| AUGUST 20, 2010 -- The Enfield Grange has turned its longtime meeting site at the Old Scitico Schoolhouse over to the town because it’s been unable to pay taxes on it since losing its nonprofit status three years ago.
But Grange officials want the public to know the organization is still alive and well and looking for a new home. Meanwhile, the town is considering selling the property after failing to find another nonprofit group willing to use it.
“When you give up your hall, everybody assumes that you’re gone,” said Irene Percoski, Grange program director.
“We’re going to keep going, we just need to find some place to meet,” Brian Carpenter, Grange president, told members of the Town Council last month.
The organization had used the old Scitico Schoolhouse at 2 Broad Brook Road as its hall since 1965 under an agreement with the town. But it lost its nonprofit status in 2007 and couldn’t afford to pay taxes. Nonprofit organizations don’t pay local property taxes.
The town had given the land to the Grange in 1965 under a quitclaim deed. The deed includes a clause that returns the land to the town if the Grange turns it over to another party or if it is no longer used for Grange purposes.
Now, the old schoolhouse is sitting unused, Deputy Mayor Kenneth R. Nelson Jr. said. The town had approached other nonprofit groups with a deal similar to the Grange’s, but they turned it down so the town is considering selling the property, he said.
The Grange’s 15 active members still meet monthly and are seeking new recruits, Percoski said. Meetings are held at members’ homes. They’ve looked into using another town building and have reached out to area churches to try to rent space. Many places are either too expensive or don’t have storage space for songbooks, regalia, and other meeting supplies, she said.
The Grange was founded as an agricultural organization formally known as the Order of Patrons of Husbandry in 1878. Since then, the emphasis has shifted from farming to community service. The Grange donates gifts such as memory books and “pajama kits” to foster children, participates in the Connecticut Children’s Center Covenant to Care campaign, and hosts needlework, photography, and baking contests, Percoski said.
It lost its nonprofit status after failing to host a fair every year — something specified in its charter, Percoski said. “With our membership aging the way it is, we simply didn’t have the services to put the fair on,” she said.
The group’s youngest member is in her 20s, Percoski said. The oldest turns 101 this year. And most are between 50 and 80, she said.
Since turning back the building, rumors have circled town that the Grange lost its charter with the state-level group. That’s not the case, Percoski said.
The Enfield Grange is still included on the state group’s website. Enfield is a member of the larger North Central Pomona Grange, which also includes Stafford, Tolland, and Vernon, it says. A representative from the Connecticut Grange didn’t return calls for comment Thursday.
The Town Council excused three years of not paying taxes on the land when it accepted the building back last month. That’s only fair, Mayor Scott Kaupin said.
“They’ve always been a nonprofit group,” he said. “The town shouldn’t profit from their dwindling membership.” |
