New Canaan Selectmen Approve $150,000 Grant for Schoolhouse Apartments Repairs

Board of Selectmen · Meeting of July 7, 2026

New Canaan Selectmen direct $150,000 in ARPA interest funds to save a troubled senior housing complex. Schoolhouse Apartments Inc. president Steve Hoover told the board the 40-unit affordable complex endured three years of "third-party property turmoil," including 11 months with no on-site manager and a $100,000 operating loss in 2025. Treasurer Bob Spangler and vice president Roger Williams joined Hoover in describing a turnaround that raised nearly $200,000 in private donations in 45 days.

Selectman Amy called it "beyond impressed," saying "these are never empty. People need these places." The board also approved $209,488 for Lapham Community Center masonry repairs, $80,242.15 for a new dump truck, and $57,301.14 for a special response team van, and heard that Eversource reported over 900 New Canaan customers still without power after a storm that peaked at 5,700 outages.

In the full story:

• Who Was There
• Organizations And Documents Referenced
• The complete report — 3,662 words

Source: the Board of Selectmen meeting of July 7, 2026, reported from the official video recording and transcript.

The Full Article

Schoolhouse Apartments: A Nonprofit Board's Emergency Rescue Plan

Schoolhouse Apartments, a 40-unit deeply affordable senior housing complex on South Avenue converted from the former Sachs Junior High School in 1993, came before the board seeking $150,000 to address what its leadership described as a building in crisis. The property is owned through a nonprofit, Schoolhouse Apartments Inc., under a 99-year ground lease, and was originally financed with $2.75 million in HUD 202 construction-permanent loan financing.

The question before the board was whether to direct interest earned on the town's unspent American Rescue Plan Act funds, money that is not tied to the town's operating budget and carries no restrictions on use, toward capital repairs at the property.

Bob Spangler, treasurer of Schoolhouse Apartments Inc. and a resident of 61 Bridal Path Lane, opened by introducing the nonprofit's leadership: Steve Hoover, a commercial real estate investor and four-month president of the organization; Roger Williams, vice president; and Joel Pelner, secretary. Hoover, who described himself as recently retired from full-time commercial real estate work, walked the board through a detailed presentation. The building houses 39 of its 40 units currently occupied, roughly 75 percent women and 25 percent men, with an average resident age of about 80. The 2026 budgeted revenue forecast, built on 100 percent occupancy, was $948,000, but 86 percent of expenses go to mortgage payments, third-party property management fees, utilities and insurance, leaving just $130,000, or 14 percent of the budget, for maintenance and repairs across 40 units.

Hoover said the building endured three different, unqualified on-site property managers over three years, with 11 of 36 months having no manager at all, and two of three on-site superintendents were fired while a third had to be evicted. "It was demoralizing to our residents. It was disastrous to our financials," Hoover said, noting the property averaged five vacant units in 2025 against a roughly $100,000 operating loss, while payables grew from $5,000 to $100,000. He said a typical Section 8 property carries closer to a half-unit to one unit vacant in a given year.

When the new executive committee took over in March, Hoover said, "there was no work happening and no work scheduled to be happening to get the units renovated." The committee added experienced board members, including Marty Shannon, described as a recent EY partner, issued a request for proposals to four qualified property managers, and launched a private fundraising campaign that raised just under $200,000 in 45 days.

The $150,000 request covers renovation of unit 108, vacant 18 months and representing $32,000 in uncollected annual cash flow; conversion of the former superintendent's unit into a rental (the board has HUD approval for this, though it would forgo roughly $1,000 a month in Section 8 eligibility funding if converted); renovation of hallways, common meeting rooms, the entrance and two small offices; a new security system; and two test replacement air-conditioning units ahead of a broader 2027 replacement of aging units, after second-floor hallways averaged 82 degrees and third-floor hallways 85 degrees during a recent heat wave. Funds would be held in a Schoolhouse board account, with $15,000 set aside for unanticipated costs, and the group said it would return to the board with final bids for individual projects.

