Task force: Lease city’s senior center to an operator
Middletown mulls 3 options for its Central Connections property.
MIDDLETOWN — City staff, City Council members and residents heard recommendations from a task force regarding the future of city-owned Central Connections during a six-hour special meeting Saturday.
After the city purchased the property last year for $1.8 million with American Rescue Plan Act funds, City Manager Paul Lolli formed a task force of business leaders to “guide the city,” he said.
The task force met for months, and Bob Nolan, a business consultant and tax specialist, made a presentation Saturday at Central Connections.
Nolan said the task force considered three options for Central Connections: Continue operating as it is with limited senior programs and no banquet services; leasing the property to a company that can run it as a senior center/event center; or selling the property.
The city has hired a part-time employee to oversee operations at Central Connections and reduced hours to 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Monday through Friday and closed the cafe, he said. He estimates it will cost the city $150,000 a year to operate the center.
Another option, Nolan said, would be for the city to sell the property for an estimated $1 million to $2.5 million, far lower than its value of $4.5 million to $5 million. If the building is sold, the city would have to locate another site for senior services and lose control of the property, he said.
Leasing the property to an operator was the recommendation from the task force, he said. He said the city should send out requests for proposals to determine if there is interest in a catering business leasing the building and operating the senior and event center.
The building at 3907 Central Ave. offers a kitchen that’s the “envy of any restaurant,” a banquet room with a 600-person capacity, office space and additional room for senior activities, he said. Leasing to one operator “makes the most sense” because senior services and the event center would be under one roof, according to Nolan.
During one of the earlier task force meetings, Nolan called the event center “a gold mine for someone to open” and said there are “millions” of potential revenue dollars sitting there.
Later, he added the center could be “a shining star” in the city because of the potential to host events and meetings and rent office space.