Stonington — Residents at a public hearing Wednesday night debated a proposed three-year contract to lease the vacant West Broad Street School to St. Michael School in Pawcatuck.

Supporters said the lease would ensure the building is occupied and maintained and would allow St. Michael School to grow.

“We are part of Pawcatuck. We’re good neighbors,” St. Michael PTO President Rachel Wolgemuth said. “We’ll take good care of the school.”

Opponents, though, questioned the low lease — $300 a month — and said the town should take more time to market the property to a developer who could turn it into condominiums and apartments and generate tax revenue.

After the 90-minute public hearing, the Board of Selectmen voted to table a decision on the lease until its Jan. 22 meeting so members can consider the comments they heard Wednesday night.

The 120-year-old West Broad Street school was vacated last year after the completion of the renovation and expansion project of West Vine Street School. Since then, the town’s Facilities Committee has been looking at ways to reuse the school as well as the former School Administration Building in Old Mystic.

The proposed contract calls for the school to pay the town $300 a month in rent and pay for all utilities such as gas, electric, water and sewer usage, something First Selectwoman Danielle Chesebrough said would save the town $128,000 a year.

The school also would be responsible for general maintenance and repairs to the aging building and its grounds, including snow removal, landscaping and garbage removal. The town would be responsible for major capital repairs, such as those to the aging heating system. The lease also calls for a two-year renewal at the end of three years if the town and school agree.

The Rev. Dennis Perkins, pastor of St. Michael parish, told the more than 100 people gathered in the high school commons that the St. Michael School currently has nine small classrooms and the school is split between two buildings. Students eat at their desks and there is no assembly space. He said this poses a challenge when recruiting new students.

Perkins said West Broad Street School would be a “vast improvement,” as it would provide larger classrooms, as well as space for additional offerings in science, technology, engineering, math and art.

He called the lease “a wonderful opportunity” for St. Michael and said it would work to the favor of both the town and the school. He also pointed out the parish’s commitment to the town, having just about completed the multimillion-dollar, historically accurate reconstruction of its church. He said St. Michael School, which opened in 1873, and West Broad, which opened in 1900, are the two oldest educational institutions in town.

Perkins also pointed out that more children who attend St. Michael means fewer students in the Stonington school system, saving taxpayers money.

With the annual per-pupil cost of the Stonington school system at $18,500, St. Michael parishioner Cal Buxton told selectmen the 69 students from Stonington who attend St. Michael save the town almost $1.3 million a year.

In addition, Perkins said having another education option makes the town more attractive to families looking to relocate here.

Downtown Pawcatuck businessman and developer Jim Lathrop called it "a false narrative” that no one is interested in buying the former West Broad Street school and redeveloping it. He said the building has not yet been marketed for sale. In addition, he said with the available historic tax credits, it would be very attractive to a developer looking to convert a school into residential use.

He asked selectmen to first market the school for sale and if they then decide to lease it to St. Michael, do so at a market rate rent.

Resident Bill Turner agreed with Lathrop, saying the town had not done its due diligence in terms of what can be done with the building.

“We haven’t looked at the best and highest use of the building,” he said, adding he did not think the town wants to be a landlord and be liable for major repairs.

Some opponents asked why, if the school was no longer good enough for Stonington students, it was now suitable for St. Michael students. But supporters of the lease explained the town vacated the school because it was consolidating buildings to save money and expand offerings and not because the school is unsafe.

Economic Development Commission member Kristine Halleck questioned why St. Michael couldn’t instead lease space at the former Pawcatuck Middle School, which is a much newer building and now houses the public school system’s administrative offices.

Rudy Pomcaro, who owns a local technology company, told selectmen he is interested in renovating the school for his business, adding that businesses are looking to bring jobs to Connecticut and other uses need to be explored.

The school is zoned for residential use and a zone change would be needed for a commercial use. In addition, neighbors have told the town’s Facilities Committee, which studied possible uses for the property, that they prefer it remain a school.

Facilities Committee Chairman Paul Sartor told selectmen that neighbors were concerned about the building remaining vacant and leading to problems, such as vandalism and vagrancy. He said options other than a school could take a lot of time and millions of dollars to become a reality.

The three- to five-year lease would give the town time to come up with a long-term plan for reusing the school.

Wolgemuth, the PTO president, said the lease would ensure the building remains functional and cared for while the town seeks a developer. She also pointed out that a conversion to housing would impact the neighborhood and infrastructure and generate traffic.

Resident Sandra Whewell said, “We have a wonderful tenant with a sterling reputation” who is ready to maintain the building and make sure it is not empty.

“This historic gem of a building will be kept for its original purpose,” she said.

j.wojtas@theday.com