The presiding first selectman, who said this was her first year in office, explained the funding mechanism: "We've accrued interest on those funds and that interest is eligible for any use," she said, adding it was "very much in keeping with the spirit" of the ARPA program even though not required. She said she had personally toured the building and was "quite frankly disturbed by the state of the building."

Selectman Amy offered the board's most extensive commentary. "I got to second that. I am beyond impressed. First of all, I don't think people realize what an incredible asset this is to the community and how important it is to our affordable housing," she said. She noted the renovated units, while small, have high ceilings that make them feel larger, and praised the executive committee for leasing four of five vacant units with a fifth in progress. "It's just amazing," she said. "Not everyone has a lot of money and this allows people who are elderly to live in walking distance in this beautiful town to have access to everything."

Hoover said the town's technical staff, referred to during the meeting as Bill Oman, and a Parks Department crew described as "Tiger and his team," have provided landscaping and maintenance support, including removing dead trees, trimming, spreading mulch and installing new arborite around the property's generator. He said the property's new management company will now coordinate with the town's other affordable housing providers, a relationship board members credited to conversations with a town contact referred to as Scott Hobbs. Hoover said the prior management company's 60-day notice period ends around August 1.

Board members pressed for detail on how the $200,000 in donations was spent. Hoover said it went to a combination of renovations and paying down payables, which fell from $100,000 to $50,000, with some remaining balances still in negotiation. Hoover also described a shift in resident morale, saying an early all-residents meeting turned into an hour of frustration directed at him, but residents are "profoundly hopeful now." He cited a resident named Jim Cole, described as an MIT graduate, who spoke for several minutes at a resident-organized luncheon.

The motion approved a request from Schoolhouse Apartments LLC to undertake capital improvement projects at 156 South Avenue and to allocate up to $150,000 in ARPA interest earnings to reimburse eligible project costs, contingent on subsequent approval from the Board of Finance on July 21 and Town Council on July 15. Individual project costs above $10,000 will return to the Board of Selectmen for approval; the board meets every two weeks.

Public Safety: EMS, Police Equipment and Data Retention

The board approved a series of routine but budget-significant public safety contracts. A representative referred to as Tony presented the annual CMED contract, a state-mandated agreement with the Southwest Regional Communication Center providing 24/7 two-way communication between hospitals and EMS providers in New Canaan, priced at $25,698.20 under a state per-capita formula, running July 1, 2026 through June 30, 2027. Tony also reported the department saw "remarkably few storm-related patients" during the recent outage, aside from one resident on oxygen at Schoolhouse Apartments whose oxygen generator lost power; police delivered replacement oxygen bottles.

A police representative referred to as John presented a slate of FY27 blanket purchase orders: $12,368.39 with Norcom for portable radio accessories, batteries and chargers; $18,000 with Amazon for office, building and uniform supplies; $20,000 with GS for uniforms and equipment; $30,000 for tactical gear used to purchase ammunition; and $67,500 to renew the Flock Safety license-plate reader and camera system, up from about $51,000 last year after the department added downtown pan-tilt-zoom cameras and is installing another at South and Farm. A board member pressed on data retention; John said state law, changed in the most recent legislative session, requires footage be purged after 21 days unless tied to an active investigation, during which it can be retained longer. "We are the only ones that can have access to it and we control who we share it with," he said of the cloud-based system.

The board also approved $24,447.30 for the annual NextGen Solutions computer-aided dispatch and records management software contract, calling it stable pricing from "a pretty consistent provider" used broadly across the state and compatible with state police and court systems; $20,000 for a blanket order with New England Uniform; and $25,000 for Angel Armor ballistic vests, which have a five-year expiration and are replaced on a rolling basis, with the department seeking roughly 50 percent reimbursement through a Department of Justice grant. A board member spent several minutes working through the reimbursement math with John before confirming the town would net about $12,500 after the federal grant offset.

Separately, the board approved $57,301.14 to purchase and outfit a Ford Transit cargo van for the department's special response team, replacing a more than 20-year-old retired ambulance the unit had been using to store equipment. The purchase is part of a broader fleet turnover trading in five vehicles, including the retired ambulance, an old K-9 car and three Explorers, for four new vehicles including three Tahoes.

