SEYMOUR – Members of the Seymour Board of Selectpersons voted June 17 to authorize their attorney to settle a lawsuit between the town and the entities that control Tri-Town Plaza at 814 Derby Ave.
The details have not been made public.
“Until you get a signature from all parties, this is not settled yet,” said Richard Buturla, the Seymour town attorney.
Seymour First Selectwoman Annmarie Drugonis would not comment on the terms of the settlement.
Tri-Town Plaza at one time was home to an Ames department store, Adams grocery store and a multi-screen movie theater. There are a few remaining businesses in the plaza, including Alberto’s restaurant, Subway, Dunkin Donuts and Black Hole Jiu Jitsu martial arts school.
Ames closed in 2002, and Adam’s supermarket closed in 2003. The two anchor stores comprised about 94,000-square-feet of space.
Background
The Town of Seymour, through its building inspector, Jim Baldwin, took Tri-Town Plaza to court in August 2022.
The town claimed safety issues at the shopping plaza were being ignored. The safety issues were found after portions of the buildings at Tri-Town were demolished in 2018, according to court documents. The work left behind structural problems that were a threat to public safety, according to court filings from the town.
A blight designation was issued by the town in 2021, followed by the town filing the lawsuit in 2022, saying Spector and the owners of the plaza had done nothing to address the issues.
In October 2022, The Valley Indy published a story reporting that the town and Tri-Town had worked out a deal in court to address the alleged safety issues at the property.
However, in August 2024 the town alleged that Spector never complied with that deal, and that the plaza’s buildings were still being neglected. Buturla filed an amended complaint Aug. 21, 2024 against the plaza and the groups that own it.
The town alleges the Tri-Town Plaza parties owe the Town of Seymour $73,923.01. That amount includes daily fines for not complying with Baldwin’s corrective order, structural engineer fees, attorney fees, state marshal fees and court reporter fees.
Tri-Town Controlling Parties
The Tri-Town Plaza land at 814 Derby Ave. is owned by Goodyear Property Management, LLC, along with Mark and Ellen Shaw, the trustees of the William H. Shaw Connecticut Realty Trust.
Connecticut Properties Tri-Town Plaza, LLC is the tenant, and controls the property, according to court documents. Ron Spector, of Nevada, is the managing partner of that LLC.
Spector has a 1961 lease agreement with the plaza owners that is valid for 99 years.
Comment?
Jeffrey Mirman, a lawyer representing Spector, filed a document in Superior Court in Milford on June 20 confirming that settlement negotiations are underway.
“The parties have continued to engage in settlement discussions and remain optimistic that a full and final settlement of all issues can be achieved. The parties request that they report back by July 11, 2025,” Mirman wrote.
Mirman did not respond to requests for comment.
Spector, in an email, said he can’t say much.
“Honestly, I’ve not much to say,” Spector said. “Every time I try to keep the electorate informed, I get a lot of hate from people who don’t understand what’s happening, and then the town retaliates with blight violations. This is the residents of Seymour’s problem.”
David B. Zabel, the lawyer who represents Goodyear Property Management, also declined comment.
The state court database shows a pre-trial conference scheduled for Sept. 16, with a potential civil trial scheduled for Oct. 1 if the sides can’t agree on the settlement deal.
Spector told the Valley Indy Tuesday (June 24) that the original violations that birthed the lawsuit were addressed.
“The original structural violation was commenced before litigation began and was satisfied more than two years ago,” Spector said via an email.
BTW . . .
While Drugonis and Spector were not willing to talk about the settlement they’re considering, both were willing to talk about new businesses moving into the under-developed shopping center.
Drugonis said two new businesses, a daycare and a party rental/events place, are scheduled to move into the plaza into vacant spaces previously occupied by a liquor store and martial arts business.
Spector said he was glad to see new businesses coming in.
He said the new daycare, Willow Academy, is moving into space (grand opening scheduled late August) at the outskirts of the plaza at 850 Derby Ave. He said he’s spoken with the new owner, Brittany Hannon, and added “I can’t imagine a person I’d feel more comfortable leaving my kids with than Brittany.”