The city and local landlord, Gary Richetelli, are gearing up for a legal battle over whether 16 single-family homes on Hughes Circle can be rented to young families or must be converted into a 55-and-over condominium community.
But caught in the middle are people like Maria and Joseph Torres.
They were shocked last week when they found out the city was seeking a cease and desist order on the rentals. Now they’re worried they will be booted from the three-bedroom apartment when their lease is up in August – or sooner.
“We weren’t looking for another place,” said Maria Torres, who moved into a home on Hughes Circle with her husband, Joseph, and their 1‑year-old son, Nicholas, in March. “They just recently rented out the one across the street.”
The Torres family had planned to renew their lease and stay in the home until they could save up enough money to buy their own house.
“We’re comfortable here,” Maria Torres said. “We have a laundry room, a back yard, lots of space.”
The homes sit on about 4.5 acres off Ford Street, near the former U.S. Army Nike missile launch site. They were built in the 1950s to house Army personnel working on the Nike site.
When the missile site closed, the buildings were used by the U.S. Coast Guard, which put the property up for sale a few years ago.
When the Planning and Zoning Commission found out the land was on the market, members began discussing a zone change for the property to accommodate 55-and-over housing.
“We thought it was a good idea because our schools are overloaded,” said Board of Alderman President Steven Blume.
In May 2007, the Planning and Zoning Commission approved a special exception that allows age-restricted housing on the Hughes Circle property. Blume said without the special exception, the buildings are considered “non-conforming” because they don’t comply with the zone they are built in.
Property records in the Ansonia Town and City Clerk’s office show that Richetelli, owner of Ansonia Crossing, LLC, purchased the property from the U.S. Coast Guard in Dec. 2008. He said a title search on the property and inquiries at the building department revealed no restrictions.
“Prior to us closing on the property we ran the title search. There was not (a record) of any change of zone, or any variances, of anything relating to a 55 and over,” Richetelli said. “So it was news to me when I had lunch with the mayor, and he said ‘Did you know there was a restriction on that property?’”
Richetelli said he and Mayor James Della Volpe met a few months ago to discuss the property. Richetelli said he told Della Volpe he was renting out some of the units to families as a security measure. But when city officials noticed a third family moving in shortly after, they became concerned.
“He knew what this deal was, but then the couple went to three,” Blume said. “He just paid no attention to it.”
All three families have young children. One family has school-aged children.
Richetelli said the families will remain in the buildings at least until their leases expire. He has handed the matter over to his attorney.
City officials are seeking the cease and desist order to make sure the families don’t stay in the homes too long and that no additional families are allowed to move in, Della Volpe said.
The city’s corporation counsel, Kevin Blake, said he plans to file the order in Milford Superior Court next week.
“I felt bad,” Blume said. “These are nice families. They’re sweeping. They’re talking to each other. They’re out there cooking. And they can’t be there … They have to go. They’re violating the zoning law. You can’t just turn your back on it and forget about it.”
