Community Corner

EDC Forges Draft Sales Agreement for Gales Ferry Site

Town Council to Consider Draft Contract That Could Bring CVS to Town

A plan to build a CVS pharmacy on the former Gales Ferry School property moved closer to reality this week when members of the Ledyard Town Council received copies of a draft purchase and sales agreement between the town and G.B. New England 2, LLC., which represents the drug store chain.

The council will meet Wednesday to discuss the agreement, which is for 1.89 acres at 7 Hurlbutt Road. Possible action would include authorizing the mayor to sign the agreement on behalf of the town, and to set a special Town Meeting on March 30 at 7:30 p.m. in the Town Hall Annex at which residents may vote on the proposal.

Should voters approve the sale, the project would still be subject to Planning and Zoning review. Members of the Economic Development Commission, which negotiated the agreement, are hoping to follow a late spring and summer timeline.

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“Hopefully by the end of summer we’ll have someone building there,” said
Michael Cherry of the EDC. “I think we’ve got the right developer at the right time,” he added.

An attempt by Rite Aid to locate in Gales Ferry nearly four years ago encountered several delays en route to regulatory approval. Ultimately, as the economy worsened, the chain decided not to move forward with the project.

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Mayor Fred B. Allyn Jr. said a pharmacy in Gales Ferry is important for convenience, if nothing else.

“Right now when I want to refill a prescription I need to drive either to Groton or to Norwich,” he said. “So even if it doesn’t make much of a dent in our tax base, we need something, and we need this.”

Details of the agreement were not made public, and council members said Wednesday’s discussion is likely to take place in closed session.

The property referenced in the draft agreement is the front portion of the 5.2 acre former Gales Ferry School parcel. Allyn said the agreement does not include the school building. The town is soliciting ideas for use of the building, part of which is now occupied by the Southeastern Connecticut Regional Resource Recovery Authority.

In December, EDC Chairman Stephen Eichelberg said the exterior design of the new store in Gales Ferry would be subject to a "design document," which he described as having a "colonial flavor."

"I think Gales Ferry residents are really going to like it," he said, adding that the store would be similar in appearance to the CVS at Flanders in East Lyme.


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