SOUTHINGTON — The city of New Britain has proposed a $1 million sale of the Patton Brook well to the town.
Southington nearly purchased the well in July 2014, when a committee of the New Britain Common Council voted to accept the Southington water department’s $1.3 million offer. The next month, however, the common council voted against the sale.
The land was bought from the Malcein family in 1949, and the well was drilled in 1950. It sits on a 0.61 acre parcel on Tanglewood Drive and can produce more than 1.5 million gallons of water a day, according to New Britain Mayor Erin Stewart.
In 1979, Southington began leasing the well, which is not connected to the New Britain water system.
The well was last used in 2014, when Southington’s lease expired. The town, which paid $107,000 in 2013 to use the well, decided not to renew the lease.
Stewart said Southington town officials approached New Britain earlier this year about a purchase.
“It is not logical for us to hold onto this well,” Stewart said, citing how it would cost millions of dollars to add the well to the city’s water system. “Since the well has sat idle for a few years, some improvements will likely need to be made by Southington.”
Southington Water Superintendent Frederick Rogers and Town Manager Garry Brumback couldn’t be reached for comment Wednesday. Members of the town’s Board of Water Commissioners also declined to comment.
In 2014, Chris Polkowski, chairman of the New Britain Board of Water Commissioners, said the well needed up to $1 million in repairs to make it operational.
While answering questions before New Britain Water Department officials in 2014, Rogers said the town was aware of the repair costs.
“We understand what we have to do to that well,” Rogers said at the time. “There’s a fair amount of money that would have to be invested.”
Asked at the time why the town had been renewing the lease, Rogers said the well is part of the town’s water plan.
Stewart said if the sale is not completed, the well will “remain as part of our water holdings.”
New Britain’s Common Council will hold a public hearing on the proposed sale at City Hall, 27 W. Main St., New Britain, at 7 p.m. on Monday, July 11.
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