Information Technology, Parks and Public Works Contracts

A representative identified as Chris presented the IT department's renewal of endpoint security and patch management services with CDW-G, covering Bit Defender Gravity Zone Enterprise software on every networked device. He said the renewal cost roughly $500 less than the prior year.

Ryan, presenting for the Parks Department, requested approval to contract with Contractor Equipment Inc. of North Franklin, Connecticut, for a Metal Plus snowplow attachment for the department's New Holland tractor, which is currently out of service for warranty repairs related to an exhaust-related software issue. Because the tractor already needs to be transported to the dealer's facility, Ryan said installing the plow there avoids a second transportation cost. The purchase totaled $31,599 plus a 10 percent, $3,150 contingency, for $34,749. Ryan said the same vendor no longer holds a state contract but offered a 10 percent municipal discount, and that an online price check put the plow alone, without installation or transport, at about $34,945. Board members noted the plow, which can articulate to 13 feet wide, will supplement an existing unit and reduce reliance on hand labor for sidewalks, and questioned why a tractor-mounted plow costs roughly three times a comparable truck-mounted 9- or 10-foot plow; Ryan said "the tractor world must be different than the truck world."

A Public Works representative presented two contracts with the town's GIS and stormwater consultant, referred to variously in the meeting as Ty Bond: a $29,000 annual GIS maintenance contract, level with last year, covering assessor tax map updates, on-call support, Planning and Zoning Commission support and web hosting; and a $16,600 contract, up $500 from last year, for the town's mandatory annual MS4 (municipal separate storm sewer system) report to the Connecticut Department of Energy and Environmental Protection, including outfall screening at six of the town's 174 stormwater outfalls. The annual report is due by April 1, with the consultant's draft due to the town by the end of January 2027.

A Public Works representative referred to in the meeting as Lou presented several additional contracts. A $20,000 blanket purchase order with Web Construction for road maintenance materials, up from $12,800 the prior year, reflects the highway department now hauling and disposing of asphalt itself rather than using a vendor that previously handled trucking. A $209,488 contract with GL Capaso Inc., the same contractor that completed work at Waveny, covers exterior masonry repairs at Lapham Community Center, including spalled and displaced stone, mortar repointing, limestone coping, flashing, chimney caps and cleaning of stains and efflorescence. The figure comprises a $189,488 low bid, the lowest of three bids that ranged up to $308,365, plus a $20,000, roughly 10 percent contingency. Work is expected to run from July through Thanksgiving, and officials said the project represents a first phase against a total $685,000 project budget, with a second phase possible depending on what is found once work begins.

The board also approved $80,242.15 for a 2027 Ford F-350 Mason dump truck through Taska Ford, against a $95,000 capital budget line, after an $18,500 trade-in on the vehicle being replaced. And it approved a one-year, $35,000 extension of the town's household hazardous waste disposal contract with Clean Harbors, shared among a six-town group that includes New Canaan, Westport, Greenwich, Darien, Stamford and Norwalk. Norwalk previously administered the group's request-for-proposals process but declined to continue; the Western Connecticut Council of Governments has taken over preparing a new five-year regional contract. New Canaan's household hazardous waste collection day is set for September 12, 2026, with residents also able to attend other member towns' collection days, including July 11 in Stamford and August 15 in Norwalk, using identification.

Tuition Reimbursement Formula Questioned

The board considered two related requests from the Human Resources department regarding New Canaan Country School and St. Luke's School, both authorized under state statute 10-281, which requires municipalities to reimburse private schools for health and wellness services, including physician, nurse and dental hygienist costs, for any Connecticut resident student regardless of home town.

A board member questioned why the town's reimbursement rate for school bus transportation to the private schools exceeds what it spends per student in New Canaan's own public schools, noting the figure appeared to be rounded up using a formula, tied to a factor of 1.2 or less of per-student cost, that a staff member said originated years ago under a "board of ed directive" from a former official identified as Tom Stadler. "I'm asking the question: is there a mandate to do anything more than what we spend per student in New Canaan?" the member asked. Because a Board of Education finance staff member identified as Pat was not available on the call to explain the calculation, the board pulled the transportation reimbursement item entirely, with a staff member agreeing to research the statute and return with a fuller accounting. The board separately approved the more straightforward health and wellness services reimbursement for both fiscal years 2026 and 2027, calculated based on October 1 enrollment counts.

