Tri-Town Plaza in Seymour.
SEYMOUR – Officials are asking a court to force the parties that own Tri-Town Plaza to cough up almost $74,000 owed to the town, according to a court filing.
On Aug. 21, Seymour Town Attorney Richard J. Buturla filed paperwork that advances a complicated legal dispute, part of which involves the town and the shopping center.
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.
Outside of the legal wrangling, Tri-Town Plaza has been an issue in Seymour for years. It’s mostly empty, with Spector and various Seymour administrations trading barbs over its lack of development.
In the lawsuit, the town alleges the Tri-Town Plaza parties owe the Town of Seymour $73,923.01.
Seymour, through its building official, first went to court in 2022 to get Tri-Town to fix unsafe conditions at the property. Tri-Town faced daily fines for the conditions there.
The conditions included:
* Unsecured and failed structural components in the roof assembly
* Structural components not protected from frost and weathering
* Exterior walls with extensive cracks
* Walls that appear to be failing
Tri-Town made fixes but still owes fines for the previous conditions, according to the new filing.
The money breaks down as follows:
* $39,500 in fines (79 days of $500 daily fines for not complying with a building inspector’s corrective order)
* $29,523 in attorneys’ fees
* $3,960 for structural engineer fees
* $657.12 for state marshal fees
* $282.89 for court reporter fees
“We are seeking to amend our complaint to recover the fine and costs,” Seymour Town Attorney Richard Buturla said. “The fines haven’t been paid and that’s the reason for filing an amended complaint.”
Attorney Jim Nugent, of Harlow, Adams & Friedman in Milford, represents Connecticut Tri-Town Plaza, LLC, and, through it, Spector.
He told the Valley Indy via an email Friday (Aug. 23) that his client disputes the latest court filing by the town.
“My client, Conn. Properties, Tri-Town Plaza, LLC disputes the allegations made by the Town of Seymour, both as to liability and damages,” Nugent said.
Attorney David B. Zabel, of Marino, Zabel & Schellenberg, of Orange, who represents Goodyear (the plaza’s owner), declined comment.
A formal response from the Tri-Town parties has yet to be filed in court.
Tri-Town Plaza, at one time was home to an Ames department store, Adams grocery store and a multi-screen movie theater. Ames closed in 2002, and Adam’s supermarket closed in 2003. The two anchor stores comprised about 94,000-square feet of space.
Stores still there include Alberto’s restaurant, Subway, Dunkin Donuts and Black Hole Jiu Jitsu martial arts school.
