Moratorium on rents for town-owned properties
Since businesses and nonprofits are hurting because of the coronavirus crisis, the New Canaan Board of Selectmen has agreed to hold off on charging for rents for most town-owned rented spaces.
The Board of Selectmen voted unanimously on Tuesday, April 21, 2020, to defer charging rents for five organizations that are in town-owned property with combined monthly payments of $10,815.
“My proposal would be to show that the town wants to help the down town merchants and our non profits especially by having a moratorium on rent for ninety days, April through June. That would make it through July 1 payment,” First Selectman Kevin Moynihan said.
“I think it is the right thing to do. There is a lot of pain out there,” Selectman Kit Devereaux said. “Anything we can do to help is what we should be doing.”
“I’d like to show our community, our landlords, that they need to look at giving some moratorium relief to their tenants. We want to preserve our merchants and nonprofits in town that anything that can be done to help assist with their obligations that they ought to do as well.” Moynihan said.
“I am completely supportive of this,” Selectman Nick Williams said. He asked Moynihan if he had discussed it with outside counsel. The first selectman replied that he had.
The locations include: Bow Tie Cinemas at 89 Elm Street, which pays $4,167 monthly; Earth Garden also at 89 Elm Street, has a $2,500 rent bill; the New Canaan Chamber of Commerce at 91 Elm Street, is charged $612; New Canaan CARES, also at 91 Elm Street, pays $612; and the New England Academy of Dance in the Town Hall Annex behind Town Hall usually pays $2,924 rent each month.
“We want these tenants to be in business four months or six months out. We are going to give up some modest amounts of revenue. I think it is the right thing to do,” Moynihan said.
“I use the term moratorium for a reason. We are not going to waive the rent. We will discuss it in 90 days. Chances are we will probably defer it further, but I don’t want to necessarily say that we are waiving the rent,” Moynihan said. “A moratorium means you are just waiting to see if the situation changes,” he added.
“More than likely we will enter into terms for the future,” Moynihan said. “It requires some individual discussions with individual tenants with what they will do in the future. We may decide by the end of June, consistent with talking with the Board of Finance, to decide to forgive it all together, but that is for a discussion down the road.”
Moynihan was contacted by a few tenants recently, he recalled. “Bow Tie Cinemas has actually sent us a lawyer’s letter,” he said.
As much as he does not agree with their the legal position of the company he does “not think we need to debate that with them. I think we should be generous. They have no revenues. They are closed,” Moynihan said.
“There are two tenants he did not include in the moratorium, which include the Waveny Care Center, (Waveny LifeCare Network), at 3 Farm Road, and Bankwell at 208 Elm Street. Waveny, which usually pays $25,241 yearly, is not due to pay until June. A discussion will be held then, Moynihan said. The health care institution owns the 12 acres where it is located — originally part of the 297 acres of the Waveny Farm purchase in 1967, Moynihan told the Advertiser.
On the spreadsheet that Moynihan gave out that lists all the locations and rents, next to Bankwell it says TBD [To Be Determined]. The bank usually pays quarterly and has not paid for April yet, according to the document.
“Bankwell is a big bank with a balance sheet that keeps on earning regardless,” Moynihan said. However, “I don’t plan to be unfriendly to Bankwell.”