Enfield weighs future of Annex: fix it, move services, or build new

Town Council members tour the Annex's infrastructure, peering inside utility closets.

The former Fermi High School -- which closed in 2016 and is now known as the Enfield Annex -- has become a deep part of the community. Whether it's the swimming pool, space for wrestling, the student robotics competition team Buzz Robotics, summer camp or its many other uses, the building has a broad base of support. Last week, some of those supporters turned out to urge Town Council members to preserve the facility.

The future of the former Fermi High School has lingered on the periphery of town discussions for years. No longer.

The Town Council tour of the Annex was intended to help members see firsthand the remedial infrastructure work needed, from utility closets to the boiler room and roof. But residents saw it as a chance to show the council how important the building is to the town. A large crowd turned out, some with signs urging support for the Annex.

Among those at the school was Jeff Beiler, a semi-retired former wrestling coach. Fermi is essential to keeping the wrestling program, which has about 75 students, because there is no room for it at other Enfield school facilities, he said.

"They're homeless if they close this building, and there goes the wrestling program," Beiler said.

"Save the Annex" and "Strong Kids, Strong Community."

Tens of millions 

Before the council members began their tour, Town Manager Matthew Coppler spoke to residents to tell them this project could be expensive.

Coppler told residents that fixing the building for the long term would require a referendum. The project will cost "tens of millions of dollars," he said. "It's going to require taxes to be raised to do that."

For now, the town appears to be taking a less costly, stop-gap approach.

What will make sense

The town recently submitted an application to the state for a $4 million grant to assist in an HVAC replacement and field renovations. The grant application also calls for a $3.5 million town contribution to the work.

"Some of the equipment was in better shape than I thought, as well as some that needs attention immediately," said Councilor Marie Pyznar, a Republican and former deputy mayor, in an email. They are expecting a staff report on the building's condition, she said.

"In a perfect world where money isn't an issue, I would love to see it remain a community center, however, I'm not sure financially that will make sense," Pyznar said.

Pyznar is hoping for some type of public-private partnership on the building.

The town began exploring that option last fall when it issued an RFP (request for proposals) to see if there was developer interest in converting part of the building to housing. The town didn't get a proposal strong enough to move ahead with.

Pyznar is on the Dept. of Public Works subcommittee with Councilor John Santanella, the deputy mayor, a Democrat, which has been getting reports on the condition of the building. Santanella said, in an interview, that the goal of the tour was to help the entire council understand the issues.

No plan to eliminate programs

Santanella said there is no consideration to taking steps that would imperil the wrestling program, or any other program, or to not have a swimming pool. The discussion is "how do we keep these services, and what's the right place to house them?"

For now, the services are in a "building that's falling apart," Santanella said. "Do you fix the building? Do you move the services? Do you create a new building?"

The town is also asking the state to approve a $250,000 grant to study community center needs in Enfield, which will also include a facility assessment of the Annex.

The town is spending about $1 million a year to maintain the building and grounds.

Competing grants 

Complicating matters, the town's request to the state will be competing for funds against another local project. At the same time the town approved the Annex grant request, it also approved an application for $3.5 million to renovate the Hazardville Institute.

Major renovations typically require a town bond, approved by voters, and the outcome of any bond is uncertain.

In 2022, Manchester voters approved $39 million -- 11,500 to 6,700 -- for a new 75,000-square-foot library. The Enfield central library is just about 18,000 square feet, and the daily-use building has two single-use restrooms that require knocking.

But in 2025, Trumbull voters rejected $27 million for a combined senior and community center, 6,327 "no" votes to 5,982 "yes," CT Insider reported.

Enfield's ability to bond is becoming constrained. The town will ask voters in November to approve $90 million to rebuild its elementary schools. It also plans to ask, but not in November, for $40 million in local road upgrades.