Little Pink House_ A True Story of Defiance and Courage - Jeff Benedict [15]
After finishing her EMT shift, she went home to work on the house. In her mailbox she found a letter from the law firm Conway & Londregan, which had handled the closing on her house. She opened the envelope and found a bunch of papers and a cover letter. “Enclosed you will find your owner’s title insurance policy,” the firm’s real-estate paralegal had written. “Please file this with your other important documents. If you should have any questions, please do not hesitate to contact our office.”
Thinking nothing of it, Susette set the policy aside and retrieved the advertisement from her bag. The idea of going to school didn’t thrill her, but Regents College in Albany, New York, offered a nursing degree through correspondence courses; she’d never have to set foot in a classroom. That sounded good to her. After all, she had to find a way to make more money. A nursing career seemed like a natural choice, especially with her education as a paramedic. In a little over a year she could complete the courses and become licensed as a registered nurse.
She decided to apply for admission.
The same day, across town
Jay Levin liked what he saw. Under Claire’s leadership, a competent group had already started assembling around her. Levin knew Steve Percy well—the two were friends. Despite having no track record in large-scale urban renewal, Percy knew a great deal about commercial real estate. Much of the NLDC’s time would be spent acquiring properties and redeveloping them, so Percy’s connections and experience would be a major asset. Levin didn’t know Milne well, but he certainly knew his reputation. As Levin had promised Claire, all necessary paperwork had been filed with the secretary of state to reestablish the NLDC as a legitimate nonprofit agency. Levin prepared a confidential memo to Peter Ellef in order to update him. Levin’s contract with Ellef didn’t include scoping out the old mill site for development possibilities. In fact, the mill site was a long way from the pier area that the governor had his eye on. But it didn’t take an insider to realize that the governor would welcome a Fortune 500 company at the mill site.
“A focused development vision is already emerging,” Levin told Ellef. “As you are also aware (and we are pleased to have happen) we have pursued additional projects for you.” He continued: “Although not originally our primary concern, these efforts have involved extensive diplomacy with City officials and discovery of facts relating to the apparently collapsed Ocean Quest project at 36–90 Pequot Avenue.
“Of additional significance is the rapid revitalization of the New London Development Corporation under the direction of Dr. Claire Gaudiani, President of Connecticut College.”
Levin assured Ellef that he would personally draft the new by-laws for the NLDC. “City leaders are divided on its relevance and Dr. Gaudiani’s leadership,” he wrote, “but we will work with you and the Governor’s office to insure it … carry out the ultimate plan approved by you and the Governor.”
Levin requested more money for all the extra work. “Difficult local personalities and circumstances rendered our time frame overly ambitious,” he explained. “Yet we believe that we have the vehicle to carry the project into the future, but we need to strongly manage the final production of that New London Development Corporation vehicle.”
The word “vehicle” was appropriate. Levin had put the governor in the driver’s seat in New London. And by carefully managing Gaudiani, the state would be able to control the project from Hartford, steering around the Democratic-controlled city government.
Ellef approved another hundred-thousand-dollar payment to Levin.
It didn’t take Claire long to figure out that her primary opponent in New London was Democratic Party chairman Tony Basilica. Although Levin’s efforts to appease Basilica had failed, Claire decided to reach out to him. She called his office and left a message inviting him to the NLDC’s first board meeting, explaining it would be organizational in nature