Rec panel approves less ambitious expansion of O'Neill center

Waterford - The Recreation and Parks Commission voted 6-1 Tuesday to send the Board of Selectmen a favorable recommendation on the Eugene O'Neill Theater Center's scaled-down expansion plans on municipal parkland at Waterford Town Beach.

If granted approval from the selectmen, the O'Neill would then embark on an effort to raise $18 million to build seven cottages that would serve as dormitories for 65 students and a 175-seat black box theater.

The commission rejected the O'Neill's initial proposal earlier this year that called for 10 cottages and a theater to be built on more than 3 acres of land.

The new construction would take place on 0.95 acres of land on the north side of the O'Neill parking lot.

The plan also calls for the extension of a sewer line onto the 10-acre O'Neill campus and renovations to several of the site's existing buildings.

"We're deeply thankful to the commission," O'Neill executive director Preston Whiteway said.

Commission Chair John Worobey, who supported the plan, said the O'Neill "is a feather in the cap of the town."

Commissioner Sue Gardner, the lone dissenter, said she supported keeping the O'Neill at its current size and had concerns about open space.

The O'Neill wants to expand its best revenue generator, the internationally renowned National Theater Institute, which costs $19,000 per semester.

Whiteway estimates the revamped NTI could mean 40 new jobs at the O'Neill and more than $1 million in revenue for the theater center.

First Selectman Daniel Steward indicated earlier this month the town would seek to renegotiate its lease with the O'Neill, should the project move forward. Currently the O'Neill leases the campus from Waterford for one dollar a year.

The next Board of Selectmen meeting is scheduled for Dec. 15.