Human Resources: Benefits Renewals and a New Hire

The Human Resources department presented a consolidated list of FY27 insurance and benefits purchase orders. A staff member identified as Ann walked through year-over-year changes: Amwin, the town's retiree medical plan, will cost $299,600, reflecting an expected 81 to 85 retirees, a substantial reduction from the roughly $800,000 the town spent when retirees were part of its overall health plan. Sign Dental insurance, at $387,000, rose due to growth in retiree dental enrollment. Kerma Lap liability coverage rose 3 percent, Kerma Workers' Compensation rose 1.5 percent to $826,211, and Kerma Cyber held flat at $11,000; all three are cost-shared with the Board of Education. Kerma Heart and Hypertension coverage held flat at $104,000, as did the Epic consulting fee, at $105,000, unchanged for five years, and Life Insurance Company of North America coverage, at $105,000. Sunlife Insurance, the town's stop-loss coverage, rose 3 percent to roughly $1.22 million, also shared with the Board of Education, and JMBL Personal Inc., which runs the town's annual health fair, held flat at $11,000.

Separately, the Human Resources director presented the hiring of Anna Eer as Lapham Community Center program manager, effective July 8. The director said the position was posted internally and externally on April 20, drew 21 applicants in a first round with no clear fit, and was reposted, drawing 17 more applications. Eer holds a master's degree in social work from Fairfield University and an undergraduate degree from Skidmore College, and previously worked at the Saratoga Senior Center and a public library system.

Selectman's Comments: Storm Recovery and the Fourth of July Fireworks

The presiding first selectman used her comments period to address two significant recent events. On the storm that knocked out power across New Canaan, she said the town was at one point the fourth-highest in the state for number of outages, with more than 75 percent of the town without power at the peak. She said she sent a "frustrated email" to the town's Eversource contact and contacted the governor's office; an Eversource update received shortly before the meeting reported 16 crews in town, with an additional crew bringing the total working toward restoring roughly 1,345 customers, on the way to about 487 more. Eversource reported a peak of 5,700 customers out, just over 900 still out at meeting time, and a target of 99 percent restoration by 11:45 p.m. that night. She noted a portion of the morning's uptick in outage numbers was due to an intentional deenergizing of a line to safely remove a large tree on Park Street, affecting 726 customers for roughly two hours. She compared the outage to prior storms Sandy and Irene, both of which knocked out about 75 percent of the town and took eight to nine days to fully restore, and Isaias, which affected more than 90 percent of the town.

"It is it is they call it an act of God for a reason," she said, adding that a debrief of emergency services personnel was planned for later that day.

On the Fourth of July fireworks, held at Waveny Park as part of the town's 250th anniversary observance, the first selectman said a go/no-go decision had to be made Friday because the fireworks were transported from across the George Washington Bridge and could not be turned back once in transit. She said the probability of thunderstorms was low when the call was made to proceed, lower, she said, than the forecast that led her to cancel the town's Memorial Day parade, which then did not rain. By 3:30 p.m., thunderstorm probability had risen; officials moved up the fireworks start time and texted residents. When the storm accelerated and was detected roughly eight miles out, officials ordered the park evacuated. "Unfortunately, it was late," she said, adding that other communities faced similar last-minute evacuations that evening. She said no one was injured, and that police, fire and EMS personnel, along with volunteers, helped residents, including elderly attendees, leave the field safely. Fire department calls jumped from a typical three per day to about 20 that evening across the region. A board member asked about lost-and-found; the first selectman said found items are being routed through the Police Department, though low-value items like chairs are unlikely to be recovered.

The board closed by thanking the Highway and Parks departments for their work through both the storm cleanup and the holiday events, and adjourned by unanimous vote.

