River Campus Impact

GOODWIN COLLEGE RIVER CAMPUS

WHAT IT MEANS TO EAST HARTFORD AND THE REGION
Brownfield versus Greenfield Development - Cleanup and Redevelopment of a Prominent Historical Eyesore. Riverside Drive properties have paid little or no taxes for many years; no one has been willing to take on the enormous expense of cleaning up the property, which will far exceed its actual value. The unsightly oil tank farms that have sat idle on these properties for years choked off public access to one of the regions prized natural resources – the Connecticut River. This project is a perfect example of a Brownfield versus Greenfield development and supports the often talked about “Smart Growth” ideals that this region strives for.

Redevelopment of the East Hartford Riverfront into a Town Gateway
The new campus grounds and buildings are highly visible, not only from Route 2 but also from Route 91 and downtown Hartford. The plans are inspirational – almost iconic – and they help recast East Hartford as a local center for technical and academic excellence.

The campus entrance off of Rt. 2 Eastbound at Exit 5 is also one of the main access points for Rentschler Field. This project will assist in beautifying this area by making improvements to this gateway area and will also complement other planned developments such as the Connecticut Science Center.

New Grand List Income for the Town of East Hartford
While Goodwin College is a nonprofit entity, and as such is exempt from local property taxes, the town is eligible to receive Payment in Lieu of Taxes (PILOT) from the State of Connecticut. While it initially may appear that the town would receive less than it would receive in taxes if held by private entities, once developed, it will be much, much more than the town now receives from these underperforming tax-delinquent properties.

Current analyses show that, in 2009, the town will receive over $600,000 in additional net revenue over current tax collections, and this will increase to over $2,000,000 in net revenue annually by 2011 when all phases are scheduled to be completed.

It should also be noted that over $400,000 in back taxes have already been paid to the Town of East Hartford through Goodwin College’s acquisition of these tax-delinquent properties.

New Jobs for Local Residents
Goodwin College continues to grow rapidly as a major employer in the region. In 2004, Goodwin College had 143 employees, which has since grown to 261 in 2008, an 82 percent increase. This number will continue to grow as part of the move to the new campus. In addition to employees, the college will also serve many thousands of students each year. Many of these students are East Hartford and Hartford residents, and they will form the backbone of new hires for the many exciting development projects envisioned in the town and region. New development is dependent on finding competent new employees.

The College as an Economic Engine
In addition to the impact the college already has on our business neighbors, the addition of residence halls helps to ensure that the economic benefit of having a hometown college extends to downtown East Hartford. This will create a critical mass of customers that will help downtown open viable businesses and better compete with area malls. A recent economic study on a similar sized college estimated the local economic impact at over $50 million. Imagine the additional impact of hundreds of students who will need to shop and eat in town. Imagine how many will choose to eventually live in East Hartford and how many will grow their own businesses here.

The College as a Human Service “Driver”
East Hartford needs more and more economically stable “town-centered” organizations. Many of our historic businesses are gone. Our human service support agencies are often satellites of those that have main offices in Manchester or Hartford.
We need to support and revitalize our community-based organizations. Goodwin College
is seeking to assist in this process by including a community meeting space in its core building plan and by continuing its willingness to sponsor community service collaboratives. We already provide interns and volunteers to many town organizations.

The College-Based Early Childhood Learning Center
The second phase of the master campus plan includes the development of a state-of-the-art Early Childhood Learning Center, including observation rooms and adult and early child classrooms. This center will provide optimum opportunities for learning how to become master teachers and will provide additional coveted early child care slots for residents. The college also has accredited programs in paraprofessional training and a nationally-recognized program in youth development practice – working with school-aged children.

The College as a Cultural Center
Having a college in town means that there is another cultural center that can benefit residents. National speakers, musical groups and sports will make the town more attractive to residents. There are reasons why college towns generally enjoy increased property values. The college grounds will also be made available for the public to enjoy outdoor activities along the banks of the river.
In the summer of 2008, Goodwin College sponsored a visit by the Half Moon, a full-scale, operating replica of the Dutch ship of exploration that Henry Hudson sailed in 1609. The College also offered free public tours of the ship during Riverfest. The ship drew over 2,000 visitors while it was docked at one of Goodwin College’s deep-water docks on the Connecticut River.

Utilization of Our Students and Staff for Town and Regional Projects
The many things that our students and staff do now for the community will be greatly increased with full-time residential students. For example:

• Our health sciences students may be of additional help with health screenings, health fairs and even in-house assessments for seniors and others who may not be accessing regular medical care.
• Our respiratory care students can assist in asthma screenings and referrals.
• Our paramedic and first responder programs can continue to provide continuing education to our police and fire departments.

The possibilities are limited only by imagination.

Development of an Environmental Studies Center
The new Goodwin College riverfront campus includes three of the only deep-water docks in the northern Connecticut River. The college is committed to using these docks to service a research vessel to support a river ecology curriculum. The college will also seek to use this vessel during weekend hours to offer river ecology trips for local residents and families on the Connecticut River, similar to Project Oceanography on the Connecticut shore. And at a time when people are finally beginning to see the need to conserve precious open space, Goodwin College has assembled over 700 acres of river floodplain in the south end of town for use by the college, local youth groups and local residents. Other likely opportunities include the availability of our research vessel to the Connecticut Science Center, schools and other groups.

Opportunities to Connect To Other Regional Assets
The new Goodwin College riverfront campus will allow for other opportunities to extend and improve upon other assets in the region.

Currently, plans for Riverfront Recapture’s trail system would extend just north of our campus with a connection to Rentschler Field. Goodwin College’s project would allow for the extension of this trail system along an additional 2.5 miles of land along the Connecticut River as far south as the Putnam Bridge (Rte. 3) in Glastonbury with possible connections to the Glastonbury and Wethersfield trail system.

Partnerships with East Hartford Schools and Other Schools in the Region
The college is only beginning to investigate opportunities to partner with East Hartford and other schools in the region. Ideas include allowing local residents to attend some classes at reduced or free tuition while still in high school and creating new opportunities for professional clubs to begin gaining knowledge and skills in fields that are studied at Goodwin College. It may be possible for students to take some classes at the collegiate level and receive high school and college credit concurrently. Our Early Childhood Education Program may be able to expand its current links with Head Start and other programs.

Two Rivers Magnet School is located just north of the campus, and we envision developing relationships with the school and other schools in the region to access Goodwin programs and resources.

In the summer of 2008, Goodwin College sponsored a “Voyage of Discovery” in which 12 local middle school students sailed for a week on the Connecticut River aboard the Half Moon, the full-scale, operating replica of the Dutch ship of exploration sailed by Henry Hudson in 1609. The students served as the student crew and conducted scientific experiments during their journey.