Enfield is considering a major sports complex

 

Town Council from YouTube

There is a proposal to build a sports complex on the Mass Mutual property off Route 5 in North Enfield. It is near the I-91 exit. 

This 65-acre site, which a town officials said is vacant, would be repurposed into a sports complex of 11 fields. It would include restaurants, a hotel, retail and a fitness center. It will also include a "family entertainment center," according to the developer Andrew Borgia.

Mayor Robert Cressotti called it "an exciting proposal," and some other council members also spoke favorably about it. The presentation at the Jan. 9 meeting is on YouTube, and it begins at 18 minutes. A rendering is displayed at about 49.33 minutes. This has had nearly 1,000 views, so people are aware of it. 

Sports complexes aimed at youth are still relatively new ventures, but here's an AP report from 2017 that explains the concept. 

The Mass Mutual property was on the town's top 10 taxpayer list for years, according to Enfield Town Manager Ellen Zoppo-Sassu. She believes it is unlikely that the property will find reuse as an office complex because of the shift to remote and hybrid work. This change in working habits has reduced the need for commercial office space, she said.

Councilmember Ken Nelson, the Republican minority leader, is involved in the project and sat with the developers during the council's presentation.  He said he is recusing himself from votes and actions about this matter, and read from a section of the town's ethics ordinances to clarify his role. "I am making this recusal statement due to my professional capacity within the real estate development field."

Nelson said that while some may see his involvement as a conflict of interest, "I strongly believe that this is more of a connection than a conflict because the potential benefits are huge to Enfield."  

To build 11 fields, the developers are proposing leasing part of Brainerd Park, including, where a new softball field was built. They say they need at least this many playing fields for the financing to work. In exchange for this parkland, the developer plans to replicate the softball field, install a restroom, a walking trail around the park's perimeter, a splash pad, a dog run and a new parking area in Brainerd Park. 

Nelson said the project is an $80 million to $100 million retrofit of the office park.

The project is expected to attract tournaments of 200 to 300 teams for four to five-day periods, with some 3,000 participants. The demand for hotel rooms may be as high as 8,000 when non-participating family members are counted. It has the potential to bring $300 million in revenue into the town, the developer said. 

The matter heads to the PZC, which has to consider the Brainerd Park part of this plan. 

Observations: 

The involvement of a Town Council member in this project puts the town's paid executive administrators in a difficult position. They may feel implicit pressure to handle this proposal in the sunniest way possible. This is a risk long recognized in government, which is one of the reasons there are restrictions on lobbying. In Congress, for instance, lawmakers who leave office cannot immediately start to lobby. There is a requirement for a "cooling off period" of one year.

This is no minor project, and the council member should seriously consider resigning. If he doesn't see a need to leave the council, here's a suggestion for a workaround. The town could hire an independent consultant to evaluate the project, look at the market, estimate economic and tax benefits, and compare it to other possible outcomes for this property. Independent analysis and recommendations might take some pressure off the town's paid staff. That ought to be done in any event. 

This may be a great project for the town, but more information is needed about the potential tax revenue and the town's plan to capture the expected economic development benefits from the seasonal traffic. But a deep dive into this project wasn't the intent of this initial meeting, so we should learn more as time goes on. The hard part is ahead. The neighborhood reaction is a wildcard because of the Brainerd Park aspect of the plan.