First Selectman, presiding (full name not stated in the transcript; referred to once by a public speaker as "Diana") Selectman Amy (surname not stated in the transcript) Additional Board of Selectmen members: attendance and names not fully identifiable from the audio; no roster was supplied for this meeting

Town staff and presenters: Tony — Emergency Medical Services/CMED representative John — Police Department representative Chris — Information Technology Department representative Ryan — Parks Department representative Lou — Public Works/Highway Department representative (multiple contract items) Tiger — Parks/Public Works crew supervisor, presented storm and infrastructure updates Ann — Human Resources Department representative Bill Oman — town technical adviser referenced in connection with Schoolhouse Apartments capital projects Kathy — Lapham Community Center staff member, referenced in connection with the new program manager hire Pat — Board of Education finance staff member, not present, needed for tuition reimbursement question

Public commenters and applicants: Bob Spangler, 61 Bridal Path Lane, treasurer, Schoolhouse Apartments Inc. Steve Hoover, New Canaan resident, commercial real estate investor, president, Schoolhouse Apartments Inc. Roger Williams, New Canaan resident, vice president, Schoolhouse Apartments Inc. Joel Pelner, secretary, Schoolhouse Apartments Inc. (not present at the meeting)

Named individuals referenced but not present: Marty Shannon — described as a recent EY partner added to the Schoolhouse Apartments Inc. board Jim Cole — Schoolhouse Apartments resident described as an MIT graduate, spoke at a resident luncheon Scott Hobbs — referenced in connection with coordinating New Canaan's affordable housing management companies Tom Stadler — former official credited with originating the private-school reimbursement formula Todd — referenced in connection with a scheduled walkthrough related to the Schoolhouse Apartments project Anna Eer — hired as Lapham Community Center program manager effective July 8

Schoolhouse Apartments Inc. — nonprofit operator of the 40-unit senior housing complex at the center of the $150,000 ARPA request Southwest Regional Communication Center (CMED) — state-mandated EMS-to-hospital communications provider, contract renewed for $25,698.20 Norcom, Amazon, GS, New England Uniform, Angel Armor, Flock Safety, NextGen Solutions — vendors for Police Department FY27 blanket purchase orders and contracts Contractor Equipment Inc. (North Franklin, Connecticut) — vendor for the Parks Department's Metal Plus snowplow attachment Ty Bond (spelling uncertain; rendered variously as "Ty Bond," "Tai Bond" and "Tyen Bond" in the audio) — the town's GIS and MS4 stormwater consultant, awarded a $29,000 GIS contract and a $16,600 MS4 report contract Connecticut Department of Energy and Environmental Protection (CT DEEP) — issues the MS4 general permit requiring the town's annual stormwater report Web Construction — vendor for a $20,000 highway department road-material blanket purchase order GL Capaso Inc. — contractor awarded the $209,488 Lapham Community Center masonry repair contract; same firm performed recent work at Waveny Architectural Preservation Studios — prepared the detailed repair plan for the Lapham Community Center project Hoffman — consultant who performed an envelope consultation on the Lapham Community Center building Taska Ford — dealer for the town's $80,242.15 Ford F-350 Mason dump truck purchase Clean Harbors — vendor for the town's household hazardous waste disposal program, shared among New Canaan, Westport, Greenwich, Darien, Stamford and Norwalk Western Connecticut Council of Governments (WestCOG) — coordinating a new regional request-for-proposals process for household hazardous waste disposal after Norwalk stepped back from administering it State statute 10-281 — cited as the legal basis requiring municipal reimbursement of private-school health and wellness services for Connecticut resident students CDW-G — IT vendor for the town's Bit Defender Gravity Zone Enterprise endpoint security and patch management renewal Amwin, Sign Dental, Kerma Lap, Kerma Workers' Compensation, Kerma Cyber, Kerma Heart and Hypertension, Epic Consulting, Life Insurance Company of North America, Sunlife Insurance, JMBL Personal Inc. — vendors and providers covered under the Human Resources Department's FY27 benefits purchase order list, several shared with the Board of Education Eversource — electric utility whose storm restoration performance was the subject of extended selectman comment, including a formal complaint from the first selectman's office New Canaan Country School and St. Luke's School — private schools at the center of the tuition/health-reimbursement discussion