Ledyard — The subject of leasing the Gales Ferry Community Center to the town turned into a complex discussion of jurisdiction among town entities at a Town Council meeting Tuesday.

Councilors suggested rewriting the proposed addendum to the lease to allay concerns from members of the Gales Ferry district.

About two years ago, the Gales Ferry district approached the library commission with an offer to lease the space at 18 Hurlbutt Road to the library.

According to Library Director Gale Bradbury, while the lease went through the town, the intent was to pass the jurisdiction of the community center space over to the library.

In October, members of the Gales Ferry district voted to lease the building to the town for $1 a year.

But as chairman of the Board of Finance Fred Allyn III explained at the Nov. 4 meeting, the lease in its current form restricts activity on the property to activities within the mission of the library, and the town would need to change the lease in order to open up the community center to a wider range of activities.

The Gales Ferry Library's policies also prohibit groups from charging a fee while using their facilities, which would conflict with the town if Parks and Recreation were to hold a class in the building and charge a fee. 

Library Director Gale Bradbury said she is currently looking into fee structures at other libraries in the area.

Chairman of the Land Use/Planning/Public Works Committee Kevin Dombrowski added that he began reviewing the lease and found that it did not include any provisions for the maintenance for the grounds and exterior of the building, although the town had been doing that work for years.

"We need to go back to square one and go back and look at this overall," he said of the lease, adding that he felt the lease should reflect everything that goes on at the building.

Tuesday's joint meeting included the Administration, Finance, and Land Use/Planning/Public Works committees.

Finance and administration both had recommended a new clause, which would state that "use of Gales Ferry Community Center Building would not be limited the Gales Ferry Library and would be available for the use by the town, other organizations/agencies and members of the community."

Town Council Chairman Linda Davis noted that from the initial discussions with the Gales Ferry district, she hoped they could reach a compromise where other town organizations could charge a fee to use the space.

"I love the idea of the town taking over the building. I would love to see it the way it used to be back in the day. I would love to see the library have their section, (and) I would love to see Parks and Rec run programs out of it," she said. 

A compromise she suggested would split jurisdiction, with the lease changed "to include what's currently happening."

However, according to George Palmer, treasurer of the Gales Ferry district, the proposed language taking scheduling authority away from the library didn't reflect what the district voted on.

Bradbury added she felt that the library's scheduling system was sufficient for the new space.

Members of the council pointed out that the town needed to pick a cost-neutral solution, and that a fee structure like the one Parks and Recreation uses could offset the operating costs of the building.

Councilors Saums and Allyn offered to rewrite the lease addendum at the end of the meeting.

n.lynch@theday.com

Twitter: @_nathanlynch