Torrington settles with Hartford Dispensary

The city will settle with a mental health and substance abuse organization for $110,000.

TORRINGTON >> The city will settle with a mental health and substance abuse organization for $110,000 after the organization filed a federal lawsuit alleging discrimination.

The settlement was approved by a 4-0 vote during a special city council meeting on Wednesday morning in the mayor’s office after an executive session.

The entire process took about 20 minutes, Mayor Ryan Bingham said.

Bingham said on Thursday that he could not discuss the details of the case but did confirm the amount the city has settled with Hartford Dispensary, the organization that had been planning to open a health and recovery center in Torrington on Kennedy Drive in the building formerly used by the Boy Scouts of America.

The city won’t pay for the settlement, Bingham said. The amount will be paid by CIRMA, the Connecticut Interlocal Risk Management Agency. The agency is an insurance company that operates low risk-sharing pools for municipalities, and will be paying the settlement.

Diane Whitney, attorney for Hartford Dispensary, said the dispensary will not be continuing its lawsuit against the city.

The lawsuit was filed in January after the dispensary’s first plans were rejected by the planning and zoning commission late in 2012.

“It was our contention that the special regulations discriminated against recovering addicts or people with mental health problems,” Whitney said on Thursday.

Whitney said the city, with knowledge of the facility proposed for Torrington, passed regulations that made it more difficult to establish any mental health or addiction treatment center.

In a four-page memo sent to the planning and zoning committee on Nov. 14, city planner Martin Connor specified seven reasons why the proposed site should be denied.

The first reason listed for the denial was inadequate parking, according to the memo. Testimony written on behalf of nearby Fitzgerald Estate raised concerns about the neighborhood’s property values. Concerns about the site being in close proximity to a child care facility were also included in the memo.

The claim by the dispensary also alleged the regulation passed by the city violated the Americans with Disabilities Act, which prompted Whitney to contact the Justice Department.

The Justice Department then launched a civil investigation that concluded the regulations violated the Disabilities Act, and in response, former U.S. Attorney for the District of Connecticut, David Fein, sent a letter to the city about potential litigation from the federal agency if Torrington didn’t change the regulations, Whitney said.

New plans for dispensary located at 140 Commercial Blvd. were approved by the planning and zoning commission on May 22. The 11,700 square foot medical and professional office building is being designed by Borghesi Building and Engineering Company, according to a planning and zoning commission review document.

“We are happy to have the litigation ended and we are looking forward to building the facility in Torrington and operating it there,” Whitney said.