After extensive community engagement and outreach, our team is pleased to share our updated proposal for the Felician Campus Redevelopment.

With a focus on saving St. Felix Center, the Felician Sisters have identified that shifting the redevelopment priorities to exclusively build Senior Housing would meet many of the housing needs of Enfield, allow for the preservation of the St. Felix Center building, and to ensure future continuity for the current sisters living on the campus as well as the Enfield Montessori School and their students.

Now the project will accomplish the following:

• Preserve and reuse the St. Felix Center, which has been vacant for over 3 years
• Provide 45 apartments for seniors aged 62 and up, meeting accessibility and independent living needs
• Community life room and wellness center to provide health and wellness programs for seniors living on campus
• Outdoor amenities including community gardens and updated walking paths

Discussions around how to preserve and adapt the convent in the future are still ongoing, however, the updated concept to focus only on seniors without constructing new buildings on the campus was agreed upon by all stakeholders to be a good and beneficial use that would meet the sisters and community needs.

The Felician Sisters will continue to own the land in perpetuity. The Community Builders, a 501c3 charitable organization, will have a 99-year ground lease on the properties. The Felician Sisters will continue to oversee the property and support their ministries, such as the Enfield Montessori School and St. Francis Residence.  The Community Builders will provide on-site management and operations of the campus.

The Community Builders, Inc. will be providing property management to the Felician Campus. As a nationally recognized and reputable developer, owner, and property manager, TCB has over 50 years of experience and manages 9,800 units across 11 states.

On-site community managers are experienced and well trained in all aspects of day-to-day property management, providing daily supervision and support where it is most needed – at the site level. TCB’s management model includes:

• Resident selection and lease enforcement: Applicants for TCB housing are required to undergo screening for eligibility and suitability. Screening includes background checks, references, and income eligibility. Annual inspections and recertifications ensure continued compliance with TCB and regulatory standards.
• Community Life: TCB delivers a targeted and coordinated array of resident services through their Community Life Initiatives, which help residents to maintain their housing and achieve their goals.
• Training and professional development: All property management staff undergo regular training on physical facilities management, resident relations, property accounting, budgeting, legal and compliance.
• Maintenance: Due to the funding sources use, TCBs properties are inspected regularly and are required to meet high standards of quality and maintenance ranging from the grounds to inside resident’s units. Strong partnerships with regulators, funders, and partners speak to TCB’s continued accomplishments in this area. 
• Code of conduct: Code of Conduct sets clear expectations and high standards for interactions with staff and residents. TCB maintains an atmosphere of respect in communities by addressing issues that may affect qualify of life. Visit tcbinc.orgto learn more about The Community Builders and the other properties they manage.

The redevelopment will provide homes for seniors with a mix of studio and 1 bedroom apartments. This includes housing affordable for fixed-income seniors earning ~$50,000 or less, with rents for seniors capped are at 30% of income

The redevelopment includes the renovation of St. Felix Center into Senior Housing and the repurposing of the Convent. The renovation of St. Felix Center would need to be approved by the town through Site Plan approval. The earliest any construction could begin would be 2025.

Plans for the Convent are still to be determined. The Sisters are working with the local community to identify the best use for the space that would allow the Convent and the Chapel to be preserved. There is no current timeline for future plans of this building.

The redevelopment plans no longer include any future housing or new construction opportunities, and will not be seeking a zone change for these uses, as originally contemplated in earlier plans.

No. The majority of housing provided will be through the re-use of the existing buildings. The only new construction proposed is an addition onto the existing St. Felix Center. There will be no new buildings.

The Orren Thompson Mansion and Enfield Montessori School would remain the same and not be redeveloped. 

There is no intention to build in the Historic Parade Grounds along Enfield Street and the Grounds will continue to be preserved. To maintain the current views, feel, and character of the historic district, any new construction would take place on the eastern portion of the site (closer to Rt 91) and no buildings would be taller than the existing buildings on campus, so as not to see the redevelopment from Enfield Street. The existing buildings will be preserved.  

Any investments to increase infrastructure capacity – such as water, sewer, trash collection, and snow removal– would be a cost to the developer. The Town departments would need to do in depth review of the engineering and services impact to ensure the capacity exists to support each phase, before approving any building development.

This development would not be tax-exempt.  While the Felician Campus is currently tax-exempt due to its religious services, the redevelopment of the properties into housing will add these properties to Enfield’s Grand List.  Property Taxes paid by the property would support infrastructure, schools, and other public services that the town provides.  

The Felician Campus currently does not contribute property real estate tax due to it’s status as a religious facility. Change in use of the St. Felix Center to the purpose of housing will require the building to be taxed. A larger municipal tax base from dense housing could lead to an increase in funding for local schools.

As there are no children living in senior housing, there will not be any increase in services to the existing public schools.

The Campus is already connected to existing sewer, water, and utility infrastructure, as the existing building were once occupied by over 100 Sisters in addition to hundreds more who could come to the campus to visit or attend school.  Infrastructure capacity is studied and reviewed in greater detail when specific plans are developed – these are required to be reviewed and approved by the Town before allowing any development to move forward.  

A traffic study conducted by Fuss & O’Neill showed that existing roads and intersections will have the capacity to support projected traffic from the development. This will continue to be studied to ensure that the best design for minimizing traffic concerns is used. Current plans have been designed specifically to disperse traffic along South Road and improve the on-site traffic safety for the current and future residents.