Saco City Council to discuss proposed Toddle Inn settlement in Monday executive session
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The former Toddle Inn building at 5 Willey Road, as seen on Thursday. LIZ GOTTHELF/Saco Bay News
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SACO — City Officials will continue discussions on Monday regarding a proposed settlement with the owners of 5 Willey Road.
The 5 Willey Road property is the site of a former Toddle Inn day care facility, and was chosen by the School Board to house the Pre-K program in the current school year.
And while the school department last year signed a 10-year lease, classes were never held at 5 Willey Road. The city ordered the school department to vacate the building last summer, stating that the use of the building as a public school was prohibited by covenants in the Spring Hill Business Park, where 5 Willey Road is located
The school department found alternate locations for the Pre-k classes, and in the fall stopped making the $24,000 a month lease payments to Toddle Inn.
After an executive session discussion in February, the City Council agreed on a tentative settlement agreement to be further reviewed by the city administrator with conditions that would be subject to code enforcement granting a new occupancy permit authorizing 5 Willey Road as a “public/private school” and review by the city planner of conditions imposed by the site plan permit for 5 Willey Road.
The city council further discussed the proposed settlement agreement at an executive session earlier this month, but did not make any public report after the meeting.
City Administrator Bryan Kaenrath said there is still a tentative settlement agreement in the works. The City Council is scheduled to discuss the proposed settlement agreement with an attorney during an executive session at Monday night’s City Council meeting.
Superintendent of Schools Dominic DePatsy said he could not comment on the matter at this time.
School board documents for the proposed upcoming fiscal year budget include mention of an estimate of $252,000 for Pre-K rental space at the Toddle Inn building for the upcoming school year, and the removal of the previously budgeted $41,000 for its current lease space for Pre-K.