New London — The state Department of Labor is negotiating a long-term lease at a vacant Uncasville supermarket as it moves forward with plans to close its Norwich and New London job centers in favor of a single consolidated location.

New London Mayor Michael Passero is attempting to put the brakes on that process and has appealed to the commissioner of the state labor department to reconsider a decision he says was driven by a group lacking representation of some of the largest and most affected cities in the region.

Passero said closure of the American Job Center at the Shaw’s Cove office park would disenfranchise the very populations that the regional office is intended to serve. The jobs center, which provides a variety of assistance programs that involve job searches and training, is one of only two full-service centers in the entire eastern region of the state. The other is in Danielson.

The state is negotiating with the owners of the former Beit Brothers supermarket, 601 Route 32, Uncasville, following a request for proposals process for a jobs center to serve the greater Norwich and New London area.

The consolidation plan was developed by the Eastern Connecticut Workforce Investment Board and endorsed by its chief elected officials oversight council, which is composed of leaders of the towns of Montville, Franklin, Plainfield, Thompson and Lisbon.

In a Nov. 3 letter to labor department Commissioner Scott Jackson, Passero expresses disappointment in the process, which started before he was elected into office.

“Whether by oversight or significant indifference, the failure of the CEO Council to responsibly represent communities with the greatest need of representation not only weakens their endorsement of a DOL office location outside of the major urban centers but, more importantly, tarnishes a procurement process that is supposed to be open, equitable and balanced,” Passero wrote in his letter to the commissioner.

Passero said the council represents just 12 percent of the total population of the region served and just 7 percent of the minority population. New London has the third highest unemployment rate in the state and has the highest percentage of minorities and lowest median household income in New London County.

John Beauregard, the Eastern Connecticut Workforce Investment Board’s executive director, said the consolidation plan was developed following the announcement last year that DOL job centers would be shuttered all across the state — including two of the four offices in the eastern region: centers in Willimantic and Norwich.

“When the news comes out that a couple of delivery points are going to be closed, it takes some brainstorming to figure out the best way to do that,” Beauregard said. “The best strategy to service the New London County region was to find a way to serve the area from one location.”

Beauregard disputes that the chief elected officials chose the final proposed location and said they only endorsed a due diligence in the procurement process.

“This is probably the toughest thing we’ve had to do as far as regional delivery of services. We have the biggest and most geographically spread out workforce in the state,” he said.

The state advertised a request for proposals for a consolidated site and considered three — the current New London location at Shaw’s Cove, another at Mariner’s Square in New London and the third at the Uncasville location. The specifications for the consolidated location included things like access to a bus route, adequate parking and space for additional service agencies to make it a “one-stop” location for visitors.

“The DOL was charged with carrying out the decision to the next step and the Route 32 site was the leading vote-getter,” Beauregard said.

He said it was too early to definitively say the New London office would close because the DOL still was proceeding with the procurement process with the Uncasville site.

The job center in Norwich, despite the removal of DOL staff, remains open as a scaled-back affiliate site. Earlier this month the workforce investment board opened an integrated job training and education center in Willimantic as part of a partnership with the adult education firm EASTCONN.

Passero said New London already is a host to numerous service agencies that complement the job center — such as TVCCA, Sound Community Services, United Way Food Bank and the Homeless Hospitality Center. The job center is located in the office park that houses IRS, Social Security and Community Health Center offices, along with several medical offices, the Veteran’s Affairs Primary Care Center and New London Adult Education. The job center in New London also supports clients of the Bureau of Rehabilitation Services, which creates job opportunities for individuals with disabilities.

“Many of the this vulnerable population will be marginalized by a move to a much less accessible location, remote from the myriad other services they rely upon,” Passero said.

Beauregard said he understands Passero’s advocacy for his city.

“What we will try to do is find a solution. There are a lot of good people looking at all of the issue and the best way to service what amounts to a quarter million people,” Beauregard said.

A representative from the state Department of Labor was not immediately available for comment.

g.smith@theday.com