Madison Moves Forward On Former Academy Street School Site

Originally written by Jack Kramer, Correspondent

MADISON, CT – It’s been sitting mothballed for more than a decade but the Board of Selectmen is trying to speed up the process of figuring out the future of the former Academy Street School site. At its most recent selectmen meeting, the board voted unanimously after hearing a presentation from a consultant hired to help on the project, to draw up a draft Request For Proposal (RFP) for the school site.

The RFP proposal is slated to be reviewed at the next selectmen meeting. Before voting to go through the RFP process, the selectmen heard from Francisco Gomes, of Fitzgerald & Halliday, the consultants hired by the town to help steer a direction for the use of the former school site.

Gomes told the selectmen that the property, if it was put back on the tax rolls, would generate approximately $100,000 annually in taxes. A survey that more than 700 Madisonites filled out, Gomes said, showed that residents believe the building is “very significant” to the town.

The greatest response for moving forward, Gomes said, was to redevelop the building for a mixture of uses, such as a community center for teens, restaurants, housing, gym, and performing arts space.

The survey showed that most people don’t want to see the building demolished, Gomes told the selectmen. Those that were okay with it being demolished, were only okay with it depending on what was built in its place.

After hearing Gomes’ presentation, the selectmen decided to go forward with the RFP process. The selectmen said the goal would be that if multiple RFP’s are submitted that the public would have an opportunity to weigh in on what option they like best.

(Editor's Note: This story first ran previously but here it is again in case you missed it.)