Board of Selectmen 2023
Great Island Town of Darien Visioning Plan

Creating a Committee to Oversee Great Island on Selectmen’s Monday Night Agenda

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The Board of Selectmen’s agenda for Monday night includes a discussion and vote on setting up a committee to plan and oversee adjustments to the Great Island property that the town expects to officially own in early May. A draft “charge” for the committee, describing various tasks or goals that members are appointed to oversee, includes this description of some of the changes that are expected on the property:

“Planning needs to start now for the work that must begin immediately after the acquisition closes in May. This work will include, but is not limited to, widening access roads, establishing initial parking areas, determining property hours, and creating required signage. Also important will be remediation of certain environmental issues, management and control of existing improvements, and provision of sanitary facilities.” The draft also says:

“The acquisition of Great Island presents a tremendous opportunity for the Town of Darien to expand open space and provide additional recreational opportunities for our residents.

Government & Politics
Great Island Town of Darien Visioning Plan

Town Buys the 60-Acre Great Island Shorefront Parcel, Pays $85 Million, Sets May 5 Closing Date

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Darien town officials on Tuesday announced the purchase of the 60-plus-acre Great Island property on the shore of Long Island Sound, with a “final amended agreement” reached on Monday and a closing date set for May 5. “Great Island is a pristine landscape with approximately one and a half miles of coastline in an environmentally sensitive cove on Long Island Sound,” First Selectman Monica McNally said in a news release. “With this purchase, we have prioritized the conservation of this magnificent property, saving it forever from intensive development,” McNally said. “We have added significant open space for Darien, which is needed more and more as our town enters a new development phase.” McNally continued, “Great Island is a Great Investment for Darien.

Government & Politics
Great Island Wall Street Journal Ziegler 9-16-16

Stevenson on Town Buying $175M Zeigler Estate: Willing to Talk, But It Seems Too Pricey

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Darien town officials have considered whether to make a bid for the 62.5-acre Ziegler estate, up for sale for the first time in over a century — but First Selectman Jayme Stevenson said the current $175 million asking price is “staggering.” Stevenson said town financial officials considered how much a 20-year bond would cost the taxpayers if Darien paid what the Ziegler family and its real estate agent, David Ogilvy of Greenwich, are asking. It works out to about $13 million a year. “The purchase price of $175 million is a staggering amount of money,” Stevenson said in an interview Monday night. “I’m not sure we’re in a position at this moment to negotiate for something that expensive.”

Government & Politics
Great Island Wall Street Journal Ziegler 9-16-16

63-Acre Darien Waterfront Estate Now Up for Sale — Will Town Buy It?

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Great Island, a 63-acre waterfront estate in the possession of the Ziegler family for over a century, is now on the market for $175 million, which could make it the most expensive residential estate ever sold, according to a Thursday report in the Wall Street Journal. The property is located on Great Island Road, off of the northern end of Long Neck Point Road, not far from its intersection with Pear Tree Point Road, close to where Long Neck peninsula connects with the mainland. Great Island itself is connected to the rest of the property with a very short bridge. According to the Wall Street Journal article, “If it sells for anywhere near its asking price of $175 million, it could set a new record for most expensive residential property in the country, real estate veterans said.” The property is owned by the Ziegler family, descendants of industrialist William Ziegler, who bought the land around 1900.