Lawler said. "We are pretty confident this is what the community wants and it provides a lot of public benefits." Some criticism The move away from an affordable housing project comes as there is growing pressure at the state level to enforce zoning reforms on Connecticut municipalities, especially the state's wealthier suburbs that often fight residential projects meant for lower-income people. The town of Simsbury spent years earlier this century opposing the Meadowood subdi- vision with the issue eventually reaching the state Supreme Court, which ruled the munici- pality improperly blocked the development. A settlement was reached in 2008 between the town and Griffin Industrial to allow a scaled-back project. Earlier this month, a coalition of affordable- housing advocates gathered outside the state Capitol to demand lawmakers to tackle the issue of housing segregation in Connecticut, whose cities have significantly higher popula- tions of low-income residents. The movement is gaining momentum amid the broader calls for social justice sweeping the nation following the death of George Floyd Jr. in Minneapolis. Wellman said one of the few complaints he's heard about the conservation purchase is that it undercuts new affordable housing. However, he said an affordable housing project would be better served being located closer to downtown where there is easier access to public transportation. Currently, only about 4% of housing in Sims- bury — a predominantly white suburb — is considered affordable, according to a 2018 data analysis by the nonprofit Partnership for Strong Communities. "I'm all for affordable housing," Wellman said. "This isn't the spot I would have chosen." >> Town Profile continued Simsbury General Land area (sq. miles) 34 Median age 45 Population 22,364 Median household income $116,444 Unemployment rate 6.1% Major Employers McLean Chubb Insurance Ensign-Bickford Industries Inc. Top taxpayers (2018) Connecticut Light & Power $34,653,950 E&A/I&G Simsbury Commons LP $25,952,630 Simsbury Developers LLC $21,774,600 Government Total revenue (2017) $107,236,920 Per capita tax $3,426 Actual mill rate 37.32 Grand List $2,416,001,289 Housing stock Median price $327,800 Median rent $1,241 Economy Top employment industries Units Employment Total government 22 1,146 Retail trade 60 1,113 Finance and insurance 64 985 Source: AdvanceCT