Finance Director Unravels Mystery of 'Bennet 12'

After last night, the Board of Directors seems to have a better idea of the Bennet Housing Corporation and its stake in the senior housing complex on Main Street, thanks to a report delivered by Director of Finance Greg Simmons. 

Simmons explained to the Board of Directors as part of its meeting Tuesday night the status of the Bennet Apartments, which have as elderly tenants complain of the lack of needed repairs and communication from the company that oversees the 45-unit elderly housing complex at 1146 Main St. He said the information came from a Jan. 23 meeting with members of the Bennet Housing Corporation board and representatives from Vesta Corporation, the company that now manages the apartment complex. 

Simmons said that no federal funds were involved with the 1983 renovation project, only revenue bonds and historic tax credits for investors. He also said he was able to identify who the mysterious "" in the initial agreement were, and that there were actually only nine partners involved, not the 12 that had been reported. 

"They're mostly from New York," Simmons said. "Investors looking for tax credits at that time."  

Simmons said the nine limited partners, none of whom live in Connecticut, received tax credits for their initial investment totaling $720,000 (20 shares at $36,000 per share), but that he did not know the amount of tax credits received by each investor. He said he assumed the credit was most likely greater than a "dollar for dollar offset," since the credits are the primary attraction to the investors and none of the limited partners have received any funds since the start of the project. 

Simmons said the initial plan was to renovate the building in 1983 for a property that would remain viable for 30 years, but the 30 year anniversary was next year and that Vesta was planning to present the Bennet Housing Corporation with a plan to refinance the project to obtain the funds needed for repairs and renovations totaling $1 million to $1.5 million. He said part of the funds to repair the building would likely come from a "modest rent increase" of $15 to $25 a month. 

Simmons said Vesta manages 4,000 apartments, including 1,000 in Connecticut, and that its rents at the Bennet Apartments are "considerably lower" than the other apartments in its portfolio. 

But several directors expressed concern about Vesta sticking to its plan to renovate the building, as tenants have complained for years that their calls for needed repairs to the building have gone unanswered. 

"We're not asking for the Taj Mahal here," said Mark Tweedie, a Republican member of the board. "A lot of this is pretty basic maintenance to apartment units that have gone undone for some time. The people are mad, and they should be." 

Simmons said Vesta still owed the town roughly $240,000 in back taxes on the property and another $87,000 due in payments in lieu of taxes under the initial agreement. 

Deputy Mayor Jay Moran praised Simmons for his work to uncover the identify of the nine limited partners and unravel the complex history of the project. 

"The last time we reported this, I left shaking my head," Moran said. 

Mayor Leo V. Diana asked Simmons to keep the board updated about the situation. 

"We would like to be kept appraised of this issue as it goes forward, and I think that we would like a  report every month," Diana said. 

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Editor's Note: Manchester Patch Editor David Moran is in no way related to Deputy Mayor Jay Moran, but does think his last name is pretty cool.