AN ACT AMENDING A PRIOR CONVEYANCE OF STATE LAND TO THE BRIDGEPORT PORT AUTHORITY.
Summary
SB 519 amends a prior special act governing a state land conveyance to the Bridgeport Port Authority. The bill directs the Commissioner of Transportation to convey approximately 1.008 acres of state-owned land in Bridgeport, near Seaview Avenue, Stratford Avenue, and Interstate 95 Interchange 29, to the Port Authority for the administrative cost of the transfer, subject to review by the State Properties Review Board. The land is intended for economic development or waterfront-related uses, and the Port Authority is authorized to sell or lease all or part of the parcel for those purposes.
The bill also revises the financial terms of any sale or lease of the parcel by setting a fixed price of $119,000 rather than requiring fair market value as determined by appraisers. Any proceeds from a sale or lease must be remitted to the State Treasurer for deposit into the Special Transportation Fund. If the parcel is not used for the required purposes, or is sold or leased for other than permitted uses, the property reverts to the state. The bill further requires the Department of Transportation to grant the Port Authority a right-of-way from Route 130/Stratford Avenue to the parcel and requires the State Properties Review Board to complete its review within 30 days of receiving the proposed agreement.
Impact
This bill amends a prior special act governing state land disposition, changing both the terms and administration of the conveyance to the Bridgeport Port Authority. It affects the Department of Transportation, the State Treasurer, and the State Properties Review Board by setting a mandatory transfer process, a review deadline, a right-of-way obligation, and a fixed resale/lease price, while preserving state reversion rights if the property is not used as required. It also directs any proceeds from a permitted sale or lease into the Special Transportation Fund, tying the transaction to transportation-related state finances.
Sentiment
The available voting history shows strong and unanimous support for the bill. It received a joint favorable committee vote of 12-0, then passed the Senate 36-0 and the House 146-0. No committee transcript was provided, but the recorded votes indicate broad bipartisan agreement and little visible opposition.
Contention
There is little evidence of substantive contention in the available record, given the unanimous committee and floor votes. The main policy choice reflected in the bill is the shift from a fair-market-value appraisal process to a fixed $119,000 price for any sale or lease, along with the requirement that the parcel be used only for economic development or waterfront-related purposes. Any potential concern would likely center on whether the fixed price adequately reflects the property’s value and whether the conveyance terms sufficiently protect the state’s interests, but no recorded opposition appears in the provided materials.