New Britain herald. [microfilm reel] (New Britain, Conn.) 1890-1976, 1925-10-03
PRICES VARY ON
new SCHOOL SITE
Property Owners Explain Why
They Set Figures

The hearing held yesterday by the
committee appointed by superior
court TO place valuation on GER
tain pieces OF property on the site
OF the new school to be erected at
Vance street, and Shuttle Meadow
avenue lasted upwards of three
hours and was marked by constant
puttering over maps and the reading
and rereadlng OF long lists Of cal
culations by local real estate men.
The committee, Attorney Edward
w. Broder of Hartford. Representa-
tive Francis Deming of Berlin and
Senator Samuel c. Doty OF Hartford,
will now review the case and sub
NIT a report to superior court. The
landholders involved are Michael
Arneth, Max Wild and Alta Mason,
these being represented respectively
by Attorneys Edward NJ. Yeomans of
Hartford, William NJ. Harmon and
Alfred Levitt.
The proceedings yesterday were a
result OF the school committee and
the landowners failure to agree on
fair price for the properties. Other
lots In the district were purchased
by the school committee without any
trouble, but when these three were
offered similar prices. they in turn
named other figures, considered as
prohibitive by the school committee.
Condemnation proceedings against
these landholders were then institut-
ed by the committee.
Joseph NJ. Halloran, chairman of
the building committee OF the school
committee, was the first to testify
at the hearing. Mr.. Haloran told
of his negotiations with the various
property owners, how very easy 1t
was to do business with some, and
how extremely difficult with these
three.
He told the prices offered the
three by the school committee.
Arneth, he said was offered s16,5o0,
Wilde was offered $4,000, and Mason
$11oo. Arneth demanded $4,000,
Wilde $500. and Mason $500.
Thomas Under, engineer connect
ed with the board Of assessors, was
then called, and he stated that he
had gone over the property and haa
determined the following valuations:
Arneth, $1,000. Wilde, $4,000 and
Mason, $1,000.
The next to testify in order we're
New Britain real estate men, Louie S.
Jones, William G. Dunn, James J,
Watson and Herbert V. Camp. All
these had previously been asked by
the school committee to make ap-
praisals of the properties and they
gave their findings. Although they
differed slightly, their figures were
materially the same as those offered
by the school committee.
Arneth Explains His Price
Michael Arneth was then called to
the stand. He said that he conducts
a feed and bird store business with
storehouse on his Shuttle Meadow
avenue property and store on
Arch street. He said that he did a
$50 900 business last year. but that
BUSINESS this year was not quite as
y ,od. Arneth said that his price for
The property, based on appraisals |
pada by himself, was $4,000, and
rs, he added. does not allow for
the loss in business entaied in the
He said that he also
lives on the property and that there
IL no other piece of land in the dis
trict fitted at all for his purposes. A
change. too, he claimed, would take
him from the proximity he now en-
lows TO a number of his biggest GUS
toners.
Two local real estate men, former
Mayor George A. Quigloy and Harry |
+. Morton, were then called by the
Arneth counsel. Both placed its
value as slightly more than 100000,
considerable of variance from the |
figures submitted by those previous
" testifying. Mr.. Morton, in addi-
ton, valued the Wild property at
$500.
Israel Wexler, building con-
tractor, said that the buildings on
the Arneth property were worth !
s14,31e.20, according to the cubic
measurements made.
Albert Mason appeared as agent |