Governor

State Seeks Proposals to Develop Seaside State Park in Waterford

The Connecticut Department of Energy and Environmental Protection has issued a Request for Proposals (RFP) looking for a developer to partner up on the Seaside State Park project in Waterford.

The multi-million dollar project involves the creation of a new state park at the former Seaside sanatorium along the Waterford coast. DEEP is looking for a partner that can help work to reuse the historic structures already on site.

“Increasing public access to the Long Island Sound has been a primary goal of the Connecticut State Park system since the very first state park opened in 1913. Moving forward with the plan to preserve this property as a state park, while also creating a state park lodge is the best of both worlds for our residents and our tourism economy. We look forward to creating a public-private partnership to save these historic buildings and create a state park lodge that will be an asset to the town and the state,” said DEEP Commissioner Robert Klee.

The Seaside property was originally a sanitarium for tuberculosis patients, then served as senior housing and a group home before closing in 1996. In 2014 Gov. Dannel Malloy made the property a state park, the first new one along the Long Island Sound in more than 50 years.

Since 2014 DEEP has been working on the planning and approval processes for the park. The agency is looking to create lodging, dining, a spa and other amenities using the historic buildings. There is over 107,000 gross square feet of buildings available.

DEEP is looking for a proposal that sets out to restore and preserve the historic assets, preserve and improve the ecology and habitat in the area, promote and improve passive recreation and public access to the Long Island Sound, and create an operating plan that is financially feasible. Any agreement with a private development partner would grant the rights to rehabilitate and manage the buildings and a leasehold area under contract, but ownership of the property would remain in the hands of the state.

The deadline for responses is July 27, 2018. For more information, visit the DEEP website by clicking here.

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